You're finally off on your trip across America to go see the Jolly Green Giant Statue in Minnesota. You just love those veggies and must pay homage. You're all ready to go when suddenly, the car won't start. After ten futile attempts to start the car, you decide it might be wise to pop the hood. However, as you gaze at all that metal and wiring, you realize you know nothing about your car's engine. It is now time to change that.
Engine Enlightenment
The entire purpose of your engine is to convert gas into energy, known as internal combustion. Let's take a look at the core parts that allow this to happen.
* The heart of the engine is the cylinder. Cars either have four, six, or eight cylinders.
* A spark plug creates a spark which will ignite the fuel/air mixture. This is what will allow combustion to occur.
* Intake and exhaust valves let in air and fuel and let out exhaust.
* A piston is a metal part that moves up and down inside the cylinder.
** Piston rings prevent the fuel/air mixture from leaking into the sump and they keep oil from leaking out of the sump into the combustion area.
* The sump surrounds the crankshaft and is basically your oil pan.
* The crankshaft turns the pistons in a circular motion.
* A connecting rod connects the piston to the crankshaft. It rotates at both ends so it can keep up with the movements of both the crankshaft and the piston.
Those are the basics of your engine, but within your engine you have another system known as the valve train. The valve train is made up of components that allow your intake and exhaust valves to open and close. The camshaft has lobes which move the valves up and down. A push rod and a rocker arm are pushed by the camshaft to help open the valves. A timing belt connects the crankshaft to the camshaft and will make sure the valves are in sync with the pistons. A belt tensioner keeps the timing belt aligned with the cam sprocket. All this work can get noisy, so hydraulic lifters are used to reduce the noise of the valve train. Lastly, let's not forget that the battery and alternator, which are part of the electrical system, are connected to the engine to help power your car and keep your engine running.