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Is the 3100 engine ****?

M

MattF

New member
From what I'm seeing around here I'm kind of getting that impression. I'm thinking about buying an older 95 or 96 GP with the 3100 in it because they're pretty cheap on Craigslist and I just kind of want a cheap car from now until I graduate in a couple years. I don't mind doing work on it every once and a while and would expect to on an older car but I don't want to buy something that is going to be a constant headache.

Which brings me back to my original question, are these engines **** or should I be okay on one that has 140-150k miles?
 


They run a long time if cared for, biggest problems are intake gaskets and head gaskets.

Most of the time once they have been fixed the motors still pretty solid. I see them all the time with well over 200k miles but they likely had at least one major repair in it's lifetime.

You can find a 3.8 grand prix of a newer year for so cheap now, I not sure I'd even consider going older and getting one with a 3.1.
 
I used to own an '02 with a 3.8 in it. Had my fair share of problems with it, guys at AutoZone started to recognize me haha.

Do the older 3.1 engines still have the problems that the ones the next gen GP had? I thought I read the older ones seemed to hold up a little better and didn't seem to have the same LIM gasket/head gasket issues
 
In my experience although the 2 engines share some of the same issues ie intake gaskets the 3.8 is much easier to work on. For example the 3.1 to change the lim gaskets you have to loosen the rockers and pull the push rods where as the 3.8 you do not.
 
a 94/95 regal with the 3800 is the ****, you can find the early SII 3800 L36 in em (L27 was also available iirc) and all you gotta do is splice in the nearly stand alone 98+ gp harness and shove the pcm in there

no emissions in 49 states, clean ones still available in the south, buick luxury, plus last of the 2 door regals
 


I have had (3) 3.8L V6's in an 01 Buick, 04 impala, and 98 GP GT and the 3.8 is a good motor but I too had my fair share of issues with all of them. This constant drone of how great the 3.8 motor is over the 3.1 is more hype than anything else. The 3.8 has slightly more power than the 3.1 but neither motor is powerful. My 08 Chrysler 300 with the 3.5L DOHC 4 valve heads makes 250 hp which is 10 more HP than the mighty 3.8L supercharged engine...

I still have an 01 GP SE with the 3.1 that I have owned since new and that motor just turned 201,000 miles and still on the OEM 4T65E tranny as well. At 192,000 miles in Dec 16, I did do the LIM gaskets due to an external coolant leak (no coolant in the oil, no oil in crankcase) since I thought the coolant leak was from the LIM gasket failing....it was not. It turned out to be the o ring seals on the coolant by pass tube under the intake manifold but I installed new Felpro LIM gasket as well and cleaned the injector and changed the injector O-rings. Going for 250,000 miles now....
 
From all of GM's attempts at building a good V6, I think the 3.1 and 3.4 get honorable mentions. 3.8 gets runner up (2nd place) for factory supercharger.

4.3L FTW!
 
Had one had to change head gaskets at 200,000 miles only major problem with this motor ran it for another 50,000 until the body was shot what a car would buy it all over again if I could
 
Only thing a 3100 is good for is keeping the car drivable till you 3800 swap. At the comment of "3800 only had a few more HP" HP isn't the whole story. 3800 will pretty much always walk a 3100 period. And a 3800 will always handle more abuse. And I won't ever buy from autozone again
 
The 3.8 and the 3.1 are BOTH slow...neither are performance engines. The 3.8 is a better base for more HP and there are a lot more parts available since it is the bigger displacement V6 but seriously......
 


lol, 3800 not a performance engine? Lmao...

anyways... 2001 3100 SE with 267,000+ miles on it. Got it with 36 and added everything else. Recent front cover gasket replacement and more. Typical for GP's is rust will doom car before mechanicals if taken care of.
 
coolone said:
lol, 3800 not a performance engine? Lmao...

anyways... 2001 3100 SE with 267,000+ miles on it. Got it with 36 and added everything else. Recent front cover gasket replacement and more. Typical for GP's is rust will doom car before mechanicals if taken care of.
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Not even close to a performance engine...Nope. A V6 Camry with the 3.5L V6 has 268 Stock HP and that is not a performance engine either...There are a boat load of stock V6 engines out there that would put the 3.8L to shame and the 3.8 supercharged as well. Let's get real folks!

My 08 Chrysler 300 with the 3.5L V6 makes 250 stock HP...Nope not a performance engine either

Now the RWD Lexus IS350 3.5 V6 with 306 stock HP is closer to a performance engine.

Any FWD drive platform can be made into a performance sedan of some sort with enough time, money, and effort but sort of like swimming upstream.

The only performance mass market American sedans really are the RWD Impala SS (Australian Holden suspension and chassis), RWD Pontiac G8 V8, and the Pontiac GTO (a coupe).
 
You're all over the board there. Guess it depends what your earmark of "performance" is.

I see rear wheel drive = performance, apparently.

If you're talking current foreign production vs the 3800, then you should probably include some of the more famous V8's in American Automotive history.

Chrysler 300 V6...I don't think you'll find an argument about that thing being slow. Lol
 
They are solid. I have a 94 Cutlass 2 door as my DD. I have had it since 97 when I bought it with 50k. It currently has 246,xxx on it and still running strong. Plenty of power for getting around Houston, gets good mileage, and just keeps running. I keep thinking it will die one day, but it won't. Not to mention the parts are cheap and it's pretty easy to work on. I need to sell it soon as I need to thin the herd in the driveway, but it's a shame as it's hard since it isn't worth much and won't sell for much.
 


My wife's 2015 Chrysler 200C has the 3.6l V6, which makes 295hp. What's the point here?

At the time of production, the 3.1L made 160-180 hp. The 3.8L made 195-240 hp. The predecessor to the engine in my wife's car, the 3.3L and 3.8L 60° V6, made 150- 210 hp. Same time frame as the 3.1 and 3.8.

According to the information listed above, the 3.1 made very similar power to other similar sized engines. But technology has advanced a lot in the past two decades, and modern V6's are guaranteed to make more power. The main reason is because 20 years ago, the main concern for an automobile engine wasn't how much power it could make, but how low they could make emissions and fuel consumption while still keeping decent performance. Nowadays, the focus has shifted.

And if you've kept up on modern vehicles, you know there is now a production car that can lift the front tires off the ground straight from the factory. It has 840 hp. (hint: it's called the Demon)

My point is, comparing the 3.1 to a modern V6, or even the 3.8, is pointless. For one, there's no replacement for displacement. Two, boost makes everything better. And three... It's an old engine, designed with old technology, and found in cheap cars. It's ok for what it is, but it's not a performance engine. (Unless you own and drive a McLaren Turbo GP, in which case the 3.1L 60° V6 IS a performance engine.) (If you own one, but don't drive it, you are a disgrace to all car enthusiasts everywhere.)
 
SaukRapids said:
Chrysler 300 V6...I don't think you'll find an argument about that thing being slow. Lol
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I can verify, with the same year, traction, and engine; (2015, 3.6L V6, AWD) the 300 is slower than the 200. It's because of the heated/cooled cup holders in the 300... Fancy isn't fast. :p lol
 
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