Did you know that replacement car engines costs between $4,000 to $10,000? However, knowing the parts of a car engine and how they work helps avoid full replacements.

Do you know how a car engine works to make your car drive? Do you know the purpose of different car engine parts?

The following guide will explain how these parts work together so that an engine can do its job. Read on to discover if any of these parts might be causing fixable problems for your engine.

Engine Block

The engine block acts as the heart of a car’s engine. They’re typically made of aluminum or iron and have multiple holes to house the cylinders. The holes also provide paths for water and oil to flow and lubricate and cool down the engine.

Engine blocks also store the crankshaft, camshaft, pistons, and four to twelve cylinders. When it comes to car engine issues, a cracked engine block might cause overheating, exhaust smoke, or coolant leaks.

Pistons

Pistons are cylindrical parts that send energy made from combustion to the crankshaft to move the car. They move up and down inside the cylinder two times during each crankshaft rotation.

Rings sit inside the pistons to help make compression and lower the friction from the steady rubbing of the cylinder. Damaged pistons might lead to rattling noises and failing emissions tests.

Crankshaft

The crankshaft is found in the bottom portion of the engine block. It’s connected to the pistons using a connecting rod. A crankshaft moves the pistons up and down into a reciprocal motion at the speed of the engine.

Camshaft

Camshafts are either found inside the engine block or in the cylinder heads depending on the vehicle. Modern vehicles often house them in cylinder heads backed by a series of lubricated bearings.

The camshaft’s purpose is to control the timing of different valves opening and closing. It takes the crankshaft’s rotary motion and changes it to an up and down motion. This controls the lifters to move pushrods, rockers, and valves.

Cylinder Head

The cylinder head connects to the engine using cylinder bolts. It houses several parts such as the valve springs, valves, lifters, rockers, pushrods, and camshafts.

The part helps manage passageways that let intake airflow into the cylinders during the intake stroke. It also lets exhaust passages withdraw exhaust gases during the exhaust stroke.

Timing Belt/Chain

The camshaft and crankshafts sync up to provide the exact timing for the engine to run correctly. The belt is made from rubber with different cogs to grab the pulleys of camshafts and crankshafts.

The chain acts similar to a traditional bicycle chain. It wraps around the pulleys using a series of teeth.

Understanding Parts of a Car Engine

Now you know how different parts of a car engine work together. Remember this guide the next time your vehicle has a problem and consider the function of each engine part. Taking care of individual parts might help avoid expensive full engine replacements.

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