Engineering Explained

While the engine of your car might be its heart, it's the battery that provides the juice to get that engine moving. By now, you probably know plenty about how your engine works. Do you know anything about your battery, though? If not, you're going to need to watch this video from Engineering...

Horsepower is fun in its own way, but torque can be just as entertaining. If you want to rip stumps out of the ground, you'll want a whole lot of torque. That also means you'll likely prefer a diesel engine. Compared to their gasoline-swilling counterparts, diesel engines are the torque kings. Why...

When you think about expensive automobiles, there's one data point that doesn't often enter into the discussion. That would be reliability. It seems the more you spend on a car, the less reliable it becomes. But is that truly the case? Jason Fenske from Engineering Explained is here to examine this...

Mazda hasn't been shy about its dedication to the internal combustion engine. After all, the Japanese company will likely arrive first to market with a homogeneous charge compression ignition engine (HCCI), which will provide tremendous fuel economy improvements without the loss of performance. But...

Pushrod engines may not be high-tech by today's standards, but they soldier on and have benefits of their own. One downfall, however, is their ability to rev. Pushrod engines tend to have rather low redlines. You won't find a GM small-block V-8 revving to 9,000 rpm, but there's a reason for it all...

Ford's famed flathead V-8 was revolutionary when the automaker put the engine into production in 1932. It brought the V-8 to the mass market and ready power to hot rodders for decades to come. But its design would eventually make it outdated. After more than two decades of service, the flathead V-8...

Automakers have started using electric compressors to help eliminate lag in their turbocharged engines. The first with the technology was Audi, which introduced it in its SQ7 TDI high-performance diesel SUV sold overseas. The SUV's engine features a pair of turbochargers, a diesel V-8, a 48-volt...

The dynamic skip fire system developed by Silicon Valley startup Tula Technology is set to make its debut in the 2019 Chevrolet Silverado and 2019 GMC Sierra, promising big fuel economy improvements for the big trucks. While normal drivers may never even realize the system is hard at work, Jason...

Drivers have various reasons for starting in second gear, especially with a manual transmission. Perhaps first gear is too short, or snowy road conditions require lighter acceleration to avoid spinning the tires. But is that a good idea? Never fear because Jason Fenske of Engineering Explained is...

Too much body roll is never a good thing. To tighten things up further, Audi has introduced a system featuring two electronic sway bars to nearly eliminate body roll. And who would be better to give us a walkthrough on how the system actually works than Jason Fenske of Engineering Explained. In the...

Every media outlet in the world covered Volkswagen's tangled web of lies and deceit as "Dieselgate" opened up and spewed the truth nearly three years ago. Its consequences are ongoing today, and VW's future trajectory has been changed forever. But, how exactly did VW's "defeat device" work? Jason...

Mercedes-Benz dominated Formula One in 2017, and part of its success was no doubt due to its latest F1 powertrain. The big news surrounding the engine is the fact it achieves a 50-percent thermal efficiency. What's so special about that? Jason Fenske of Engineering Explained is here to tell us...

Jason Fenske from Engineering Explained is starting to wrench on his Honda S2000 project car. One of the latest areas of the car he's attacking is the rear end. His yellow Honda is getting a brand new limited-slip differential with more aggressive gearing. Before he gets to enjoy that extra...

We toss the words "horsepower" and "torque" around pretty often in the automotive industry, but perhaps the meaning of both gets lost along the way. Never fear, Engineering Explained is here. In a new video, EE host Jason Fenske helps explain in the simplest of ways what power and torque are, and...

There are two relatively simple options to boost (pun intended) horsepower in a vehicle: superchargers and turbochargers. But, which is better? Once again, Jason Fenske of Engineering Explained is here with an answer. It's important to understand how both options function first. A turbocharger...

We've talked in the past about the relationship between horsepower and torque. They work together, and horsepower needs torque to make you and your car happy. There's one magic number though that doesn't get much ink spilled its way, virtual or otherwise. The number is 5,252, and it's the point in...

There's a battle of words that occurs when a group of people begin arguing over who has the fastest machine. All sorts of performance metrics are thrown around, and it can quickly become a miasma of uninformed soup. Some think they're going to win a race because they have more horsepower, while...

You won't jump into a modern electric car and row through a number of gears as you race down the road, which begs the question: why is it that electric cars usually have only one gear? It's but another topic for Jason Fenske of Engineering Explained to cover for us, so throw on your learning caps...

You know those car ads you see filling every commercial break of your favorite television show? Look closely and you'll see a fair number of them touting either a given vehicle's power output or perhaps the estimated fuel economy figures. There's usually also a disclaimer stating that a certain...

The second-generation Ford GT packs incredible engineering no matter where one's eyes may scan. Be it aerodynamics, engine technology, or the suspension, there's always more than meets the eye. Here, however, we're talking about the GT's suspension, which is anything but traditional. It uses coil...