I am sure you will be very curious about the engine and its function. As when we open our car hood, we found the numerous parts, wiring and hoses related to engine.  So here we are going to learn all about engine like what is engine and its function. Types of engine,  How does the car engine works, types of automobile engine, all parts of the engine, Engine problems and much more.

What is Engine and its function ?

An engine is a machine which is design to covert one or more form of energy in mechanical energy.

We can also called as the heart of the automobile. An engine covert the heat energy produced by the combustion of the fuel into mechanical energy.

Modern day vehicles are equipped with the internal combustion (IC) engine

We called it internal combustion engine due to fuel combustion take place inside the engine cylinder.

There are different types of IC engines like diesel engine, petrol engine,  gas turbine engine. Each has its advantages and disadvantages.

Different Types of Automotive Engine Or Car Engine Types

Engine can be classified on the basis of fuel and no. cylinder and its layout.

On the basis of fuel engine mostly classified as :-

1. Petrol Engine
2. Diesel Engine
3. Gas Turbine Engine (LNG/CNG Engine)

On the basis on no. cylinder, engine classified as :-

1.  One Cylinder Engine
2. Two Cylinder Engine
3. Three Cylinder Engine
4. Four Cylinder Engine
5. Five Cylinder Engine
6. Six Cylinder Engine
7. Eight Cylinder Engine

Classification of Engine on the basis of engine layout

In Simple terms, Engine layout refers to arrangement of engine cylinder. Here some engine layout given below :-

1. Straight or Inline Engine Layout

In this type of layout, Engine cylinder placed vertically in a straight line one behind another as shown in the fig.

This type of engine layout is mostly used due to its easy and inexpensive manufacturing installation.

2. Flat Engine Layout

It different form the inline engine as in this type engine, engine cylinder placed horizontally at 180 degree. It is also known as boxer engine due the piston movement as it punch the cylinder as boxer punch.

this is a balance engine as it has low vibration during the piston movement. Flat engine has low centre of mass which improves the car handling and due to large surface area, all cylinder cooled equally.

3. V-Engine Layout

V-Engine is popular engine layout and it can be seen on almost high performance vehicles. In this type of layout, engine piston moves and arranged in such a way that represent V-Shape. In less space, we can easily place more cylinder. Meaning more power while still maintaining the aesthetic look of the car. The V Engine is more prone to vibrations than a straight engine, and are more complicated in their build, hence expensive to repair. However, this kind of layout produces more power as all pistons achieve their power stroke at a lesser time interval.

Almost all high performance car makers like Ferrari, Alfa Romeo, Mercedes Benz opt for the V-engine layout, due to its compact size and high power output capabilities.

Here are some important types of engine layouts :-

Classification of Engine on the Basis of Technology Use

1. Naturally aspirated engine

• It is an internal combustion engine. It’s also called a normally aspirated engine or NA.

• In this type of engine, air intake depends on atmospheric pressure.

• It does not use forced induction of air into the intake manifold.

• It produces less power than forced air induction engines (turbocharged/supercharged).

• It is simple in construction and more reliable than forced air induction engines.

2. Turbocharged engine

• It is an internal combustion engine with forced air induction.

• An additional component called a turbocharger is used for forced air induction.

• A turbocharger comprises a shaft with a turbine at one end and an air compressor at the other end. The components are housed in a snail-shaped covering with an inlet port.

• The waste exhaust gases enter at high pressure via the inlet port.

• The exhaust gases pass through the turbine, and in turn, it spins the compressor.

• The air compressor sucks in more air that is compressed and passes through the air outlet port.

• The air is fed into the cylinders via an intercooler that cools the air before it reaches the cylinders.

• Since the air pressure is higher than atmospheric pressure, the engine produces more power.

3. CRDi engine

• It is a type of diesel engine known as a Common Rail Direct Injection (CRDi) engine.

• CRDi is a fuel injection technology used in modern diesel engines.

• It comprises a single common rail (line) to supply fuel to all the fuel injectors.

• CRDi engines can maintain a constant fuel injection pressure due to the presence of a common rail.

• Due to the constant pressure, the fuel spray is very fine and is evenly distributed. It helps in enhanced efficiency and power.

• ECU (Electronic Control Unit) regulates the fuel injection pressure depending on the speed and load on the engine.

4. MPFI engine

• It is a type of petrol engine which is also known as Multi-Point Fuel Injection engine.

• MPFI is a fuel injection technology used in petrol engines. It is similar to CRDi, which is used in diesel engines.

• The MPFI system makes use of fuel injectors to deliver the exact amount of fuel to each cylinder.

• Due to the precise fuel delivery system, MPFI enhances fuel efficiency.

• MPFI also increases the engine power output.

• MPFI engines are refined, and they also start effortlessly even in cold weather conditions.

• MPFI engines produce fewer carbon emissions due to the precise fuel delivery.