I saw a Camaro with the inline 4 cylider engine today. Was the cutest thing I'd ever seen. I thought my car was slow, but this guy wanted to race and I showed him what was up.

Here's the Tech part of this...does anyone know what the HP ratings on those are. I know this isn't a V6 question, but there's no forum for the L4 engine, and we all know what would happen if i asked this in the V8 forum. Just curious about this. A camaro's a camaro you know, even if it does have the cutest little engine in it.

 

think the lil iron duke had something like 88hp one year, 95 a different, and maybe 100 in it's final year....but i do know that there is a page on this site that has those actual numbers on there.

 

GM dumped these engines into the engine bay to balance/raise the EPA gas milage ratings for General Motors vehicles.
Think a worn carb version 2.8 in these heavy cars is slow......
IF CORRECT these four cylinder things also went into the AMC Jeep vehicles, too. I KNOW the Jeeps, also received the 60* mills, until 1985 model, then Jeep used their own in-line 6 again.
Four Cylinder F-Bodies look real cute at Pick Your Part & Pick A Part in Sun Valley wrecking yards.

 

I have one of these "cute" little engines in my 84 SC. They had either 91 or 92 hp from 1982 till 1985. They were also used in other vehicles such as the Fiero, various GM fwd cars as well as Jeeps. It a great engine in the longevity department. There is a small aftermarket available for this engine. So remember...a built Iron Duke can take or keep up with your V-6's.

Brandon

 

My fav Iron Duke was the one Mickey Thompson used to run in his drag racing days.
He had a Tempest (1962) using a Pontiac Over The Parts Counter Supercharger.
My error.
Mickey had his Iron Duke Supercharged on a Rail Dragster.
Mickey ran lots of Pontiac hot parts stuff!
LOTS!

 

i wouldn't mind having an ol' iron duke!
those things are classic!
i would love to have one of every f-body...

 

I have a V6 right now but I have keeping an eye out looking for any iron dukes that are for sale that are in good shape. Those engines are really cool. You can actually get more power out of those little things than you can with our 6's. Just something to think about.

 

Ive got one of those little engines in my Firebird. Ive heard alot of comments about my engine but never the word cute. As a matter of fact the majority of the comments I get aren't positive.

Here are a few pics.

 

another angle

 

I would beg to differ about the positve comment- I bet alot of people give you a positive response-




















Like:

"I'm POSITIVE that motor is a piece of crap"

Just joking/ having fun

 

I know your joking, but for its size its a pretty good motor. Ive heard stories of people driving them forever and not busting them.

I don't drive like a maniac so this motor should last me a while.

 

Really??? I certainly won't :hail: to a 4-cyl thirdgen. But....they're very interesting to look at. And I'm quite happy with mine.

Brandon

 

Once again i wouldn't mind a good ol iron duke
and i do believe u can get more power out of it than the 6s... but i like my six too... choices... i have never seen a 4 cyl f-body before... i have seen the 4 cyl mustangs tho! wouldn't get that if my life depended on it.
well on second thought maybe if it did depend on it, but nothing more i promise.

 

Just gotta point out - the 2.5L Iron Duke in the later Fbodies, and Fieros and such are NOT the same as Mickey Tompson's Iron Duke. That was a Pontiac 389 cut in half - you can even run a single original Pontiac Motor Division's cylinder head on it (YES - Before '81 Pontiac MADE ITS OWN ENGINES. THEY WERE NOT CHEVY ENGINES!)

2.5L Iron duke != 389 chopped in half.

 

Some pretty good power (for a 4 holer) can be had, IF built right. The cost of building a mean Duke machine is astronomical. $2500 just for a Super Duty 2.5 block. GMPP sells a head for the Duke, priced at $800+-. Of course the more power, lesser the longevity becomes. I read on someone's web site how they built a 200hp Duke in there Fiero. Using a 91+ S10 block + marine 3.0 crank, nice cam, head port job and block bored can produce some good numbers.....for a 4-holer. Yes....this would be a stroker Duke!

Brandon

 

LoL... a cute engine.... haven't heard that one before! I've never seen a 4 Cyl 3rd Gen, but my other ride - '91 Grand Am has the 2.5L Iron Duke! Here's a pic of it... it doesn't do that bad in the Grand Am since its smaller than a 3rd Gen.. I've chirped em off the line a few times before!! The Grand Am is Ok... but I would still rather be drivin my 2.8 Camaro!

 

just thought it was cute because I've only read about them...never actually seen one. Kinda like the Loch Ness Monster. I thought the 2.8 that I have was a piece of work, then I actually saw a 4 cylinder thirdgen and almost cried. Personally, I don't think that a car with the reputation of a Camaro should have a little 2.8 V6 in it, let alone a 2.4 L4 motor, but I have a 6er and like it, so good times I guess.

P.S. I still think it's cute...hehehe

 

LOL, a 2.5l 4 banger. .


I would like to drive an iron duke just to see what it is like.

 

Finda Fiero.
I drove a 4 cylinder Fiero for 3,000 miles in 10 days all over Northern, Central & Southern California.
I LOVED THE CAR!
Engine did just fine.
One of the best times I ever had driving a car!
I LOVE FIEROS!

 

2.5......? Turbo.....? Twins, possibly......? Ooooooh.....

 

Your truely not missing much. If you have a V8, take off 4 of your plug wires, if you have a v6 take off two. Then run it.

If any of you ever see me and my car at a show or something, I would probably let you drive it just to see what it is like.

 

Doward is right about Mickey Tompson't Iron Duke. In fact, they used the Passenger's side bank of a 389. The engine was re-timed, and the head was a production Pontiac V8 unit. The reason that it was built this way was to save on the tooling costs. The engines were machined on the same tooling as the 389 engine, but 4 of the bars were just boring air. I have seen one of these things with a 6-71 GMC blower on it in a rail type dragster that ran in the mid 6s in the 1/8th mile. They can put out some power.

The Iron Duke isn't much less powerful than the 2.8 liter V6, and they usually got 3.73 gears to boot. I would say, other than winding out a bit higher, the cars should drive very similar. My brother had an S15 with the iron duke and a 5 speed. It had the 3.73's. My dad had a sonoma (1 year later model) that has the 2.8, a 5 speed, and 3.23 gears. The Iron duke one would beat the V6 model on acceleration! The trucks all use TBI, and the 2.8 in those doesn't have as much power as the ones in our cars, but you get the point.

 

After spending an afternoon in the garage - pullin' out my L98 - I wonder if it would be easier to do the same work on 4-cyl.

 

Probably! LOL Hell...there's probably enough room for you to stand in the engine bay next to the Iron Duke!! :sillylol:

Brandon

 

.

 

You can do that with the 2.8l too. Well, at least I can since I am short and slim (5' 7" 110 lbs.), but only after I remove my air intake. I do it all the time and it makes working on the back of the engine very easy. I have to make sure all my tools are in the engine bay too because getting in and out of the engine bay is nothing short of an acrobatical experience.


I'll have to take a picture of me standing in the engine bay so you guys can believe it.

 

Is this like a hobby of yours? :sillylol:

 

I did that sitting in engine bay trick with my 1975 Vega.
I'm 5' 11".
I miss my Vega
Can't wait to find another one for drag racing only!

 

Here is my twin brother Dan reflecting on the job we just did removing his 2.8L V6 to make way for the L98 350 we pulled from his IROC parts car.

I love this pic.