2012 V6 vs 2012 V8?

[nb_mike]

You have to laugh about somebody who calls a car with 333 hp (and gets to 60 under 6 seconds) a tractor.

I have a 2013 v6 with the 333 hp. Between the cost of the vehicle and gas savings I would buy the v6 again. I have the prem and Tech packages. I have owned a 66 chevy 396 and a new Impala v8 with 303 HP and the Genesis is quicker than either of them. I have passed semi trucks on two lanes and it flat out gets around them with no problem. From the line it may be not as fast as the v8 but I use the power more for going 40-60+ more than wearing out tires from the line. Those days are past for me. Everyone has to make their own decision but I don't regret the choice at all.

 

[GJEMD]

You have to laugh about somebody who calls a car with 333 hp (and gets to 60 under 6 seconds) a tractor.

I said, tractorish an adjective, not tractor a noun. I was referring to the 3.8's
obvious drive train sound and feel a full throttle compared to he 4.6. maybe you should drive both and you'll not be so defensive. I won't laugh at your
misinterpretation.

 

[Mark_888]

I said, tractorish an adjective, not tractor a noun. I was referring to the 3.8's
obvious drive train sound and feel a full throttle compared to he 4.6. maybe you should drive both and you'll not be so defensive. I won't laugh at your
misinterpretation.

Full Throttle? OK, but not many normal people accelerate full throttle. I use my car to provide comfortable transportation, not to get my rocks off.

 

[Fast55]

I said, tractorish an adjective, not tractor a noun. I was referring to the 3.8's
obvious drive train sound and feel a full throttle compared to he 4.6. maybe you should drive both and you'll not be so defensive. I won't laugh at your
misinterpretation.

This sounds like someone unhappy with the fact that the new V6 is nearly as fast as the old and now discontinued V8. There is a reason for that, and the reason is, there just isn't much difference between them. That, and the V6 is noticeably more efficient.

Yes, the 4.6 is faster, and more importantly, has more torque (my favorite), but again, the difference is now small enough the factory killed the 4.6. IMHO not keeping the 4.6 with a small bump in HP/torque or the non-R-Spec 5.0 was a mistake. I like but do not need the power of the 5.0 and thought the rougher/stiffer nature of the R-Spec did not fit the personality and purpose of the car, so I bought a 3.8 with every option instead.

 

[mtrot]

I'm finally down to deciding between the 2012 V6 with Tech package and the 2012 V8. I know there's a difference in HP, and the V6 gets 2-3 mpg more, but I keep reading comments saying the 4.6L V8 is a much better. "A much nicer car", "Gives you so much more", "you're an idiot if you buy the 3.8". So I guess these arguments aren't specific enough for me. What specifically does the 2012 4.6 give you that the 3.8 with Tech package doesn't? And what do you like better with the 4.6?

Well, FWIW, I just picked up a like new 2012 with the 4.6, after having test driven both a 2013 3.8 and R-spec. I didn't spend a lot of time in the 3.8, but my impression is that, yes, the 3.8 probably can do 0-60 about as fast as the 4.6, but the 4.6 has this exhilarating rush of power and torque that lasts when you tromp on it on the highway. This is particularly helpful when you need to pass someone or "squirt" ahead of the surrounding traffic. I don't know, I just wanted a rear wheel drive V8.

 

[PMCErnie]

I said, tractorish an adjective, not tractor a noun. I was referring to the 3.8's
obvious drive train sound and feel a full throttle compared to he 4.6. maybe you should drive both and you'll not be so defensive. I won't laugh at your
misinterpretation.

Thanks, I will have to investigate and see if my V6 sounds like a tractor. Maybe you meant torquey?

 

[scottdk]

This sounds like someone unhappy with the fact that the new V6 is nearly as fast as the old and now discontinued V8. There is a reason for that, and the reason is, there just isn't much difference between them. That, and the V6 is noticeably more efficient.

Yes, the 4.6 is faster, and more importantly, has more torque (my favorite), but again, the difference is now small enough the factory killed the 4.6. IMHO not keeping the 4.6 with a small bump in HP/torque or the non-R-Spec 5.0 was a mistake. I like but do not need the power of the 5.0 and thought the rougher/stiffer nature of the R-Spec did not fit the personality and purpose of the car, so I bought a 3.8 with every option instead.

Hyundai may not use the 4.6 anymore, but the 5.0 is the same block and engine, but with GDI, so the Tau is not discontinued anyway. I had every intention in 2009 to buy a 3.8, but once I saw the price tag with tech added, the 4.6 with tech was only a tiny bit more ($1,200) and in 2009 the V8 model came with options not even available on the V6. This was also a time when the 2009 through 2011 3.8 and 4.6 were nearly identical MPG wise too. Anyone who would say the GDI 3.8 is slow was obviously dropped as a child, but the 4.6 is an outright animal when passing or dropping the hammer at 30 mph or higher. It's no torque monster and I find that out of the hole at WOT I want more get up and go.

 

[zielritter]

I said, tractorish an adjective, not tractor a noun. I was referring to the 3.8's
obvious drive train sound and feel a full throttle compared to he 4.6. maybe you should drive both and you'll not be so defensive. I won't laugh at your
misinterpretation.

Tractorish: That which resembles or likens itself to a tractor.

Ergo, it matters not if you called it a tractor or tractorish as the adjective bestows the quality of a tractor upon its target noun.

From a dig I'll match my 3.8 against any stock 4.6. The 4.6 was discontinued because the marginal performance of the V8 is less than the marginal efficiency of the V6.

 

[GJEMD]

Full Throttle? OK, but not many normal people accelerate full throttle. I use my car to provide comfortable transportation, not to get my rocks off.

I suppose you never pass on a 2 lane Highway. That often requires full throttle and is also beneficial to the engine. I'm 62 so I will laugh at your juvenile "get your rocks off. It's really ok , as a general principle the greater the number of cylinders to distribute a power curve the smoother.
12 smoother than 8 smoother than 6. Actually inline 6 cylinder is smoother than a V6 because the crankshaft distributes the power.

 

[GJEMD]

Tractorish: That which resembles or likens itself to a tractor.

Ergo, it matters not if you called it a tractor or tractorish as the adjective bestows the quality of a tractor upon its target noun.

From a dig I'll match my 3.8 against any stock 4.6. The 4.6 was discontinued because the marginal performance of the V8 is less than the marginal efficiency of the V6.

So if you will reread my original post I actually stated the 3.8 acceleration
was pretty good. But now, you want to MATCH your 3.8 against any 4.6.
I hope you find the challenge so you can"get your rocks off" You couldn't give me a current GDI powered vehicle. Surprises are in store

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[Mark_888]

I suppose you never pass on a 2 lane Highway. That often requires full throttle and is also beneficial to the engine. I'm 62 so I will laugh at your juvenile "get your rocks off. It's really ok , as a general principle the greater the number of cylinders to distribute a power curve the smoother.
12 smoother than 8 smoother than 6. Actually inline 6 cylinder is smoother than a V6 because the crankshaft distributes the power.

Occasionally I have to accelerate very quickly, but never at full throttle on the Genesis. Maybe in some older cars years ago with less than half the horsepower, but never with the Genesis. I understand the thrill of street racing, but I don't do that kind of thing.

 

[zielritter]

So if you will reread my original post I actually stated the 3.8 acceleration
was pretty good. But now, you want to MATCH your 3.8 against any 4.6.
I hope you find the challenge so you can"get your rocks off" You couldn't give me a current GDI powered vehicle. Surprises are in store

Me too. I really would like to race one to get some closure on the issue. Hopefully I can film the damn thing in action. That would "get my rocks off" I guess.

If there are any surprises I guess that 100k powertrain warranty will be put to work. I've taken steps to lessen the likelihood of any carbon build up, so we'll see.

I'm just "busting your balls" (see what I did there?) about the tractor thing. It was a bad choice of words, but I legitimately think the 4.6 would be a more competent performance choice should we be on the autobahn.

Otherwise, the difference is purely non-consequential (i.e. The 4.6 feels more effortless, the 4.6 feels more stable, the V6 sounds less refined).

 

[Fast55]

Hyundai may not use the 4.6 anymore, but the 5.0 is the same block and engine, but with GDI, so the Tau is not discontinued anyway. I had every intention in 2009 to buy a 3.8, but once I saw the price tag with tech added, the 4.6 with tech was only a tiny bit more ($1,200) and in 2009 the V8 model came with options not even available on the V6. This was also a time when the 2009 through 2011 3.8 and 4.6 were nearly identical MPG wise too. Anyone who would say the GDI 3.8 is slow was obviously dropped as a child, but the 4.6 is an outright animal when passing or dropping the hammer at 30 mph or higher. It's no torque monster and I find that out of the hole at WOT I want more get up and go.

The point is, for a new G I had two options, the 3.8, or R-Spec, but I drove both an earlier V6 which I immediately dropped from consideration, a 2012 4.6 which I liked, but didn't make sense given the price and miles, and the new V6 and R-Spec. Pretty much the same car except the engine. The only real differences were the suspension and (obviously) motor. Same everything else except no dimming driver's mirror and lighted door sills.

As I said, I like torque and have a 600+ Lb./ft. ticket magnet in the garage. Even the family SUV is 400+ HP/TQ. There were no new 5.0 or 4.6's close by, and frankly, having sold cars as a kid, I'm done with all the bullshit and won't travel any distance to be jerked around and "hopefully" make a deal. Basically, with the deals on new G's, a CPO didn't make sense. A plush work cruiser is the definition of the 3.8 and what I was looking for.

 

[GJEMD]

Me too. I really would like to race one to get some closure on the issue. Hopefully I can film the damn thing in action. That would "get my rocks off" I guess.

If there are any surprises I guess that 100k powertrain warranty will be put to work. I've taken steps to lessen the likelihood of any carbon build up, so we'll see.

I'm just "busting your balls" (see what I did there?) about the tractor thing. It was a bad choice of words, but I legitimately think the 4.6 would be a more competent performance choice should we be on the autobahn.

Otherwise, the difference is purely non-consequential (i.e. The 4.6 feels more effortless, the 4.6 feels more stable, the V6 sounds less refined).

Tractorish is commonly used by Journalist at Car&Driver R&T and Automobile to describe the subjective experience of engines under review. Generally reserved for 4 cylinder engines. I can tell you the Infiniti M45 isnot as smooth and seamless as the 4.6. M45 was my previous vehicle. By definition the higher compression of GDI engines makes the detonation pulse
more obvious than Multi-port EFI.

 

[mtrot]

Tractorish is commonly used by Journalist at Car&Driver R&T and Automobile to describe the subjective experience of engines under review. Generally reserved for 4 cylinder engines. I can tell you the Infiniti M45 isnot as smooth and seamless as the 4.6. M45 was my previous vehicle. By definition the higher compression of GDI engines makes the detonation pulse
more obvious than Multi-port EFI.

From years of reading those car magazines, as well as personal experience, I believe what is commonly meant by "tractorish" is the property of an engine to produce most of its power kind of suddenly and then peak out kind of suddenly. A lot of V6 engines can have this property. The really nice thing for the 3.8 is that it has those 8 transmission speeds to work with, so it can stay in the power band at all times, and have great performance. I just don't think it is going to produce the same subjective sense of linear thrust as the 4.6.

 

[veed]

perhaps my tastes aren't as refined as all y'alls (read: i am not the Stig) but it would be hard to be more pleased than i am with my 2011 4.6. smooth, powerful, and pretty efficient for an 8 ... and substantially different from my Kubota and Massey.