How
Car
Engines
Work
“A
car
engine
is
one
of
the
most
amazing
machines
we
use
on
a
daily
basis”
Marshall
Brian,
creator
of
[Link]
Alberto
Fernandez
English
202
6/6/2013
Introduction
A
car
engine
is
one
of
the
most
used
machines
on
a
day-‐to-‐day
basis,
and
yet
just
very
few
people
really
know
how
they
work.
It
is
always
good
to
know
how
the
things
you
use
work,
specially
the
things
you
use
daily.
This
description
is
going
provide
all
the
basic
information
of
how
a
normal
car
engine
works
from
the
moment
you
put
the
key
in
the
hole
until
the
car
is
already
moving.
You
will
learn
what
goes
inside
and
what
happens
-‐
in
a
matter
of
seconds
Figure
1:
Engine
Block
-‐
that
makes
the
car
move.
What
Exactly
is
an
Engine?
An
engine
is
the
mechanical
machine
that
powers
almost
all
the
vehicles
in
the
world.
Even
though
each
machine
has
its
own
engine,
they
are
all
base
on
the
same
principle
of
how
they
work.
To
get
to
know
the
engine
we
need
to
know
what
the
basis
of
everything,
what’s
the
actual
process
the
engine
does
to
move
the
car,
what
happens
when
you
press
the
gas
pedal.
It
is
actually
quite
simple;
they
have
what
are
called
cylinders.
Types
of
Engines
There
are
two
main
types
of
vehicle
engines
in
the
world;
those
are
two-‐stroke
and
four-‐stroke
engines.
The
most
popular
type
nowadays
is
the
four-‐stroke
engine.
Since
it
is
more
elaborate,
organized,
and
damages
noticeably
less
the
engine.
4,
6,
or
8
cylinders
compose
most
of
the
car
engines
now.
The
four-‐stroke
engine
has
4
steps
which
will
be
shown
here,
but
for
this
engine
to
work
you
need
something
to
start
it,
and
this
is
where
the
starter
comes.
Figure
2:
The
8
cylinders
of
an
engine
in
the
shape
V.
Cylinders
The
cylinders
are
the
main
part
of
the
engine,
which
makes
the
whole
thing
move.
Those
are
the
parts
where
the
fuel
is
injected
for
the
car
to
move.
Inside
these
cylinders
there
are
pistons,
which
are
small
pieces
that
get
shot
up
and
down
the
cylinder
to
create
the
energy
needed
for
the
process
to
start.
Figure
3:
Cylinder
with
both
Valves.
Figure
4:
Cylinder
with
the
piston.
A
cylinder
is
a
very
simple
piece
that
consists
of
4
main
parts
in
it.
It
has
two
valves
(Intake
and
Exhaust),
the
piston,
and
in
most
cases
the
spark
plug,
which
is
the
little
piece
at
the
top
in
figures
3
and
4.
Starter
The
starter
is
a
little
electric
engine
located
close
to
the
car
engine,
powered
by
the
car’s
battery,
that
when
you
turn
the
car
key
around,
you
turn
on
the
little
engine
which
gives
a
small
push
to
start
moving
some
gear
that
ends
up
turning
the
car
on.
Now
that
the
car
is
on
and
on
‘Drive’,
you
need
to
start
moving,
and
this
is
where
the
engine
part
comes.
First
Stroke:
Intake
This
is
the
first
of
the
four
steps
that
compose
the
four-‐stroke
engine.
It
is
called
the
intake
and
this
is
when
the
piston
in
cylinder
goes
down
creating
an
empty
space.
As
it
is
going
down
the
cylinder,
the
Admission
Valve
(refer
to
figure
3)
is
opened,
injecting
a
mixture
that
is
sucked
by
the
empty
space
formed
by
the
piston
into
the
cylinder.
Second
Stroke:
Compression
Compression
happens
when
the
piston
is
starts
to
go
up
from
the
bottom,
with
both
the
Admission
Valve
and
the
Exhaust
Valve
(refer
to
figure
3)
closed,
the
piston
creates
compression
with
the
gasoline
and
air
locked
on
top
of
the
piston.
Compression
is
done
when
the
piston
is
at
the
top
of
the
cylinder.
Third
Stroke:
Explosion
Explosion
happens
when
the
mixture
of
air
and
gasoline
is
compressed
at
the
top
of
the
cylinder.
A
little
spark
is
created
by
the
spark
plug
located
at
the
top
of
the
cylinder
that
creates
an
explosion
that
makes
the
piston
shoot
down,
generating
the
energy
needed
to
move
the
axis.
Fourth
stroke:
Exhaust
After
the
piston
is
shot
down,
it
goes
up
again
and
as
it
goes
up,
the
exhaust
valve
is
opened
for
all
the
smoke
to
leave
the
cylinder.
And
when
the
piston
reaches
the
top,
the
exhaust
valve
is
closed
and
the
intake
valve
is
opened
again,
for
the
same
process
to
start
all
over
again.
Conclusion
Car
engines
are
one
of
the
most
important
machines
people
use
and
depend
on
in
a
daily
basis.
Most
people
don’t
even
care
what’s
inside
the
hood
as
long
as
it
gets
them
wherever
they
want,
and
let
the
people
at
the
shop
worry
about
it.
Having
a
basic
knowledge
of
a
machine
you
use
every
day
could
really
help
you,
specially
on
emergency
situations
in
case
there
is
no
one
around
to
help.
These
four
simple
steps
are
the
main
functions
of
working
car
engine:
Intake
valve
injects
gas,
piston
compresses
the
gas
with
the
air,
the
spark
plug
creates
an
explosion
making
the
piston
move
quickly
down
and
when
it
goes
back
up
the
smoke
and
waste
is
released
by
the
exhaust
valve.
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