Automobile Engineering

Dr. Sunand Kumar

Professor
Mechanical Engineering Department
National Institute of Technology, Hamirpur
Contact: +91 9418419388
Email: sunand@nith.ac.in
 Introduction To Automobile Engineering
• Automobile is a “Self Propelled vehicle” generally
driven by IC Engine and it is used for transportation
of passengers & goods on ground– W.H. Crouse
• An automobile is a wheeled vehicle carrying its
motive power unit – Kirpal Singh.
• Automobile is a vehicle driven by an internal
combustion engine and it is used for transportation
of passengers and goods on the ground. Automobile
can also be defined as a vehicle which can move by
itself.
• Examples : Car, Jeep, Bus, Truck, Scooter etc.
 History
• The automobiles have been around for more than 100
years.
• The first car was built by Joseph Cugnot in 1769. It
was powered by a steam engine and was very slow.
• Richard Trevithick improved the steam engine’s
design by making them smaller and lighter.
• In 1801 he put one on wheels. It was the 1st horseless
carriage that could transport passengers.
• Jean Joseph Lenoir was the first to build the one
cylinder engine, internal combustion engine.
• Nikolaus August Otto built the first four cylinder
engine.
Joseph Cugnot Steam Car
Richard Trevithick Horseless Carriage
Jean Joseph Lenoir Engine
 History
• Karl Benz, known as one of the founders of Mercedes-Benz,
was the first to build an automobile powered by an internal
combustion engine in 1885.
• In 1886 Gottlieb Daimler designed the first four wheeled
automobile. They also created the first v-slanted engine.
• After 1886, Benz also invented accelerator for speed
regulation, battery ignition system, spark plug, clutch, gear
shift, and the radiator for cooling the engine.
• With these improvements, he started with production of the
automobile, the first in the world, in the year 1888.
• However in the year 1893 that the first for wheeled automobile
was introduced by him.
Karl Benz Invention
 Present
• Today, the automobile industry is one of the biggest in the
world.
• In recent years tremendous changes have taken place in the
automobile industry.
• Two powerful forces have been at work:
(i) The challenges of foreign automotive manufacturers
(ii) Federal laws made by the Government covering:
(a) Automotive air pollution.
(b) Automotive Safety.
(c) Automotive fuel economy.
• These two forces have caused the manufacturers to develop
new generations of:
(a) Light weight vehicles.
(b) Fuel efficient vehicles.
 New Innovations
• A few of these innovations include
◦ Antilock braking system (ABS).
◦ Traction- Control System (TCS).
◦ Four-wheel drive (4WD) or All- wheel drive (AWD).
◦ Electronically controlled and active suspension system.
◦ Supplemental restraint system ( air bags).
◦ Sequential port fuel injection and a host of other innovations.
 Components of Automobile

• The basic Structure

• The Engine
• The Transmission System
• The Auxiliaries
• The Controls
• The Super Structure
 Components of Automobile

1) The Basic Structure:

It consists of the frame, the suspension system, axles,

wheels and tyres.
 Components of Automobile

The Engine:
• It provides the motive power for all various functions
which the vehicle or any part of it, may be required to
perform. The engine for automotive use is IC type.
Engine
Engine
 Components of Automobile

The Transmission System:

• It consists of a Clutch, a gear box giving four, five or
even more different ratios of torque output to torque
input, a propeller shaft to transmit the torque output
from the gear box to the rear axle and a differential
gear to distribute the final torque equally between
the driving wheels.
Transmission System
 Components of Automobile

Auxiliary / Electrical System:

1. Supply System
2. Starter
3. Ignition System
4. Auxiliary Devices

Control System:
1. Steering System
2. Braking System
 Components of Automobile

The Super Structure::

• In those cases where frameless construction is not
adopted there must be super structure i.e, the body.
 Engine System

1. Cooling System
2. Fuel System
3. Lubrication System
4. Ignition System
5. Electrical System
 Basic Engine Terminology
1. Bore: The inside diameter of the cylinder is called bore
2. Stroke: The linear distance along the cylinder axis between two limiting
position s is called stroke.
3. Top Dead Center ( T.D.C.) : The top most position of the piston towards cover
end side of the cylinder is called T.D.C.
4. Bottom dead Center ( B.D.C.) : The lowest position of the piston towards the
crank end side of the cylinder is called B.D.C.
5. Clearance Volume : The volume contained in the cylinder above the top of
the piston , when the piston is at top dead center , is called the clearance
volume.
6. Swept Volume: The volume swept through by the piston in moving between
T.D.C. and B.D.C, is called swept volume or piston displacement.
7. Compression Ratio: It is the ratio of total cylinder volume to clearance
volume
Comp. Ratio
• 6:1 to 10:1 for Petrol engines
• 15:1 to 25:1 for Diesel engines
 Classification of Automobiles

• Based on Purpose
1. Passenger Vehicles – Car, Bus, Motorcycle
2. Goods Vehicles – Lorry, truck, Pick up
• Based on Capacity
1. Heavy Motor Vehicle (HMV) – large trucks, Buses,
Tractor
2. Light Motor Vehicle (LMV) – Cars, Jeep, Motor
cycles
3. Medium Vehicle – Small trucks, Minibus, Tempo
 Classification of Automobiles
• Based on Fuel Source
1. Petrol Engine
2. Diesel Engine
3. Gas Vehicles
4. Solar Vehicles
5. Hydrogen Vehicles
6. Electric Vehicles
7. Steam Engine vehicles
8. Hybrid Vehicles
9. Hybrid Electric Vehicles
 Classification of Automobiles

• Based on Type of Transmission

1. Automatic transmission vehicles – mostly American
2. Conventional transmission vehicles – Most Indian
Vehicles
3. Semi - Automatic transmission vehicles – mostly
British
 Classification of Automobiles
• Based on Make
1. MARUTI SUZUKI
2. HINDUSTAN MOTORS
3. TATA MOTORS
4. MAHINDRA & MAHINDRA
5. TVS MOTORS
6. HERO MOTOCORP
7. ASHOK LEYLAND
8. EICHER MOTORS
9. FORCE MOTORS
10. BAJAJ AUTO LTD
11. ROYAL ENFIELD
12. VOLVO, VOLKSWAGEN, MERC BENZ, BMW, CATERPILLAR, BENTLEY, AUDI
etc.
 Classification of Automobiles
• With respect to the drive
1. Left Hand Drive
2. Right Hand Drive
3. Fluid Drive
4. Front Wheel Drive
5. Rear Wheel Drive
6. All Wheel Drive (AWD or 4WD)
• With respect to the Suspension
1. Conventional – Leaf Spring
2. Independent – Coil, Torsion bar, MacPherson Strut
 Classification of Automobiles
• With respect to the Type off Engine
1. Reciprocating – Piston Engines
2. Rotary – Wankel Engine, Gas turbine
• With respect to the body & doors
1. Sedan
2. Hatchback
3. Station Wagon
4. Convertible
5. Sports utility vehicle
6. Multi Utility Vehicle (MUV or MPV)
7. Delivery Vans etc
 Classification of Automobiles

• Based on number of wheels

1. Two wheeler
2. Three wheeler
3. Four
4. Six
Front Engine Rear Wheel Drive
Front Engine Rear Wheel Drive
 Advantages & Disadvantages

• Better handling
Accelerating force is applied to the rear wheels, on
which the down force increases, due to load transfer in
acceleration, making the rear tires better able to take
simultaneous acceleration and curving than the front
tires.
 Even weight distribution
• The division of weight between the front and rear
wheels has a significant impact on a car's handling,
and it is much easier to get a 50/50 weight
distribution in a rear wheel drive car.
• Steering radius
• As no complicated drive shaft joints are required at
the front wheels, it is possible to turn them further
than would be possible using front wheel drive,
resulting in a smaller steering radius.
Less load at front axle
 Disadvantages

• Decreased interior space – This isn't an issue in a

vehicle with a ladder frame like a pickup truck, where
the space used by the drive line is unusable for
passengers or cargo. But in a passenger car, rear
wheel drive means: Less front leg room (the
transmission tunnel takes up a lot of space between
the driver and front passenger), less leg room for
center rear passengers (due to the tunnel needed for
the drive shaft), and sometimes less trunk space
(since there is also more hardware that must be
placed underneath the trunk).
Front Engine Front Wheel Drive
 Front Engine Front Wheel Drive

• In this type the engine is

mounted on the front
side of the vehicle and
the driving power is given
to the front wheels only.
• The power flows from
engine to front axle.
• This type of arrangement
have additional sub type
i.e. front mounted cross
engine.
 Advantages

• Interior space:
Since the powertrain is a single unit contained in the
engine compartment of the vehicle, there is no need to
devote interior space for a driveshaft tunnel or rear
differential, increasing the volume available for
passengers and cargo.
Steering FWD VS RWD VS AWD
FWD VS RWD
Rear Engine Rear Wheel Drive
 Advantages

• Weight over rear wheels, increased traction while

accelerating.
• Front axle construction is simplified.
• Absence of propeller shaft results in decrease of
floor height.
• Engine components mounted at rear of rear axle
hence more space is available.
 Disadvantages
• Separate cooling mechanism is needed for effective
cooling of the engine as the engine is mounted at
rear.
• More load on rear side may result in overturning
(Over steer) of the vehicle.
• Longer linkages are required to operate clutch, gears
from driver.
All wheel Drive
AWD or 4WD
 Advantages

• 4WD improves traction in dangerous driving

conditions, such as snow, ice, rocks, and other
scenarios that can make control difficult. By engaging
both sets of wheels, traction and control improves.
• Additional weight contributes to better grip on the
road.
• 4WD is great for those who like off-roading.
 Disadvantages
• The main disadvantage of 4WD is added cost for
purchase, maintenance, and fuel. The extra equipment
(differentials, transfer case, etc.) adds complexity and
weight to the vehicle, increasing initial market value,
tire wear, and the cost of repairs and maintenance.
• The added power and weight of 4WD and AWD
systems require more fuel, making them less efficient
than their 2WD counterparts.
• Added weight improves traction and control, but it also
increases the braking distance required to make a
complete stop. Lighter vehicles can avoid collision
easier than heavier vehicles.
 Chassis
• Main Supporting Structure of vehicle consist of
almost all major parts except automobile body.
 Chassis
Key component of Chassis is Frame
1. Conventional frame
2. Integral Frame
3. Semi Integral Frame
Functions of Frame
• To support chassis components & body
• Withstand the static & dynamic load of different components
of chassis
• To withstand load of the body
• To carry load
• To withstand stresses caused due to uneven road conditions.
• To withstand force caused due to turning of the vehicles &
sudden braking or acceleration.
 Automobile Chassis
• Chassis – French term used to denote the main
structure of a vehicle
• It’s the backbone of the vehicle – made of steel.
• All moving parts are fitted to it.
• To give it extra strength it is provided with bolted,
riveted or welded cross pieces.
• All major units required to propel the vehicle, direct
its motion, stop it as well as permit to run smoothly
over varying road surface is known as chassis.
 Automobile Chassis
• The power unit is connected with the transmission.
• The structural frame fitted to the axles through the
suspension system carries the power train.
• For an automobile to propel safely on the road, the
engine, the transmission system, suspension,
steering & brakes are included to the basic frame.
These units combined together – Chassis.
• The body or Cabin is jointed to the cabin by means of
bolts & nuts or by welding.
 Chassis Components
• Frame
• Front Suspension
• Steering Mechanism
• Wheels, Tyres and axles – rear &
front springs & shock absorbers
• Engine, Clutch & Gearbox
• Propeller shaft
• Radiator
• Differential, half shaft & universal joint
• Brakes & Braking system
• Fuel tanks, pipes & connecting fuel lines.
• Battery & electrical system
• Silencer
• Car Body
• Car Body accessories like lights, radio, wiper, mirrors etc.
 Desired qualities of a Chassis
• Fast pick up
• Strength & Safety
• Durability
• Dependability
• Ease of control
• Quietness
• Speed
• Power accessibility
• Low center of gravity
• Simplicity of lubrication
• Economy of operation.
Chassis
Key component of Chassis is Frame
Frame Have 3 different types
1. Conventional frame
2. Integral Frame
3. Semi Integral Frame
Functions of Frame
• To support chassis components & body
• Withstand the static & dynamic load of different components
of chassis
• To withstand load of the body
• To carry load
• To withstand stresses caused due to uneven road conditions.
• To withstand force caused due to turning of the vehicles &
sudden braking or acceleration.
 Frame Cross Sections

Channel Section – Good Resistance to Bending

Box Section – Good Resistance to both bending
and torsion
Tubular Section – Good Resistance to torsion.
 Types of Chassis
According to layout
• Conventional
• Forward
• Semi forward

According to mounting of engine and transmission

• Engine at front
• Engine fitted in front but crosswise
• Engine fitted at the center of the chassis
• Engine fitted at the back
 Conventional Chassis

• Engine is fitted in front of the driver cabin or driver

seat such as in cars.
• Chassis portion can not be utilized for carrying
passengers and goods
• Heavy Engine can be fitted, which can used to give
more power
 Semi Forward Chassis

• Half portion of the engine is in the driver

cabin & and remaining half is outside the
cabin such as in Tata trucks / Tempos
• In this arrangement a part of the chassis is
utilized for carrying extra passengers
 Forward Chassis

• Complete engine is mounted inside the driver cabin,

Driver seat is just above the front wheel.
• More Boot Space Available as full utilization of
chassis
 Engine at front
• Conventionally the engines
are fitted at front & drive is
given to the wheels from the
“rear”
Advantages
• Enough space is available for
luggage behind the rear seat
• The weight of vehicles is well
balance
• Increased efficiency of
cooling system
Engine fitted in front but crosswise
• This front engine layout
requires very small space to
fit the engine. Hence, most
compact cars use this layout
which has very small space to
accommodate the engine.
• Design is more complicated
as compared to the
longitudinally placed engine.
This is because it does not
leave enough space for
accessories.
 Engine is mounted at center
• Mid-engine, rear-wheel drive
format can be considered the
original layout of automobiles.
• Drive is given to the rear.
• Equal Distribution of weight.
• Largest drawback of mid-engine
cars is restricted rear passenger
space;
• Consequently most mid-engine
vehicles are two-seat vehicles.
• The engine in effect pushes the
passenger compartment forward
towards the front axle (if engine is
behind driver).
 Engine Fitted at back
• Flat floor is available since
long propeller shafts are
eliminated
• With elimination of
propeller shaft the center
of gravity lowered giving
stable driving
• Better adhesion on road
specially when climbing
hill.
Defects in Frames
 TRANSMISSION
• The word ‘Transmission’ means the whole of the
mechanism that transmits the power from the
engine crankshaft to the rear wheels, providing the
suitable variations of the engine torque at the road
wheels, whenever required.
Necessity & Types Of Transmission
• Variation of resistance to the vehicle motion at various
speed.
• Variation of tractive effort of the vehicle available at various
speeds.
• Provides means of connection and disconnection of engine
with power train without shock and smoothly. It also
Provides a neutral position.
• To provide a means to vary the leverage or torque ratio
between the engine & the road wheel as required.

Types of Transmission:
• Manual transmission
• Fully automatic Transmission
• Semi-Automatic Transmission
• Continuously Variable Transmission
 MANUAL TRANSMISSION
• A simple but rugged sliding-mesh or
unsynchronized / nonsynchronous system found
in racing cars, older heavy-duty trucks, and some
agricultural equipment.
• Here straight-cut spur gear sets are spinning
freely, and must be synchronized by the operator
matching engine revs to road speed, to avoid
noisy and damaging "gear clash.
• When the driver engages the clutch, the sliding
gear disengages from its existing position and can
slide up and down the gearbox to re-engage in a
higher or lower gear.
 MANUAL TRANSMISSION
Components of Manual Transmission:
• Clutch
• Gearbox
• Differential
 What is clutch?
• It is a mechanical device which engages & disengages the
power transmission, especially from driving to the driven
shaft.
• It is located between flywheel and gearbox.
 Gear Box
• Gear Box varies the leverage (speed ratio & hence torque ratio)
between the engine & driving wheels.
• It is located between clutch & propeller Shaft.
• It is provided with either 4 speed or 5 speed ratios or more
depending on design.
• Gear ratio is varied by Gear shift lever.

Types Of Gear Box:

• Sliding mesh type
• Constant mesh type
• Synchromesh type
• Epicyclic type
 SLIDING MESH GEARBOX
• Oldest and the simplest type of transmission.
• Spur gears were used.
• Main shaft gears splined to the main shaft.
• Gear shift is achieved by sliding the gears on main shaft
• Low mechanical efficiency.
• Noisy operation.
 SLIDING MESH GEARBOX
1. Main drive gear
2. Counter shaft
3. Main shaft
4. 1st gear
5. 2nd gear
6. 3rd gear
7. Top speed engaging
dogs

• In this type of gear box, gears are engaged and

disengaged by sliding of the gear wheels.
• Gear wheels on the main shaft engage with gear
wheels on the lay shaft or counter shaft by sliding
themselves.
SLIDING MESH GEARBOX
 CONSTANT MESH GEARBOX
1. 1st speed gear
2. 2nd speed gear
3. Main shaft
4. 3rd speed gear
5. Top and 3rd speed engaging
dogs
6. Top gear
7. Primary shaft or main drive
gear
8. Counter shaft/cluster gear
• In this case, gear wheels on the main shaft and lay shafts
are constantly engaged and the rotary motion is
transmitted to the main shaft by engaging dog clutches.
 CONSTANT MESH GEARBOX
• The gears on the main shaft and lay shaft are in constant mesh.
• Main shaft gears are free to rotate.
• Gear engagement is achieved by dog clutches splined to the main shaft.
• Helical gears are used.
• Example: Fortuner, Innova, Corolla .
CONSTANT MESH GEARBOX
 CONSTANT MESH GEARBOX
Advantages of Constant mesh gearbox over Sliding mesh
Gearbox

• Helical and herringbone gear can be employed in these

gearboxes and, therefore, constant mesh gearboxes are
quieter.
• Since the gears are engaged by dog clutches, if any damage
occurs while engaging the gears, the dog unit members get
damaged and not the gear wheels.
• By suitably designing the dog clutch, the gear changing can be
made easier.
• Damage to the dog clutch is less likely because all the teeth
are engaged at a time.
 SYNCHROMESH GEARBOX
• Gears are in constant mesh.
• Instead of dog clutch synchronizer unit is used.
• Each pair of gear has one synchronizer unit.
• Gears are first brought into frictional contact which equalizes their speed
after which the actual engagement takes place.
• Example: Santro, Accent, Indica, Octavia etc.
 SYNCHROMESH GEARBOX
• If the car is moving, the output shaft is always turning
(because ultimately it is connected to the wheels).
• The layshaft is usually connected to the engine, but it is free
spinning once the clutch has been operated.
• Because the gears are meshed all the time, the synchro brings
the layshaft to the right speed for the dog gear to mesh.
• This means that the layshaft is now spinning at a different
speed to the engine, the clutch gently equalises the speed of
the engine and the layshaft, either bringing the engine to the
same speed as the layshaft or vice versa depending on engine
torque and vehicle speed.
 EPICYCLIC GEARBOX
• In such gear boxes epicyclic gear trains are employed to get
the various gear ratios.
• The characteristic feature of an epicyclic gearing is that at
least one wheel not only rotates about its own axis but also
rotates about some other axis.
• Automatic gearboxes
typically use one or
more compound
planetary gear sets
instead of chaining
regular gear sets
together.
• They look just like a
regular planetary gear
set from the outside,
but inside there are
two sun gears and two
sets of intermeshing
planet gears.
• There is still only one
ring gear though.
EPICYCLIC GEARBOX
 Differential
• Differential is a mechanism which provide different
speed to tyres at cornering.
• It provides equal torque on both tyre not power.
 SEMI-AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
• Also known as Dual Clutch Transmission (DCT).
• In DCT system two clutches are used.
• First clutch is engage with even gears.
• Second clutch is engage with odd gears.
• The gear are controlled hydraulically by a electronic control unit
(ECU) which sensethe gears position and shifting.
• Used in Volkswagen, BMW, Porsche.

Advantages:
• No power interruption at gear shifting.
• Very smooth gear-shift operations.
• Less fuel consumption.
• Better drive and Better comfort.
• Drive faster and faster.
SEMI-AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
 AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION SYSTEM
• Epicyclic Gearing or Planetary Gearing are as used in
an automatic transmission. An Automatic
transmission will select an appropriate gear ratio
without any operator intervention.
• They primarily use hydraulics to select gears,
depending on pressure exerted by fluid within the
transmission assembly.
 AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION SYSTEM
• Mechanical efforts are reduced very much.
• Different speeds are obtained automatically.
• Also known as Hydramatic Transmission.
• Contains epicyclic gear train, fluid coupling & torque convertor.
• Used in Toyota, Skoda & Lexus etc.
Stages of Automatic Transmission System
• Park: Park mode will lock the transmission, restrict the vehicle from
moving.
• Reverse: Allowing the vehicle to move backward.
• Neutral: Neutral mode disconnects the transmission from wheel.
• Low: Allow us to lower the speed of vehicle to move on hilly & middy
areas.
• Drive: Allows the vehicle to move & accelerate through a range of
gear
AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION SYSTEM
AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION SYSTEM
 AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION SYSTEM
• ADVANTAGES
• Here are some of the features of an automatic
transmission:
• If the car is in overdrive (on a four-speed
transmission), the transmission will automatically
select the gear based on vehicle speed and
throttle pedal position.
• If you accelerate gently, shifts will occur at lower
speeds than if you accelerate at full throttle.
• If you floor the gas pedal, the transmission will
downshift to the next lower gear.
Continuously Variable Transmission
Working of CVT:
• CVT transmission operates by varying the working diameters of the
two main pulleys in the transmission.
• When actuated, the cylinder can increase or reduce the amount of
space between the two sides of the pulley.
• A CVT operates on three main mechanical components: a variable
input driving pulley, an output (driven) pulley, a metal belt. Used in
Audi A4,A6, Nissan Murano, Honda HRV.

Benefits:
• Provide engine torque in optimum condition (road loads / drive
shaft torque).
• No shift clonk.
• Transmission ratio can be adjusted continuously.
• Improved fuel efficiency.
• Better acceleration.
• Eliminates gear hunting especially when going up a hill.