← Academy

Academy · Course

Car Engines

How a car engine actually works, built up from a single bang to a smooth thousand-part machine: the four-stroke cycle, cylinders and balance, breathing, boost, and the path from combustion to the wheels.

0 / 11
  1. 01What an engine actually doesEnergy changing costume: chemical → heat → pressure → rotation.~5 min· up next
  2. 02Suck, squeeze, bang, blowThe four-stroke cycle — the heartbeat of nearly every car ever made.~6 min
  3. 03Inside the cylinderPiston, crank and valves — turning a straight shove into spin.~5 min
  4. 04Many cylindersInline-4 to V12: layouts, firing order, and why some engines shake.~6 min
  5. 05Power and torqueWhat the numbers on the spec sheet actually mean, honestly.~5 min
  6. 06BreathingAn engine is an air pump — intake, exhaust, and why airflow is king.~5 min
  7. 07Forced inductionTurbochargers and superchargers: stuffing in more air.~6 min
  8. 08Fuel and sparkMixture, ignition timing, knock, and what octane really is.~5 min
  9. 09Keeping it aliveOil and cooling — the systems that stop it destroying itself.~4 min
  10. 10To the wheelsClutch, gearbox, differential: combustion becomes motion.~5 min
  11. 11The final examEighteen questions across the whole engine. No notes.~10 min