How It Works
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The Honda Civic Type R is an impressive little beastie. In fact, if you missed it, we named Honda's hot hatch the Motor Authority Best Car To Buy 2018. We lauded its handling capabilities, and a major part of the magic is how Honda managed to basically eliminate torque steer in a 306-horsepower front-wheel-drive car. Why doesn't it exhibit torque steer or at least much torque steer? Thankfully, Jason Fenske of Engineering Explained is here to, well...explain it. First a definition. Torque steer occurs when engine torque actually affects a vehicle's steering. It's prevalent in high-power...
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The science behind Rolls-Royce's oddball four-rotor diesel rotary engine
This is the strangest engine you've likely never heard about. Back in the late 1960s and early '70s, a number of automakers were experimenting with odd engine setups. Heck, that happens all the time, even today. This particular setup was quite odd, however, in that it was a diesel rotary. Making it...
Jeff Glucker -
What uses less gas: coasting or engine braking?
Getting the most of your vehicle, with regards to fuel economy, is to play a game of efficiency. You have to find the most efficient manner of driving in a given situation. That leads some to put a vehicle in neutral and team up with gravity for a bit of downhill acceleration. Modern cars, however...
Jeff Glucker -
Here's how Koenigsegg destroyed Bugatti's 0-248-0 mph world record
The name of the game here is power-to-weight ratio. That's how you can have one car out perform another. As you climb to higher and higher speeds, you're going to need more and more power. That's why a car like the Bugatti Chiron packs a W-16 engine producing 1,480 horsepower. It needs that...
Jeff Glucker -
10 reasons why engines lose power over time
Ever driven a brand new car and then the same model but one with much higher mileage? They don't often feel the same. In fact, the older car might even feel like it has less performance. The scenario isn't an odd one, as there are quite a few ways that a car with more mileage can lose performance...
Jeff Glucker -
Why is the Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk faster than the Dodge Demon?
Dodge has unleashed a mighty machine upon the world. It's not the 707-horsepower Challenger or Charger SRT Hellcat siblings, but rather the more powerful Challenger SRT Demon street-legal drag car that comes complete with its 840-horsepower 6.2-liter supercharged V-8 engine. It has so much power...
Jeff Glucker -
A racecar is never just a set it and forget it type of machine. Each circuit determines the sort of setup a driver and a car might prefer, as it might have a tight, corner heavy layout or one that's more open and filled with high-speed sweeping sections. Now, you make this about rally racing and you can add in tarmac, gravel, dirt, snow and all sorts of other surface types and it just adds to the many ways in which you can setup your racecar. Wyatt Knox from Team O'Neil Rally School is here with an explainer on how they set up their own racecars. He's created a list that you'd work through...
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Why dyno numbers might not be something to boast about
Taking your car to a dyno is often a great way to produce bragging rights, especially after installing various aftermarket modifications. Following the results owners often swear by the figures, but variances in the equipment itself can lead to numerous results that skew the figures themselves...
Sean Szymkowski -
How protective car film works
Most people aren't willing to grab a brass brush and drag it across a body panel on their fresh, clean car. Jason Fenske from Engineering Explained is here to do just that to show off a bit of science. That science involves the protective film he recently applied to his cars, and it's the reason...
Jeff Glucker -
What is a "hot inside V" turbo engine?
Have you ever heard of a "hot inside V"? It's not a sandwich. Our friend Jason Fenske from Engineering Explained is here for a quick lesson on this en vouge turbocharging setup for today's engines. A hot inside V turbocharger layout places the turbo or turbos inside the valley between the engine...
Jeff Glucker -
Watch how the professionals strip paint from a car
A car in need of a complete rework of its paint will typically need its existing paint to be removed. If you want the job done right then you'll have to start from the beginning, making sure each step along the way is performed correctly. Larry Kosilla, the man behind the Ammo NYC car care brand...
Jeff Glucker -
Can a bad video gamer beat a professional driver?
Jason Fenkse knows a thing or two about explaining the engineering of any given subject. He's managed to parlay that knowledge into a successful YouTube series in which he does so, week in and week out. What's not as good at, though, is driving a virtual car on a virtual race track. Still, it's...
Jeff Glucker -
Times are changing, and sooner than later, electrified cars will become the norm across the automotive industry. With an electrified approach to powertrains, it does beg the question: will an electric car be the first production car to crack 300 mph? It's a target that has eluded various high-performance cars for decades, and even today's fastest production car, the Bugatti Chiron, steers clear of the number three with a 261 mph top speed for now (a true top speed attempt will be made in 2018). Engineering Explained tackled the idea of an electric car's capability to hit the magic number, and...
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Who gets what from the price at the pump?
Fuel-pump producer breaks down who gets what from a gallon of gasoline Once you’ve calmed down and stopped cussing about the price you pay at the pump when you refill your car, be it classic or contemporary, have you ever wondered about where your money is going? So has Auteria, a Texas-based...
ClassicCars.com -
Watch an incredible time-lapse teardown of a Mazda MX-5 Miata engine
Apparently, Peter Gabriel is getting into the wrenching game. At least that's what this video has us reminiscing about. Gabriel, for those youngsters among us, is the musician who utilized stop-motion animation (among other art forms, including claymation) to create to the memorable "Sledgehammer"...
Jeff Glucker -
How the Mercedes-AMG Project One's pushrod suspension works
Mercedes-AMG revealed its highly anticipated Project One hypercar at the 2017 Frankfurt motor show, and while much of the conversation has surrounded the fact it boasts more than 1,000 horsepower, there's plenty of clever, if not mesmerizing, engineering going on throughout the entire car. The...
Sean Szymkowski -
How the transbrake and torque reserve work on the Dodge Challenger SRT Demon
The 2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon ushers in a couple of firsts for production cars, and today, we're here to take a look at two of them in greater detail. Both the transbrake and the torque reserve system are production car firsts and they help the Demon launch with incredible force at the...
Sean Szymkowski -
Can you tune electric cars for more power?
Our future will be filled with electric cars. It's where the world is moving, and the cars bringing us to this place are getting better and better everyday. Heck, the Tesla Model S P100D is one of the quickest machines on the road right now. Still, we love the combustion engine and the tuning...
Jeff Glucker -
The Ford Raptor is an impressive beast. It's cozy on the road and a devil in the dirt. There really isn't another choice of vehicle if you're goal is to have a Baja-blasting, dune running, jumping pickup that can handle serious abuse. It boasts a 450-horsepower turbocharged EcoBoost engine under its hood, and it also features a competent selectable drive system. That last bit is about to get dissected by your engineering friend Jason Fenske. Engineering Explained is here to, um, explain the engineering behind the Raptor's drivetrain. You see, it's capable of operating in two-wheel drive with...
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Is it a bad idea to engine brake with a manual transmission?
In a car with a manual gearbox, you can use that stick to your advantage in more ways than the simple act of shifting gears. If you want to slow down, instead of relying on just the brakes, you can pop your gear lever into a lower gear and use resistance from the engine to slow you down. This is...
Jeff Glucker -
Could electric cars use manual transmissions?
There's concern among many enthusiasts that the manual transmission is on its way out. This coincides with the notion that electric cars are the future and internal combustion engines will continue to fall out of favor as electric car charging infrastructure and technology exits infancy. If there's...
Sean Szymkowski -
What is powder coating?
You've heard the term before, but do you really know what powder coating is all about? It's not simply an airgun spraying a powdery substance that magically turns into a bonded surface on your wheels. There's a whole lot of science going on, which means we need to turn to our favorite engineer...
Jeff Glucker -
Is it OK to skip gears on a manual transmission?
For those who daily drive a vehicle equipped with a manual transmission, it's likely a common practice. Rather than rowing through all five or six gears, drivers will skip from third to fifth, fourth to sixth and so on. But is this practice safe to do? Engineering Explained tackled the common...
Sean Szymkowski -
The advantages of the Mercedes-Benz 48-volt system
As fuel economy and emissions standards continue to tighten around the world, automakers continue to seek ways to make power while using less fuel. Mercedes-Benz, never one to let its engines rot on the vine, is taking the next step to do just that with a 48-volt system for a new 3.0-liter...
Kirk Bell