'Biggest with the Smallest', does this make sense?

[RickT]

To me the answer is 'Yes'

My 1.2 Yeti is the biggest car with the smallest engine I've ever owned and yet I recon it's the best fun to drive   .  

 

My first ever car was a 1275cc GT Mini, probably the smallest car with the biggest engine.

 

What was your first ?

[Llanigraham]

My biggest car was a Series 3 Land Rover LWB Station Wagon with a 2.25 petrol engine, so not exactly a small engine, but decidedly gutless! (and bloody thirsty)

 

And my smallest car with the biggest smile has to be the Yeti.

[Frenchtone]

slow day then graham?

god its hot hot a la frog!

smallest with biggest grin - VW Corrado G60 god could it go even with 4 upmost stylishly gutless, Bmw 318i with added bits, - it came after the Corrado, piece of merde really!

[Llanigraham]

Very!!

(slow that is)

[33q]

Rover 214SLi. Lovely car. Needed 2 litres hence I always go for a larger engine these days

[yetifabia]

To me the answer is 'Yes'

My 1.2 Yeti is the biggest car with the smallest engine I've ever owned and yet I recon it's the best fun to drive   .  

 

My first ever car was a 1275cc GT Mini, probably the smallest car with the biggest engine.

 

What was your first ?

Point to remember though is that the engine is turbocharged and is roughly equivalent to a 1.6 engine.

[Paul52]

Smallest engine - 997cc in an elderly Ford Anglia. Biggest 2.7litre in a Volve 265 GLE - auto everything so extremely fun car when (due to what was later diagnosed as a dodgy battery) EVERYTHING went off at 70mph on the third (of four) lanes commuting home one night in the winter on the A27 outside Portsmouth. (For those that won't know it, it's a motorway in all but name). Fortunately after a few, very long, seconds, power was restored and I had lights, brakes, engine and gears again!

 

But I do agree with RickT, this has bot to be my smallest engine/biggest car combo and I do find my self grinning a lot when I'm driving it, and that's no bad thing.

 

(I think the Volvo was the GLE - I most remember never getting more than 20 mpg from it and sometimes as little as 15mpg. As you might guess, it wasn't long before it got moved on).

[Llanigraham]

Sometimes I was lucky to get the fuel consumption into double figures with the LR!!

 

Smallest engined car was our first; an 850cc Mini Estate.

[JCP]

848 minivan to 4.0 litre V8 Lexus.

[The Plumber]

Largest car with the smallest engine, then probably an inherited 1990 BMW 518i. Great car kept it ages but sadly p/x'd it due to increasing age and wear and tear bills for one of my most unreliable cars, also a BMW 5 series but with a 2.5 straight six and 4wd. Got shot of it very quickly and replaced it with our first Octy I

 

Also at one time had a Mondeo 2.5 V6; quick, drank lots of fuel, scary on anything but a dry straight road and had an over active traction control. Good lady managed to eventually break it by coming into contact with a bridge :peek: So it was replaced by another very unreliable BMW but a 3 series this time

 

 

TP

[CFB]

Can't do biggest with the smallest but go the other way round.

A 1962 mini with a 1380cc stage 3 lump.

Went like the proverbial but fell to bits eventually. It got replaced with a company van.

[gadgetman]

I had a 700cc Seat Marbella (panda).

[awfabia]

How about a 602cc Citroen Dyane? Great 'grin factor' , kids loved it with the roof rolled back. Bought it for £75 on my credit card for my wife's birthday present back in the '80's.

Good shopping car and reliable once I had done the 'demolition job' to get at the points!

Wouldn't hold a candle to Yeti - been built and waiting shipment - I can't wait.....

[Shanco]

To me the answer is 'Yes'

My 1.2 Yeti is the biggest car with the smallest engine I've ever owned and yet I recon it's the best fun to drive   .  

 

My first ever car was a 1275cc GT Mini, probably the smallest car with the biggest engine.

 

What was your first ?

My first car was a 1936 Austin 10 bought for £!5 when a student.

Largest car and engine I've had was a Chevrolet (lhd) Carprice estate with a 5.7 litre diesel engine.

Smallest family cars were two 2CVs and one Dyane - all with 602cc engines. When touring the continent these little cars were really 'gutsy' with a cruising speed of 68 and a maximum of 70. From memory the owner's manual advised 'pied a plage' and foot to the board it was. These liitle cars probably provided us with our most exciting and challenging holidays - they had their own individual idiosyncracies and 'personalities'.

[Expatman]

Drove a 4+ litre Supercharged Buick Park Avenue when I lived in USA - cornered like a slumberland mattress but great in a straight line and for long distance freeway cruises; total silence and great comfy seats, 600 miles per day no problem as long as there were no real corners to navigate.

[Agerbundsen]

Two different Chevrolet Suburbans with 454 big block V8 - 7.4 liters. Breathed a little on the last one with Holley double pumper carb, Weiand high rise manifold, glass pack Corvette mufflers, headers and a short duration, high lift camshaft. Estimated around 400 BHP.

 

My (then) 5 foot nothing British missus just loved to blow off Corvettes etc. at the red light.

 

Smallest was a Morris Minor during a six month stint i Yorkshire in the late 1960's.

[nickguzzi]

In the 60's, a Fiat 500.  slow and noisy, but at least felt fast. 

In the early seventies, a 10 year old 2CV, I don't think it was a flash 602 model.  Had awful drum brakes which would vibrate and create a lot noise, even when not using them.  Flat out 60 max.

Drove lots of yank metal when I worked for the US army in Germany.  I prefered the 21/2 tonne general purpose truck - the duce an a half.  The international scouts were ok too.

If you're looking for brutal, then my Laverda mirage 1200 was a lot of a beast. 

Best bike enjoyment wise was a prewar BSA M21.  No suspension, flat out at about 47 (it had been tuned!).  A huge hoot to pootle about on, and comfier than you would think with the sprung saddle.

[MarieK]

Drove a 4+ litre Supercharged Buick Park Avenue when I lived in USA - cornered like a slumberland mattress but great in a straight line and for long distance freeway cruises; total silence and great comfy seats, 600 miles per day no problem as long as there were no real corners to navigate.

 

'cornered like a slumberland mattress'    

 

Love it 

[Gobmax]

Hi, recently bought Innovan Caravan,

My vehicles have been, Hillman Hunter, Holden 253 V8,Hilux 2.2 Diesel, Landrover TDI diesel.

Added up mileage (KM) the other day, and the last 2 did over 700,000 KM, first 2 Did 350,000 Miles.

My Snowman has been the most comfortable of all, and my new Van which weighs 1300 KG,

my Snowman and Penguin suit each other and when I was doing 130 KM/per hour,and didn't relaise it,

until Police Car came the other way, and the best part is I've averaged 9.0 KM/100/K.

Towing the Van, Normally it's 5 KM /100.

I am so impressed with my car.

[weasley]

First car: 1977 Mini 1000 - smallest car, smallest engine.

The smallest car with the biggest engine I had was a BMW 130i; 265 bhp was a lot of fun!

Biggest car/smallest engine could be the Mazda RX-8; only 1.3 litres you know.

Edited 15 July, 2013 by weasley

[jonceebee]

Like others a 848cc Mini back in the 60's. Largest engine 2.8 Mk 2 Jaguar, but the best for performance the BMW 2002 Tii 2 litre turbocharged, some performer that was. Always regretted parting with the latter two cars.

Interestingly the first car I owned was a 100E Ford Anglia with a 1.2 side valve engine, seems unbelievable that this engine only put out around 25 HP just compare that to the 1.2 Yeti 

[MikeWales]

My first car 1967 Austin Cambridge automatic which I bought in 1975 and had rusty sills even then and the Borg Warner auto gave up the ghost after a year!

 

I had one Citroen Dyane and later 3 Citroen 2CV's, blue, yellow, blue, all with the 602 cc 2 cylinder engine. Great fun all of them and all quite reliable. So that was my smallest engine.

 

Largest engine, I had (briefly) a 1972 Rover 3.5 coupe. I had this in 1986 and that had rusty wings too, but also the automatic choke stuck on, so it only did 15 mpg. But it was a hoot when I floored it and sped past lesser mortals.

 

Biggest smile either a Ford Puma, marvelous 1.7 engine developed with Yamaha and rifle-bolt gearchange, or my first Mercedes SLK new in 2007. Watching the roof do its magic trick was so elegant and wondrous to behold

 

But the Yeti is much more fun to drive than my SLK's. I love it. :love:

Edited 15 July, 2013 by MikeWales

[Freshacre]

Smallest were two original FIAT 500Ls back in the late 60s.

598ccs, top speed 58mph, 0-58 took 38 secs!! But we could squeeze 10 vet students inside, utilising the opened roof. Had a no-synchromesh gearbox.

Largest? Bedford TK Horsebox 7 tons, with a petrol engine top speed 45, and doing 9 mpg. Took us, the horses, a motorbike all over UK doing displays at County Shows - very slowly indeed!

[RickT]

Wow lots of interesting posts I didn't expect it to get this much attention.

Seems most of us started with small and basic so I think its why we appreciate what we have now!

Edited 15 July, 2013 by RickT

[andyspan]

My first car was a Berkeley T60 hard top with a 'massive' 328cc Excelsior 2stroke engine. It looked like a mini E type (with a missing wheel!) and all you could rely on was that you would seldom make it to your intended destination without calling Mum or Dad to tow you there. I was glad to upgrade to my first of three Imps.