A V4 engine is a four-cylinder piston engine where the cylinders share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration.
The V4 engine is less common compared to straight-four engines. However, V4 engines have been used in automobiles, motorcycles, and other applications.
Most V4 engines have two crankpins that are shared by opposing cylinders. The crankshaft is usually supported by three main bearings.
Compared to the more common inline-four engine layout, a V4 engine is much shorter. Although different V angles can be used, if the two pistons are at a 90° V-angle with shared crankpins, the engine offers the additional advantage of perfect primary balance that reduces vibration. [1] The design can also result in a smaller rocking couple than an inline-four engine, and the shorter crankshaft is less susceptible to the effects of torsional vibration due to its increased stiffness.[ citation needed ]
Disadvantages of V4 engines include its design being inherently wider compared to inline-4 engines, as well as the requirement of two exhaust manifolds, two-cylinder heads, and two valvetrains (thus needing two or four camshafts for overhead cam engines) rather than only one cylinder head, one manifold, one valvetrain, and one or two camshafts for an inline-four engine. [2] Having two separate banks of components increases cost and complexity.
Because V4 engines are wider than inline-four engines, incorporating auxiliary drives, inlet systems, and exhaust systems while maintaining a compact size can be more difficult. Although a 60° V4 is more compact than a 90° V4 engine, the 60° design does not have perfect primary balance (if the crankpins are not split) and, therefore, often require a balance shaft to reduce vibrations. Additionally, any (four-stroke) V4 engine with shared crankpins will fire unevenly and potentially require a heavier flywheel.
The earliest automotive use of V4 engines were in Grand Prix racing (later called 'Formula One') cars. One of the pioneering V4 engines was in the 1898 Mors rear-engined car built in France. [3] [4] At the time, the lack of vibration from the V4 engine was a key selling point. [5] However, the car's V4 engine was replaced by a conventional inline-four engine by 1901.
In the 1907 French Grand Prix, the car entered by J. Walter Christie used a 19,891 cc (1,214 cu in) V4 engine, the largest engine ever used in a Grand Prix race. [6] The engine was mounted transversely in the front and the car was front-wheel drive. The car retired from the French Grand Prix after just four laps, however, it later set a speed record of 164 km/h (102 mph). [7]
The first V4 engine used in production cars was the Lancia V4 engine that was first used in the 1922 Lancia Lambda. [8] The Lancia engine was a narrow-angle design with an angle of 20 degrees between the banks and a single cylinder head with one overhead camshaft shared by both banks. It also used aluminium for both the block and head (which was unusual for the time). [9] Lancia produced V4 engines until 1976, when they were replaced by flat-four engines.
The 1960-1994 ZAZ Zaporozhets is a Soviet city-type car that used a rear-mounted V4 engine. [9] This engine was based on the design used in the LuAZ-967 amphibious military vehicle. It featured air-cooling with a magnesium block and was produced in displacements from 0.7–1.2 L (43–73 cu in). [10]
The AMC Air-cooled 108 was a 108 cu in (1.8 L) engine built from 1960 to 1963 for use in the lightweight M422 Mighty Mite military vehicle. [11] [12] The M422 developed was by American Motors Corporation (AMC) in the United States and specifically designed to be transported by helicopter. [13] [14]
Beginning in the 1960s, Ford's European divisions produced two unrelated V4 engines. [9] The first was the Ford Taunus V4 engine, produced in Germany from 1962 to 1981. The Taunus was a 60-degree V4 engine with water cooling and overhead valves. Initially designed for use in front-engined cars, it was used in various Ford models and also used in the front-wheel-drive Saab 95, Saab 96, and Saab Sonett models. It was also used in the mid-engine Matra 530 sports car. [15] [16] [17] The second Ford V4 engine was the Ford Essex V4 engine, produced in the United Kingdom from 1965 to 1977 and used in several Ford Corsair, Capri, Consul, Zephyr, and Transit models. [18] Although designed separately from the Taunus engine, the Essex also was a 60-degree V4 with water cooling, overhead valves, and designed for use in front-engined cars/vans.
The Porsche 919 Hybrid LMP1 racing car used in the 2014–2017 seasons used a 2.0 L (122 cu in) 90-degree turbocharged V4 engine that was mid-mounted. [19]
One of the first motorcycles powered by a V4 engine was the 1931-1935 Matchless Silver Hawk built in the United Kingdom. [20] The Silver Hawk used a narrow-angle 16-degree V4 engine with a single cylinder head, pushrod valve actuation, and air cooling.
The 1936-1938 Puch P800 was built in Austria for both civilian and military uses. [21] The P800 used a very wide-angle 170-degree V4 engine (therefore being close in appearance to a flat-four engine) with two cylinder heads and air cooling. [22]
V4 engines were used during the mid-to-late 1980s, especially in transverse-engined Honda motorcycles that had a 90-degree V4 engine with water cooling. [23]
The majority of 2020 MotoGP manufacturers chose the V4 configuration for their bikes. These include:
Another use of the V4 engine is in outboard motors for boats. The V4 configuration is popular for outboard marine applications due to its short engine length.
In 1958, both Johnson and Evinrude introduced 70.7 cu in (1,159 cc) V4 outboards rated at 50 hp (37 kW) and weighing 200 lb (91 kg). [24] By 1972, the same basic V4 block was producing more than double the horsepower in stock form because of the experience manufacturers gained from racing. [25] In 1988, Yamaha introduced a 130 hp (97 kW) two-stroke V4 to the US market with what was called "precision blend" oil injection. [26] Most of the outboard motors are usually two-stroke engines with a carburetor.
In 1935, the Wisconsin Motor Manufacturing Company began producing petrol (gasoline) V4 engines for industrial, agricultural, and stationary applications, [27] with several farm equipment manufacturers using the Wisconsin V4 engines. [28] In 1950, the largest Wisconsin V4 engine was the VR4D with a displacement of 255 cu in (4.2 L) and a power output of 56.5 hp (42 kW) at 3000 rpm and a peak torque of 162 lb⋅ft (220 N⋅m) at 1250 rpm. [29] The company produced V4 engines until 2019. [30]
In the mid-1940s, Turner Manufacturing in the United Kingdom produced a diesel water-cooled V4 engine for industrial and marine uses. This engine was used in the 1949-1957 Turner Yeoman of England tractor. [31]
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries built the 4ZF, an air-cooled diesel-powered V4 engine used in the Type 73 Armored Personnel Carrier and related Japanese military vehicles since 1973. [32] [33]
A V-twin engine, also called a V2 engine, is a two-cylinder piston engine where the cylinders share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration.
A V6 engine is a six-cylinder piston engine where the cylinders share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration.
A flat engine is a piston engine where the cylinders are located on either side of a central crankshaft. Flat engines are also known as horizontally opposed engines, however this is distinct from the less common opposed-piston engine design, whereby each cylinder has two pistons sharing a central combustion chamber.
A flat-four engine, also known as a horizontally opposed-four engine, is a four-cylinder piston engine with two banks of cylinders lying on opposite sides of a common crankshaft. The most common type of flat-four engine is the boxer-four engine, each pair of opposed pistons moves inwards and outwards at the same time.
A straight-twin engine, also known as an inline-twin, vertical-twin, or parallel-twin, is a two-cylinder piston engine whose cylinders are arranged in a line along a common crankshaft.
A flat-twelve engine, also known as a horizontally opposed-twelve, is a twelve-cylinder piston engine with six cylinders on each side of a central crankshaft.
A straight-four engine is a four-cylinder piston engine where cylinders are arranged in a line along a common crankshaft.
The straight-six engine is a piston engine with six cylinders arranged in a straight line along the crankshaft. A straight-six engine has perfect primary and secondary engine balance, resulting in fewer vibrations than other designs of six or less cylinders.
The straight-five engine is a piston engine with five cylinders mounted in a straight line along the crankshaft.
A straight-three engine is a three-cylinder piston engine where cylinders are arranged in a line along a common crankshaft.
The VR6 engines, commonly referred to as the “staggered six” is a 6-cylinder engine configuration developed by VW. The name VR6 comes from the combination of German words “Verkürzt” and “Reihenmotor” meaning “shortened inline engine”. It was developed specifically for transverse engine installations and FWD vehicles. The VR6 is a highly compact engine, thanks to the narrower angle of 10.5 to 15-degrees between cylinder banks, as opposed to the traditional V6 angles ranging from 45 to 90-degrees. The compact design is cheaper to manufacture, since only one cylinder head is required for all 6 cylinders, much like a traditional inline-6 engine.
A flat-six engine, also known as a horizontally opposed-six, is a six-cylinder piston engine with three cylinders on each side of a central crankshaft. The most common type of flat-six engine is the boxer-six engine, where each pair of opposed cylinders moves inwards and outwards at the same time.
A transverse engine is an engine mounted in a vehicle so that the engine's crankshaft axis is perpendicular to the direction of travel. Many modern front-wheel drive vehicles use this engine mounting configuration. Most rear-wheel drive vehicles use a longitudinal engine configuration, where the engine's crankshaft axis is parallel with the direction of travel, except for some rear-mid engine vehicles, which use a transverse engine and transaxle mounted in the rear instead of the front. Despite typically being used in light vehicles, it is not restricted to such designs and has also been used on armoured fighting vehicles to save interior space.
A motorcycle engine is an engine that powers a motorcycle. Motorcycle engines are typically two-stroke or four-stroke internal combustion engines, but other engine types, such as Wankels and electric motors, have been used.
A flat-eight engine, also called a horizontally-opposed eight, is an eight-cylinder piston engine with two banks of four inline cylinders, one on each side of a central crankshaft, 180° apart.
The Saab two-stroke was a two-stroke cycle, inline, two cylinder, and later three cylinder engine manufactured by Swedish automotive manufacturer Saab that was based on a design by German manufacturer DKW.
A V8 engine is an eight-cylinder piston engine in which two banks of four cylinders share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration.
A big bang engine is an unconventional engine designed so that some of the power strokes occur simultaneously or in close succession. This is achieved by changing the ignition timing, changing or re-timing the camshaft, and sometimes in combination with a change in crankpin angle. The goal is to change the power delivery characteristics of the engine. A regular firing multi-cylinder engine fires at approximately even intervals, giving a smooth-running engine. Because a big-bang engine has uneven power delivery, they tend to run rougher and generate more vibration than an even-firing engine.
Turbochargers have been used on various petrol engines since 1962, in order to obtain greater power or torque output for a given engine displacement.
Media related to V4 engines at Wikimedia Commons
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