know your car
TRANSCRIPT
KNOW YOUR CAR
How A Car Works Engine
The following is a brief course in how a car works. It is well worth the reading before you get into the "HOW-TO" Instructions pertaining to specific maintenance and repair jobs.
Knowing how your car runs can make the difference between a fair repair and a royal ripoff. Mechanics have been known to take advantage of a customer's lack of knowledge, inventing expensive solutions where there is no problem. Finding a qualified and honest mechanic doesn't require luck, it requires a basic understanding of how cars run.
This section of FUNdamentals of Auto Maintenance & Repairs explains what each system does, what its component parts are called, where to look for them in your car, and how they relate to one another to make the vehicle run. Don't worry about what model you own; every vehicle with an internal combustion engine works on the same principles.
By observing your vehicle as a series of simple systems, each with a specific job to do, it may not seem as scary as a dismaying collection of wires, hoses, and gadgets.
Once you've gotten a general idea of how things work, we will explore each system in detail. Then when you've become familiar with how a system functions, it will make "The How To Sections" alot more understandable!
Every car manufacturer makes sure to do things a little bit differently than their competitors do in order to get patents and say that their vehicles are the best.
Also, the location and looks of the engine and transmission in rear-engine cars and front-wheel drive vehicles are different from those with traditional front engines and rear-wheel drive. Therefore, if any part of your vehicle is not exactly where it is in the pictures on this site, don't panic! Believe me, the part is in there someplace, or your car wouldn't go. If you have trouble finding something, your owner's manual (which all seemed like a foreign language to you until you came across this Site) should have a diagram showing the location of each principal part. You could also ask a friend who has a similar vehicle, or your friendly automotive technician, to point out these "missing" parts. However, I'm pretty sure, that if you read this section carefully with an eye on your own vehicle, you can locate almost all the parts yourself.
It is always a good idea to have both an owner's manual and a service manual (Chilton and Haynes are your best bets) for every vehicle you own.
What is the difference between an Owners Manual and a Service Manual?
Owners Manual is factory printed literature that comes with All new vehicles which is specific to that car or truck
Service Manual is literature which can be purchased that is specific to your make and model vehicle
If you don't have an owner's manual, ask your car dealer if they can get one for you or if they can tell you where you can get one. Service manuals are also available for every vehicle, and I strongly suggest that you get one of these as well. Every auto repair facility cannot stock a service manual for each year, make, and model of every vehicle, and if you lend your service manual to an independent service facility that is working on your car, you can save money by reducing the time it would take them to figure out the proper way to repair it. Also, if you get to
the point where you want to do more than basic repairs, one of these manuals will be indispensable. The drawings in service manuals show you where every little nut and washer fits so that you won't end up with a couple of "extra" parts at the end of the job, and they show you how to do each job in the most efficient manner.
You can obtain a service manual at the parts department of your local dealership, or write to the company that made your vehicle and print "Service Manuals" on the envelope. The car manufacturer will be very happy to sell you one. If you have an older vehicle, you can find new or used service manuals or instruction books for it in bookstores. Public libraries often have surprisingly large collections of service manuals, too.
To find the page on which instructions for a repair job appear within this site, look in the table of Contents found in the left hand column of each
page, the individual table of Contents which precedes each chapter located below the TITLE of each Page,or the ‘SITEMAP of This Site. You may at times encounter an unfamiliar term within this Site and more than likely it will be a term that I placed a link to describe it. Example: . . . motion of the piston into the rotary motion of the crankshaft. Crankshaft is highlighted with a link - Click It.
NOTE: You can always come back RIGHT where you were by clicking the icon on your right of each page. Included in this Site is a Glossary of automotive terms, if you want to learn the meaning of a technical word in non technical language.
What Makes A Vehicle Start?
Some people like to think that vehicles are totally powered by gasoline, and parts such as the radio, headlights, clock, and so on - actually function on electricity, but did you know that it also takes electricity to get your vehicle to start?
An ignition system works in conjunction with your car's electrical system to provide the power that allows your starter to make your engine turn over. Once your engine turns over, it can begin to run on gasoline, just as you expected it to.
The following is an in-depth explanation of what happens when you start a car.
Most vehicles still have traditional gasoline-powered engines; if yours doesn't, you can find information about alternatively powered vehicles here.
1.When you turn the key in your car's ignition switch to Start, you close a circuit that allows the current to pass from your battery to your starter via the starter solenoid switch.
2.The starter makes the engine turn over (that's the roaring sound you hear before the engine starts running smoothly). In the section of this site titled The Electrical System tells you exactly how it does this.
3.Once the engine is running, (gasoline) fuel flows from the fuel tank at the rear of the car, through the fuel lines, to the fuel pump under the hood.
The section of this site titled The Fuel System explores it in detail, and shows you how to keep it in tune.
4.The fuel pump pumps the gasoline through a fuel filter into the intake manifold. (In carbureted cars, the gasoline is pumped into the carburetor, but nearly everything else is similar in cars with fuel injection.)
5.Each pound of fuel is mixed with 15 pounds of air to form a vaporized mixture, like a mist. Because fuel is much heavier than air, this mixture works out to something like 1 part of fuel to 9,000 parts of air, by volume. In other words, your engine really runs on air, with a little fuel to help it!
6.This fuel/air mixture (above #5) passes into the cylinders in your engine. A cylinder is a hollow pipe with one open end and one closed end. Inside each cylinder is a piston, which fits very snugly and moves up and down.
The piston moves up, trapping the fuel/air mixture in the upper part of the cylinder and compressing it into a very small space.
7.A spark from a spark plug ignites the fuel/air mixture, causing an explosion.
8.The explosion forces the piston back down again, with more power than it went up with.
9.Attached to the bottom of the piston is a connecting rod, which is attached to a crankshaft, which leads, eventually, to the drive wheels of your car. As the piston and the connecting rod go up and down, they cause the crankshaft to turn. This is pretty much the same motion you use to pedal a bike:
Your knee goes up and down while your foot pedals 'round and 'round.
10.At the other end of the crankshaft is a box of gears called the transmission. If your car has a conventional engine with rear-wheel drive, the transmission is under the front seat.
If it has a transverse engine and front-wheel drive, the transmission is under the hood of the car. On rear-engine cars, both the engine and the transmission are under the rear deck lid, where the trunk would ordinarily be found.
11.If your car has a manual transmission, you'll also find the clutch located between the crankshaft and the transmission. The clutch tells the transmission when to connect or disconnect the engine from the rest of the drive train. In a car with an automatic transmission, this is done automatically.
12.When you shift into Drive (or First, if you have a manual transmission), a set of gears causes the rest of the crankshaft (which is called the drive-shaft after it leaves the transmission) to turn at a particular speed.
13.The driveshaft runs to the rear wheels of conventional rear-wheel-driven vehicles and ends in another set of gears called the differential. The differential turns the power of the engine and the transmission 90 degrees into the axles that connect the drive wheels of the car. Because on most vehicles, the axle is set at right angles to the driveshaft, you can see that the differential is really changing the direction of the power so that the drive wheels can turn. You can see more on drive trains and transmissions in detail in the Transmission Section of this Site
Cars with front-wheel drive or with rear engines do not require driveshafts because the power source is located right between the wheels that are going to drive the car. On these vehicles, the transmission and the differential are combined into a single unit called the transaxle, which connects directly to provide power to the drive wheels.
14. The drive wheels turn and push the vehicle forward or backward, and off you go.
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Engine An engine is a machine that converts energy into mechanical work. An engine may get its energy from any of a number of sources, including fuels, steam, and air or water under pressure.
An external combustion engine is an engine which burns its fuel outside of the engine as a steam engine does.
An Internal Combustion Engine is any type of machine that obtains mechanical energy directly from the expenditure of the chemical energy of fuel burned in a combustion chamber that is an integral part of the engine. Four principal types of internal-combustion engines are in general use: the Otto-cycle engine, the diesel engine, the rotary engine, and the gas turbine.
The Otto-cycle engine, named after its inventor, the German technician Nicolaus Otto in 1876 , is the familiar gasoline engine used in automobiles today because it’s efficient, relatively inexpensive and easy to refuel. ; the diesel engine, named after the French-born German engineer Rudolf Christian Karl Diesel, operates on a different principle and usually uses oil as a fuel. It is employed in electric-generating and marine-power plants, in trucks and buses, and in some automobiles. Both Otto-cycle and diesel engines are manufactured in two-stroke and four-stroke cycle models.
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A good example would be an old war cannon, where the soldiers load the cannon with gun powder and a cannon ball and light it. That is internal combustion.
Internal combustion gasoline engines run on a mixture of gasoline and air. The ideal mixture is 14.7 parts of air to one part of gasoline (by weight.) Since gas weighs much more than air, we are talking about a whole lot of air and a tiny bit of gas. One part of gas that is completely vaporized into 14.7 parts of air can produce tremendous power when ignited inside an engine.
Two problems must be solved to make our engine work.
First problem: After the explosion, the exhaust must be siphoned off and a new supply of fuel must be introduced. After all, one explosion won't propel a car very far.
At the top of the cylinder is a pair of valves. (Okay, so many modern engines have tweaked this basic arrangement by adding additional valves, but the principle is still the same.) The valve that lets the fuel in is called the "intake" valve. The one that lets out the exhaust, the by-product of the explosion, is called the "exhaust" valve.
A cylinder and its valves manipulate pressure in two ways that are no more sophisticated than what a small child at play might do.
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Pistons are the main factor in carrying out this task as they move back and forth within the cylinder (this is called reciprocating).
The in-and-out motion of the piston varies the volume of the chamber between the inner face of the piston and the closed end of the cylinder.
The outer face of the piston is attached to what is known as the crankshaft by a connecting rod. All the pistons share this same crankshaft.
At the end of the crankshaft is a gear and on the other end a heavy flywheel with counterweights, which by their inertia minimize irregularity in the motion of the shaft. That gear meshes with a gear on another shaft called a camshaft. On the camshaft and beneath each valve is a teardrop-shaped cam lobe. The piston turns (powers) the crankshaft with every firing stroke transforming the reciprocating motion of the piston into rotary motion.
In multi-cylindered engines the crankshaft has one offset portion, called a crankpin, for each connecting rod, so that the power from each cylinder is applied to the crankshaft at the appropriate point in its rotation.
The crankshaft not only powers the car, it also powers the camshaft. And the cam lobes, positioned above each valve, push the valves open each time the camshaft rotates and the cam lobe touches the valve stem. The proper alignment of the gears keeps the engine firing to provide maximum power.
The fuel supply system of an internal-combustion engine consists of a tank, a fuel pump, and a device for vaporizing or atomizing the liquid fuel. In Otto-cycle engines this device is either a carburetor or, more recently, a fuel-injection system. In most engines with a carburetor, vaporized fuel is conveyed to the cylinders through a branched pipe called the intake manifold and, in many
engines, a similar exhaust manifold is provided to carry off the gases produced by combustion. The fuel is admitted to each cylinder and the waste gases exhausted through mechanically operated poppet valves or sleeve valves. The valves are normally held closed by the pressure of springs and are opened at the proper time during the operating cycle by cams on a rotating camshaft that is geared to the crankshaft.
By the 1980s more sophisticated fuel-injection systems, also used in diesel engines, had largely replaced this traditional method of supplying the proper mix of air and fuel. In engines with fuel injection, a mechanically or electronically controlled monitoring system injects the appropriate amount of gas directly into the cylinder or intake valve at the appropriate time. The gas vaporizes as it enters the cylinder. This system is more fuel efficient than the carburetor and produces less pollution.
In all engines some means of igniting the fuel in the cylinder must be provided. For example, the ignition system of Otto-cycle engines described below consists of a source of low-voltage, direct-current electricity that is connected to the primary of a transformer called an ignition coil. The current is interrupted many times a second by an automatic switch called the timer. The pulsations of the current in the primary induce a pulsating, high-voltage current in the secondary. The high-voltage current is led to each cylinder in turn by a rotary switch called the distributor. The actual ignition device is the spark plug, an insulated conductor set in the wall or top of each cylinder. At the inner end of the spark plug is a small gap between two wires. The high-voltage current arcs across this gap, yielding the spark that ignites the fuel mixture in the cylinder.
Because of the heat of combustion, all engines must be equipped with some type of cooling system. Some automobile engines are cooled by air. In this system the outside surfaces of the cylinder are shaped in a series of radiating fins with a large area of metal to radiate heat from
the cylinder. Other engines are water-cooled and have their cylinders enclosed in an external water jacket. In automobiles, water is circulated through the jacket by means of a water pump and cooled by passing through the finned coils of a radiator.
Unlike steam engines and turbines, internal-combustion engines develop no torque when starting, and therefore provision must be made for turning the crankshaft so that the cycle of operation can begin. Automobile engines are normally started by means of an electric motor or starter that is geared to the crankshaft with a clutch that automatically disengages the motor after the engine has started.
The Four Stroke Combustion Cycle
Almost all cars currently use what is known as the four-stroke combustion cycle to convert gasoline into motion. The four-stroke approach is also known as the Otto cycle, in honor of Nicolaus Otto, who invented it in 1867.
To complete each cycle, a four-stroke reciprocating engine uses four movements of the piston, two toward the head (closed head) of the cylinder and two away from the head.
The four strokes are: Intake, Compression, Power and Exhaust. The piston travels down on the Intake stroke, up on the Compression stroke, down on the Power stroke and up on the Exhaust stroke.
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The rotating crankshaft of the engine transfers the linear motion of all of an engine's pistons into a circular motion, but that motion must be transferred from the engine to the wheels of the car. This is dealt within the drive train.
The drivetrain is comprised of the transmission, differential, and various axle and drive shafts, each of which has its own specific purpose. Each is a vital link in getting rotational energy from the car's engine to its wheels. If any of these fails or is omitted, the car simply would not move.
Explore The Drivetrain
How the internal combustion engine uses that energy to make the wheels turn.
Air enters the engine through the air cleaner and proceeds to the throttle plate. You control the amount of air that passes through the throttle plate and into the engine with the gas pedal. It is then distributed through a series of passages called the intake manifold, to each cylinder. At some point after the air cleaner, depending on the engine, fuel is added to the air-stream by either a fuel injection system or, in older vehicles, by the carburetor.
the piston engine (which was discussed above) and the rotary engine. Both are internal-combustion engines, which means that fuel is burned inside the engine.
There are several piston engine types which are identified by the number of cylinders and the way the cylinders are laid out. Motor vehicles will have from 3 to 12 cylinders which are arranged in the engine block in several configurations.
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What is the difference between a small block and a big block? How about a short block and a long block?
Short Block: An engine WITHOUT the head(s). Usually includes the crankshaft, camshaft, and pistons.
Long Block: An engine WITH the head(s). Usually does not include the oil pan, valve covers, and manifolds.
Small Block: The smaller of a manufacturers two series of engines. In the case of Chevy, the small block includes the 262, 265, 267, 283, 302, 305, 307, 327, 350, and 400.
Big Block: The larger of a manufacturers two series of engines. In the case of Chevy, the 366, 396, 402, 427, and 454.
Notice the overlap of small and big block displacements. Note also that a small block can be a long block. The terms define different characteristics of the engine.
Cylinder
A cylinder is a round hole through the engine block, bored to receive a piston (See Above Image). All automobile engines, whether water-cooled or air-cooled, four cycle or two cycle, have more than one cylinder. These multiple cylinders are arranged in-line, opposed, or in a V. Engines for other purposes, such as aviation, are arranged in other assorted forms.
The diameter of the cylinder is called the "bore" while its height is called its "stroke." The "displacement" of an engine is actually a reflection of the total amount of volume of the engine's cylinders, and nothing to do with the actual size of the engine itself (although the two are highly correlated). The displacement is simply the bore multiplied by the stroke of a single cylinder, multiplied by the total number of cylinders in the engine. Muscle car engine displacements were usually measured in cubic inches, while modern vehicle's are expressed in terms of liters. Roughly 61 cubic inches equals a liter of displacement. Therefore, an engine with 350 cubic inches of displacement would be the equivalent of 5.7 liters.
The Cylinder Head
The Cylinder Head is the top cap for the engine block. The cylinder head is the metal part of the engine that encloses and covers the cylinders.
Bolted on to the top of the block, the cylinder head contains combustion chambers, water jackets and valves (in overhead-valve engines). The head gasket seals the passages within the head-block connection, and seals the cylinders as well.
Henry Ford sold his first production car, a 2-cylinder Model A, on July 23, 1903.
The cylinder head contains at least one intake valve and one exhaust valve for each cylinder. This allows the air-fuel mixture to enter the cylinder and the burned exhaust gas to exit the cylinder. Most engines have two valves per cylinder, one intake valve and one exhaust valve.
Some newer engines are using multiple intake and exhaust valves per cylinder for increased engine power and efficiency. These engines are sometimes named for the number of valves that they have such as "24 Valve V6" which indicates a V-6 engine with four valves per cylinder. Modern engine designs can use anywhere from 2 to 5 valves per cylinder.
Camshaft and Lobes
The valves are opened and closed by means of a camshaft. A camshaft is a rotating shaft that has individual lobes for each valve. The lobe is a "bump" on one side of the shaft that pushes against a valve lifter moving it up and down. See where they are found within The Engine
When the lobe pushes against the lifter, the lifter in turn pushes the valve open. When the lobe rotates away from the lifter, the valve is closed by a spring that is attached to the valve. A very common configuration is to have one camshaft located in the engine block with the lifters connecting to the valves through a series of linkages. The camshaft must be synchronized with the crankshaft so that it makes one revolution for every two revolutions of the crankshaft. In most engines, this is done by a "Timing Chain" (similar to a bicycle chain) that connects the camshaft with the crankshaft. Newer engines have the camshaft located in the cylinder head directly over the valves. This design is more efficient but it is more costly to manufacture and requires multiple camshafts on Flat and V-type engines. It also requires much longer timing chains or timing belts which are prone to wear.
Some engines have two camshafts on each head, one for the intake valves and one for the exhaust valves. These engines are called Double Overhead Camshaft (D.O.H.C.) Engines while the other type is called Single Overhead Camshaft (S.O.H.C.) Engines. Engines with the camshaft in the block are called Overhead Valve (O.H.V) Engines.
Gaskets
Your head gasket is the gasket that separates the head of your engine from the block. It also separates the coolant channels from the oil channels.
The small holes that you see around the piston holes are oil and coolant channels that allow the engine coolant to flow around the pistons for better cooling of the engine.
When the factories bolt the engine's head and block together, a small piece of rubbery material. The gasket is placed in between for a tightly sealed fit. Gaskets insure a firm seal. Occasionally, gaskets deteriorate to the point where they leak, particularly on very old cars and highly stressed racing cars. Perhaps you have heard someone say that their engine "blew a gasket" or has a "blown head gasket."
Gaskets and seals are needed in your engine to make the machined joints snug, and to prevent fluids and gasses (oil, gasoline, coolant, fuel vapor, exhaust, etc.) from leaking.
The cylinder head has to keep the water in the cooling system at the same time as it contains the combustion pressure. Gaskets made of steel, copper and asbestos are used between the cylinder head and engine block. Because
the engine expands and contracts with heating and cooling, it is easy for joints to leak, so the gaskets have to be soft and "springy" enough to adapt to expansion and contraction. They also have to make up for any irregularities in the connecting parts.
Overhead Camshaft (OHC)
Some engines have the camshaft mounted above, or over, the cylinder head instead of inside the block (OHC "overhead camshaft" engines). This arrangement has the advantage of eliminating the added weight of the rocker arms and push rods; this weight can sometimes make the valves "float" when you are moving at high speeds. The rocker arm setup is operated by the camshaft lobe rubbing directly on the rocker. Stem to rocker clearance is maintained with a hydraulic valve lash adjuster for "zero" clearance.
The overhead camshaft is also something that we think of as a relatively new development, but it's not. In 1898 the Wilkinson Motor Car Company introduced the same feature on a car.
Double Overhead Camshaft(DOHC)
The double overhead cam shaft (DOHC) is the same as the overhead camshaft, except that there are two camshafts instead of one.
Overhead Valve (OHV)
In an overhead valve (OHV) engine, the valves are mounted in the cylinder head, above the combustion chamber. Usually this type of engine has the camshaft mounted in the cylinder block, and the valves are opened and closed by push rods.
Multivalve Engines
All engines have more than one valve; "multivalve" refers to the fact that this type of engine has more than one exhaust or intake valve per cylinder.
Intake Port
The passage in the cylinder head which connects the intake manifold to the intake valve through which the fuel-air mixture proceeds on its way to the cylinders.
Intake Valve
The poppet valve that opens to permit the fuel mixture into the cylinder. Some engines have more than one intake valve to each cylinder
Poppet Valve
The valve used to open and close the valve port entrances to the engine cylinders.
The Valve Train
The valvetrain's only job is to let air and fuel in and out of the engine at the proper time. The timing is controlled by the camshaft which is synchronized to the crankshaft by a chain or belt.
Most cars built before the 1990s need to have their "timing"- the rhythm of the cams and crankshafts-adjusted once in a while. On some cars you need only a timing light (less than $50) and a screwdriver. Newer cars are computer-controlled and need no adjustments
The valve train is a precisely-timed mechanism made up of valves, rocker arms, pushrods, lifters, and the camshaft.
The function of the valvetrain is to allow fuel and air into the engine at the appropriate time. The camshaft controls the timing but this is synchronized to the crankshaft by the timing belt which is often referred to as the fan belt.
Engines are constantly being redesigned so that they are lighter and have relatively flat torque curves. Engine management systems improve engine economy and responses. Engines have been made quieter by introducing a torque roll axis mounting system which reduces engine vibrations.
Read More on
The Valve System
Connecting Rod
Connecting rods connect the piston to the crankshaft. The upper end has a hole in it for the piston wrist pin and the lower end (big end) attaches to the crankshaft.
Connecting rods are usually made of alloy steel, although some are made of aluminum.
Connecting Rod Bearings
Connecting rod bearings are inserts that fit into the connecting rod's lower end and ride on the journals of the crankshaft.
Crankshaft
The crankshaft converts the up and down (reciprocating) motion of the pistons into a turning (rotary) motion. It provides the turning motion for the wheels. As the pistons move up and down, they turn the crankshaft just like your legs pump up and down to turn the crank that is connected to the pedals of a bicycle.
The crankshaft is usually either alloy steel or cast iron. The crankshaft is connected to the pistons by the connecting-rods.
Some parts of the shaft do not move up and down; they rotate in the stationary main bearings. These parts are known as journals. There are usually three journals in a four cylinder engine.
The speed at which the crankshaft spins is measured in revolutions per minute (RPMs). Most drivers run their engines at three to five thousand RPMs. When the driver puts their foot on the accelerator, it lets more gasoline and air into the engine. Since most cars have computerized fuel delivery systems, instead of carburetors, the amount of air let in and fuel released is carefully calculated.
The crankshaft is located below the cylinders on an in-line engine, at the base of the V on a V-type engine and between the cylinder banks on a flat engine.
Flywheel
The flywheel is a fairly large wheel (a heavy disc) that is attached to the rear of the crankshaft. It provides the momentum to keep the crankshaft turning without the application of power. It does this by storing some of the energy generated during the power stroke. Then it uses some of this energy to drive the crankshaft, connecting rods and pistons during the three idle strokes of the 4-stroke cycle. This makes for a smooth engine speed. The flywheel forms one surface of the clutch and is the base for the ring gear.
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The difference between the maximum and minimum is called the displacement and is measured in liters or CCs (Cubic Centimeters, where 1,000 cubic centimeters equals a liter).
Here are some examples:
A chainsaw might have a 40 cc engine.
A motorcycle might have a 500 cc or a 750 cc engine.
A sports car might have a 5.0 liter (5,000 cc) engine.
Most normal car engines fall somewhere between 1.5 liter (1,500 cc) and 4.0 liters (4,000 cc)
If you have a 4-cylinder engine and each cylinder displaces half a liter, then the entire engine is a "2.0 liter engine." If each cylinder displaces half a liter and there are six cylinders arranged in a V configuration, you have a "3.0 liter V-6."
Generally, the displacement tells you something about how much power an engine can produce. A cylinder that displaces half a liter can hold twice as much fuel/air mixture as a cylinder that displaces a quarter of a liter, and therefore you would expect about twice as much power from the larger cylinder (if everything else is equal). So a 2.0 liter engine is roughly half as powerful as a 4.0 liter engine.
You can get more displacement in an engine either by increasing the number of cylinders or by making the combustion chambers of all the cylinders bigger (or both).
Combustion Chamber
As the name suggests, this is the area where the compressed air/fuel mixture is ignited and burned.
The location of the combustion chamber is the area between the top of the piston at what is known as TDC (top dead center) and the cylinder head. TDC is the piston's position when it has reached the top of the cylinder, and the center line of the connecting rod is parallel to the cylinder walls.
The two most commonly used types of combustion chamber are the hemispherical and the wedge shape combustion chambers.
The hemispherical type is so named because it resembles a hemisphere. It is compact and allows high compression with a minimum of detonation. The valves are placed on two planes, enabling the use of larger valves. This improves "breathing" in the combustion chamber. This type of chamber loses a little less heat than other types. Because the hemispherical combustion chamber is so efficient, it is often used, even though it costs more to produce.
The wedge type combustion chamber resembles a wedge in shape. It is part of the cylinder head. It is also very efficient, and more easily and cheaply produced than the hemispherical type.
Horsepower
Horsepower is a unit of power for measuring the rate at which a device can perform mechanical work. Its abbreviation is hp or bhp (for brake horse power). One horsepower was defined as the amount of power needed to lift 33,000 pounds one foot in one minute.
Piston rings
Piston rings provide a sliding seal between the outer edge of the piston and the inner edge of the cylinder. The rings serve two purposes:
They prevent the fuel/air mixture and exhaust in the combustion chamber from leaking into the sump during compression and combustion.
They keep oil in the sump from leaking into the combustion area, where it would be burned and lost.
Most cars that "burn oil" and have to have a quart added every 1,000 miles are burning it because the engine is old and the rings no longer seal things properly.
Wrist Pin
The wrist pin connects the piston to the connecting rod. The connecting rod comes up through the bottom of the piston. The wrist pin is inserted into a hole (about half way up) that goes through the side of the piston, where it is attached to the connecting rod.
Timing
Timing refers to the delivery of the ignition spark, or the opening and closing of the engine valves, depending on the piston's position, for the power stroke. The timing chain is driven by a sprocket on the crankshaft and also drives the camshaft sprocket.
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A recent development is the serpentine belt, so named because they wind around all of the pulleys driven by the crankshaft pulley. This design saves space, but if it breaks, everything it drives comes to a stop.
Harmonic Balancer
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The harmonic balancer, or vibration damper, is a device connected to the crankshaft to lessen the torsional vibration. When the cylinders fire, power gets transmitted through the crankshaft. The front of the crankshaft takes the brunt of this power, so it often moves before the rear of the crankshaft. This causes a twisting motion. Then, when the power is removed from the front, the halfway twisted shaft unwinds and snaps back in the opposite direction. Although this unwinding process is quite small, it causes "torsional vibration." To prevent this vibration, a harmonic balancer is attached to the front part of the crankshaft that's causing all the trouble. The balancer is made of two pieces connected by rubber plugs, spring loaded friction discs, or both.
When the power from the cylinder hits the front of the crankshaft, it tries to twist the heavy part of the damper, but ends up twisting the rubber or discs connecting the two parts of the damper. The front of the crank can't speed up as much with the damper attached; the force is used to twist the rubber and speed up the damper wheel. This keeps the crankshaft operation calm.
Engine Balance
Flywheel A 4 cylinder engine produces a power stroke every half crankshaft revolution, an 8 cylinder, every quarter revolution. This means that a V8 will be smoother running than a 4. To keep the combustion pulses from generating a vibration, a flywheel is attached to the back of the
crankshaft. The flywheel is a disk that is about 12 to 15 inches in diameter. On a standard transmission car, the flywheel is a heavy iron disk that doubles as part of the clutch system. On automatic equipped vehicles, the flywheel is a stamped steel plate that mounts the heavy torque converter. The flywheel uses inertia to smooth out the normal engine pulses.
Balance Shaft Some engines have an inherent rocking motion that produces an annoying vibration while running. To combat this, engineers employ one or more balance shafts. A balance shaft is a heavy shaft that runs through the engine parallel to the crankshaft. This shaft has large weights that, while spinning, offset the rocking motion of the engine by creating an opposite rocking motion of their own.
Heat
Heat is the unwanted byproduct. Engineers design a car to diffuse the heat quickly and efficiently before it damages or melts the engine. Coolant (also known as antifreeze), stored in the radiator, flows through passages in the engine around the cylinders where it absorbs heat from the combustion mixture. Coolant is part water, and part pure coolant (ethylene glycol), a chemical makeup allowing optimum heat absorption. The coolant carries this heat through hoses to the radiator where flowing air removes the heat, restoring the coolant to its original temperature, and leaving it ready to absorb more heat. This continuous closed cycle of heat transportation prevents the engine from melting together or seizing up due to the extremely high temperatures produced from combustion (1,000 degrees F+). The water pump, running from the belt system, helps circulate this coolant. When you need heat in the passenger area, you are asking that some of this same heat be diverted to your space.
(By the way, coolant retains its "antifreeze" name because it also prevents this water mixture from freezing up into an ice cube in the winter time.)
Oil, stored in the oil pan below the engine, flows through its own passages in the engine's block absorbing and transferring heat. More importantly, oil prevents heat buildup by reducing friction. If you rub your hands together, note how quickly they generate heat and become warm. Friction produces heat. If you were to cover your hands in vegetable oil first, the result of rubbing would be little or no heat because direct contact between your hands is reduced.
Vacuum
Engines run on a vacuum system.
A vacuum exists in an area where the pressure is lower than the atmosphere outside of it. Reducing the pressure inside of something causes suction. For example, when you drink soda through a straw, the atmospheric pressure in the air pushes down on your soda and pushes it up into your mouth. The same principal applies to your engine. When the piston travels down in the cylinder it lowers the atmospheric pressure in the cylinder and forms a vacuum. This vacuum is used to draw in the air and fuel mixture for combustion. The vacuum created in your engine not only pulls the fuel into the combustion chamber, it also serves many other functions.
The running engine causes the carburetor and the intake manifold to produce "vacuum power," which is harnessed for the operation of several other devices.
Vacuum is used in the ignition-distributor vacuum-advance mechanism. At part throttle, the vacuum causes the spark to give thinner mixtures more time to burn.
The positive crankcase ventilating system (PCV) uses the vacuum to remove vapor and exhaust gases from the crankcase.
The vapor recovery system uses the vacuum to trap fuel from the carburetor float bowl and fuel tank in a canister. Starting the engine causes the vacuum port in the canister to pull fresh air into the canister to clean out the trapped fuel vapor.
Vacuum from the intake manifold creates the heated air system that helps to warm up your carburetor when it's cold.
The EGR valve (exhaust-gas recirculation system) works, because of vacuum, to reduce pollutants produced by the engine.
Many air conditioning systems use the vacuum from the intake manifold to open and close air-conditioner doors to produce the heated air and cooled air required inside your vehicle.
Intake manifold vacuum also is used for the braking effort in power brakes. When you push the brake pedal down, a valve lets the vacuum into one section of the power-brake unit. The atmospheric pressure moves a piston or diaphragm to provide the braking action.
Firing Order
Now each cylinder produces its own combustion recipe at its own separate time dictated by the firing order. For example, my 1984 Chevy Pick Up firing order is: 1-5-3-6-2-4. This firing information can be found just inside the hood on one of those numerous stickers, or in any manual specific to your vehicle. This firing order means that cylinder one burns or fires its mixture first, then cylinder four, then cylinder two, then cylinder five, etc. until it goes back to cylinder one and repeats the whole process. Your car's computer makes sure that each cylinder has the necessary mixture at the right time.
Powertrain Control Module
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The intake valves rely on "valve timing" to open their ports at the correct time for the air and fuel ingredients. Valve timing at this point is mechanically controlled by the camshaft. But the spark plug needs to know when to ignite the mixture, matching the valve openings, and so relies on the "ignition timing" set by the car's computer.
You may not be computer literate, but your car is. All cars nowadays have a computer tucked away under the dash or hood. Known as the powertrain control module (PCM), this computer insists on the most precise combustion mixture to insure the best gas mileage and reduce tailpipe pollutants. The computer has its eyes and ears around the car via its sensors which are strategically placed in order to capture certain data. In this manner, the PCM controls the amount and timing of combustion ingredients, and therefore, the final results.
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The oil gauge shown above reveals oil pressure. Some gauges show oil level instead, some show an oil can
so check your driver's manual for variations. Your car may not have either one, relying entirely on the red engine light for oil problems.
The battery gauge above indicates the battery charge, which should hover between 12.6 and 14.5 volts. Anything over 14.5 volts is too much for your car's computer.
The temperature gauge registers your engine's temperature.
The rpm needle (tachometer) measures the revolutions of your crankshaft.
If your car is equipped with an antilock brakes system (ABS),
then the ABS light may come on initially as the computer checks the system. It should then go out.
The same goes for the airbag light, again, if your car is equipped with one or more airbags.
Pistons
Pistons form a combustion seal and transmit forces from combustion to the connecting rods. The piston is a partly hollow, cylindrical shaped piece of metal that fits relatively tightly inside a cylinder.
Most common engines have 4, 6, or 8 pistons which move up and down in the cylinders. On the upper side of the piston is what is called the combustion chamber where the fuel and air mix before ignited. On the other side is the
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Ignition System
The ignition system produces a high-voltage electrical charge and transmits it to the spark plugs via ignition wires.
The charge first flows to a distributor, which you can easily find under the hood of most cars. The distributor has one wire going in the center and four, six, or eight wires (depending on the number of cylinders) coming out of it.
These ignition wires send the charge to each spark plug. The engine is timed so that only one cylinder receives a spark from the distributor at a time. This approach provides maximum smoothness.
Click here to explore The Ignition System.
Cooling System
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A turbo charger uses a small turbine attached to the exhaust pipe to spin a compressing turbine in the incoming air stream. A super charger is attached directly to the engine to spin the compressor.
the Air Filter System
What Does The Air Cleaner Do?
The purpose of the engine air filter is to clean the enormous amount of air used by the engine. It must filter out airborne dust and dirt that would otherwise enter the engine and cause premature wear. Even during low speed operation, the engine pulls in a tremendous volume of air. This air has a great deal of abrasive particles, which must be prevented from entering the engine. The air cleaner traps the abrasive particles before they can enter the engine. In so doing, however, it clogs itself.
The air filter and positive crankcase ventilation (PCV) valve are important parts of your vehicle's fuel system. The air filter provides clean air to a vehicle's carburetion system, and if it becomes clogged or dirty, it can cause your car to idle or run roughly and reduce gas mileage.
The PCV valve helps prevent the release of gas fumes from the engine. If it becomes blocked or clogged, it can cause oil leaks and promote the formation of sludge in the engine
The air filter should be checked every other month. If the air filter is not changed regularly, it can become so clogged that it limits air flow into the engine.
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Air Cleaner Components
The air cleaner has two main components
The parts of a typical air cleaner.
A housing provides a container for the filter element. The housing is a metal container that is typically mounted on top of the engine. Air is routed into the housing through an intake tube assembly. The intake tube assembly on the air cleaner housing shown above is a simple tube. On late-model cars, the intake tube assembly may be very complex and control the temperature of the incoming air for performance and emission control.
Intake tube and duct systems are complex on late-model cars
The filter is the part inside the housing that cleans the air. The two basic types of filters are the paper and oil-wetted polyurethane. Heavy duty filters sometimes combine both types of filter types.
Parts of a paper filter for an air cleaner.
The filter element is made from pleated paper. The pleats provide the maximum surface area for air to pass through. A fine mesh screen is used to support the paper element and protect against the fire hazards of an engine backfire. A top and bottom seal provides an airtight seal for the
filter in the housing. Sealing is important because any air that does not go through the filter on the way into the engine could contain dirt.
Polyurethane is a flexible foam-type material. It can be used to filter air entering the engine. It is usually wetted with oil to improve its filtering ability. Filters used in very dirty conditions are often made of polyurethane and paper in combination. Incoming air is routed first through the polyurethane filter, then through the paper filter.
Replacement air filters are available for most vehicles. The filter has a part number printed on the filter box. Application charts are available in auto parts stores that show what number filter fits any particular car. Application charts are often printed on the filter box, too.
Inspect The Air Filter
Cars with fuel injection typically have an air filter element located in an air induction assembly like the one shown below
Typical air cleaner assembly on a fuel injection system
The filter element is located in a rectangular box called the air cleaner housing. To find a rectangular air cleaner, follow the large air inlet hose away from your engine.
Find the air filter housing right near the beginning of the ductwork
Air filters have always required periodic maintenance. An automotive engine runs much smoother when the air filter is clean. If the filter is wet, damaged, or dirty, it should be replaced with a new one designed specifically for your engine.
Running your car with a clogged filter could result in hard stalling, stalling and poor gas mileage. An air filter may become clogged or loaded with contaminate quicker, depending on the nature of the area where the vehicle is driven, such as dusty conditions.
A damaged filter can cause the engine to have excessive wear.
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Look for the common black, semi-rectangular boxy container. Some Chryslers have a cylindrical shape; some Chevys compact a tissue sized box up against front wall behind one of the headlights. This type is on a track where you must slide the box up for filter.
These are the three basic types of air filters; there are many slight variations
Remove the lid by either prying off clips or clamps with a flathead screwdriver; removing several large screws by hand or removing regular sized screws with either type of screwdriver. Again, there are three basic types of lid holders with other slight variations out there.
Cars with carburetors or throttle body fuel injection often have a large round air cleaner assembly mounted on top of the carburetor. The filter is located inside the air cleaner housing.
Remove the filter lid, and lift out the filter.
Note the corrugated Paper usually faces downward.
How often should I replace my air filter?
Air filters have always required periodic maintenance. An automotive engine runs much smoother when the air filter is clean. If the filter is wet, damaged, or dirty, it should be replaced with a new one designed specifically for your engine.
Running your car with a clogged filter could result in hard stalling, stalling and poor gas mileage. An air filter may become clogged or loaded with contaminate quicker, depending on the nature of the area where the vehicle is driven, such as dusty conditions.
A damaged filter can cause the engine to have excessive wear.
It's hard to give a specific time or mileage figure because the life of the filter depends on how much crud it ingests. A filter that lasts 20,000 or even 30,000 miles on a vehicle that's driven mostly on expressways may last only a month or two in a rural setting where the vehicle is driven frequently on gravel roads. Changing it annually or every 15,000 miles for preventative maintenance may be a good recommendation for the city driver, but not its country cousin.
Regardless of the mileage or time, a filter should be replaced before it reaches the point where it creates a significant restriction to airflow. But when exactly that point is reached is subject to opinion.
A slightly dirty filter actually cleans more efficiently than a brand new filter. That's because the debris trapped by the filter element helps screen out smaller particles that try to get through. But eventually every filter reaches the point where it causes enough of a pressure drop to restrict airflow. Fuel economy, performance and emissions begin to deteriorate and get progressively worse until the dirty filter is replaced.
When inspecting or changing the air filter element, first look up the procedure in the shop service manual. The manual will explain the specific procedure for removing and replacing the element.
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How to Change The Air Filter
Changing your car's filters on a regular basis can have a significant impact on engine life and performance and is one of the easiest things you can do!
Pre 1990 Vehicle 1990 and Newer Vehicle
If you have an older car, the air filter is in a big round housing on top of the engine. These are very simple to change.
Simply unscrew the wing nut holding the cover down and lift it off. There may be three or four clips holding down the cover as well. Just unsnap the clips as well.
There you'll find the air filter inside.
Remove the top of the air cleaner by taking off a single wing nut as shown below
Typical air cleaner assembly on a carburetor system
All you need do now is remove the old air filter and install the new one. Make sure it is the right air filter for the car. If it is too big, the cover will not go back on and if it is too small, the cover will not seal to the top of the filter.
Now, change the breather element.
In newer cars, the air filters are generally rectangular in shape and involve a little more work to get to. Look for a rectangular shaped housing under the hood. It will usually be located on one of the fender wells or over the radiator area. On most Chrysler 4 cylinder engines, it's located between the engine and the firewall. Cover attachments vary; on some there will be four or six screws around the outside edge.
There may be four clips or a combination of both. Use the appropriate tools to open the cover and remove the air filter. Be careful not to let any dirt or debris fall into the bottom of the housing. When you install
the new air filter, reattach the air filter housing and be careful not to over tighten the holding screws.
Be patient, as this sometimes requires a bit of maneuvering and adjusting. The filter likes to pop out here and there. With Chevy's, getting the filter box onto the track takes more finagling. The less patient you are, the more it hassle and resist you!
Air filters of this type do not have a breather filter since the PCV inlet is below the air filter. You should still check the PCV and be sure it's in good shape.
Note that a black and oily-wet air filter signifies a problem with your positive crankcase ventilation (PCV) valve. Check and remedy the situation promptly before the oil contaminates your sensors
A light coat of grease on the air cleaner gasket of an older car can improve the seal between the air cleaner housing and the air filter element.
A few older automobiles have permanent air filters and you will need to clean according to the instructions found in your owner's manual.
WARNING: The air filter gasket must fit correctly and seal properly. A leak at the gasket means that air will go directly into the engine around the gasket without going through the filter element. Abrasives can get into the engine and shorten engine life.
You should change your air filter once a year or every 20,000 miles, whichever comes first. Unless yours gets very dirty before then.
Replace the crankcase breather filter at the same time if it's dirty.
Check the PCV valve and any related hoses whenever you check or replace the air filter. It's also a good idea to check the fuel filter, spark plugs, points, condenser, cap, rotor and wires.
Changing Crankcase Breather Element
This filter is located in the air filter housing and can be checked at the same time as the air filter. Most breather elements come in a plastic holder with a fitting that goes through the side of the air filter housing.
"Remove lid of air filter housing and remove air filter. Disconnect crankcase breather hose. Remove metal clip and save, unless it is supplied with the new element.
"Normal replacement is with air filter. If dirty on inspection, replace.
Install new breather element and secure with clip. Connect breather hose. Replace air filter and lid of filter housing, and tighten wing nut.
Starting System
The starting system consists of an electric starter motor and a starter solenoid. When you turn the ignition key, the starter motor spins the engine a few revolutions so that the combustion process can start.
It takes a powerful motor to spin a cold engine. The starter motor must overcome:
All of the internal friction caused by the piston rings.
The compression pressure of any cylinder(s) that happens to be in the compression stroke.
The energy needed to open and close valves with the cam shaft.
All of the "other" things directly attached to the engine, like the water pump, oil pump, alternator, etc.
Because so much energy is needed and because a car uses a 12-volt electrical system, hundreds of amps of electricity must flow into the starter motor. The start solenoid is essentially a large electronic switch that can handle that much current. When you turn the ignition key, it activates the solenoid to power the motor.
The Engine's Lubrication System
Oil is the life-blood of the engine. An engine running without oil will last about as long as a human without blood. Oil is pumped under pressure to all the moving parts of the engine by an oil pump.
The lubrication system makes sure that every moving part in the engine gets oil so that it can move easily. The two main parts needing oil are the pistons (so they can slide easily in their cylinders) and any bearings that allow things like the crankshaft and cam shafts to rotate freely.
In most cars oil is sucked out of the oil pan by the oil pump, run through the oil filter to remove any grit, and then squirted under high pressure onto bearings and the cylinder walls. The oil then trickles down into the sump, where it is collected again and the cycle repeats.
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This image above shows the route taken by the oil within an engine. The oil pump draws oil from the oil pan, then forces it through the filter, into the crankshaft passage, through the connecting rods to the pistons and rings. Oil is pushed through the lifters and pushrods, and covers the rocker arms. It then flows back down into the pan to complete the cycle.
Why it Matters
Keeping your engine properly lubricated reduces friction, heat buildup, and wear. This means that good engine lubrication maintenance will help your engine run better and last longer.
What price do you put on the oil in your car's sump? After all, it is the lifeblood of your car's engine.
Is oil really the lifeblood of an engine? That's a long-popular analogy, but it's really not an accurate description.
Blood carries nutrients to cells, but it's air that carries fuel - the "nutrition" - for an engine. However, without oil to lubricate and cool moving parts, keep them clean and help to seal the pistons in the cylinders, the engine would run for only a matter of seconds . . .
then seize! So, yes, oil is important.
In the mid-80's to mid-90's there was a mini revolution in car engine oil. All oils are no longer the same. Thanks to the increased popularity of sporty GTi's, 16 valve engines and turbos, the days of one oil catering for everyone are over.
Take Castrol for example. They led the field for years with GTX. This was surpassed a few years back by semi-synthetic and fully synthetic oils, including GTX2 and GTX3 Lightec. Now, that's been surpassed by Formula SLX. And most recently, Castrol GTX Magnatec which is muscling in on the hitherto separate world of friction reducers.
(we'll discuss them later, 1n the additives section)
What does oil actually do?
An engine oil's job is primarily to stop all the metal surfaces in your engine from grinding together and tearing themselves apart (and that's the last thing we'want!). But it has to dissipate the heat generated from this friction also. It also transfers heat away from the combustion cycle. Another function is that a good engine oil must be able to hold in suspension the nasty by-products of fuel combustion, such as silica (silicon oxide) and acids, while also cleaning the engine of such mean,ugly, nasty things. And it must do all of these things under tremendous heat and pressure without succumbing to fatigue - the ultimate engine destroyer.
The primary functions of oil are listed below:
1. Provide a barrier between moving parts to reduce friction, heat buildup, and wear.
2. Disperse heat. Friction from moving parts and combustion of fuel produce heat that must be carried away.
3. Absorb and suspend dirt and other particles. Dirt and carbon particles need to be carried by the oil to the oil filter where they can be trapped.
4. Neutralize acids that can build up and destroy polished metal surfaces.
5. Coat all engine parts. Oil should have the ability to leave a protective coating on all parts when the engine is turned off to prevent rust and corrosion.
6. Resist sludge and varnish buildup. Oil must be able to endure extreme heat without changing in physical properties or breaking down.
7. Stay fluid in cold weather; yet remain thick enough to offer engine protection in hot weather.
It is a good habit to keep engine running at idle for few minutes after it is started.
NEVER rev the engine.
Letting it idle allows the oil to flow all over the moving parts before any load is placed on the engine. Remember, the maximum wear and tear of the engine takes place when it is started for the first time of the day.
Oil Pump
The oil pump is mounted at the bottom of the engine in the oil pan
and is connected by a gear to either the crankshaft or the camshaft. This way, when the engine is turning, the oil pump is pumping.
There is an oil pressure sensor near the oil pump that monitors pressure and sends this information to a warning light or a gauge on the dashboard. When you turn the ignition key on, but before you start the car, the oil light should light, indicating that there is no oil pressure yet, but also letting you know that the warning system is working. As soon as you start cranking the engine to start it, the light should go out indicating that there is oil pressure. What if It Does Not Go Off?
The oil pump is used to force pressurized oil to the various parts of the engine.
Gear and rotary pumps are the most common types of pumps. The gear pump consists of a driven spur gear and a driving gear that is attached to a shaft driven by the camshaft. The two gears are the same size and fit snugly in the pump body. Oil is carried from the inlet to the delivery side of the pump by the opposite teeth of both gears. Here it is forced into the delivery pipe. It can't flow back, because the space between the meshing gear teeth is too tight.
The rotary pump is driven by the camshaft. The inner rotor is shaped like a cross with rounded points that fit into the star shape of the outer rotor. The inner rotor is driven by a shaft turned by the camshaft. When it turns, its rounded points "walk" around the star shaped outer rotor and force the oil out to the delivery pipe.
Oil Seals
Oil seals are rubber and metal composite items. They are generally mounted at the end of shafts. They are used to keep fluids, such as oil, transmission fluid, and power steering fluid inside the object they are sealing. These seals flex to hold a tight fit around the shaft that comes out of the housing, and don't allow any fluid to pass. Oil seals are common points of leakage and can usually be replaced fairly inexpensively. However, the placement of some seals make them very difficult to access, which makes for a hefty labor charge!
Engine Oil Dip Stick
The engine oil dip stick is a long metal rod that goes into the oil sump. The purpose of the dip stick is to check how much oil is in the engine.
The dip stick is held in a tube; the end of the tube extends into the oil sump. It has measurement markings on it. If you pull it out, you can see whether you have enough oil, or whether you need more by the level of oil on the markings. How to correctly find the dipstick and what it's markings mean
Oil Filler Cap
The oil filler cap is a plastic or metal cap that covers an opening into the valve cover. It allows you to add oil when the dipstick indicates that you need it. Some cars have the crankcase vented through the filler cap. Oil which is added through the filler passes down through openings in the head into the oil sump at the bottom of the engine. How to locate the Oil Fill Cap
Oil Filter
Oil filters are placed in the engine's oil system to strain dirt and abrasive materials out of the oil.
The oil filter cannot remove things that dilute the oil, such as gasoline and acids. Removing the solid material does help cut down on the possibility of acids forming. Removing the "grit" reduces the wear on the engine parts.
Modern passenger car engines use the "full flow" type of oil filters. With this type of filter, all of the oil passes through the filter before it reaches the engine bearings. If a filter becomes clogged, a bypass valve allows oil to continue to reach the bearings. The most common type of oil filter is a cartridge type. Oil filters are disposable; at prescribed intervals, this filter is removed, replaced and thrown away. HOW TO CHANGE YOUR OIL FILTER Most states now require that oil filters be drained completely before disposal, which adds to the cost of an oil change, but helps to reduce pollution.
Oil Passages
Within the engine is a variety of pathways for oil to be sent to moving parts. These pathways are designed to deliver the same pressure of fresh lubricating oil to all parts. If the pathways become clogged, the affected parts will lock together. This usually destroys parts that are not lubricated, and often ruins the entire engine.
The oil passages are cleverly drilled into the connecting parts of the engine, which allows the highly mobile ones (like the pistons) to have ample lubrication. Originating at the oil pump, they flow through all of the major components of the engine. In the case of the pistons and rods, the passages are designed to open each time the holes in the crankshaft and rods align.
Oil Pan
At the bottom of the crankcase is the container containing the lifeblood of the engine. Usually constructed of thin steel, it collects the oil as it flows down from the sides of the crankcase. The pan is shaped into a deeper section, where the oil pump is located. At the bottom of the pan is the drain plug, which is used to drain the oil. The plug is often made with a magnet in it, which collects metal fragments from the oil.
Choosing The Right Oil for Your Vehicle
Many people don't know how to select motor oil that will help them get optimum performance out of their car. Some people often simply select the oil their father used, others may take the suggestion of a counter person at an auto parts store who may not know any more about cars than you do and the majority of others simply grab any ol' quart(s) of oil on the shelf without thinking or knowing any better.
There are meaningful differences in motor oils and choosing the right one can have a major impact on how well your car runs. Selecting the right oil is often the quickest and cheapest way to improve your car's performance and reliability.
Which Oil Do I Choose? Which One is Better?
USE the type of oil specified by the vehicle manufacturer
in your owner's manual.
The company that built your car wants it to run reliably for hundreds of thousands of miles. Therefore, the carmaker is going to recommend the kind of oil that is best for its engine.
You are not going to save money by using an off-brand oil because your engine will wear out sooner. Use oil that meets the American Pertroleum Institute (API) classification SL. .
If you are changing your oil just before winter, use SAE 10W30 weight oil. This number means the oil will have a thin 10 weight viscosity when the engine is cold, helping the engine to start easier, and then the oil will thicken to 30 weight viscosity when the engine warms up, protecting the engine better. If you are changing oil just before summer, use SAE 10W40
weight oil. The extra 40 weight viscosity will protect your engine better when it's hot.
Engines need oil that is thin enough for cold starts and thick enough when the engine is hot. Since oil gets thinner when heated, and thicker when cooled, most of us use what are called multi-grade, or multi-viscosity oils. These oils meet SAE specifications for the low temperature requirements of a light oil and the high temperature requirements of a heavy oil. You will hear them referred to as multi-viscosity, all-season and all-weather oils. An example is a 10W-30 which is commonly found in stores. When choosing oil, always follow the manufacturer's recommendation. For most passenger car and light truck gasoline engines today, it's any oil that meets the American Petroleum Institutes "API" rating.
Quality Counts!
It doesn't matter what sort of fancy marketing goes into an engine oil, how many naked babes smear it all over their bodies, how bright and colourful the packaging is, it's what's written on the packaging which counts. Specifications and approvals are everything. The API (American Petroleum Institute) an established testing body, will have their stamp of approval to be seen on the side of every reputable can or bottle of engine oil.
Grade counts too! The API/ACEA ratings only refer to an oil's quality. For grade, you need to look at the SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) ratings. These describe the oil's function and viscosity standard. Viscosity means the substance and clinging properties of the lubricant. Motor oil is classified in two ways by the American Petroleum Institute (API) and by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE). The API created and maintains a series of "service classifications" for motor oil, based on the oil's performance in certain types of engines. The API service classification is listed on each container of motor oil, and it's easy to match it to the recommendations in your owner's manual.
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oil until the engine warms and the oil thins. Hot oil, on the other hand, is thin and flows easily. Low-viscosity oil in an engine running at very high temperature may break down and allow moving parts to rub against each other. This can cause rapid engine wear and possible damage. Today, most carmakers recommend multi-viscosity oils such as 5W-30 and 10W-30. Check your owner's manual to see what's recommended for your car.
Very few manufactures recommend 10W-40 anymore, and some threaten to void warranties if it is used. 20W-50 is the same 30 point spread, but because it starts with a heavier base it requires less viscosity index improvers (polymers) to do the job. Follow your manufacturer's recommendations as to which weights are appropriate for your vehicle.
Modern metallurgy allows engineers to build engines with tighter clearances between moving parts than was possible in the past. These modern engine designs offer improved fuel economy, emission control, and performance, but they require motor oil that provides immediate lubrication to close-tolerance parts. High-viscosity oil may delay critical lubrication right after startup, even in hot weather. This can lead to premature engine wear and reduced operating efficiency. The best advice for selecting a motor oil that is right for your car is to follow the manufacturer's recommendations for the general climate in which you drive.
The Starburst Symbol: A new motor oil rating system was introduced in 1993 by the International Lubricant Standardization and Approval Committee (ILSAC). Oils that meet the ILSAC standards for gasoline engines in cars and light trucks may display the ILSAC starburst symbol on the container. The ILSAC starburst does not replace API and SAE ratings. It is intended to help car owners select oil that meets all of the operating requirements for vehicles built since 1993. Many owners' manuals for 1993 and later cars and light trucks list the ILSAC starburst symbol along with the recommended API and SAE ratings.
Why are there different weights of motor oil?
(And which one is right for my car?)
Monograde oils (SAE 30, 40, etc.) Multigrade oils (5w20, 5w30, 10w40, etc.)
Have you ever wondered what all the letters and numbers on an oil bottle mean? They stand for different oil weights. For example, a bottle that reads "SAE30W", assures that the oil conforms to the SAE's (Society of
Automotive Engineers) oil weight or viscosity standards. The "30W" represents the oil weight, and the lower the number, the thinner the oil. Use low numbers in cold weather, higher numbers in warm climates.
Oils meeting the SAE's low temperature requirements have a "W" after the viscosity rating (example: 10W), and oils that meet the high ratings have no letter (example SAE 30).
You can buy oils in single grades for warm or cold weather driving. However, most people prefer multigrades which suit your car during all seasons.
Multi-viscosity grades (for example, SAE 10W-30) will provide a wider range of use and permit you to drive from one climate extreme to another. They are also insurance against sudden temperature change in your own area.
At cold temperatures, the polymers are coiled up and allow the oil to flow as their low numbers indicate. As the oil warms up, the polymers begin to unwind into long chains that prevent the oil from thinning as much as it normally would. The result is that at 100 degrees C, the oil has thinned only as much as the higher viscosity number indicates. Another way of looking at multi-vis oils is to think of a 20W-50 as a 20 weight oil that will not thin more than a 50 weight would when hot.
It is important to use the correct motor oil weight to reduce wear on your engine. The optimum oil weight for your car depends on the climate you live in, your vehicle manufacturer's recommendations, your driving conditions and the maximum fuel economy you want out of your car (the lower the weight of the oil, the greater the fuel efficiency).
You can determine the best oil weight for your vehicle by checking your owner's manual.
Choosing the right oil for your vehicle is easy. Just ask yourself the following questions:
• What kind of oil does your owner's manual recommend? Is your vehicle still under warranty? Be sure to use whatever weight of oil the owner's manual recommends; the manufacturer knows what's best for each vehicle it produces. Using something other than the recommended oil may invalidate the warranty on a new vehicle.
• What kind of oil have you been using? If you have an old vehicle
that's been running on single-weight oil for most of its life, it's built up quite a bit of sludge because some single-weight oils don't have detergent in them. If you suddenly switch to a multi-viscosity oil, the detergent in it will free all that gook in your engine, and the gook will start to slosh around and really foul things up. It's better to let sleeping gook lie unless you want to invest in having your engine cleaned. The engine would have to be taken apart and put back together again, and you could start trouble where none existed before. If your car is running well, don't switch to another oil. Stick with the same old stuff you've been using.
• How old is the oil in your car? How many miles have you driven
it? If your car has been logging a great many miles and has been running on 30- or 40-weight oil, multi-weight oil is not going to be consistently thick enough to lubricate the worn engine parts, which have become smaller while wearing down, leaving wider spaces between them. To keep the oil thick enough to fill these gaps, switch to heavier single-weight oil as your car gets older and starts to run more roughly or to burn up oil more quickly. If you've been running on 30-weight oil, switch to 40-weight, at least during the summer, when oil tends to thin out.
• Do you live where it's very cold? Hot? Is it mountainous? Are there sharp changes in temperature where you live or where you're going? Multi-weight oils cover a range of temperatures. Consult a viscosity chart to be sure that the oil you use will flow properly under extreme conditions.
• Whenever you buy oil, look for major brands, such as Pennzoil, Quaker State, and Valvoline, or check Consumer Reports. Good brands of oil are often on sale in supermarkets and at auto supply stores, so if you want to save money and you spot a sale, buy a case and stash it away.
• If I buy it now, how long can I keep if before I use it?"
• In general, liquid lubricants (ie. oils, not greases) will remain intact for a number of years. The main factor affecting the life of the oil is the storage condition for the products. Exposure to extreme temperature changes, and moisture will reduce the shelf life of the lubricants. - for example: don't leave in the sun with the lid off. Best to keep them sealed and unopened.
• Technically, engine oils have shelf lives of four to five years. However, as years pass, unused engine oils can become obsolete and fail to meet the technical requirements of current engines. The specs get updated regularly based on new scientific testing procedures and engine requirements. But this is only really a concern if you've bought a brand new car but have engine oil you bought for the previous car. An oil that is a number of years old might not be formulated to meet the requirements set for your newer engine.
What about own-brands?
If you can't afford the big-name players such as Pennzoil, Quaker State, and Valvoline, you could look at own-brand oils. These are usually badged oils from one of those larger companies but sold without the name, they are cheaper.
Check the standards and grade ratings on the pack first!!!
And just make sure it isn't a 20W/50 oil (which a lot are because it's cheap) unless your car is old enough to warrant it.
No matter how crazy about recycling you are, NEVER
put recycled oil in your precious car. You don't know where that stuff has been.
Why So Many Oils?
Look on the shelves in auto parts stores and you'll see oils labeled for all kinds of specific purposes: high-tech engines, new cars, higher-mileage vehicles, heavy-duty/off-road SUVs. In addition, you'll see a wide selection of viscosities. If you read your owner's manual, you'll know what the car manufacturer recommends for a brand-new vehicle. The manual may include a reference to Energy Conserving oils, which simply means that the oil has passed a lab test against a reference oil. It's no guarantee of better fuel economy, but most of the leading brands have at least some viscosities that are so labeled. Let's take a look at the different types.
What is the difference between
synthetic and regular motor oil?
The first difference is the source. Regular oil is prepared from the separation of the components in crude oil. Synthetic oil is manufactured in a chemical plant.
Many synthetic oils are silicon based polymers rather than carbon based. Silicon has similar properties to carbon in these systems, but sometimes provide better properties at high temperatures such as in a car. Silicone is used on many substitutes for carbon such as in glues, caulks and gaskets.
Both methods take energy to give the final product. Synthetics are probably more expensive based on the cost of the raw materials. Crude oil is cheap. Also note that regular motor oil can have synthetic components added. The term synthetic is used when the major component is synthetic.
Premium Conventional Oil This is the standard new-car oil. All leading brands have one for service level SL, available in several viscosities. The carmakers usually specify a 5W-20 or 5W-30 oil, particularly for lower temperatures, with a 10W-30 oil as optional, particularly for higher ambient temperatures. These three
ratings cover just about every light-duty vehicle on the road. Even more important, though, is changing the oil and filter regularly. A 4000 miles/4 months interval is good practice. The absolute minimum is twice a year. If your car has an electronic oil-change indicator on the instrument cluster, don't exceed its warning.
Full Synthetic Oil The oils made for high-tech engines, whether in a Chevy Corvette or Mercedes-Benz, are full synthetics. If these oils pass stringent special tests (indicated by their labeling), it means they have superior, longer-lasting performance in all the critical areas, from viscosity index to protection against deposits. They flow better at low temperatures and maintain peak lubricity at high temperatures. So why shouldn't everyone use them? Answer: These oils are expensive and not every engine needs them. In fact, there may be some features that your car's engine needs that the synthetics don't have. Again, follow your owner's manual.
Synthetic Blend Oil These have a dose of synthetic oil mixed with organic oil, and overall are formulated to provide protection for somewhat heavier loads and high temperatures. This generally means they're less volatile, so they evaporate far less, which reduces oil loss (and increases fuel economy). They're popular with drivers of pickups/SUVs who want the high-load protection. And they're a lot less expensive than full synthetics, maybe just pennies more than a premium conventional oil.
Higher Mileage Oil Today's vehicles last longer, and if you like the idea of paying off the car and running the mileage well into six figures, you have another oil choice, those formulated for higher-mileage vehicles. Almost two-thirds of the vehicles on the road have more than 75,000 miles on the odometer. So the oil refiners have identified this as an area of customer interest, and have new oils they're recommending for these vehicles.
When your car or light truck/SUV is somewhat older and has considerably more mileage, you may notice a few oil stains on the garage floor. It's about this time that you need to add a quart more often than when the vehicle was new. Crankshaft seals may have hardened and lost their flexibility, so they leak (particularly at low temperatures) and may crack. The higher-mileage oils are formulated with seal conditioners that flow into the pores of the seals to restore their shape and increase their flexibility. In most cases, rubber seals are designed to swell just enough to stop leaks. But the oil refiners pick their "reswelling" ingredients carefully. Valvoline showed us the performance data of one good seal conditioner that swelled most seal materials, but actually reduced swelling of one type that tended to swell excessively from the ingredients found in some other engine oils.
You also may have noticed some loss of performance and engine smoothness as a result of engine wear on your higher-mileage vehicle. These higher-mileage oils also have somewhat higher viscosities. (Even if the numbers on the container don't indicate it, there's a fairly wide range for each viscosity rating and the higher-mileage oils sit at the top of each range.) They also may have more viscosity-index improvers in them. The result? They seal piston-to-cylinder clearances better, and won't squeeze out as readily from the larger engine bearing clearances. They also may have a higher dose of antiwear additives to try to slow the wear process.
If you have an older vehicle, all of these features may mean more to you than what you might get from a full synthetic, and at a fraction the price.
Beyond that, there's plenty more to the oil story. Read on.
Viscosity Index
Resistance to thinning with increasing temperature is called viscosity index. And although a higher second number is good, the oil also has to be robust. That is, it must be able to last for thousands of miles until the
next oil change. For example, oil tends to lose viscosity from shear, the sliding motion between close-fitted metal surfaces of moving parts such as bearings. So resistance to viscosity loss (shear stability) is necessary to enable the oil to maintain the lubricating film between those parts.
Unlike antifreeze, 95 percent of which is made up of one base chemical (typically ethylene glycol), petroleum-type engine oil contains a mixture of several different types of base oil, some more expensive than others. Oil companies typically pick from a selection of five groups, each of which is produced in a different way and in different viscosities. The more expensive groups are more highly processed, in some cases with methods that produce a lubricant that can be classified as a synthetic. The so-called full synthetics contain chemicals that may be derived from petroleum but they're altered so much that they're not considered natural oil anymore. Our custom blend contained 10 percent polyalphaolefins (PAO), the type of chemical that's often the primary ingredient in a full synthetic.
The base oil package in any oil makes up anywhere from 70 to 95 percent of the mix, the rest comprised of additives. Does that mean an oil with just 70 percent base oils is better than one with 95 percent. No, because some of the base oils have natural characteristics or ones that derive from their processing, which reduces or eliminates the need for additives. And although some additives make important contributions to lubrication, by themselves don't necessarily have great lubricity.
The ingredients in an additive package differ in cost, as we said, but price is just one factor. Some work better in certain combinations of base oils, and some of the less-expensive base oils are a good choice for a blend because of the way they perform with popular additives. Bottom line: every motor oil has a recipe. Refiners come up with a list of objectives based on the needs of their customers (the carmakers, for example) and formulate oil to meet those goals as best they can.
Now, keeping an oil from thinning as it gets hot while it takes a beating from engine operation is one thing. But it's also important to keep oil from
getting too thick. Using premium base oils for low volatility (to prevent evaporation) is one approach. Evaporation of the base oil package not only increases oil consumption, it results in thicker oil (which decreases fuel economy).
Flushing oils
These are special compound oils that are very, very thin. They almost have the consistency of tap water when cold as well as hot. Typically they are 0W/20 oils. Don't ever drive with these oils in the engine - it won't last. Their purpose is for cleaning out all the gunk which builds up inside an engine. Note that Mobil1 0W40 is okay, because the '40' denotes that it's actually thick enough at temperature to work. 0W20 just doesn't get that viscous!
To use them:
• Drain your engine of all it's oil, but leave the old oil filter in place. • Next fill it up with flushing oil and run it at a fast idle for about 20 minutes. • Finally, drain all this off, replace the oil filter, refill with a good synthetic oil.
. . . and voila
Clean engine!
In an old engine you really don't want to remove all the deposits. Some of these deposits help seal rings, lifters and even some of the flanges between the heads, covers, pan and the block, where the gaskets are thin. I have heard of engines with over 180,000 miles that worked fine, but when flushed it failed in a month because the blow-by past the scraper ring (now really clean) contaminated the oil and screwed the rod bearings.
Engine Additives T.V. commercial:
Announcer: Every time you cold start your car without Slick 50 protection, metal grinds against metal in your engine.
Video: A key turning the ignition accompanied by sound of metal grinding.
Announcer: With each turn of the ignition you do unseen damage, because at cold start-up most of the oil is down in the pan.
Video: Shows a box of Slick 50, and then shows a bottle of Slick 50 being poured into a funnel.
Announcer: But Slick 50's unique chemistry bonds to engine parts. It reduces wear up to 50% for 50,000 miles.
[Super: Proven by Independent Lab Tests.]
Video: A large heavy ball is dropped down onto the car and demolishes it.
Announcer: So get Slick 50, while there's still time.
Video: Shows three different boxes of Slick 50 and then shows the demolished car.
Announcer: Slick 50's engine formula, the world's number one selling engine treatment.
[Super: Advanced Technology/Street Smart Science.]
Should I use an oil additive
No,
absolutely not, NEVER!
Lubrication system additives are never necessary as long as you are following the manufacturer's recommendation for oil change intervals. Additives do not provide any protection or performance improvements, and can in some cases cause engine damage or excessive engine wear.
Engine/Oil Additives are an addition to the engine which it was not designed to take. Engines are designed to use engine oil, not Teflon®.
My opinion, the majority of these are primarily a placebo to put uneducated minds at rest while making a nice profit for the additive manufacturer.
If you're considering Duralube, ProLong, Slick50 or any of the other brand-name placebos, you should think twice and read further.
To illustrate the whole point about additives, consider this. In the manufacture of synthetic oils, once the synthetic polyol ester bases are created, anti-wear additives such as zinc dithiophosphates (essentially combinations of zinc, phosphorous, and sulphour molecules) are added. These combinations are extremely effective as anti-oxidant, anti-wear, anti-corrosion inhibitors. Now look at the contents of some of the after-market additives. Wow! Zinc, phosphorous and sulphour! Hmmmmmmmmm! Those aftermarket additives are in fact exactly what your oil manufacturer has already put in .
Consider further that some oil companies actually make a point of telling you not to use aftermarket additives with their oils.
So if these additives are so brilliant, why do the companies always seem to end up in trouble?
Go ahead and click on a Brand below your thinking about using and see all the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) reports pertaining to that product . . .
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And don't worry about the engine oil turning black. It will lose its golden-brown color within a few hundred miles of being put in to the engine. That doesn't mean it's not working. Quite the contrary - it means it is working well. It changes color as it traps oxidized oil, clots and the flakes of metal that pop off heavily loaded engine parts. Just don't leave it too long between oil changes.
How to Check & Change Your Oil
Checking your car's oil regularly is one of the most important ways to preserve the life of the engine, and can save you a lot of money in expensive repairs down the road.
Driving with the oil level too low can damage the engine. An engine cannot run without oil, not even for a minute, without serious engine damage occurring.
Checking the oil in your car's engine is the most basic AND SIMPLE under the hood check and one of the most important.
Except for a few luxury cars with electronic oil level sensors, checking the oil in your car's engine is done as it has been for generations: by removing a dipstick from the engine and inspecting the oil level on the end of the stick (not to be confused with transmission - which also has a dipstick)
Check the engine oil on the dipstick periodically, especially if you own a late model used vehicle. Driving even 20 - 30 miles with extremely low oil level may result in expensive engine repair.
My Oil Light Comes On
The oil light will go on for one of two reasons: either the oil is low or the oil pump has stopped pumping. In both cases, the consequences are expensive if you keep driving.
1. If the oil light goes on, pull over as quickly and safely as you can. 2. Turn off the engine. 3. Put on your hazard lights and open the hood. 4. Check the oil If the oil is not low, call a tow truck. Do NOT DRIVE with the oil light on!
5. Add oil if it is low. Add oil as specified in your owner’s manual, or look for a tag under the hood of your car as to type of oil to use. Oil is an important item that should be kept in your vehicle at all times - See More 6. Restart the engine and check the light. 7. It is OK to drive if the light is now off. 8. Check the oil again in a few hours and over the next few days. If it is consistently low, there is a leak. See your mechanic!
If the engine is leaking oil, try new gaskets or seals to fix the leak.
If the engine is burning oil, the valve guides and seals are most likely worn out, but the rings and cylinders could require replacement, too.
DID YOU KNOW . . . Not replacing your head gasket when it is noted as leaking is likely to cause severe engine damage. This is one of the many instances where sub sequential damage may add up to being more than the cost of the original repair. Have your vehicle inspected for fluid leaks every 3 months / 3,000 miles or 5,000 km when it is in for it's regular oil change to ensure your safety as well as avoid any further cost. How will I know when it's time for replacement?
• A head gasket that is leaking will quite often cause an over heating condition in your vehicle. You will likely find that it over heats and then cools off and over heats again.
• You may notice white smoke from your exhaust system if the leak is internal as the vehicle is burning coolant. If it is an external leak then you may notice a sweet burning smell from under the hood as the coolant is burned off on the engine block.
Your vehicle should be inspected for fluid leaks in general at each regular service interval when it is in for an oil change. Have your vehicle inspected for fluid leaks every 3 months / 3,000 miles
How to Check Your Oil 11 Steps
Steps:
1. Check the oil when the engine is warm. Oil expands when it's hot and contracts when it's cold; different temperatures will give you different readings.
Before checking the oil level, the engine has to be turned off
The oil must be given a few minutes to run off engine parts and collect back into the oil pan. If you check the oil level just after shutdown, you could get an inaccurate oil level reading.
A good time to check the oil is before you start the car for the day. At that time, you can be sure that the oil has fully drained into the engine oil pan. Remember, though, that the car must be level for an accurate check.
2. Park the car on a level surface.
3. Turn off the engine.
4. Find the dipstick (under the hood), a long piece of metal sticking out of the engine usually with a loop at one end and is usually mounted on the side of the engine.
Many manufacturers have the handle of the dipstick painted a bright color (usually YELLOW) so it can be easily found. Others may have a "T" handle, or are incorporated into the fill cap.
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Most vehicle manufacturers say it's okay to wait until the level reaches the add mark to add oil. But considering that the crankcase capacity on most passenger cars today is only four quarts, running the engine 25% low on oil (one quart) may not be wise.
The best advice, therefore, is to add oil whenever the dipstick reads low. Don't wait until it is down a full quart. If it needs half a quart, add half a quart to bring it back up to the full mark.
Always replace your oil with the same type and brand!
Your owner's manual will tell you what type of motor oil your engine requires. If you do not have The Owners Manual: To determine what kind of oil to use, sometimes you can read the dipstick or look at the oil filler cap. You should see something like 5/30, 5W30, 10/30, 10W30. You can also contact your nearest auto parts store or qualified mechanic.
Oil is an important item that should be kept in your vehicle at all times - See More
CAUTION: Do not overfill the engine.
You should not add oil unless the level is below the "ADD" or "LOW" mark and NEVER add oil to bring the level above the "FULL" mark since too much oil may do damage. Adding too much oil can overfill the crankcase. As the crankshaft spins around, it can whip the oil into foam if the level is too high. This, in turn, can cause a drop in oil pressure and loss of lubrication to critical engine parts. Also, too much oil may cause leaks as the extra oil is forced past seals and gaskets.
9. Add the oil by unscrewing the oil filler cap, should be a knob that says "oil.", which is about 3 inches in diameter and located on the very top of the engine usually found on one of the valve covers.
Unscrew it and pour in the amount and type of oil recommended for your car. Look in your manual for the location of the knob if it's not obvious and for what type of oil to use.
Add oil as specified in your owner’s manual, or look for a tag under the hood of your car as to type of oil to use.
Motor oil is rated by a thickness rating (viscosity) over a specified temperature range. Most cars will call out oil with ratings such as 10W-30.
Inappropriate Oil could void warranty
Many new cars have certain grades of oil. Check your owner's manual for the proper grade. If you use the wrong grade of oil, it will void your warranty! For example, if you use 10W30 and your car requires 5W20, it will void the warranty if any problems arise with your engine.
10. Check the oil level with the dipstick after adding oil. Add more if necessary. It's easier to add more oil but fairly difficult to remove oil if you add too much.
11. Put the oil filler cap back on and secure it tightly.
What color is the oil?
The oil condition is very important and the color signifies potential problems. The oil should appear clean and translucent. If the engine oil on the dipstick is white (or the color of coffee- with- milk) or foamy, it means the engine coolant mixes with the engine oil, which is evidence of an internal engine defect (such as a blown head gasket or cracked block). Such defect is common for some V6 and V8 engines. Also, the oil should never have a gasoline smell.
If the oil is white or has white specks in it, this means the engine coolant is mixing with the engine oil because of an internal engine problem. Have your car inspected.
There is evidence that more than 70% of all problems with hydraulic systems can be traced directly to the condition of the oil.
Water in the oil
Is there is water in the oil, the oil must be replaced, as this not only damages the ball and roller bearings but also causes corrosion of all steel surfaces. This especially applies to those surfaces touched by the oil, for in addition to water, oxygen is present and this promotes rust. A further danger is the reduction of the operative area of filters and the consequent increase in the abrasiveness of the oil.
If the oil is slightly-brown, it's O.K.
If it's dark-brown, but still transparent, it's admissible but it would be better to change it.
If it is very thick and black,
you need to change it,
along with the filter.
If you wish to experiment a little,
You can go here and test for contamination in your motor oil
The whole debate about exactly when to change your oil is somewhat of a grey area. Manufacturers tell you every 7,500 miles under normal conditions. "What the heck are normal conditions?" Your mechanic tells you every 3,000 miles. Old man Billy Bob with the bad breath and false teeth,
who drives a 1962 Chevy pick up tells you he's never once changed the oil in his truck and she runs great!
Consider this: Are You a Severe Driver?
You may be surprised to learn that the vast majority of people are.
So, what exactly are severe driving conditions? According to most vehicle manufacturers, severe conditions consist of the following:
If one or more of these conditions apply to your driving habits, then you are a severe driver and should maintain your vehicle according to the severe maintenance schedule outlined in your owner’s manual. This means more frequent oil changes, usually at least every 3,000 miles.
When you checked your oil, was it Dirty? If it's dirty then you should probably change your oil!
In All Reality . . . You can never change your engine oil too frequently. The more you do it, the longer the engine will last!
• Driving short trips of 10 miles or less. • Stop-and-go driving such as rush hour commuting. • Pulling a trailer or driving with a top carrier or camper on the
vehicle. • Driving under hot or dusty conditions.
• Experiencing three or more cold starts per day, in which the vehicle has been sitting for at least an hour or more between startups.
Despite advances in motor oil technology, no oil will perform indefinitely. Motor oil becomes contaminated with combustion by-products, dirt and water vapor, causing its chemical additives to wear out.
Inappropriate Oil could void warranty
Many new cars have certain grades of oil. Check your owner's manual for the proper grade. If you use the wrong grade of oil, it will void your warranty! For example, if you use 10W30 and your car requires 5W20, it will void the warranty if any problems arise with your engine.
How to Troubleshoot Leaking Oil
Contrary to popular belief, cars do not use up engine oil. If your car is consistently low on oil, you either have an oil leak or an engine that's burning oil. You can detect the latter condition by blue smoke coming out of the tailpipe. Cars that burn a lot of oil are candidates for engine rebuilding. Although you may not be able to fix an oil leak, you can help diagnose it, saving your mechanic's time and you some money.
Steps:
1. Open the hood and look for obvious signs of wetness. Oil leaks usually come from a gasket: a piece of material, usually rubber, cork or silicone, that creates a seal between two metal parts. Look for places where different parts of the engine are bolted together.
2. Inspect underneath the car with a flashlight for signs of wetness. Oil here could be from a leak under the engine, or it could be collecting from a leak higher up. Wipe the suspect areas clean with a rag so you can inspect them closely and pinpoint the leak's source.
3. Consider getting the engine professionally steam-cleaned at an auto-repair shop if oil has leaked everywhere. This will make it easier for you or your mechanic to locate the leak.
4. Place a large piece of cardboard on the ground under the engine. Make marks on the cardboard to indicate its location in relation to the tires and the car's front and rear. Leave it in place overnight. Use rocks to hold it down if you park outside. (Some oil leaks occur only when the engine is running, but the cardboard method described here will still help locate these kind of leaks, because the oil will drip down.)
5. Check the cardboard in the morning to determine the amount of leakage and where it's dripping from.
6. You may find other types of leaks. Motor oil out of the bottle is the color of honey. Oil that has been in the engine for a little while is dark brown or even black. Coolant is green and smells sweet. Brake fluid is very light brown (almost clear) and very slippery. Automatic-transmission fluid and power-steering fluid are usually red.
Repair leaks as they occur. It is more difficult to diagnose a leak when everything is wet and seeping than on an otherwise dry and clean engine.
If you have a leak, be extra vigilant about checking all fluids regularly.
It's easier to just have Jiffy Lube or some other "quick oil change shop" do it
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If you empty 4 to 5 quarts of "oil," and it smells funky, you might have emptied your crank case fluid. Check with your owners manual to be sure you are unscrewing the right drain plug. Oil should be changed hot, which means as soon as possible after the car has been driven at operating temperature. If the car is parked for a long period before oil is changed, it allows the oil to cool and gives particles of dirt and water time to stick to parts of the engine. When the oil is drained, the dirt and water stay in the engine.
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Empty your oil, not your crank case
If you empty 4 to 5 quarts of "oil," and it smells funky, you might have emptied your crank case fluid. Check with your owners manual to be sure you are unscrewing the right drain plug.
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Why Change Your Oil Filter?
Even though most engines hold only 4 to 5 quarts of oil, constant re-circulation of that oil means that approximately 15,750 gallons will pass through your car's oil filter in 3,000 miles. This is why it is so important to have a clean oil filter it extends the life of your engine.
Oil helps to equalize temperatures in your engine by traveling from hot areas to cooler areas. Gradually, engine heat evaporates lighter components of the oil, causing it to oxidize and thicken. In addition, oil picks up contamination: soot from the piston rings, metal filings, dirt and grit that get past the air filter and othercontaminants from normal operation of your engine.
Fortunately, your oil filter acts as a second-line defense for fighting these contaminants. It prevents dirt and other contaminants from damaging internal engine parts by constantly cleaning the oil as it flows through your engine.
An oil filter is a low cost way to keep your engine healthy. Consult your owner's manual for more information.
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Oil Change Procedure
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The Non Do It Yourselfer
Do-it-yourself versus paying someone to do it
Oil changes are pretty inexpensive when done at a reputable repair shop or dealer. Most dealers offer oil change specials that cost less than the quick-change oil places, and the dealers do a better job and use better filters. Alot of dealers have very long service department hours including on Saturday (some on Sunday). The dealers also offer a time guarantee, generally that they'll get you in and out in less than 30 minutes or the next oil change is on them. Another advantage of having it done at a repair shop or dealer is that you have solid legal proof of the date and mileage when the oil change took place.
Procedure
1. Call mechanic to make appointment. 2. Drive to mechanic. 3. Chat with owner while employee changes oil. 4. Pay for oil change. 5. Check the drain pug to know if it is plugged properly. 6. Drive home.
Quick-Lube
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1. SAE30 oil. Some quick-lube places have been known to offer advertised specials that use SAE 30 oil, as opposed to 5W30 or 10W30. Pay the extra for the proper oil, or better yet avoid merchants that try to pull this kind of thing because it's an indicator that they are less than honest.
2. Trying to use the wrong oil because it's what they have in bulk. Insist on the oil that is specified on your filler cap and in your manual.
4. Selling unneeded and overpriced services such as engine flushes.
5. Selling overpriced, and often low quality, parts such as wiper blades and washer fluid, PCV valves, thermostats, etc. Never let a quick-lube place do any mechanical work on your vehicle.
6. Using poor quality filters. You really want to bring your own filter, from the dealer, with you when you go to a quick-lube place. They may take $1 or $2 off the price if you do this but don't count on it.
7. If you have a vehicle that actually still has Zerk fittings to lubricate then be sure that they actually lubricate these fitting. Most cars no longer require lubrication but some trucks still do.
8. Do not let a quick-lube place change or add any fluids other than oil. No transmission fluid, no brake fluid, no power steering fluid, no antifreeze, no oil additives, no fuel additives. It is just too easy for them to use the wrong fluid and cause permanent damage to your vehicle.
Click Here
You will be amazed/horrified
I think I'll pass on them!
Engine Flushes
The Latest Scam
Engine flushes pump heated solvent through your engine, supposedly to wash away sludge. But regular oil changes with detergent oil already take care of the sludge problem. And if you actually have an engine that is full of sludge the last thing you want to do is do an engine flush because the sludge can clog the oil passages and destroy the engine completely. These flushes are completely unnecessary. All they do is wash the money out of your wallet. As Click and Clack state: "This is what's known in the business as a "profit center." Something the garage can use to beef up the amount each person spends per visit. So unless you've got a very old car, and are trying to solve a specific, sludge- or carbon-related-problem, I'd skip the R-2000." These engine flushes usually sell for about $130. The victims are people that think that they are doing something nice for their vehicle by cleaning the engine. In fact a dealer or repair shop that tries to sell you an engine flush should be avoided for all service because they are untrustworthy.
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Used Oil Filters:
Do NOT dispose of an undrained oil filter in the trash
Unfortunately, most used oil filters are not recycled, so the oil they contain is released into the environment. Ninety percent of do-it-yourselfers throw their filters in the trash, sending about 10 million gallons of used oil to landfills every year.
Puncture domed part of the oil filter with a sharp tool. Drain filters on a rack while they are "hot" for 12 hours.
Recycling oil filters saves resources and energy
Americans change over 400 million oil filters a year! These filters have a high steel content and additional motor oil, both easily recycled. If all of the oil filters manufactured in 1994 had been recycled, an estimated 161,500 tons of steel could have been recovered and 17.8 million gallons of used oil would have been kept out of our fields and waterways.
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Personally, I'd go ahead and check the windshield washer reservoir, the power steering reservoir, the brake master cylinder . . .if it is fluid, I'd check it.
Lubricate The Chassis
Proper lubrication of your car's chassis insures its performance, and should be done in conjunction with regular oil changes.
Your car's chassis provides a smooth ride, supports the weight of your car and enables it to turn corners. In order to keep it working smoothly, however, the chassis must be properly lubricated.
To prevent wear and binding of suspension parts, heavy grease is injected between the moving joints and into grease fittings or "zerks". All car models have different numbers of zerks in different locations.
Some models have a sealed chassis, which has no zerks. A sealed chassis requires less maintenance; the joints are Teflon-coated and do not require grease.
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The emission control system in modern cars consists of a catalytic converter, a collection of sensors and actuators, and a computer to monitor and adjust everything.
For example, the catalytic converter uses a catalyst and oxygen to burn off any unused fuel and certain other chemicals in the exhaust. An oxygen sensor in the exhaust stream makes sure there is enough oxygen available for the catalyst to work and adjusts things if necessary.
Electrical System
The electrical system consists of a battery and an alternator. The alternator is connected to the engine by a belt and generates electricity to recharge the battery.
The battery makes 12-volt power available to everything in the car needing electricity (the ignition system, radio, headlights, windshield wipers, power windows and seats, computers, etc.) through the vehicle's wiring.
So you go out one morning and your engine will turn over but it won't start . . .
What could be wrong?
Now that you know how an engine works, you can understand the basic things that can keep an engine from running. Three fundamental things can happen: a bad fuel mix, lack of compression or lack of spark. Beyond that, thousands of minor things can create problems, but these are the "big three." Based on the simple engine we have been discussing, here is a quick run-down on how these problems affect your engine:
1. Bad fuel mix - A bad fuel mix can occur in several ways:
2. Lack of compression - If the charge of air and fuel cannot be compressed properly, the combustion process will not work like it should. Lack of compression might occur for these reasons:
The most common "hole" in a cylinder occurs where the top of the cylinder (holding the valves and spark plug and also known as the cylinder head) attaches to the cylinder itself. Generally, the cylinder and the cylinder head bolt together with a thin gasket pressed between them to ensure a good seal. If the gasket breaks down, small holes develop between the cylinder and the cylinder head, and these holes cause leaks.
3. Lack of spark - The spark might be nonexistent or weak for a number of reasons:
Other Problems
Many other things can go wrong. For example:
In a properly running engine, all of these factors are within tolerance.
As you can see, an engine has a number of systems that help it do its job of converting fuel into motion. Most of these subsystems can be implemented using different technologies, and better technologies can improve the performance of the engine.
DETECT ENGINE PROBLEM
Try and detect the problem - is the car not starting, running roughly, conking out, or using too much petrol?
After you have detected it, isolate the system most likely to be its cause. If it is conking out, the fuel system may be at fault. If it is not starting, the electrical system may be worth looking at first. If the car is overheating, check the cooling system.
After you have isolated the most likely system, locate the weakest link in that system. The fuel pump, for example, is often the most vulnerable part of the fuel system.
Check each successive part in the system until the problem is solved.
Get the broken part replaced or repaired. Consult your car's manual for other specific problems you might be facing. This will help to speed up diagnosis
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Interestingly, by attaching a belt (NOT the timing Belt mentioned earlier) to the end of this revolving crankshaft, this rotating movement is utilized by other parts of the car. For example, the now rotating belt moves the water pump, whose job it is to circulate the coolant through the engine. The belt also turns the alternator, which generates electricity for the battery and spark plugs.
Rotary engines work in a different way.
The rotary, or Wankel, engine has no piston, it uses rotors instead (usually two). This engine is small, compact and has a curved, oblong inner shape (known as an "epitrochoid" curve). Its central rotor turns in one direction only, but it produces all four strokes (intake, compression, power and exhaust) effectively.
Explore The Rotary Engine
Types of Engines
There are two main kinds of automobile engines, An inline 4 cylinder engine
A V-6 cylinder engine
A flat 4 cylinder engine
In-line engines
In-line engines have the cylinders arranged, one after the other, in a straight line. In a vertical position, the number of cylinders used is usually either four or six, but three cylinder cars are becoming more common.
V-Type Engines
The V-type of engine has two rows of cylinders at (usually) a ninety degree angle to each other and is commonly used in V-6, V-8, V-10 and V-12 configurations. Its advantages are its short length, the great rigidity of the block, its heavy crankshaft, and attractive low profile (for a car with a low hood). This type of engine lends itself to very high compression ratios without block distortion under load, resistance to tensional vibration, and a shorter car length without losing passenger room.
In 1914, Cadillac was the first company in the United States to use a V-8 engine in its cars.
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Valvetrain: Remember the oil smoke problem mentioned above in the piston sections. If your car only smokes grayish/white smoke at start-up you may have leaking valve seals. Valve seals keep oil from above the valve from leaking into the combustion chamber. When they wear, they can allow oil to seep into the combustion chamber and collect there until your start the engine again. You generally do not get oil leaking past the valve seals while the engine is running since the seals expand with the heat of the engine and plug the leak.
Another common problem is the timing chain or belt will slip or even break causing the cam shaft to stop rotating. Remember the camshaft tells the valves when to open and if it stops spinning then the valves stop opening and closing. No valve moving, no engine running :-)
A term you will here when talking about timing chains and belts is "interference engine". When an engine is an "interference engine" the pistons and valves are so close together that if the valves were to stop moving (broken belt or chain) and the crankshaft kept spinning they would crash into the piston. (that's the interference) This crash tends to do bad things to an engine, breaking valve, bending pushrods, and even cracking pistons. This is why most manufacturers recommend changing the timing chain or belt every 60,000 miles. timing belts dry out, stretch and deteriorate over time so even if you do not have 60,000 miles on the car think about changing the belt after it's 6 years old.
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The Transmission Trans`mis´sion
n. (Mech.) The mechanism within a vehicle which transmits rotational power from the engine to the axle of the wheel propelling the vehicle; it includes the gears and gear-changing mechanism as well as the propeller shaft.
There is more to making a car go than an explosion in the cylinder pushing a piston and turning a crankshaft as explored in the previous section
"The Automobile's Engine" .
A vehicle needs a way to handle its rotary energy efficiently. It needs a way to transmit the power the engine generates, and to transmit it effectively. A car needs a transmission.
What is a transmission?
The transmission is a device that is connected to the back of the engine and as the name suggests, a car's transmission "transmits" or sends, power from the engine to the drive wheels. Essentially, a car moves forward through a combination of speed and torque, or twisting power. The transmission sets these two characteristics so that the driver gets the smoothest, most efficient ride at the speed they want.
A Transmission Converts Torque highway speeds, it requires much less torque. The greater the torque, the greater the pulling power of the engine. Torque is the power of the twisting action that is sent to the wheels once the reciprocal (up and down motion) energy of the pistons is converted to rotary energy. What the transmission does is increase and decreases the torque according to the demand that the driver places on the automobile. With a manual transmission, the driver selects the amount of torque. With an automatic transmission, the transmission automatically shifts according to demand. If the car is moving up a steep hill, it requires more torque. If the car is moving on a flat interstate at Torque, along with engine RPM (revolutions per minute), is how horsepower is measured.
If your vehicle had no transmission system, it would be difficult for the vehicle to make the best use of all the possible combinations of speed and torque. This would compromise the efficiency of the engine.
A Transmission Is a Torque Multiplier
The transmission delivers multiplied torque to the propeller shaft. The shaft sends the power to the axle, and the axle to the tires. In low gear and in second gear, an auto transmission is a torque multiplier. Low gear, the gear used when climbing a steep hill, or sometimes when pulling a very heavy load, has a torque multiple of around 3 to 1. Second gear has a torque multiple of about 2 to 1. High gear, used at highway speeds, is a direct drive gear, meaning that there is no torque multiplier.
And if you have a car equipped with "overdrive," the torque ratio is in the neighborhood of 0.8 to 1. Every auto transmission establishes its multiples with slight differences, depending on what the designers determine to be the most efficient torque multipliers for a given engine in a specific car.
Highway speeds require less torque conversion from the transmission. If your car is equipped with overdrive, use it on the highway. Properly used, overdrive will reduce engine wear, increase gas mileage, and promote longer engine and transmission life.
Understanding Torque Multiples
Imagine riding a ten-speed bicycle. Your legs are the pistons pumping up and down, the sprocket converts the energy to rotary power, and the bicycle chain and the derailleur (the gadget that moves the chain through the gears) are the transmission. If the bike is in first gear-the chain is connected to the smallest front sprocket and to the largest rear sprocket- you may be able to climb even a steep hill and stay seated. Your legs pump rapidly but without a lot of effort, and the bike moves slowly up the hill: high torque, low speed. It is practically impossible to start off in tenth gear and climb the hill. Tenth gear generates low torque but much higher speed for the same amount of leg effort.
The transmission of a car does the same work, but other gears replace the chain. The gears themselves are made of much stronger and heavier metals, and designed to withstand the strains of the automobile's weight and speed.
What happens when pulling a heavy load in too high a gear?
Think about peddling a bike up a hill in the wrong gear. If the gear is too high (too little torque), a heavy load strains the engine, causes it to heat up, and over time will reduce engine life.
So . . . How does the transmission actually work? Well, with each small explosion in the four-stroke engine, a connecting rod turns the crankshaft, sending power through the transmission to a set of gears that adjust the speed and torque to meet the conditions of the road. Whether you have a manual transmission or an automatic transmission, the principle is the same: higher gears allow the engine to run more slowly on long or flat stretches of road, and lower gears help the engine turn faster to produce more power and conserve fuel. In manual transmission, the driver has to shift gears when they want to increase or decrease their rate of speed. With an automatic transmission, invented in 1932, the gears are shifted automatically. Other popular transmission variants found on today's cars allow for both - a manual and an automatic mode, as well as a fifth gear for better fuel efficiency at higher speeds.
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On a rear wheel drive car, the transmission is usually mounted to the back of the engine and is located under the hump in the center of the floorboard alongside the gas pedal position.
A drive shaft connects the rear of the transmission to the final drive which is located in the rear axle and is used to send power to the rear wheels. Power flow on this system is simple and straight forward going from the engine, through the torque converter, then through the transmission and drive shaft until it reaches the final drive where it is split and sent to the two rear wheels.
On a front wheel drive car, the transmission is usually combined with the final drive to form what is called a transaxle. The engine on a front wheel drive car is usually mounted sideways in the car with the transaxle tucked under it on the side of the engine facing the rear of the car. Front axles are connected directly to the transaxle and provide power to the front wheels.
In this example, power flows from the engine, through the torque converter to a large chain that sends the power through a 180 degree turn to the transmission that is along side the engine. From there, the
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The illustration on the right shows how the simple system described above would look in an actual transmission. The input shaft is connected to the ring gear (Blue), The Output shaft is connected to the planet carrier (Green) which is also connected to a "Multi-disk" clutch pack.
The sun gear is connected to a drum (yellow) which is also connected to the other half of the clutch pack. Surrounding the outside of the drum is a band (red) that can be tightened around the drum when required to prevent the drum with the attached sun gear from turning.
The clutch pack is used, in this instance, to lock the planet carrier with the sun gear forcing both to turn at the same speed. If both the clutch pack and the band were released, the system would be in neutral. Turning the input shaft would turn the planet gears against the sun gear, but since nothing is holding the sun gear, it will just spin free and have no effect on the output shaft. To place the unit in first gear, the band is applied to hold the sun gear from moving. To shift from first to high gear, the band is released and the clutch is applied causing the output shaft to turn at the same speed as the input shaft.
Many more combinations are possible using two or more planetary sets connected in various ways to provide the different forward speeds and reverse that are found in modern automatic transmissions.
Some of the clever gear arrangements found in four and now, five, six and even seven-speed automatics are complex enough to make a technically astute lay person's head spin trying to understand the flow of power through the transmission as it shifts from first gear through top gear while the vehicle accelerates to highway speed. On newer vehicles, the vehicle's computer monitors and controls these shifts so that they are almost imperceptible.
Clutch Packs
A clutch pack consists of alternating disks that fit inside a clutch drum.
Half of the disks are steel and have splines that fit into groves on the inside of the drum. The other half have a friction material bonded to their surface and have splines on the inside edge that fit groves on the outer surface of the adjoining hub.
There is a piston inside the drum that is activated by oil pressure at the appropriate time to squeeze the clutch pack together so that the two components become locked and turn as one.
One-Way Clutch
A one-way clutch (also known as a "sprag" clutch) is a device that will allow a component such as ring gear to turn freely in one direction but not in the other. This effect is just like that of a bicycle, where the pedals will turn the wheel when pedaling forward, but will spin free when pedaling backward.
A common place where a one-way clutch is used is in first gear when the shifter is in the drive position. When you begin to accelerate from a stop, the transmission starts out in first gear. But have you ever noticed what happens if you release the gas while it is still in first gear? The vehicle continues to coast as if you were in neutral. Now, shift into Low gear instead of Drive. When you let go of the gas in this case, you will feel the engine slow you down just like a standard shift car. The reason for this is that in Drive, a one-way clutch is used whereas in Low, a clutch pack or a band is used.
Bands
A band is a steel strap with friction material bonded to the inside surface. One end of the band is anchored against the transmission case while the other end is connected to a servo. At the appropriate time hydraulic oil is sent to the servo under pressure to tighten the band around the drum to stop the drum from turning.
Torque Converter
On automatic transmissions, the torque converter takes the place of the clutch found on standard shift vehicles. It is there to allow the engine to continue running when the vehicle comes to a stop. The principle behind a
torque converter is like taking a fan that is plugged into the wall and blowing air into another fan which is unplugged.
If you grab the blade on the unplugged fan, you are able to hold it from turning but as soon as you let go, it will begin to speed up until it comes close to the speed of the powered fan. The difference with a torque converter is that instead of using air, it uses oil or transmission fluid, to be more precise.
A torque converter is a large doughnut shaped device (10" to 15" in diameter) that is mounted between the engine and the transmission. It consists of three internal elements that work together to transmit power to the transmission.
The three elements of the torque converter are the Pump, the Turbine, and the Stator.
The pump is mounted directly to the converter housing which in turn is bolted directly to the engine's crankshaft and turns at engine speed. The turbine is inside the housing and is connected directly to the input shaft of the transmission providing power to move the vehicle. The stator is mounted to a one-way clutch so that it can spin freely in one direction but not in the other.
Each of the three elements have fins mounted in them to precisely direct the flow of oil through the converter
With the engine running, transmission fluid is pulled into the pump section and is pushed outward by centrifugal force until it reaches the turbine section which starts it turning. The fluid continues in a circular motion back towards the center of the turbine where it enters the stator. If the turbine is moving considerably slower than the pump, the fluid will make
contact with the front of the stator fins which push the stator into the one way clutch and prevent it from turning. With the stator stopped, the fluid is directed by the stator fins to re-enter the pump at a "helping" angle providing a torque increase. As the speed of the turbine catches up with the pump, the fluid starts hitting the stator blades on the back-side causing the stator to turn in the same direction as the pump and turbine. As the speed increases, all three elements begin to turn at approximately the same speed.
Since the '80s, in order to improve fuel economy, torque converters have been equipped with a lockup clutch which locks the turbine to the pump as the vehicle speed reaches approximately 45 - 50 MPH. This lockup is controlled by computer and usually won't engage unless the transmission is in 3rd or 4th gear.
Hydraulic System
The Hydraulic system is a complex maze of passages and tubes that sends transmission fluid under pressure to all parts of the transmission and torque converter.
The newer systems are much more complex and are combined with computerized electrical components. Transmission fluid serves a number of purposes including: shift control, general lubrication and transmission cooling.
Unlike the engine, which uses oil primarily for lubrication, every aspect of a transmission's functions is dependant on a constant supply of fluid under pressure. This is not unlike the human circulatory system (the fluid is even red) where even a few minutes of operation when there is a lack of pressure can be harmful or even fatal to the life of the transmission. In order to keep the transmission at normal operating temperature, a portion of the fluid is sent through one of two steel tubes to a special chamber that is submerged in anti-freeze in the radiator. Fluid passing through this chamber is cooled and then returned to the transmission through the other steel tube. A typical transmission has an average of ten quarts of fluid between the transmission, torque converter, and cooler tank. In fact, most of the components of a transmission are constantly submerged in fluid including the clutch packs and bands. The friction surfaces on these parts are designed to operate properly only when they are submerged in oil.
Oil Pump
The transmission oil pump (not to be confused with the pump element inside the torque converter) is responsible for producing all the oil pressure that is required in the transmission. The oil pump is mounted to the front of the transmission case and is directly connected to a flange on the torque converter housing. Since the torque converter housing is directly connected to the engine crankshaft, the pump will produce pressure whenever the engine is running as long as there is a sufficient amount of transmission fluid available. The oil enters the pump through a filter that is located at the bottom of the transmission oil pan and travels up a pickup tube directly to the oil pump. The oil is then sent, under pressure to the pressure regulator, the valve body and the rest of the components, as required.
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Because of computer controls, sports models are coming out with the ability to take manual control of the transmission as though it were a stick shift, allowing the driver to select gears manually. This is accomplished on some cars by passing the shift lever through a special gate, then tapping it in one direction or the other in order to up-shift or down-shift at will. The computer monitors this activity to make sure that the driver does not select a gear that could over speed the engine and damage it.
Another advantage to these "smart" transmissions is that they have a self diagnostic mode which can detect a problem early on and warn you with an indicator light on the dash. A technician can then plug test equipment in and retrieve a list of trouble codes that will help pinpoint where the problem is.
Governor, Vacuum Modulator, Throttle Cable
These three components are important in the non-computerized transmissions. They provide the inputs that tell the transmission when to shift. The Governor is connected to the output shaft and regulates hydraulic pressure based on vehicle speed. It accomplishes this using centrifugal force to spin a pair of hinged weights against pull-back springs. As the weights pull further out against the springs, more oil pressure is allowed past the governor to act on the shift valves that are in the valve body which then signal the appropriate shifts.
Of course, vehicle speed is not the only thing that controls when a transmission should shift, the load that the engine is under is also important. The more load you place on the engine, the longer the transmission will hold a gear before shifting to the next one.
There are two types of devices that serve the purpose of monitoring the engine load:
the Throttle Cable and the Vacuum Modulator. A transmission will use one or the other but generally not both of these devices. Each works in a different way to monitor engine load.
The Throttle Cable simply monitors the position of the gas pedal through a cable that runs from the gas pedal to the throttle valve in the valve body.
The Vacuum Modulator monitors engine vacuum by a rubber vacuum hose which is connected to the engine. Engine vacuum reacts very accurately to engine load with high vacuum produced when the engine is under light load and diminishing down to zero vacuum when the engine is under a heavy load. The modulator is attached to the outside of the transmission case and has a shaft which passes through the case and attaches to the throttle valve in the valve body. When an engine is under a light load or no load, high vacuum acts on the modulator which moves the throttle valve in one direction to allow the transmission to shift early and soft. As the engine load increases, vacuum is diminished which moves the valve in the other direction causing the transmission to shift later and more firmly.
Seals and Gaskets
An automatic transmission has many seals and gaskets to control the flow of hydraulic fluid and to keep it from leaking out. There are two main external seals: the front seal and the rear seal. The front seal seals the point where the torque converter mounts to the transmission case. This seal allows fluid to freely move from the converter to the transmission but keeps the fluid from leaking out. The rear seal keeps fluid from leaking past the output shaft.
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In most cases during these transmission services, only about half the oil is able to be removed from the unit. This is because much of the oil is in the torque converter and cooler lines and cannot be drained without major disassembly. The fluid change intervals are based on the fact that some old fluid remains in the system.
When the transmission is serviced, make sure that the correct fluid is used to re-fill it. Each transmission manufacturer has their own recommendation for the proper fluid to use and the internal components are designed for that specific formula. GM usually uses Dexron, Fords prior to 1983 use Type F while later models use Mercon. Late model Chrysler products use ATF +3 +4 (Not using the correct fluid for Chrysler transmissions is the most common reason for their transmission problems.) Toyota sometimes uses Type T which is only available through Toyota and Lexus Parts departments. Honda also specs out their own formula which is available from Honda or Acura parts departments. A transmission will not work properly or may even slip or shudder with the incorrect fluid, so make sure that you double check. Your owner's manual will tell you which fluid is required. Naturally, the owner's manual will try to convince you to only use the manufacturer's branded fluid, but they will also provide you with the specs for the oil. If the aftermarket product indicates on its container that they meet or exceed the specs for a particular type of transmission fluid, it is generally ok to use that product.
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