‘How it works’

Diagram of a
MOTOR CAR
ENGINE

_ STARTER MOTOR ~

DISTRIBUTOR

OIL FILTER

OIL SUMP ¢
 ESe COOLING
ec

gap CAMSHAFT
_ CRANKSHAFT
 Series 654

Here is a book which all boys will find

fascinating, and which will be equally
interesting and instructive to many adults—
particularly those learning to drive.
With the aid of excellent colour illustrations
and diagrams it explains simply and clearly
the different parts and working units of a car,
and their position and function in the general
design.

A
LADYBIRD
BOOK

26
NET
 How it works:

THE MOTOR CAR

by
DAVID CAREY

Publishers : Wills & Hepworth Ltd., Loughborough

First published 1965 © Printed in England
 How it works: The MOTOR CAR

The motor car is a form of mechanical transport and

it is composed of many different working units and
parts. To provide the energy to make it go, it has an
engine which in turn needs electric current, petrol and
air. The engine needs cooling so that it does not become
too hot, and oil to lubricate the bearing surfaces.

Also, there is the transmission system of clutch,

gearbox, propeller shaft and axle, which transmits the

power from the engine to the wheels to move the car
along the road. Steering mechanism is needed to guide
the car in the right direction, brakes to slow it down and
stop it, and suspension to smooth out most of the
bumps and jolts.

A sectioned view of a typical car is shown on the

opposite page and from this you can see how some of
the major units fit into the general design. In the pages
that follow we will examine each unit in turn and find
out how it does its job. The engine is the most compli-
cated unit, and several pages are used to describe
simply and clearly the various operations and systems
that combine to make it work.

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The Electrical System
Every petrol-engined car needs electricity to provide
current for the lights and other electrical equipment,
and to supply the necessary power for the ignition
system.

The ignition system enables the engine to be started

and kept running, and sparking plugs form an essential
part of this system. They are screwed into the engine at,
or near, the top, usually one sparking plug for each
cylinder. A four-cylinder engine therefore has four
sparking plugs, a six-cylinder engine six sparking plugs,
and so on. As the name suggests, the purpose of a spark-
ing plug is to make a spark, and this spark is achieved
by making the electric current jump a gap between two
points (known as ‘electrodes’) which are at the extreme
end of the plug which is inserted in the cylinder.

The spark ignites the fuel/air mixture in each cylinder,

and very rapid burning and expansion results. This
process is called ‘combustion’ and it takes place in the
‘combustion chamber’. It will be explained later just
how this combustion fits into the operation of the
engine.

Electricity for the igniting process (ignition) is sup-

plied by a dynamo and battery (page 8). The current
is then carried to a coil (page J0), then to a distributor
(page 12) and finally to the sparking plugs.

6
 Rear
Light
ere Stop Number Plate
Light Light

ndicator
Switch

se Earth to
Chassis
Box
Battery

Starter
Motor Sparking
Plugs

Distributor

Engine

og

(p
Head
Light
Sidé Indicator
Light — Light
The Dynamo and Battery
Our homes and towns are supplied with electricity
which is generated in great power stations. In a motor
car the dynamo is the power station. It is usually driven
by a belt from the front of the engine, and only works
when the engine is running. When the engine is idle, no
electricity is generated.
Without electricity the ignition system would not
work, the car could not be started, and there would be
no lights for parking or for driving the car at night.
This is where the battery does a useful job. It provides
a means of storing electricity which can be used when
the dynamo is not operating, and it must be kept well
charged.
Under normal circumstances more current is gener-
ated than is needed to keep the engine running and to
operate the other electrical equipment. This extra
current is used to charge the battery so that.it will always
be in good condition. The charging current is con-
trolled by a voltage regulator: this ensures that less
charging current is generated when the battery is well
charged, and that an increase in the charging current is
provided when the battery becomes partly discharged.
This is called ‘compensated voltage control’.
The dynamo and starter are bolted to the engine, and
this automatically ‘earths’ them to the chassis.
 DYNAMO
(Earth to ——

ayo»/)

Voltage
Regulator
STARTER
(Earth to Chassis)
The Coil
The purpose of the coil within the ignition system is
to step up the electrical pressure (voltage) that is flowing
from the battery to the sparking plugs. Most motor
car batteries are of the 12 volt type, but as many as
7,000 volts may be required to give a satisfactory spark.

The coil actually consists of two coils of wire, the

primary and the secondary, wound round an iron core.
The primary coil is fed with low voltage electricity from
the battery, and when this low voltage current is inter-
rupted it causes a very high voltage to be ‘induced’ in
the secondary winding. This very high voltage is passed
on to the distributor and thence to the sparking plugs.
The amount of increase in voltage is in proportion to
the number of windings in each coil. For instance, if
the primary coil has 100 winds and the secondary coil
has 1,000, the voltage leaving the coil would be in the
proportion 100 to 1,000, or ten times the voltage enter-
ing it.

The interruption in the flow of low voltage current in

the primary winding (causing a higher voltage in the
secondary winding) must occur each time the fuel/air
mixture in any cylinder is ready to be ignited.

10
 Primary, Winding

Low
Tension
Terminal
from Switch

Low Tension
Terminal to
Contact Breaker

High Tension Terminal from Secondary Winding

to Distributor
The Distributor

Interruption of the low voltage flow to. the coil,

referred to on the preceding page, is made by contact
breaker points in the distributor. This final piece of
ignition equipment is mounted on the engine and driven
by a spindle, or shaft, which connects to a gear on a
camshaft inside the engine (page 20). At the top of the
spindle is a cam which, instead of being round, has
‘corners’, there being as many ‘corners’ as there are
sparking plugs. As the cam rotates, the ‘corners’ cause
the contact breaker points to open and close, thus
giving the off-on effect needed by the coil.

The distributor also has another function, that is to

distribute high-voltage electricity from the coil to each
of the sparking plugs in turn. A rotor arm is fitted on
top of the distributor cam. The rotor arm rotates with
the cam, and in doing so contacts in turn the metal
projections inside the distributor cap. Each of these
projections is connected to a sparking plug so that when
the rotor arm contacts a projection, high voltage
electricity is passed to the plug concerned and a spark
occurs at the electrodes.

12
 High Tension
Lead from Coil

Projection
Connecting
i
to Spark Ful

Distributor Cam Rotor Arm

Points
Closed

Points
Open
The Petrol System
Two elements are needed for the operation of a motor
car engine: electricity and petrol. We have seen how the
ignition system works to provide an electric spark at the
electrodes of the sparking plugs, and we know that the
purpose of the spark is to ignite a mixture of petrol and
air in the combustion chambers of the engine. Now we
must consider the system that delivers the petrol to be
ignited.

In cars of normal design, the petrol system consists of

three main units: a storage tank, a pump and a car-
burettor (see page 16).

The petrol tank is fitted at the back of the car where

it is out of the way, yet easily filled at a garage. Tanks
vary in capacity but they usually hold enough petrol for
250-300 miles running. Because the tank is at the
opposite end of the car from the carburettor, which is
fitted high up on the engine, a pump is needed to draw
the petrol from one to the other, as it is from the
carburettor that the petrol is finally fed into the engine.
Pumps can be of two kinds; electrically operated or
mechanically driven from the engine.
Filler Cap PETROL TANK
=

CARBURETTOR
The Carburettor
The purpose of the carburettor is to provide a mixture
of petrol and air for combustion in the engine. The
mixture normally consists of one part (by weight) of
petrol to fifteen parts of air, but this mixture varies
quite considerably with temperature and engine speed.
If there is a higher proportion of petrol the mixture
is said to be ‘rich’. A higher proportion of air gives
a ‘weak’ mixture.

Very simply, the carburettor consists of a tube

through which air is drawn, and a series of very small
holes known as jets which break the petrol up into tiny
droplets and pass it into the airstream in the form of a
mist. The mixture of petrol mist and air is sucked along
an inlet pipe (induction manifold) and then, by way of
branches in the pipe, into each cylinder. A float
chamber in the carburettor provides a small reserve of
petrol for the jets and ensures an even supply.

The flow of air into the carburettor is controlled by a

‘butterfly throttle’, which is a flap that can be opened
and closed by operating the accelerator pedal in the car.
Pressing the accelerator opens the throttle. This lets in
more air which in turn sucks more petrol vapour through
the main jet. The mixture passes into the cylinders
making the engine run faster,

16
Petrol from
Pump

Jet

Float Chamber

Butterfly
Throttle

Mixed ifiAir to
Induction Manifold
The Pistons and Crankshaft

So far we have only dealt with the method of supply-

ing the engine with electricity and petrol. We must next
discover how the mechanical parts work.

Every engine has cylinders which are really tubes

bored out of the cylinder block. The number and size
of the cylinders depend on the power that is required.
The most common car engines have four or six cylinders.
Each cylinder is provided with a piston which fits snugly
within the cylinder walls but is able to slide up and down.
The movement of a piston up or down a cylinder is
known as a stroke. Spring rings are fitted round the
pistons. They press outward against the cylinder walls
to prevent air escaping downward or too much oil
escaping upward between piston and cylinder.

Pistons are joined to a connecting rod by a ‘gudgeon

pin’. This joint is at the ‘little-end’. The lower end of
the connecting rod is the ‘big-end’ and this is joined to
a crankshaft by the ‘big-end
bearing’. The crankshaft is
bent, or cranked, so that the
up and down movement of the
pistons causes it to revolve,
rather like the movement of
your legs making your bicycle
pedals go round.

18
 Piston Rings

Piston

udgeon Pin

Little End

Cylinder \ End View

Connecting Rod

Big End Big End Bearing

Crankshaft
The Valves and Camshaft

There are two valves to each cylinder: one inlet and

one exhaust. The inlet valves let the petrol/air mixture
into the engine, while the exhaust valves allow the burnt
gases after combustion to escape from the engine. Both
sets of valves have to be arranged to open and close at
just the right moment. This is done by means of a
camshaft.

The camshaft is driven by a chain or gear at half the

speed of the crankshaft. It has specially-shaped pro-
jections, known as carhs, set at varying angles. There
are as many cams as there are valves, and as the cam-
shaft revolves, each cam causes its corresponding valve
to open. Then, as the cam moves further round, a coil
spring fitted round the valve stem forces the valve to
shut, and it is then ready to open again next time the
cam comes round.

During every revolution of the camshaft all the

valves open and close once. In a fast-moving car. fitted
with a four-cylinder engine, each valve opens and .
closes between thirty and forty times every second. This
gives you some idea of the speed of operation and the
accuracy needed to obtain correct timing.

20
 Rocker Arms — ee
eee
ner

“Valve
Spring Valve
coal
Valve : =
Shut Blah
,Rod
Cylinder Wall
Gear for Driving
Distributor and
Oil Pump Piston
Timing Chain

boannenos Rod

i
shown transparent to Ff
illustrate Camshaft fy Camshaft

Crankshaft
The Four-stroke Cycle of Engine Operation
Most modern car engines operate on a four-stroke
cycle. This means that each piston travels down
twice and up twice after each ignition of the petrol/air
mixture, making four strokes in all. To simplify the
operating sequence, we will assume that our engine has
only one cylinder.

(1) Induction. This begins with the piston at the top

of its stroke and the inlet valve open. As the piston
goes down it draws the petrol/air mixture into the
cylinder past the open inlet valve.

(2) Compression. When the piston has completed its

down-stroke, the inlet valve closes. The revolving
crankshaft then pushes the piston up again, and the
mixture now in the cylinder is compressed upward into
the combustion chamber. At the top of the stroke it is
fully compressed.

(3) Ignition (Firing). At this point a spark occurs

between the electrodes of the sparking plug. This ignites
the petrol/air mixture. The heat from the explosion
causes high pressure on the top of the piston which is
thus forced downward.

(4) Exhaust. At the end of this down-stroke, the

exhaust valve opens and during the following up-stroke
the products of combustion are pushed past the valve
and out of the engine. This cycle is constantly repeated
so long as the engine is running.

22
| INDUCTION Stroke 2 COMPRESSION Stroke

, |
==. % ,

POWER Stroke 1 4 EXHAUST Stroke

Operation of a 4-Cylinder Engine
_ The sequence of operation for an engine with more
than one cylinder is exactly the same as that described
on the previous page. The crankshaft is so designed,
and the valve and ignition timing so arranged, that the
cylinders fire one after the other in quick succession.
If we regard the cylinder at the front of the engine as
No. 1, the usual firing order of a four-cylinder engine
is 1-3-4-2. This means that at any one moment all
the pistons are in a different stage of the operating
sequence.

For example: with No. | piston at the top of the

compression stroke (about to fire), No. 3 piston is at the
bottom of the induction stroke, No. 4 piston is at the
top of the exhaust stroke, and No. 2 piston is at the
bottom of the power stroke.

In a single-cylinder engine of the type commonly

used on a motor-cycle, or in a small three-wheeler car, a
distinct ‘beat’ can be heard each time the cylinder fires. —
As the number of cylinders is increased the ‘beat’
becomes less definite so that in a six- or eight-cylinder
engine it is heard as an almost continuous sound.

24
The Cooling System
Engines become very hot while they are running, due
to the intense heat created by combustion. Some form
of cooling must therefore be adopted and in most cars
water is used.

The water enters the cylinder block near the bottom

of the cylinders, and flows through special passages
cast in the cylinder block and cylinder head. As it
absorbs the engine heat its temperature increases and
this causes it to flow upward. When it reaches the top
of the engine the water is very hot. Now the water itself
must be cooled, otherwise it would boil. This is done by
means of a radiator. The hot water leaves the top of the
engine and filters through the radiator where it is cooled
by the passage of air. As it cools it falls to the bottom
of the radiator from where it re-enters the engine.

In older engines water circulated in this way without

assistance (known as thermo-syphon circulation), but its
movement was rather slow and the cooling effect was
limited. In modern engines a pump, driven by the fan
belt, helps to force the water through the system and so
improves its cooling efficiency.

26
Water Pump

Section of Radiator
Engine Lubrication
Another essential requirement of an engine is lubrica-
tion, that is, the continuous supply of oil to all moving
parts.

Working parts of an engine are made of metal, and

they have to fit closely together if they are to function
properly. When any two surfaces rub together there is
‘friction’ and where there is friction heat is produced.
In cold weather we rub our hands together to keep them
warm, and it is the friction between the surface of one
hand and the other that produces the desired warmth.
In an engine this extra heat must be avoided or the parts
will wear out quickly and become damaged. Oil greatly
reduces friction and allows the parts to run smoothly
together.

An oil reservoir, or sump, is provided at the bottom

of the engine, and from there the oil is pumped under
pressure through various pipes and passages to the
moving parts such as camshaft and crankshaft bearings,
big-end bearings, pistons and valve operating mech-
anism. The oil in the sump can be checked by a dip-
stick, and it must be maintained at the correct level by
adding more when necessary.

28
 Cylinder
Walls

Camshaft
Bearings

Crankshaft
Oil Pump Bearings
Oil Delivery
Galleries ‘Big End Bearings
The Clutch

The transmission system of a car is a series of assem-

blies whose purpose is to transmit the power of the
engine to the road wheels. The first of these is the
clutch assembly, an opened-up view of which is shown
opposite. This enables the remainder of the trans-
mission system to be disconnected from the engine,
when necessary, so that the various gears in the
gearbox can be engaged (see page 33).

At the back of the engine is a heavy flat wheel known

as the flywheel. It is attached to the rear end of the
crankshaft and revolves with it. A clutch plate, con-
sisting of a metal disc with a friction lining round its
outer edge, is held firmly against the flywheel by a spring-
loaded pressure plate. As the flywheel revolves the clutch
plate revolves, and it is simply the pressure of one
against the other that provides the drive from engine to
transmission. .

The clutch is operated by the clutch pedal inside the

car. When the driver depresses the pedal the clutch
pressure plate is forced away from the flywheel, thus
disconnecting the engine from the transmission. When
the pedal is released, the pressure plate forces the clutch
plate against the flywheel and the drive is taken up
again.

30
 Flywheel

Cover Pedal
Linkage

Clutch Centre Plate

Pressure Plate

“4 Clutch Out Clutch in

The Gearbox

The object of the gearbox is to provide a means of

obtaining the most efficient engine speed in relation to
the speed required at the road wheels.
The gearbox is quite a complicated assembly of gears
of different sizes, arranged so that certain combinations
of gears can be engaged to enable one to drive another.
If a larger gear drives a smaller one, a high ratio is
produced, and if a smaller gear drives a larger one a
lower ratio is provided. Most car gearboxes have four
‘speeds’, which means that by moving the gear lever
inside the car one of four different ratios can be selected
in the gearbox. A reverse gear is also included to enable
the car to be driven backwards for manceuvring.
To illustrate the gearbox principle in a simple manner,
the arrangement of gears in a three-speed box only are
shown.
In a low ratio gear the engine runs fast while the car
is moving quite slowly. As higher gears are engaged
the engine speed drops but the car moves faster. A low
ratio is therefore used when greater engine power is
needed to start the car from rest, to accelerate quickly
and to climb steep hills. For normal cruising along a
road, a high gear is selected.
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Overdrive

Overdrive units are now available on a great many

cars, either as a standard fitting or as an extra to be fitted
if required. The purpose of an overdrive is to provide
an additional gear of higher ratio than is available in
the normal gearbox. The unit is fitted behind the gear-
box, but is entirely independent and not affected by
movements of the ordinary gear lever. The usual control
for the overdrive is a small lever or switch. When the
switch is flicked to ‘on’, electrical contact is made and
the special gear in the overdrive takes over. When the
switch is flicked off normal drive is resumed.

There are several advantages in having this extra

overdrive gear. Because the ratio is high the speed of
the engine is slower for any given road wheel speed,
this means that the engine runs more smoothly, con-
sumes less petrol and there is less wear of the parts.
Another important advantage is a marked reduction in
mechanical noise and vibration.

Various overdrive systems are in use. In some types,

engagement is only possible when top gear of the
normal gearbox is engaged. In other types overdrive
can also be selected in one or more of the lower gears,
thus giving a greater number of intermediate gears.

34
 Overdrive
Switch

Overdrive
ora, behind Gearbox

= ~
>; 2)

e De &
Automatic Transmission

While many drivers like to control their cars by the

normal gearbox and gear change lever, some motorists
prefer to drive with as little effort as possible. That is
why a fully automatic transmission is sometimes made
available, but because of its size it is usually supplied
only for larger cars. This system takes much of the work
away from the driver, who merely has to accelerate
when he wants to go faster and brake when he wishes to
slow down or stop. All the necessary gear changing is
done quite automatically within the transmission.
There is no gear lever and no clutch pedal, only a
selector arm.

The automatic transmission is fitted in place of the

normal gearbox and clutch unit. A control lever near
the steering wheel has five positions: P (park), N
(neutral), D (drive), L (low), R (reverse).

In position ‘P’ the transmission is locked and the car

cannot be moved. At ‘N’ the engine can be started but
the transmission is not engaged. All normal driving is
done with the lever at ‘D’. ‘L’ is a special low gear
position for starting on a steep slope, climbing steep
hills, or for holding low gear whilst accelerating.

36
Selector Arm Indicator

No Clutch Pedal

taal ake

Accelerator
The Rear Axle

The rear axle is the final unit in the transmission

system, and it is connected to the gearbox by a long
tube known as the propeller shaft. The rear axle has
four jobs to do: (1) It carries the rear road wheels.
(2) It transmits the drive to the wheels. (3) It reduces
the ratio of the drive from the gearbox and turns it
through a right-angle. That is to say, it converts the
right to left rotation of the propeller shaft into the
forward or backward rotation of the road wheels. (4)
It allows for ‘differential action’ (see page 40).

The rear axle drive consists of a small toothed wheel

known as the ‘pinion’, which is joined to the propeller
shaft, and a large toothed wheel (the ‘crown wheel’),
which is driven by the pinion. The difference between
the number of crown wheel and pinion teeth gives the
rear axle ratio. For instance, if the crown wheel has
48 teeth and the pinion has 12, the ratio is 48 to 12, or
4to 1. A high ratio gives a faster top speed with slower
acceleration, while a low ratio gives a slower top

speed but faster acceleration. The car designer must

balance the two to give a good all-round performance.

38
 Crown Wheel | mae

4alf-Shaft
to Wheel
\

Propeller Shaft
The Rear Axle Differential Action

If you extend your arm to one side, then swing it

round to the front of your body, the tips of your
fingers have to travel further and faster than the part of
your arm near your shoulder. In the same way, when a
car goes round a bend the rear wheel on the outside of
the bend has to travel further and faster than the wheel
on the inside. This difference of travel between one
rear wheel and the other is known as differential action,
and it has to be allowed for in the design of the rear
axle.

Each rear road wheel is driven from the centre of the

axle by a half-shaft, but because of the need for differ-
ential action the inner ends of the half-shafts cannot be
driven directly from the crown wheel. Instead, they are
fitted within an arrangement of gears called differential
gears. This quite complicated arrangement allows both
half-shafts to run at the same speed when the car is
travelling along a straight road, but lets them run at
different speeds when differential action is needed
for turning
corners, at the
same time
keeping power
oneach driving
wheel.
 Differential Pinions
fixed to Crown Wheel

Crown Wheel

Crown Wheel
Differential Star Wheels can revolve
without
axle

Axle Half-Shaft

Pinion
Propeller Shaft
Steering System
The steering is the means by which a car can be
guided along the road and steered in the direction the
driver wishes to travel.

Each front wheel is mounted on a ‘stub’ axle which

is able to swivel on a nearly upright spindle called the
‘king-pin’. Fitted to each stub axle is a short lever
known as the ‘steering arm’, the two steering arms being
connected together across the front of the car by a
‘track-rod’,

Projecting from the ‘steering box’ is a short lever

called the ‘drop arm’, and this can be connected to the
off-side wheel (the wheel on the driver’s side of the car)
by means of a ‘drag-link’, or directly to the track rod
as shown in the illustration.

When the driver turns the steering wheel, mechanism

in the steering box causes the drop arm to move forward
or backward. This movement results in movement of
the steering arm and the turning of the road wheel. The
steering usually operates directly on the offside wheel,
the track rod making sure that the other wheel follows
the movement.

Many light cars are now fitted with an alternative

method of steering called ‘rack and pinion’. This is
very efficient, but unless care is taken in the design,
road jolts can affect the steering.

42
King Pin

Steering
Arm Joined to Chassis
Stub Axl
Steering Box ©
Track Rod
The Brakes

Every car must have brakes so that it can be slowed or

stopped once it has been set in motion. Modern cars
can travel very fast, so good brakes are essential for
safety.

Two kinds of brake are in general use: Drum brakes

and disc brakes. Disc brakes have the more powerful
stopping effect, so they are fitted to the bigger and
faster cars. Some cars combine the two and have disc
brakes for the front wheels and drum brakes for the
rear. Drum brakes are of the internal expanding type,
which means that two shoes with friction linings
attached to them are forced, or expanded, against the
inside of a drum at each wheel. The drum revolves with
the wheel and the friction between the shoes and the
drum causes the braking action. Disc brakes employ
a similar principle except that friction pads are forced
against the side surfaces of a revolving steel disc.

Most brakes to-day are fluid operated (‘hydraulic’).

When the driver presses
the brake pedal, it causes a
piston to move inside a
‘master cylinder’. This forces
the fluid along narrow
pipes to each wheel where a
small piston is pushed out-
ward to operate the shoes.

44
Brake off Brake on

,
Hydraulic Fluid

Piston

Master Cylinder
The Suspension
When the wheels of a car are travelling along a road
they follow all the variations in the surface. When they
come to a bump they go over it, and when they come to
a hollow they go into it. If the whole car had to follow
all these wheel movements the passengers would have
a very jerky ride. The wheels are therefore suspended
on springs which help to separate them from the body
structure, and even if the road is bumpy and the wheels
jump up and down, the remainder of the car remains
fairly steady all the time.

Although they smooth out road roughness, springs

by themselves have too much bounce and produce a
motion rather like that of a small boat on a rough sea.
So the suspension system has to include shock absorbers
or spring dampers. These smoothly restrict the up and
down movement of the springs to give a more level ride.

There are many different suspension systems in use.

The most usual consists of ‘independent front suspen-
sion’ in which the two front wheels are separately
sprung, and ‘semi-elliptic’ rear suspension in which the
whole rear axle and wheel assembly is suspended on
two long, curved springs.

46
 @
we =6Shock Absorber

Stub Sprin
ile ENS

Top line shows Body Movement

Bottom line shows Wheel Movement
Different Drives

If you have followed the pages of this book so far,

you will now have a very good idea of how the main
units of a motor car work. For the purpose of the
descriptions, we have assumed that our car is of normal
design with a front-mounted engine and an axle at the
rear. However, we must not forget that many makes
of cars are designed differently.

The most common variation is a rear-mounted

engine driving the rear wheels. Such an arrangement
does away with the long propeller shaft; the gearbox
and rear axle assemblies being included in the lower
part of the engine. This system is quite popular on the
Continent and is employed on cars such as the Renault
Dauphine and Volkswagen. In Britain the Hillman
Imp is the only mass-produced car to have a rear
engine, at the time of writing.

Another arrangement is to have a front-mounted

engine driving the front wheels. The B.M.C. Minis
are a good example of this, but they have the added
difference of an engine mounted sideways across the
car instead of the usual forward and backward fitting.

48
Conventional Drive

Rear Engine Drive

Front Engine Drive

Different Engine Designs
In addition to the different methods available for
driving the wheels, there are also many different engine
designs.

Some years ago the side-valve (S.V.) engine was very

popular. In this not-very-efficient design the valves
were placed at the side of the cylinders. The great
majority of modern engines are of the overhead-valve
type (o.h.v.) in which the valves are positioned above
the pistons with their heads facing downward. Because
the valve stems, in this arrangement, are some distance
from the camshaft, ‘push-rods’ and ‘rockers’ are
normally used to provide the necessary means of
operation.

A variation of the overhead-valve design is the over-

head camshaft (0.h.c.). This does away with push-rods
and sometimes rockers, because the camshaft is fitted
above the valve stems and can operate directly on them.

Some engines combine the overhead- and side-valve

systems and have overhead inlet valves and side exhaust
valves.

There are also the V-type and ‘horizontally-opposed’

engines, and others. The whole subject of cars and
engines is a fascinating one. Now you know more about
it you will be able to take a greater interest in your own
family car and in those you see on the roads.

50
 Overhead Side Valve
Valve

Horizontally
: Opposed Flat
V-8 Four in Line
 INDEX
Page

Automatic Transmission 36
Battery
Brakes
Camshaft 20
Carburettor 16
Clutch 30
Coil 10
Cooling System 26
Crankshaft ... 18
Differential ... 40
Distributor 12
Dynamo
Electrical System oO
Oo

Engine (Position of) ...

Engine Designs
Engine Lubrication ... 28
Four-Cylinder Engine ate es of) 24
Four-Stroke Sequence 22
Gearbox 32
Overdrive 34
Petrol System 14
Pistons 18
Rear Axle ... 38
Steering System 42
Suspension 46
Valves 20
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