Engineering Explained
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Our pal Jason Fenske at Engineering Explained addresses one of the most commonly-asked questions about car maintenance: should you use synthetic motor oil or conventional motor oil in your car? The safe answer, of course, is to read your car's owner's manual and follow the automaker's directions. However, as Jason explains, there's more to it than just picking a fancy oil for a car. In this brief film, he takes a look at two Pennzoil motor oils—one formulated specifically for vehicles with high mileage and another billed as a flagship synthetic. At the Canadian Grand Prix this year...
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The physics of launching a rear-wheel-drive car
Don't be frightened by all of the calculations on our friend Jason Fenske's famous white board: Launching a rear-wheel drive car properly is an exact science that is actually easily repeatable once you get the basics down. Jason, the brains behind popular YouTube series Engineering Explained, takes...
Andrew Ganz -
5 things you should never do with a dual-clutch transmission
Dual-clutch gearboxes are becoming increasingly common, and today's versions of these fast-shifting automatic gearboxes are far better than they were just a few years ago when they first hit the consumer market. Our friend Jason Fenske at Engineering Explained takes a look at these transmissions in...
Andrew Ganz -
How to change a car's coolant
Yes, there's a lot more to car maintenance than simply changing the oil. One of the most overlooked aspects is an engine's cooling system, which is as crucial to car owners in Arizona as it is to those in Alaska. Here, our friend Jason Fenske, the host of the ever-popular Engineering Explained...
Andrew Ganz -
What factors change air suspension spring rates?
Just a week ago, we invited you to come along and learn about air suspension systems. Our friend Jason Fenske at Engineering Explained created a video discussing what air suspension is and how it works. Now he's back with a second video that dives a bit more deeply into the air ride world. This...
Jeff Glucker -
Video explains what is an air suspension
A lot of new cars and trucks are available with air suspension. A better name for the technology is air springs, as air suspension is essentially an alternative to the more familiar steel springs found on most cars and leaf springs found on older trucks. As the name suggests the technology uses air...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Your wheels, they occupy the corners of your car. Sometimes you might want those corners to be a bit further apart from how the car left the factory. You corner hard and you want to maximize the capability of your machine. It sounds like a set of wheel spacers are on your automotive shopping list. Of course, there are more reasons you might want wheel spacers, and our friend at Engineering Explained has prepped a video walking you through all of this. There's the aforementioned wider track, which helps with load transfer. You could want to fit wider wheels on your car, change your offset, or...
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Here's how you launch a car with an automatic gearbox
Launching a car with a manual gearbox can be tricky if you don't have a ton of practice. However, if your car has an automatic you have a much easier task ahead of you—even without a fancy launch-control system. Simply press the brake pedal with your left foot then raise the revs using the...
Jeff Glucker -
How it works: four-valve versus two-valve engines
Your engine is composed of many moving parts and pieces. In order to move through the four stages of internal combustion, all of these bits and bobs are quite necessary. Some engines, however, take advantage of squeezing in a few more parts where they can. One area where this is seen often is in...
Jeff Glucker -
Here's how your AC works and how you can recharge it
You know that when you push the button marked "AC" you should feel a nice cooling breeze upon your body in short order. Those two letters stand for air conditioning, and it's within this system that magic happens. At least, that's as far as you know at this moment. You understand the inner workings...
Jeff Glucker -
That Subaru rumble? Here's why that happens
There's no doubt that you've heard the distinctive noise that is a Subaru in the distance. It's a rumble and you know what it means. A 2.5-liter "boxer" flat-4 engine is heading your way, and it's eager to spit noise into your ear holes. Why does it sound so different than any other engine on the...
Jeff Glucker -
Your tire pressure needs your attention
David Wooderson thought it was all about his muscle under the hood. Clint Bruno, however, knew that what he could really use was a set of tires. You see, tires can make or break a good driving experience. To take that a step further, you also need to be aware of what's going on with your tire...
Jeff Glucker -
Horsepower and torque--forever intertwined due to our undying love for all that is internal combustion. Do you really know what the difference between the two is, though, and is one actually "better" than the other? A younger version (no gray hair yet) of Engineering Explained host Jason Fenske sits down to walk us through the difference between the measurements of power. If you're unable to press play at the moment, here are the basics. Torque is a rotational force. Related to an engine, it's produced by the rotating crankshaft. Here in the States, we measure that force by pounds-feet or...
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Launch a manual gearbox car? Here's what you're doing to it
You have a car with a manual gearbox. It's a fun car, so you want to go actually have fun with it. That means you might want to, on occasion, launch forward aggressively from a stop. You're going to raise your revs, dump your clutch, and enjoy some engaging forward acceleration. Do you know what...
Jeff Glucker -
How the rotary engine works
You're a master of all things LS. You completely understand the Ford FE big blocks. Those Honda B16 engines are no match for your knowledge base. At their core, these engines all behave the same way. Air and fuel enter the combustion chamber and the pistons and crankshaft work to turn that into...
Jeff Glucker -
Your engine also acts like a brake and here's how
Dear driver in front of me that's constantly tapping your brakes to adjust your speed... you do not need to do that. Simple let off your throttle pedal and let the engine do some of the work for you. You'll save some of the useful life of your brake pads, see better fuel economy, and (most...
Jeff Glucker -
What happens when you put gas into a diesel tank?
When you open your fuel filler door, you may miss that bright green letter D staring you in the face. That D stands for diesel, and it's what your engine craves. If you put regular gasoline in there, you're going to have a bad time. What exactly happens when you put gas into a diesel vehicle's fuel...
Jeff Glucker -
Five things you should never do with a 4x4 vehicle
You see that switch down by your knee. You can see that it has numbers and letters. You don't fully understand what it all means, but you're itching to test it all out. That's the drive selector, and before you slam it into 4Lo you should watch the video above. Engineering Explained is here to walk...
Jeff Glucker -
The 2016 Toyota Tacoma is fitted with the standard setup you'd find in any truck that wants to go play in the dirt. There's two-wheel-drive and both four-wheel-high and four-wheel-drive-low. Additionally, Toyota offers the Tacoma with a number of other bits of tech to make your off-tarmac journey a bit easier. Today's video from Engineering Explained provides a visual primer on the differences between 2Hi, 4Hi, and 4Lo, as well some of those other traction-enhancing features. DON'T MISS: Here's how you double clutch: Video When you're running around town, you don't need all four wheels...
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How electric cars can charge wirelessly
If you have an electric vehicle, it's a given that you'll have to find an outlet so you can regain those precious electrons. Your car runs on electricity, after all. How else are you going to charge it? Well, there could be a more simple solution to your charging needs in the future, and...
Jeff Glucker -
How turbocharger wastegates work
Your turbocharger. It's the snail of mystery attached to your engine, allowing it to breathe in more deeply. With the wonders of forced induction, a smaller engine can create the horsepower and torque of a larger-displacement engine. There are many parts to a turbocharger, which means you might...
Jeff Glucker -
How to change your spark plugs
It's been fun learning more about how cars work with Engineering Explained. Now, though, it's time to dive into some basic maintenance tips that will help you grow ever closer with your own machine. Working on your own car can be a joy, but it can also be a pain in the backside, which is why so...
Jeff Glucker -
Diesel and gas, it's time to learn the difference
No, this isn't a story diving into the different models in the Volkswagen family. Instead, it's our friend Jason Fenske of Engineering Explained examining the differences between gasoline and diesel engines. It goes a bit deeper than spark plugs and glow plugs. The primary difference between the...
Jeff Glucker -
Five suspension modifications to avoid
Hey #StanceNation...listen up, because Engineering Explained has a few words of advice for you. Well, not just for you but for everyone out there who's thinking about modifying their suspensions. There's the cheap and easy way. Not surprisingly, this is also the dumb way to modify your car, and...
Jeff Glucker