Toyota it is the most profitable brand in terms of maintenance and repairs; CarEdge estimates that your average Toyota product costs owners $5,996 to repair and maintain over 10 years. While its Honda compatriots are more associated with engine building, Toyota’s legendary reliability status is based on its incredible engines. However, every coin has two sides, and for every reliable Toyota engine, there’s an equally more disastrous cousin tasked with carrying the can in the name of development.
The most reliable Toyota engine today is the super-flexible 2GR-FKS 3.5-liter block, an engine that has stuck around since its inception in 2002, powering everything from commercial trucks to sedans. Even iconic British sports car manufacturer Lotus uses the 2GR platform for its latest petrol sports car, the Lotus Emira. Toyota’s great flexibility in the engine department got us thinking. What are the most loved Toyota engines on the market today? And also, what are the worst power plants coming from the best-selling automotive brand in 2022?
10 We love: 3.0-liter 2JZ-GTE
Designed to compete with Nissan’s venerable RB series, Toyota launched the 2JZ, with a 3.0-litre displacement aided by a twin-turbocharger sequential setup co-developed with Hitachi. The famous 2JZ powered the fourth generation Toyota Supra, Toyota’s insanely powerful 2JZ may not have been enough for Smokey Nagata. Still, it satisfied most of Japan’s iconic tuning scene!
Toyota’s 2JZ engine comes perfectly balanced and features twin turbochargers of the same size. While most of the automotive world struggled to install a reliable twin-turbo setup at the time, Toyota’s incredibly sophisticated sequential system forced boost from as little as 1,800 rpm, with a second stroke coming to 4,000 rpm, resulting in an immensely consistent powerband.
The absurdly reliable 2JZ engine arrived aboard the fourth-generation Toyota Supra in 1993. Interestingly, the block loosely adhered to Japan’s “gentlemen’s agreement,” which limited power to around 276 hp. American twin-turbo models produced a modest 330 hp and 320 lb-ft of torque. In fact, we love the 2JZ because of the Toyota engine’s exceptional ability to handle up to 2,000 hp when tuned!
9 Avoid: 3.0 liter 1MZ-FE
Some of the biggest cars for first-time buyers are the Toyota Camry and the Avalon. However, if you buy a fancy V6 Toyota Camry between 1993 and 2002, be meticulous about your service schedule, as the on-board block is very susceptible to engine sludge build-up. The 1MZ-FE 3.0L became so notorious for this problem that Toyota was forced to settle a class action lawsuit in 2007 regarding the 3.5 million affected vehicles!
The Toyota 1MZ-FE also suffered from serious oil leaks when armed with Toyota’s legendary VVT-i system; It’s fair to say that the 1MZ V6 is one of the worst V6 engines ever developed by Toyota.
8 We love: 4.8 liter 1LR-GUE
Arguably Toyota’s most iconic engine, the 1LR-GUE is featured exclusively in the equally legendary 500 Lexus LFA cars built between 2010 and 2012. The highly over-engineered V10 uses titanium-magnesium alloy construction. This very expensive development option resulted in a Toyota V10 engine with the weight of a V6 and the dimensions of a V8 block. While 552 hp and 354 lb-ft of torque sounds relatively low for a supercar, the LFA’s V10-throbbing heart delivers in spectacular fashion, resulting in a 0-60 time of 3.6 seconds!
Toyota’s iconic V10 engine can bounce into its long 9,000 rpm redline in just 0.6 seconds! Thanks to development input from Yamaha, the motorcycle/keyboard maker actually helped design the Toyota engine with acoustics in mind; that “screaming angel” sound emanating from the V10 Toyota engine is entirely intentional and largely due to the placement of the surge tank on board the LFA. Yamaha optimized the thickness of the firewall and installed horizontal ribs to help the Toyota engine deliver a sound not too dissimilar to an F1 car.
7 Avoid: 3.0 liter 7M-GTE
Although Toyota is famous for its reliability, the 7M-GTE is a bad example. The turbocharged iteration of the Toyota engine powered the third generation Supra from 1986 to 1992 before being replaced by the JZ series, and we should all be thankful! During manufacture, Toyota recognized a failure in the head bolt of the 7M engines, which resulted in chronic head gasket failure. Owners also report that 7M engines suffer from rod knocks on a regular basis.
For all its faults, the 7M-GTE produces a respectable 232bhp when exposed to the MK3 Supra, and while most will turn to a cheap BMW for their tuning kicks, a 1992 MK3 Supra with a block 7M-GTE costs an average of $21,000, while a 1993 model equipped with a 2JZ soars to $63,000! What a tempting risk.
6 We love: 4.0 liter 1UZ-FE
When praising the famous Japanese powerhouses, most will talk about the Honda K-Series for its compact versatility, standing at the forefront of the automaker’s brand identity. However, if there’s one engine that shows what Toyota stands for, it’s the UZ engine family. Toyota poured a billion dollars into the development of the reliable V8 between 1984 and 1989, with multiple prototypes racking up an astonishing 1.67 million miles before a single unit made its way into the prying hands of the public.
In fact, the 4.0-liter 1UZ-FE is responsible for leading the company’s launch of its opulent Lexus brand in 1989, sitting aboard their debut vehicle, the LS400, a car that has seen examples reach a ridiculous 1,000,000 miles! Now that’s a Toyota engine worth writing about!
5 Avoid: 1.8 liter 1ZZ-FE
It certainly pays to go German when looking for a reliable four-cylinder in the early 2000s, as Toyota delivered the flakey 1ZZ-FE in 1998, sitting inside its Celica GT and MR2 models. In fact, Lotus even used the 1ZZ in its Elise sports car. Unfortunately for owners of this Toyota engine, high oil consumption issues had begun to plague the brand’s smaller power plants, as well as costly repairs related to the cast iron cylinder liners of paper
The 1ZZ quickly gained an unreliable reputation, with broken piston rings in pre-2005 units. And if you thought the 2006 iteration was better, post-2005 Corollas armed with the 1ZZ were subject to a recall related to a weak ECM that caused engine failure. The Toyota 1ZZ-FE engine was phased out in 2007 as Toyota cut its losses with the problematic issue.
4 We love: 2.0-liter 4U-GSE
The Toyota 4U-GSE, or FA20 as it’s more commonly known, is a 2.0-litre flat-four, developed in conjunction with boxer engine specialists Subaru. Subaru handled manufacturing duties for the Toyota 4U-GSE between 2012 and 2021 from its plant in Gunma, Japan, in preparation for its exclusive installation in the Toyota GT86 and Subaru BRZ range. The little four-cylinder engine uses a Toyota D4-S fuel injection system, which sends a modest 205 hp and 151 lb-ft of torque to the rear wheels of the GT86 and BRZ sports cars.
On the surface, these sports cars are low-powered badge-engineered junk joining the ranks of the many failed four-cylinder sports cars. However, thanks to the GT86/BRZ chassis offering near-perfect weight distribution at 53:47, the skinny rear-wheel-drive tires plant all 205bhp to the tarmac in thoroughly entertaining fashion.
Toyota’s twin four-cylinder is a match made in heaven when paired with its GT86 host. Unlike the plethora of turbocharged sports cars we see today, the FA20 engine is fully capable of a high-speed experience due to its naturally aspirated nature – the perfect recipe for a front-wheel-drive sports car comprehensive
3 Avoid: 3.0 liter 3VZ-E
While the 4Runner is routinely one of the best-selling cars in the world today, there was a time when Toyota armed the fledgling SUV with its woeful 3VZ-E 3.0-liter V6 engine. The V6 was produced between 1987 and 1995 across the Toyota pickup and 4Runner range to provide a more robust experience with a strong focus on efficiency. In fact, the 3VZ-E V6 is the first engine larger than a four-cylinder to power the Toyota pickup lineup since its debut in 1968. However, Toyota was too conservative with its new V6 format, as the block produced just 150 hp and 180 lb-ft of torque thanks to its lean 9:0:1 compression ratio and SOHC.
Toyota pickup trucks, like the 1992 T100, suffered from a dramatically low 5,200-pound towing capacity due to the lackluster Toyota engine. Additionally, the 3VZ-E engine was subject to chronic head gasket problems as Toyota moved away from asbestos applications during its manufacturing process. The underpowered/unreliable engine goes down in history as one of the worst Toyota engines you can buy today.
2 We love: 3S-GTE
The 3S-GTE is an excellent engine from Toyota, which made its name in the Toyota Celica and MR2 models between 1986 and 2007. This long life is the perfect advertisement for the robust nature of the 2.0-liter four-cylinder , as most of the examples live a rich life. up to 180,000 miles. Toyota’s little engine isn’t shy either, with the most powerful iteration of the 3S-GTE arriving with a CT15B turbocharger capable of bumping the little four up to 260 hp and 290 lb-ft of torque!
In fact, the incredible tuning community behind the Toyota brand is in no rush to squeeze up to 400 hp from the little Toyota engine, as the 3S-GTE was regularly in the capable hands of Japan’s finest . Toyota turned to Yamaha when they built the cylinder head for the 3S-GTE, a little four-pot project that probably fattened the legs of both companies before their ridiculous V10 exploits!
1 Avoid: 1.8 liter 2ZR-FE
Replacing the money pit 1ZZ-FE is the equally torrid 2ZR-FE. Toyota launched the 1.8-liter engine in 2007 through its supposedly super-reliable nameplates, the Toyota Corolla and Prius models. The 2ZR is a mid-line A-B Toyota engine with a reasonably capable 148bhp generated by its four-cylinder nature. However, the 2ZR suffered from the curse of the ZR family of engines and couldn’t help itself when it was hit with excessive amounts of oil.
Despite its eagerness for oil, the Toyota 2ZR engine suffers from widely reported leaks from its oil filters and problematic water pump. To rub salt in the wounds, Toyota fitted their Valvematic system with the 2ZR block, also known to throw tantrums regularly and cost an average of $700 to repair! The 2ZR is another Toyota engine worth avoiding unless you have a full piggy bank.
Sources: CarEdge, Classic.com, LexusEnthusiast
