Got my first car - Some questions

oxygene

oxygene

oxygene

Soldato
Joined
20 Aug 2004
Posts
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Bournemouth
Ok so I'm a little late to the game, having no real reason to drive until now. I am 32 in a couple of weeks and have just finished learning to drive and just got given my first car.
Its a Fiat Punto Dynamic, 10 years old, only 22,000 miles on he clock, like brand new condition, full MOT etc.
But thats enough of the specs! I'm primarily a techy not a gearhead (neither term meant as derogatory!) so I am interested in finding out more about it.
Ideally what I am looking for is an exploded view or step by step diagram of how the engine works. What makes it tick, why fuel works and other stuff doesnt. How it gets turned in to movement energy etc. Basically I've never looked at engines but now that I have one I'm curious to know its inner workings!
I've had a good google around but nothing really fits what I am looking for!
As silly as it sounds, ideally I am not looking for a video s I would like to study it at my leisure or at work!

Many thanks!
 
snips86x said:
So you're wanting to know how the internal combustion engine works?

If so, this any good
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This will get me started nicely! Thankee

Spunkey said:
*snip*

In fact check out the entire Engineering Explained channel, lots of great explanatory videos.
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I will have to check these out some other time :/

The main problem is, my Father, my Brother and my Step Father are all mechanics and car fanatics and could never figure out why I went a different path! So I would love to come up with something which shows I know what I'm talking about, and prove I could learn this stuff if I ever had the interest hehe.
 
TehBluebear said:
A very nice animation at the top of this page too: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four-stroke_engine
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Ahhh that makes things a lot easier!
So assuming the bottom shaft is already turning with some force:

Fuel goes in on a mechanical timer
The shaft thats turning causes this to compress.
A timed spark ignites this compressed fuel (I assume it wont ignite as well or burn as well if it isnt under as much pressure)
The force of this ignition pushes the main shaft down to turning again ad halfway through that cycle the exhaust gases are released.
So the force of the ignition causes the shaft to turn, providing the power to run the compression cycle and the other timers...

So how does it all start in the first place? I know theres something called a spark plug which has to do with ignition, but surely the above animation needs the shaft turning first to provide power to turn the shaft after?

*edit - Hehe just realized most of what I said is in the image description! Well, I like working things out myself, I retain information better that way!
 
bledd. said:
Starter motor turns the engine until it can power itself using fuel /spark.

Starter motor runs off your battery and is only active when you turn the key all the way into the starter position
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Ahh that makes sense. I always wondered about that!
People tell me the battery is charged by the car running, and the battery being dead means the car cant start. I just assumed it needed the battery for the spark plug to ignite it but if it needs the battery to run the starter motor first then that makes more sense!
 
InvaderGIR said:
Also what isn't in the animation and to be fair would make it look a mess, is the timing chain/belt which links the crank shaft (the bottom shaft) and the cam shaft(s). Some engines have a single cam shaft and others, like the animation, have two, the chain/belt linking them to the crank allows for them to turn and open/close the valves (inlet and exhaust) so air can come into the cylinder and leave the cylinder.
Click to expand...

Yeah I assumed it would all run off of the same shaft. So that crank shaft is the main one that goes in to the engine / gearbox, and the cam shaft(s) run the engine internals I'm guessing.
 
Ok so theres multiple combustion chambers, each with 2 cylinders. cars are in my experience from memory 6 or 8 cylinder and I'm sure more varieties around that.
So logically the most efficient way to use multiple combustion chambers to drive a vehicle better is to have them on staggered timing on the same shaft. So one triggers and part of the turn from that is supplemented by the next one triggering etc. But this would ofcourse mean that all of them firing at once would break the engine.
This would explain the need for the distributer.
But surely if each of these chambers transferred its power to a gear connected to the primary shaft then the timing wouldnt matter and they could all fire whenever, and still provide extra torque to the vehicle?
 
Haze said:
would not be better to teach him what a search engine is :P
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Shush you :p
I much prefer it this way, as before the trolls get in to threads you get to hear a lot of different points of view on the same subject, and sometimes someone explaining something one way works fine for them but not for others, whereas someone else explaining the same thing fits perfectly in to your head! Its nice to have lots of views together!

InvaderGIR said:
Each cylinder is a combustion chamber, so for example, your car will be a 4 cylinder engine.
Click to expand...

Oh I see now, so the combustion happens in the cylinders then? That explains why they all work in sequence and why you need pairs, because they provide opposite sides of the rotation for the main shaft!
 
Greboth said:
...I assume by "work in sequence and need pairs" you are talking about the combustion cycle and the fact 2 pistons are up and 2 are down in a 4 cylinder engine?...
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I do indeed mean that! Engineering is always interesting for me. I liked to read up on the progression of the steam engine and its evolution, car engines have an equally rich history. It may well be worth me going back to the start and tracking its progress! I find it a lot more enjoyable that way sometimes because then you can see the reasoning behind different parts and measures and how and why they were introduced!
 
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