Why do V6's sound so lame?

[tyoneal]

Hello:

Can someone explain why a V8 sounds great, and a V6 sounds like crap, seems like the rule says less Cylinders you have the poorer the sound is to listen to.

This said, you have a Harley V2 and they Sound Great.

(I know the V10's and V12's sound great, but they give off a completely different type of cool sound)

Is this a function of the Cylinder Head Shape, size and the shape of the valves, configuration of the exhaust etc.?

Since obviously the Harley's sound great, why can't the V6's be made to sound better? I'm guessing the Harley's have sub-par or outdated technology.

Why don't the designers of V6's use some of the same technology as the V10's and the V12's so they don't sound so lame in a sporty car?

What's the honest poop?

Thanks,

Ty O'Neal

[MattO]

There's a LONG list of things that affect the way a car sounds.


There are plenty of awesome sounding 6 and 4 cylinder motors and even an oddball 5 in there from time to time. One of my favorite exhaust tones for a long time has been from the Subaru boxer motors.There's also some really high revving low displacement motors like the former Toyota 4AGE Formula Atlantic motors. They could wind out to something like 12k rpm.

Each motor has it's own unique tone and whether or not you care for that tone is up to you.

[srh3trinity]

I don't have an answer for you, but I think that the motor in the 350Z/G35 and the 370Z/G37 are the best sounding sixes out there. I think the Subaru boxer is the coolest sounding 4. The Cummins inline 6 diesels sound cool, but that is a whole different ball game.

[Flash68]

Actually, the V10 Viper motors do not sound very good. Not muscular at all.

[badmatt]

Actually, the V10 Viper motors do not sound very good. Not muscular at all.


tractor like.

[srh3trinity]

Actually, the V10 Viper motors do not sound very good. Not muscular at all.
I would second that, I am not sure if I know of any v10's that have a good sound. The Ford V10's, while not a performance motor don't have a great sound either.

[badmatt]

I would second that, I am not sure if I know of any v10's that have a good sound. The Ford V10's, while not a performance motor don't have a great sound either.

the lambo v10's sound sexy..

[Flash68]

the lambo v10's sound sexy..

Correct. :thumbsup:

[srh3trinity]

the lambo v10's sound sexy..
True, for some reason, I always think about them having 12's.

[Matt@BOS]

the lambo v10's sound sexy..

As does the Carrera GT's engine. First year at RTTC Nathan (track coordinator) let his dad put a few laps on his Carrera GT during lunch. :drool:

[hifi875]

Nissan v6 are the smoothest sounding and I never thought I would ever here one that would sound good

[badmatt]

VRAlexander (RIP)

his CGT sounded awesome.

MkLjCYjqGDU

[Shmoov69]

Actually, the V10 Viper motors do not sound very good. Not muscular at all.

Normal driving they sound like a ups truck!! But under the hammer, they sound pretty good!

[TheJDMan]

VRAlexander (RIP)

his CGT sounded awesome.



That car sounds like a colossal fart!

[fleetus macmullitz]

Baddest n/a V10 I've heard.

p5Bpa2PZLxY

[Kawaden]

Hello:


This said, you have a Harley V2 and they Sound Great.

Since obviously the Harley's sound great,

Thanks,

Ty O'Neal

thats a very subjective observation. I think Harleys sound like some clapped out piece of farm machinery from the 1940's.

[Vince@Meanstreets]

its all in the firing order and compression.....plus most of the v6's you hear usually have 3" fart cans on em...hense the reason you can hear them. Cummin's to me sound like a Rotory on steroids. :D

[Vegas69]

Cherry Pie:D
Rqu_m-KfPFs

[Firebirdsteve]

always loved the sound of a BMW M3....Kinda bias though, I have one. :unibrow:


HSf-La3B8y8&feature

[Track Junky]

Sorry, couldn't help myself :unibrow:

wgeXtucgt1s

[elitecustombody]

Because they are not built like 2JZ!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lch_exQJPzc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmNy-ajRV0U

[Sieg]

Adrendaline Junky Symphony: http://www.streetfire.net/video/victory-by-design-ferrari-312-pb_179850.htm

[sokoloka]

http://youtu.be/07_ZEe7w2NI

Attack of the killer bees!

[legend]

http://youtu.be/LkdyJzKo8tE

NSX on ITBs sounds great

[igoslow]

This one sounds ok for a V6 (taken with a cell phone :( )

http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x47/igoslow/th_video-2011-11-06-18-13-27.jpg (http://s183.photobucket.com/albums/x47/igoslow/?action=view&current=video-2011-11-06-18-13-27.mp4)

[lilcraigford]

I saw the 2JZGTE mentioned... I'm very much in love with the sound of Volkswagen's VR6, or more specifically USP's VRT (video of their old 12V setup).

Dyno:
http://youtu.be/1Lst3aDTqoY

Quarter Mile:
http://youtu.be/097Ao_x8MEA

Street (love listening to that idle in the beginning):
http://youtu.be/HEhHOkmCJO8

[tyoneal]

Actually, the V10 Viper motors do not sound very good. Not muscular at all.

Thanks for writing.

When I wrote that, I was actually thinking about the V10 Ferrari's.

I don't know if that makes any difference, but I thought I would clear it up.

Thanks,

Ty

[tyoneal]

the lambo v10's sound sexy..

I agree 100%.

What is it, are is the Italians the only ones who can make beautiful music with an engine??

Ty

[fleetus macmullitz]

Germany has some inline 6's that can be made to sound quite rowdy. :unibrow:

Forward it to the 5 min 10 sec mark.

gVG2LS3JHic&feature

[Black93GT]

I personally love the sound of 6's as well. I had a little 2.5l v6 mazda engine that sounded smooth and loved righ rev's. The nissan 3.5 and new 3.7 both sound awesome. My 5.9 cummins has that meaty sound that just can't be beat.... the best part is the turbo that sounds like a little jet engine and makes your ears bleed.

[SR71]

harleys sound like crap and run like crap. they make louder and worse sounding noise than the ricers do and they move out of hearing distance even more slowly at wot.

harley-davidson....the world's most efficient way to turn fuel into noise without the by-product of horsepower!

[Ron in SoCal]

harleys sound like crap and run like crap. they make louder and worse sounding noise than the ricers do and they move out of hearing distance even more slowly at wot.

harley-davidson....the world's most efficient way to turn fuel into noise without the by-product of horsepower!

Can't agree. Sound is subjective and you are entitled to your opinion, but...I take it you've not watched the Vance and Hines team kill the ricers at the drags for the last five years? Granted, it's a V-Rod archechture but still.

I'd add, my 124 cu in/155 hp V twin sounds throaty and kicks some a$$. JMHO...:cheers:

[intocarss]

Not to bad sounding


nEjkjQam6_A

[SR71]

Can't agree. Sound is subjective and you are entitled to your opinion, but...I take it you've not watched the Vance and Hines team kill the ricers at the drags for the last five years? Granted, it's a V-Rod archechture but still.

I'd add, my 124 cu in/155 hp V twin sounds throaty and kicks some a$$. JMHO...:cheers:

ahhhhh....another uninformed fan of "the motor company".

sure the v-rods kill the jap bikes. BUT, the rules are heavily slanted by harleys sponsorship $$$. the nhra pretty much let harley write their own rules....

the v&h v-rods have aftermarket billet engines w/ ~50% more displacement, double overhead cams and four valves per cylinder. the "ricers" have much smaller engines, stock engine cases with in block single cams and 2 valves per cylinder.

AND no one but v&h is allowed to run the v-rod engine. everyone else has to run off the shelf stuff that must be available to ANYONE. suzuki petitioned the nhra to build an engine to the same specs as the v-rod engine and they were told flat out NO. no discussion of it whatsoever.

don't believe me??? read the rule book. or go over to yellowbullet.com and check out the motorcycle racing section. read what George Bryce, the owner of star performance and pro stock bike team owner, has to say.

harley is a disgrace to america plain and simple. they build an inferior, under-perfoming product and sell it for an inflated price.

oh, and your 155 hp v-twin has nothing for a zx-14 or hyabusa. my best friend used to have a 124ci ultima motored soft tail. my zx-14 walked it like it was a puny little sportster. by the time my front wheel touched back down, he was losing by bus lengths.

just the facts. :cheers:

[Vegas69]

Oh ya, my Dad could beat up your Dad.:lol:

[Ron in SoCal]

Oh ya, my Dad could beat up your Dad.:lol:

We're probably both old enough to be your Dad...:D

Seriously SR71, you win. What was this thread about?

[FETorino]

We're probably both old enough to be your Dad...:D

Seriously SR71, you win. What was this thread about?

Why do LS motors sound like crap was the topic I think:D

:cheers:

SR71 is probably not a bad guy just a big fan of Southpark

I7hQN4Amaeg&feature=related

[SR71]

We're probably both old enough to be your Dad...:D

Seriously SR71, you win. What was this thread about?

yes, we probably are.

I just hate for the harley guys to have the false belief that harley is winning on a level playing field in psb when it simply isn't true. the rules disparity is akin to super stock vs pro stock. let everyone run by the same rules and harley wouldn't even place.

it was about things that sound like crap....like mazda rotary engines. :D

[FETorino]

yes, we probably are.



it was about things that sound like crap....like mazda rotary engines. :D

Dude a 13b with a header, light flywheel and a downdraft Webber sounds like the baddest CR250 ever. How can you hate that?:D

[crazycarl]

Dude a 13b with a header, light flywheel and a downdraft Webber sounds like the baddest CR250 ever. How can you hate that?:D

Psssht, my CR500 powered Banshee has a turbo and a supercharger and runs through two Flowmasters. Beat that! :unibrow:

(I don't actually have a CR500 or a Banshee)

Personally, I love the sound of inline sixes and V4s. V6 engines sound way better once they are built a little bit. A lot of the sound has to do with compression, displacement and RPM too.

There's a fabricator up here in the Sacramento area who has a RB26DETT in his 69 Camaro. It runs but doesn't drive yet. Should be pretty awesome if he can find the time to work on his own stuff and finish it. :thumbsup:

[intocarss]

This LS or LX?? sounds great!!

IjhInJ03-Lg

[Simmo]

Quad Rotor on song...skip to 3:30

HWTULnclu6Y&feature=relmfu

With FI and a lazy 1000+hp..

pPref2CL8pw

When four isn't enough...

ptskAJjkGSQ

Nothing wrong with Rotors IMO, it's just 90% of their owners :rolleyes:

[tyoneal]

There's a LONG list of things that affect the way a car sounds.


There are plenty of awesome sounding 6 and 4 cylinder motors and even an oddball 5 in there from time to time. One of my favorite exhaust tones for a long time has been from the Subaru boxer motors.There's also some really high revving low displacement motors like the former Toyota 4AGE Formula Atlantic motors. They could wind out to something like 12k rpm.

Each motor has it's own unique tone and whether or not you care for that tone is up to you.
===========================
Your right if you take all the engines in the world there will be some of every different number of cylinders that will have a good sound to it, however maybe it is just the American cars that sound lame.

I do think that there are many more that sound bad than sound good even if all of them in the world were compared side by side.

Sure beauty is in the ear of the listener, but there is a general consensus that exotic Italian cars have a great/sexy/powerful/exciting sound.

Thanks,

Ty

BTW: I think you see a lot more ugly guys with beautiful girls in a Ferrari, than you do great looking guys in a 81 Ford Tempo.;)

[tyoneal]

I don't have an answer for you, but I think that the motor in the 350Z/G35 and the 370Z/G37 are the best sounding sixes out there. I think the Subaru boxer is the coolest sounding 4. The Cummins inline 6 diesels sound cool, but that is a whole different ball game.

====================================
No argument here, but what is the reason for this?

The exceptions are out there, and I don't mind listening to them all day long.

I've been on youtube for the engines I couldn't remember so your specifics are very helpful.

Thanks,

Ty

[tyoneal]

As does the Carrera GT's engine. First year at RTTC Nathan (track coordinator) let his dad put a few laps on his Carrera GT during lunch. :drool:

===========

I would guess a Cold Shower immediately followed.;)

Ty

[tyoneal]

VRAlexander (RIP)

his CGT sounded awesome.

MkLjCYjqGDU

==========================

Pure Music! No doubt.

Ty

[tyoneal]

Baddest n/a V10 I've heard.

p5Bpa2PZLxY

==========================

I guess what we are listening to is a smallish displacement mixed with 10k rpm's and a decent exhaust?

Is this kind of thinking headed in a possibly correct direction, in a very over simplified way?

Thanks,

Ty

[tyoneal]

thats a very subjective observation. I think Harleys sound like some clapped out piece of farm machinery from the 1940's.

==================================

I can see why someone might think that since what you hear is, "Po-Ta-To, Po-Ta-To, Po-Ta-To". :D

It does sound desirable enough that other manufacturers have tried to copy the sound of the Harley, and from what I understand they have (Or at least Tried) to Patent/Copy-write/Trademark the sound.

I know it's not all 3, but they have legally pursued protecting "Their" sound.

Ty

[tyoneal]

its all in the firing order and compression.....plus most of the v6's you hear usually have 3" fart cans on em...hense the reason you can hear them. Cummin's to me sound like a Rotory on steroids. :D

============================

Vince:

I would think it would require more than this as I have heard high and low compression dragsters and they both sounded like crap. Fast crap, yes, but crap all the same.

Firing order I don't think would have that profound a difference in the sound unless you simply switched two plug wires.;)

What are your thoughts?

Thanks,

Ty

[tyoneal]

Cherry Pie:D
Rqu_m-KfPFs

=================================

Damn that sounds great, Reminds me of Bonneville.

What kind of 6 cylinder did you say he was running? ;)

Ty

[tyoneal]

always loved the sound of a BMW M3....Kinda bias though, I have one. :unibrow:


HSf-La3B8y8&feature

===============================

I can understand that.

Also sounds a bit like a Motorcycle. (This is good!)

Is it a 3.0?

Ty

[tyoneal]

Sorry, couldn't help myself :unibrow:

wgeXtucgt1s

============================

And we are ALL better off for it!

Thanks,

Ty

[tyoneal]

Because they are not built like 2JZ!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lch_exQJPzc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmNy-ajRV0U

===================================

Yes, that does sound great, but what IS the cause other than spinning it up to 10k and adding a big turbo to it? (along with a few other choice pieces)

Ty

[tyoneal]

This one sounds ok for a V6 (taken with a cell phone :( )

http://i183.photobucket.com/albums/x47/igoslow/th_video-2011-11-06-18-13-27.jpg (http://s183.photobucket.com/albums/x47/igoslow/?action=view&current=video-2011-11-06-18-13-27.mp4)

=========================

I wasn't able to tell much about it other than a turbo and a nice sound. Can you tell me what I was listening to?

Thanks,

Ty

[tyoneal]

Germany has some inline 6's that can be made to sound quite rowdy. :unibrow:

Forward it to the 5 min 10 sec mark.

gVG2LS3JHic&feature

=============================

Any idea the hp and torq of that engine? I like the ITB's.

Thanks,

Ty

[tyoneal]

Not to bad sounding


nEjkjQam6_A

===============================
F1 is ALWAYS killer!

I'd love to have that sound in a affordable reliable package.

Ty

[tyoneal]

Why do LS motors sound like crap was the topic I think:D

:cheers:

SR71 is probably not a bad guy just a big fan of Southpark

I7hQN4Amaeg&feature=related

============================
Yes, that was it!:rolleyes:

Hey, I resemble that remark!

I have laughed at South Park a time or five myself.:D

Ty

[tyoneal]

yes, we probably are.

I just hate for the harley guys to have the false belief that harley is winning on a level playing field in psb when it simply isn't true. the rules disparity is akin to super stock vs pro stock. let everyone run by the same rules and harley wouldn't even place.

it was about things that sound like crap....like mazda rotary engines. :D

===================================
At least we have an American motorcycle company.
===================================
Any ideas on what the issue is regarding the sound of American 3-6 cylinder engines?

Ty

[tyoneal]

Dude a 13b with a header, light flywheel and a downdraft Webber sounds like the baddest CR250 ever. How can you hate that?:D

==============================
What engine can you imagine sounding and running great in a 1st gen Camaro, other than a V8?

Ty

[tyoneal]

Psssht, my CR500 powered Banshee has a turbo and a supercharger and runs through two Flowmasters. Beat that! :unibrow:

(I don't actually have a CR500 or a Banshee)

Personally, I love the sound of inline sixes and V4s. V6 engines sound way better once they are built a little bit. A lot of the sound has to do with compression, displacement and RPM too.

There's a fabricator up here in the Sacramento area who has a RB26DETT in his 69 Camaro. It runs but doesn't drive yet. Should be pretty awesome if he can find the time to work on his own stuff and finish it. :thumbsup:
================================
I'm interested, can you elaborate on what a "RB26DETT" is? (Sorry I'm a product of public schooling)

Anything on youtube about it?

Thanks,

Ty

BTW: I do have a '87 CR500. That bike rules off road if you can figure how to stay on it.

[tyoneal]

This LS or LX?? sounds great!!

IjhInJ03-Lg

===================================
Yes, it certainly does, however any ideas why the American, I-6, V-6, I-4 and V-4 don't?

Ty