Explosions! Thousands of explosions every minute of operation power internal combustion engines. Squirt one part of fuel and 15 parts of air into a closed cylinder, add an electric spark, and there will be an explosion.
Explosions are rapid chemical reactions that release tremendous amounts of energy, mostly as heat. The gases created in the explosion expand rapidly, increasing the pressure inside the cylinder and driving a moveable piston down the cylinder.
A crankshaft converts the up and down motion of several pistons into rotary motion that powers the wheels. But to get to the wheels, the kinetic energy must transfer through a transmission that trades engine speed for torque, or turning power, through a series of gears. Moving torque from the transmission to the wheels requires complex mechanical systems that have great variety in design.
Is this all? Not at all. There is much more to how a car works. But this is a start. Now go look at your car—ask yourself what each part does, and if you don’t know the answer look it up in the following pages.
© 2009 by Ed Sobey
All rights reserved
Published by Chicago Review Press, Incorporated
814 North Franklin Street
Chicago, Illinois 60610
ISBN: 978-1-55652-812-5
Printed in the United States of America
5 4 3 2 1
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Sobey, Edwin J. C., 1948–
A field guide to automotive technology / Ed Sobey.
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN 978-1-55652-812-5
1. Automobiles—Popular works. 2. Mechanics—Popular works. I. Title.
TL146.5.S63 2008
629.2—dc22
2008046620
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