At 22:07 6/05/98 -0400, you wrote:
>Inline 6's seem to last longer than V8's or V6's.... An old timer mechanic
once
>explained to me that it's because the crank is being loaded from one
direction >only, as opposed to a "V" where it's being loaded side to side as
well... Sounded >good to me.
I've only read one book on engine design (which included software for
modelling your own designs), and according to it, that's rubbish. People
without training in mechanical engineering, or a lot of practical
experience, always tend to think in static, rather than dynamic terms. In
fact, the V8 is the smallest engine configuration that is capable of being
perfectly balanced, both statically _and_ dynamically. Therefore, the
bearing forces should be less than in a 6. Just another example of why you
can't always depend on intuition.
As to why 6's last longer - do they really? If so, I don't know why.
Allen Nugent
Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering
University of New South Wales
Sydney 2052 Australia
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