Briefly about engines:
Mostly 4-stroke reciprocating engines
Let's start with how the engine works. Currently, almost all engines are called "reciprocating engines", in which a piston reciprocates in a cylinder, and this reciprocating motion is converted into rotational motion by a crankshaft to generate power. In addition to the reciprocating engine, there is also a rotary engine system, but it has not been adopted for commercial vehicles since the production of the Mazda RX-8 ended.
Also, the system used in almost all automobiles today is called the "four-cycle (four-stroke)" system, which completes one operation through the four processes of "intake -> compression -> combustion -> exhaust." Taking a general gasoline engine as an example, the "four processes" are like this, and they are all carried out in the cylinder.
(1) Intake: Open the intake valve and suck the mixture of air and gasoline into the cylinder
(2) Compression: Close the valve to compress the mixture with the piston
(3) Combustion: Compressed When the air-fuel mixture is ignited with a spark plug, it explodes and burns. When it burns, the air-fuel mixture expands, and the pressure pushes the piston down, and this force becomes the power.
Now let's talk about the engine specs
<In-line> Arrangement of cylinders (pistons). Cylinders arranged in a row are called "serial", cylinders arranged in two rows and arranged in a "V" shape are called "V-shaped", and cylinders laid down and arranged facing each other are called "horizontally opposed". ” is called.
<4 cylinders> Number of cylinders. "4-cylinder" is, of course, one with four cylinders. The term “in-line 4-cylinder” refers to an engine with four cylinders arranged in a row. If there are 3 cylinders on the left and 3 on the right in the V shape, totaling 6 cylinders, it is a "V-type 6 cylinder (V6)".
Left: In-line 4-cylinder, Right: V-type 6-cylinder
This is a term that refers to the displacement of the engine, and the displacement indicates the volume of the space where combustion takes place in the cylinder. If it is "4 cylinder 2.0 liters", it will be "500cc x 4 cylinders = 2.0 liters". Basically, the bigger the displacement, the more power you can get.
It is said that the most efficient power output is around 500cc per cylinder. Therefore, the number of cylinders is often determined accordingly, with 3 to 4 cylinders often used for around 1.0 liters, and 6 to 8 cylinders for around 4 liters. Also, if too many cylinders are arranged in a row, the engine becomes too long and it becomes difficult to install it in a vehicle.
What is turbo?
Even people who are not familiar with engines may have the image of "turbo = high performance". This turbocharger is a type of supercharger that rotates a turbine with exhaust gas to supercharge air and push more air into the cylinder. By inhaling a lot of air, it is a device that creates a larger explosion and obtains high output. In the past, a turbocharger was used to obtain higher output, but recently, in order to achieve both fuel efficiency and power, a "downsizing turbocharger" with a smaller displacement and a turbo output is often used. . In addition, some manufacturers adopt a "twin turbo" with two large and small turbos. In addition to the turbo, there is also a supercharger called "supercharger (mechanical supercharger)". This is a method of supercharging air by using part of the power of the engine instead of the power of exhaust gas.
How to determine what kind of engine is in the car?
The engine model can be viewed in the catalogs.
The engine model is identified by the chassis, but the turbo or non turbo is identified by car grade.
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