Lecture Notes: Engine Cylinders and Their Characteristics

Overview

• Exploring different cylinder engine configurations in cars
• Comparing the sound, feel, and performance of various cylinder setups

Single Cylinder Engine

• Car: PL P50
• Engine: 110cc Four-stroke
  • Intake, Compression, Power, Exhaust (Suck, Squeeze, Bang, Blow)
• Characteristics:
  • Rhythmic thumping sound
  • High vibration levels
  • Simple engine design

Two Cylinder Engine

• Car: Morgan Three-Wheeler
• Engine: V-twin motorcycle engine
  • Pistons share the same crankshaft, forming a 'V' shape
• Characteristics:
  • More power than a single cylinder
  • High vibration, 45° angle firing
  • Used commonly in motorcycles (Harleys, Ducatis)
  • 90° V-twin engines smoother but harder to fit in bikes

Three Cylinder Engine

• Car: Toyota GR Corolla
• Engine: Turbocharged, 1.3L, 300HP
• Characteristics:
  • Odd firing order, different rhythm, harmonic balance
  • Rougher sound and feel compared to 4-cylinder engines
  • Counterbalance shaft to reduce imbalance

Four Cylinder Engine

• Car: $500 Civic with swapped K20 engine
• Engine: Inline-four, common and versatile
  • Small, simple, economical, high performance
• Characteristics:
  • Engine constantly making a power stroke
  • Balanced primary forces, secondary forces cause vibration
  • Upgraded versions sound better (e.g., Honda engines)

Five Cylinder Engine

• Car: Volkswagen Golf with 5-cylinder engine swap, Audi RS3
• Characteristics:
  • Compromise between inline-six and V6
  • Overlapping power strokes, smooth sound and feel
• Performance: Audi RS3 with 761HP

Six Cylinder Engine

• Car: BMW E46 M3 with S54 engine
• Configuration: Inline-six (Straight-six)
• Characteristics:
  • Smooth operations, inherent balance
  • Pistons cancel out each other's movements
  • Used widely in European and Japanese sports cars

Seven Cylinder Engine

• Custom Build: 1939 Plymouth radial truck
• Engine: 1950s Cessna airplane radial engine
• Characteristics:
  • Uncommon, large, impractical for cars
• Special Note: Rare and unique for specialized builds

Eight Cylinder Engine

• Car: $500 Official Donut Drift Car with LSX V8 engine
• Characteristics:
  • Versatile, used in trucks, luxury cars, supercars
  • High power output (800HP)

Ten Cylinder Engine

• Car: Lexus LFA
• Engine: V10, co-developed with Yamaha
  • High revving (over 9,000 RPM)
  • 553HP
• Characteristics:
  • Even firing order, smooth and balanced sound
  • Used for high performance but less weight than V12

Twelve Cylinder Engine

• Car: Lamborghini Diablo
• Engine: V12
• Characteristics:
  • Incredibly smooth, high power
  • Inherently balanced, very few applications due to cost and size

Sixteen Cylinder Engine

• Car: Bugatti Veyron
• Engine: W16
  • Two VR8 engines joined at the crank
  • Most complicated and over-engineered engine
• Performance: 0 to 60 in 2.4 seconds
• Characteristics:
  • Crowning achievement of internal combustion engines
  • Complicated and space-efficient design

Closing Remarks

• Overview of different cylinder engines and their impact on car performance
• The importance of engine configurations for driving experience.