The Powerhouse of an Automobile

No matter how beautiful or classy a vehicle is, it will remain immovable without a powerhouse and this powerhouse is what we refer to as the engine of a vehicle. A friend of mine brought it to my attention, that at the end of every episode for the past year, I would tell my wonderful readers to "always remember to Turbo that engine", when in the real sense of things, I have never once written about what a turbo nor an engine is. Hence, the reason why I have decided that todays topic of discussion will be on vehicle engines and then next week, we will look into turbos.

Outline of an Engine

An engine is not a word that is only synonymous with vehicles, it is a general term that simply means a machine with moving parts that converts power into motion. Another definition, is that an engine is the heart of a car. It is a complex machine built to convert heat from burning gas into the force that turns the road wheels. I feel like this episode is already getting too nerdy, but I will try to break things down and not use any big car grammar. Just try to follow me.

Types of Engines

There are various types of engines, but I will only be discussing the two commonly spoken about, which are the V's (V-shaped) and the I's (Inline) engines. Almost everyone is familiar with the terms "V this" and "V that", it is not uncommon to hear people say my car is a V6. So what does this mean?

6 Pistons forming a V-Shape Pattern

Please I want you to pay close attention to the image above and let it sink in, before we go further. Now, the question is, do you see the V-pattern above? If your answer is yes, there you have it. The V's just signify the pattern of the engine and the number of pistons it has. A piston is that thing that is big and round in the picture above, it is a piece of metal located inside of each cylinder in an engine that moves up and down to allow the engine to run. 

Variations of the V-Shaped Engine

So remember, "the V's signify the pattern of the engine and the number of pistons it has". Therefore,  when you hear V2 engine it means 2 pistons placed in such a way that they form a V shape, V4 means 4 pistons, V6 means six pistons and so on, all in the "V" pattern. Most times, from V12 upwards simply consists of joining to V6's together to form V12, two V8's to give V16 and so on. Due to the way the V engine is patterned, this is why it usually comes in multiples of two or in "even" and not odd numbers, but I will burst your bubble by telling you there are also V5 engines. Anyhoo, as the number after the V increases, so does the power, meaning that a V8 is more powerful than a V6. 

Inline Engine

The inline engine type has no trick to it. It simply means the pistons are arranged in a straight line as seen in the image above. Although arranging an engine in a straight line like this, makes it less compact unlike the V's which means it will take up more space in an engine bay. This is the reason why most sport cars and even economy cars come with the V's because a V8 will occupy half the space an inline 8 will. Capiche?

How a vehicle engine works!

To conclude this episode, we will quickly summarize how an engine works. The first place I came about the "suck, squeeze, bang and blow" formular was on one my favorite YouTube car channels called Donut Media and it made the process so easy to understand.

• Beginning with 'suck', refers to the pistons going down, thereby creating a suction pressure and drawing air and fuel mixture in.
• 'squeeze' refers to the pistons going back up, thereby compressing the air and fuel mixture in the chamber.
• 'bang' refers to the spark that emanates from the spark plug, thereby igniting the air and gas mixture.
• Finally, 'blow' refers to the after math of the mini explosion that occurs in the gas chamber, the piston then goes back up, pushing the waste product of gas out and that is what we get as exhaust fumes.

A Car Engine

This must have been a very boring episode and I apologize. I can only hope we all gained something and can now speak a little car lingo on combustion engines. Thank you for reading and always remember that "suck, squeeze, bang and blow" is the formula for how an engine works!