Inline vs. Flat vs. Regular

[Porsche]

Dosen't one engine design also allow etter Turbo and Supercharging? I think it's Inline engines. My personal preference is the "Boxer' Flat engine because of it's rarity and unique design. What about "W' engines, Nobody's discussed that? what are some of there advantages of the others besides More Cylinders in (Relatively Speaking) Less Space?

[Twist]

I listed all the ones I knew (inline, vee, flat). I've never heard of "W." I am curious tho... What cars are they in?

[Hudson]

Originally posted by Porsche

Dosen't one engine design also allow etter Turbo and Supercharging? I think it's Inline engines. My personal preference is the "Boxer' Flat engine because of it's rarity and unique design. What about "W' engines, Nobody's discussed that? what are some of there advantages of the others besides More Cylinders in (Relatively Speaking) Less Space?

"W" engines, radial engines, rotary engines, and the like are "fringe" types and are very rare.

Volkswagen introduced the "W" engine by merging two of it's narrow-angle Vee (VR) engines onto one crankshaft, giving it, technically, four banks of cylinders. Volkswagen has also demonstrated a "W" with three banks. VW concepts have included the W18 (three banks of six), W16 (two VR8s), W12 (two VR6s), and W10 (two VR5s). The only one currently in production is the W12 in the Audi A8 6.0.

Radial engines you've seen, but rarely in automotive applications. Remember seeing old bi-planes in movies or airshows? Radial engines have their cylinders around a central crankshaft. Usually in odd-numbers, radial engines have had 7 or 9 cylinder typically. Sometimes (again, in aircraft applications), multiple radial engines are linked by their crankshaft creating more powerful powerplants.

Rotary engines, or Wankel engines), don't have cylinders. The "figure-eight" shaped combustion chamber has a triangular "rotor" that compresses the fuel for power. Rotaries make excellent power for their "displacement" and are amazingly smooth. They're not very fuel efficient and have been notorious for their wear, although modern ones are better on both points.

[Twist]

If you learn to work on rotaries then you can work at any garage in world. Those RX-7 engines (the ones that made it to the US and thus the older models) are notorious for their wear and tear tendencies. Doesn't diminish their raw power, tho...

[MaxRX7]

My choice:

1-inline 6 (I-6)
2-rotary
3-H or flat
4-V
5-I-4

[Hudson]

RX7:

I could never rank so them generically like that. There were plenty of inline-6s that I wouldn't take unless forced. There are some fours that are worlds better than many Vees (even V8s). The simple layout of the engine means nothing to me. The specific engine means everything.

[FenrisOIF]

Well, Hudson, you've hit most all of your points on target. I thought I'd add some info about Flat (horizontally opposed, if you want to be really technical) engines. Opposing engines are used almost exclusively among general aviation, and being a pilot, I've seen a lot of them, in use and torn apart.

First, you're very wrong, hermunn, when you say that flat and v engines are heavier. The flat four is actually one of the lightest configurations out there, being the reason it is so incredibly successful in airplanes.

Porche engines are air cooled opposers, which makes them very lightweight, and have been used extensively in engine swaps in airplanes. The Suberu engines are liquid cooled. The advantages to either is that liquid cooled engines have thicker blocks, and can withstand much higher performance tunes, particularly boost from turbo and superchargers, but all that adds sophistication and, more importantly, weight. Air cooled ones are much lighter.

Also, different configurations of engines, inline/vee/opposing and so on, have different torque/horsepower virtues. Opposing engines usually generate a much higher amount of torque due to the fact that A) the pistons don't have to work with/against gravity constantly, B) being directly opposite one another, the pistons generate a more direct application of torque. Thus, they have very broad powerbands, similar to a V-8. Inline engines aren't naturally balanced, I tore apart a straight four out of an Eclipse to find that it had siezed up a balance shaft. They do, however, have lower rotational momentum, which makes them easier to rev up to higher RPMs. This gives them a very narrow powerband, requiring more frequent gear shifting. V engines seem to be a moderate between the two.

Another thing to consider is their shape. A flat four is only two cylinders long, and very low-centered, but also the widest type of engine. Both opposing and V engines are half as long as their number of cylinders. The W-12 that Hudson mentioned, like in the new Bently Continental GT is only three cylinders long, but a very wide -and- tall engine, giving it the large front end. Beutiful car though. V-12's and Straight-6's are generally the longest types. V-12's are known to run the smoothest of any type of engine.

There is my rant on engine configurations. Enjoy.

[bjdm151]

Fenris,

Stop digging up posts from 4 years ago, these are all dead subjects

[SaabJohan]

Originally Posted by FenrisOIF

Well, Hudson, you've hit most all of your points on target. I thought I'd add some info about Flat (horizontally opposed, if you want to be really technical) engines. Opposing engines are used almost exclusively among general aviation, and being a pilot, I've seen a lot of them, in use and torn apart.

First, you're very wrong, hermunn, when you say that flat and v engines are heavier. The flat four is actually one of the lightest configurations out there, being the reason it is so incredibly successful in airplanes.

Porche engines are air cooled opposers, which makes them very lightweight, and have been used extensively in engine swaps in airplanes. The Suberu engines are liquid cooled. The advantages to either is that liquid cooled engines have thicker blocks, and can withstand much higher performance tunes, particularly boost from turbo and superchargers, but all that adds sophistication and, more importantly, weight. Air cooled ones are much lighter.

Also, different configurations of engines, inline/vee/opposing and so on, have different torque/horsepower virtues. Opposing engines usually generate a much higher amount of torque due to the fact that A) the pistons don't have to work with/against gravity constantly, B) being directly opposite one another, the pistons generate a more direct application of torque. Thus, they have very broad powerbands, similar to a V-8. Inline engines aren't naturally balanced, I tore apart a straight four out of an Eclipse to find that it had siezed up a balance shaft. They do, however, have lower rotational momentum, which makes them easier to rev up to higher RPMs. This gives them a very narrow powerband, requiring more frequent gear shifting. V engines seem to be a moderate between the two.

Another thing to consider is their shape. A flat four is only two cylinders long, and very low-centered, but also the widest type of engine. Both opposing and V engines are half as long as their number of cylinders. The W-12 that Hudson mentioned, like in the new Bently Continental GT is only three cylinders long, but a very wide -and- tall engine, giving it the large front end. Beutiful car though. V-12's and Straight-6's are generally the longest types. V-12's are known to run the smoothest of any type of engine.

There is my rant on engine configurations. Enjoy.

I think you should stay with aerodynamics and not go into engines...

...pistons not have to work against gravity

[Moppie]

Im closing this.

Its 4 years old, a dead topic, and we don't want any of those anti-gravity pistons escaping.