How a Car Engine Works: The Four-Stroke Cycle Explained

Press the accelerator and your car moves, but burning fuel only makes heat. So how does heat become a spinning wheel? Here's the little dance happening inside every cylinder, many times a second, all in handmade cardboard. What you'll learn: • The parts of a cylinder: piston, connecting rod, crankshaft, valves, spark plug and camshaft • The four strokes: intake, compression, power, exhaust ("suck, squeeze, bang, blow") • Why only one stroke in four pushes, and how the flywheel and firing order keep it smooth • Compression ratio, r = V_max / V_min, and the Otto efficiency η = 1 − 1/r^(γ−1) • Knock, and why a diesel needs no spark plug • Thermal efficiency, η = work out / heat in: where most of the fuel's energy really goes Squeeze, burn, push, repeat. 🔥📦 Chapters: 0:00 Under the bonnet 0:18 Inside one cylinder 1:18 The four strokes 2:12 Flywheel and firing order 2:42 Compression ratio 3:00 The Otto cycle 3:30 Knock (and diesels) 4:18 Where the energy goes 5:00 From the crankshaft to the wheels 5:30 Recap Did you know only one stroke in four actually pushes? 👇 This video is for educational purposes only. Not a repair or maintenance guide. #engineering #carengine #thermodynamics #mechanicalengineering #stem