L-type engine:
Also known as "linear engine", it means that the cylinders are arranged in a straight line, and all cylinders are arranged side by side in a plane at the same angle.
"In-line" is generally represented by L, followed by the number of cylinders, that is, the engine code. Modern automobiles mainly have L3, L4, L5 and L6 engines.
Advantages: stability, low cost, simple structure, good running balance, small size, high stability, good low-speed torque characteristics, less oil consumption, small size and wide application.
Disadvantages: When the displacement and the number of cylinders increase, the length of the engine will increase greatly.
In-line 4-cylinder engines are generally widely used in engines with displacement less than 2.2 liters.
In-line six-cylinder engine, the current leader is the famous BMW. BMW inline 6-cylinder engine embodies the top technology of today's mass production engine, which can be called the pinnacle of inline 6-cylinder.
V-engine:
All cylinders are divided into two groups, and adjacent cylinders are arranged together at a certain included angle, so that the two groups of cylinders form two planes with included angles, and the cylinders are V-shaped when viewed from the side, so they are called V-shaped engines.
V-type engine is small in height and length, which is convenient to be arranged on the car. In particular, modern cars pay more attention to aerodynamics, and the smaller the windward side of the car, the better, that is, the lower the hood.
Common V engines are V6, V8, V 10 and V 12. There are V3, V5, V 16 (not to be confused with the number of valves represented by some in-line engines).
As the name implies, V represents the V-shaped arrangement of engine cylinders, generally 90 degrees, which can offset the vibration during operation and be more stable. There are 75 degrees and 72 degrees. Renault even used a wide-angle V 10 engine of more than 90 degrees.
Advantages: stable operation (suitable for V6, V8 and V 12) and space saving.
Disadvantages: the structure is complex, which is not conducive to maintenance and high cost. At the same time, V3 and V5, including V 10, are not very stable in structure and displacement, especially the V 10 3L engine, that is, the F 1 engine, which requires a lot of energy and money to ensure its stability.
Representative models: Audi A6, Ferrari 360, Porsche carrear GT and Mercedes S600. Use V6, V8, V 10 and V 12 engines respectively. V3 mainly appears on some motorcycles, and V5 is said to be used in the previous generation of Volkswagen Golf. V 16 can be found in some luxury classic cars.
H engine:
Also known as horizontally opposed engine, it is also a type of V-type engine, except that the included angle of V becomes 180 degrees, usually 4 or 6 cylinders.
Advantages: ◆ Low center of gravity: the generated lateral vibration is easily absorbed by the bracket, which effectively reduces the center of gravity of the heavier engine of the whole vehicle and makes it easier to achieve overall balance.
Low vibration: the piston motion is well balanced (about 180 degree offset). Compared with the in-line type, the required balance weight coefficient in the crankshaft is reduced, which is helpful to improve the speed. It can maintain a low speed of 650 rpm and ensure the smooth operation of the engine. Compared with other engine series, its fuel consumption is also the lowest.
Disadvantages: high cost and wide engine.
At present, only two automakers, Porsche and Subaru, produce horizontally opposed engine in the world.
W engine:
W engine is a unique engine technology of German Volkswagen.
Simply put, two V engines add up to form a V engine, that is, "V+V=W=V".
Compared with V-type engine, W-type engine can make the engine shorter and the crankshaft shorter, which can save the space occupied by the engine and reduce the weight, but its width is larger and the engine room is fuller.
Advantages: the structure is more compact, more cylinders can be accommodated, and the displacement is larger.
The disadvantage is that the structure is too complicated! The balance of operation is not good.
Because of the patent, this kind of engine can only be seen in a few cars such as Volkswagen and Audi. European Volkswagen Golf, European Volkswagen Passat and Audi A8 are equipped with W6, W8 and W 12 engines respectively.
Rotor engine:
Rotor engine was first invented by German scientist Wankel, so it is also called Wankel engine. In fact, the rotary engine is inefficient, but its power is high.
Rotor engine, also known as triangle piston rotor engine, is a special piston engine. The piston of the rotor is a convex arc triangle. When the rotor rotates in the cylinder of the epicyclic line, the three vertices of the arc triangle keep in contact with the cylinder wall, thus forming three mutually isolated working chambers between the arc surface of the rotor and the cylinder wall. The volumes of these three working chambers change periodically with the rotation of the rotor. Every time the rotor rotates, each working chamber can complete a four-stroke process, corresponding to the four strokes of the piston reciprocating engine, thus forming a complete working cycle.
Disadvantages: oil consumption, environmental pollution and short machine life.
At present, only Mazda is applying this technology.