A Better Engine in the Making
While past conversations about Toyota tend to be focused on reliability, ease of repair, and less expensive parts that are easily available, it’s time to take a closer look at how Toyota’s engines have evolved and learn a little about what else makes Toyota a leading automaker.
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As it turns out, it all goes to the same idea of building a better mouse trap. But in this case, with automotive engines. Toyota put its focus on making a better engine by improving thermal efficiency which results in increased torque and increased horsepower. And that focus has earned Toyota some significant notoriety with their Dynamic Force Engine strategy.
Their Dynamic Force Engine strategy is based on improved thermal efficiency. Thermal efficiency is the amount of energy produced when a combustion engine burns fuel in relation to the amount of that energy that is converted into mechanical energy.
The bane of the internal combustion engine (ICE) has always been that from a thermodynamic view…the ICE is very inefficient. For example, Toyota today has reportedly achieved motors with a 41% thermal efficiency---which is a significant achievement when most gasoline engines have efficiencies of roughly 25-33%. However, that loss of energy as heat from a practical point of view means that at best only 40% of what you are paying for fuel is actually making your car go. But, that’s where we are today.
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How Toyota Does It
To achieve improved thermal efficiency, Toyota has modified their engine designs by focusing on how to speed up the combustion process. They achieved this with their modern Dynamic Force Engine by:
• Optimizing the stroke to bore ratio by lengthening the stoke and narrowing the cylinders.
• Optimizing the airflow tumble into the cylinders by widening the angle between intake and exhaust valves to improve fuel and oxygen mixing for better combustion.
• Optimized thermal management using variable control cooling systems that support optimized combustion with minimal energy loss as heat.
To see how their engine design has evolved from their earliest engines to the modern marvel of today, here is a new video that puts it in the figurative nutshell for car enthusiasts:
Toyota's INSANE NEW Engine SHOCKS The Entire Car Industry
The Engineering Explained in More Detail
For a little more detail on how Toyota’s Dynamic Force engines perform their combustion magic, here is an Engineering Explained YouTube channel video that offers some very good video graphics on how the aforementioned optimizations physically appear if you were able to view the engine cylinder in cross section during the combustion process.
Toyota's New Dynamic Force Engine Is Super-Efficient
And finally…
For additional articles about car engines, here are some informative articles that you may find interesting:
Why Toyotas Burn So Much Oil and What You Can Do About It
Engine Swapping Expert Reveals the Realities About Engine Replacement
COMING UP NEXT: The Best Used Car (Almost) No One Knows About
Timothy Boyer is a Torque News automotive reporter based in Cincinnati. Experienced with early car restorations, he regularly restores older vehicles with engine modifications for improved performance. Follow Tim on Twitter at @TimBoyerWrites for daily new and used vehicle news.
Image Source: Pixabay