Engine design and operation

Engine classifications

Four stroke cycle

Compression ratio

Engine designs

Engine measurements

Support systems: cooling and lubrication

Perform vacuum and spark plug test

Four stoke gasoline engine

 • Cylinder, head, valves, cam, piston, crankshaft, flywheel

• Engine strokes?

• Intake stroke

• Compression

• Power

• Exhaust

Stroke

• Movement of the piston from the top to the bottom – or from the bottom to
the top

Four stroke gasoline engine

• TDC- top dead center, is when the piston is at highest point in the cylinder

• BDC-Bottom dead center, is when the piston is at the lowest point in the
cylinder

• Stroke- piston travel from TDC to BDC or BDC to TDC, requires 180 degrees of
crankshaft rotation

• 720 degrees in a 4 stroke cycle

Bore and Stroke

• Bore = cylinder diameter

• Stroke = travel of the piston

Displacement

Displacement = the volume of the cylinder between TDC and BDC. Bore X stroke X
# of cylinders

Compression ratio

• Compression ratio = is the ratio of the volume in the cylinder above the
piston at BDC as compared to the volume above the piston at TDC

Torque
• Torque is twisting or turning force

• Force X leverage = torque

Horsepower

• Horsepower = the rate or speed which is produced

• Brake horsepower = is usable power at the crankshaft

• Friction horsepower = is the power required to overcome internal friction of

the engine

Engine efficiency

• Engine efficiency is the relationship of the amount of energy put into the
engine and the amount available from the engine.

• Thermal efficiency

• Volumetric efficiency

• Mechanical efficiency

Gasoline engine systems

• Air – fuel system

• Ignition system

• Lubrication system

• Cooling system

• Mechanical system

Engine oiling

• Oil level, oil pump, filter, gauge, crank, cam, valves

Engine cooling

• Leaks

• Anti – freeze

• Rad. Pressure hold

• Cap pressure and release

• Flow – thermostat

• Belt and tension

• Operation temp

• Electric fan operation on and off temp.

• Scan ECT

• Too hot or cold = drivability, mileage – ECT – open loop

Engine diagnosis

All engines must be tested for mechanical condition and soundness – before
tune up

• Vacuum test

• Compression test

• Leak-down test

• Noise diagnosis

• Valves and timing

Valve and camshaft operation

• Valve train

• Timing gears, belts, and chains

• Valve adjustment

Burnt valve
• Air/fuel too lean

• Incorrect timing

• Detonation/pre-ignition

• Incorrect valve adjustment

Valve adjustment

• Clearance or lash between cam and valve/lifter or rocker

• Why? Make sure closed – wont burn & maximum performance

Vacuum test

• Normal vacuum at idle – 17 – 22 psi

• Snap test “tap throttle” – should drop and then come back up

• Low – bad compression – all compression low = vacuum low

• Low compression on one cylinder – vacuum jumps fast = valve

Remove and read spark plugs

• Blow off cylinder heads around plugs

• Remember to pull off plug wires by the boots – twist and pull

• Look up firing order and record

Compression Test

• Test mechanical condition of engine cylinders

• Compression

• Valves

• Rings

• Pistons

• Cylinders

• If an engine has low compression-should you proceed with tune up? FUCK NO

• How many places can we loose compression? Rings, valve seat, cylinder wall,
valves, head gasket, crack in the block or head

• If it’s the rings or cylinder = your fucked, engine overhaul

• If its valves or head gasket = head job

• Cracks less then 1%

Compression test procedure

• All spark plugs out (air blow off before)

• Disable ignition and fuel (no spark or fuel)

• Screw in gauge and zero

• Throttle help open

• Crank 5 rotations

• Typical spec : 150-180 psi

• Not more then 10% difference

• If low do wet test – 3 squirts of oil and re-do

• Record on grind

• Diagnose

Compression test

• Results show one cylinder is 20% low?

• Wet test – oil sits on piston & seals rings and cylinders
• If low on dry and comes up on wet? Rings are bad

• If doesn’t come up? Valves or head gasket

Scored piston

• Rings and cylinder leaks

• Low on initial – up on wet test

Valves and seat

• Valve and seat leaks

• Low on initial – up on wet test

Head gasket

• Head gasket

• Leaking to cooling system

• Bubbles in radiator – steam out exhaust. (WHITE)

• Leak to another cylinder

• Two low readings on adjacent cylinders (50 psi)

• Wont come up on wet test

Leak down test

• All plugs out – operating temp

• Disable fuel or ignition

• Turn engine to TDC

• Use a compression gauge or mark on crank pulley to see TDC #1

• From that point one cylinder is going to be at TDC compression every half
rotation of crankshaft

• Remove radiator cap, dipstick, oil cap, & intake duct

• Turn tester down – counter clockwise

• Hook up shop air 45-150 psi w/o cylinder hose connected

• Adjust clockwise to gauge reads 0psi

• Connect to cylinder and read gauge & leakage.

• 30 % maximum leakage

• Listen for leakage.

• Always some leakage past rings

• If 100% - piston might have moved – watch crankshaft

• Shouldn’t be more than 10%

• The lower the sound pitch the bigger the leakage

• Intake valve = intake duct/carb/TB

• Exhaust valve = tail pipe

• Rings = oil fill or dipstick

• Head gasket = cooling system

Engine noise diagnosis

• The deeper the noise tone the lower in the block it usually is

• Clunk = main bearings, thrust bearings.

• Knock = worse when rpm – rod, oil pressure, cracked flex plate or bolts, wrist
pin, v belt.

• Rattle = slap sounds like diesel when cold especially – high mileage, piston
slap, v belt.

• Grind/rattle = timing chain/belt rub, camshaft, walking against cover.

• Clicking = valves, adjustments, rockers, pushrods, exhaust manifold,

injectors.
 Engine balance test

• Purpose- electronically cut out the spark to individual cylinders sequentially.

And measures the percent of RPM lost for the power of each cylinder

• Cylinders should be 1% or 2% of one another

• Measures cylinder balance or power of each cylinder

• Can only be used on a vehicle with a distributer

• Since test results will be expressed in a percentage – the number will change
dependant on # of cylinders
• 4 cylinder should loose about 15% of the RPM when each cylinder is cut out

• 6 cyl. Will loose about 10%-12% on each

• 8 cyl. Will loose about 5%-7% on each

• The number doesn’t matter as much as that all cylinders are fairly even

• Hook up leads on Allen for balance test

• Yellow – positive battery

• Black – negative battery

• Green – coil negative

• Clip – coil wire

• Inductive - # 1 plug wire arrow toward plug & clip on any ground

• 4 gas analyzer – tail pipe

• Balance test

• Turn on Allen test machine

• Set number of cylinder and ignition type.

• Push blue button to “automatic cyl. Balance”

• Engine should be warm & idling

• Push yellow “kill” button

• Repeat test 3 times

• Record numbers

• Aftermath

• If you have bigger % lost = stronger cylinder

• If you have a cylinder that doesn’t drop almost any RPM, or has a lower %,
that cylinder is weaker and has the problem.
 Engine exhaust diagnosis

• Oder

• Color

• Sound

• Oder

• Sulfur dioxide, rotten egg smell = misfire – rich, lean, spark, mechanical,
computer

• Sweet smell = coolant in combustion chamber or exhaust “intake manifold,

head gasket, engine cracks, possibly an internal leak into exhaust”

• Fuel, eye burning smell = over rich condition, lean, mechanical, electrical

• Smoke

• Blue = oil “acceleration = rings, deceleration and start up = valve seals

and/or valve guides”

• Black = rich, flooding, injectors

• White = steam, water = coolant in combustion chamber – head gasket,

cracks. Clouds of it.

• Sound

• Puffing or non rhythmic sound = misfire or compression problems

• Rushing air sound = restricted exhaust or converter

• Knocks and rattles = internal noises, or even external exhaust rattles.