Top 10 Improvements in Engine Design

Imagine your car only having 22 horsepower!  Sounds insane, right? 100 years ago, 22 horsepower was top-notch.  The engine has come a long way and this blog breaks down the biggest engine improvements.

Released in 1908 and known as the first affordable automobile, the Ford Model T was an amazing technology for its time. But the car only had a 22 horsepower engine! Incredible right?  And that’s even better than the horsepower of the first ever automobile – the 1885 Benz Patent Motorwagen, which had a single piston engine and ran with only two-thirds of a single horsepower!

Cars have come a long way since the first automobiles. Engineers are always finding ways to improve our vehicles. Here we take a look at the benefits and drawbacks of the top 10 improvements in engine design during the 150 year process of making vehicles what they are today. We can only imagine what the future holds!

10. The Four –stroke Engine Cycle
 Benefits: More fuel-efficient, less polluting
 Drawbacks: More complicating, more expensive to manufacture

9. Forced Induction
 Benefits: More power without an increase in engine size
 Drawbacks: Fuel consumption and turbo lag

8. Fuel Injection
 Benefits: Better throttle response, increased efficiency, & more power
 Drawbacks: More complexity and potentially expensive repairs

7. Direct Injection
 Benefits: More power, better fuel economy
 Drawbacks: More expensive to make, relatively new technology

6.  Aluminum engine blocks
 Benefits: Lighter weight leads to more efficiency and better handling
 Drawbacks: Can warp at high temperatures

5.  Overhead Camshafts
 Benefits: Better performance
 Drawbacks: Increased Complexity

4.  Variable Valve Timing
 Benefits: Fuel economy, more flexible power delivery
 Drawbacks: Greater cost to produce

3. On-board Engine Computers
 Benefits: Fuel economy, better diagnosis of problems
 Drawbacks: Cost, complexity

2.  Clean Diesels
 Benefits: Torque, fuel economy, cleaner emissions
 Drawbacks: Cost of fuel, low RPMs, higher initial cost

1.      Hybrid Engines
Benefits: Fuel Economy
Drawbacks: Higher initial cost, complexity

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