460 or V10
So hubby and I are looking at some older class C's since that's what we can afford right now. 96 - 01 years We would like to tow our 01 grand cherokee behind whatever we get. So do we need shorter ...
Forum Discussion
JaxDad wrote:romore wrote:
The newer units will have the V-10, by all accounts it is a strong puller and gets reasonable gas mileage if driven sensibly. The 460 is an old design, not as emission friendly and has a big appetite for gas. Still, a lot of people like it for the brute torque.
It takes 'X' amount of gas to produce 'Y' amount of horsepower, period. There was no revolutionary change in efficiency or performance between the V8 and V10.
V10 is a completely different design with SOHC heads and is more willing to rev. More revs means more power and shorter gears can be run for more torque multiplication (many V10s game with 4.30:1 or 4.56:1). As long as you're willing to put up with some more revs (not necessarily more noise, just busier sounding) and trust that Ford did their homework when setting maximum RPMs, the V10 is the better engine.
I'd go V10 if possible. Far more likely than spark plug failure will be the E40D (which was generally considered junk) blowing up. The 4R100 that comes mated to the V10 is an improvement, though still not a great trans (make sure to manually select gears and stay away from OD when running hills). Also, newer means less sun on the roof and seals, less time for engine gaskets to age out, and less time for the elements to have their way with the coach. Obviously, this will vary with the previous owner's level of meticulousness, but as with everything mechanical, newer is generally better.
