Honda ’s Variable Valve Timing and Lift Electronic Control ( VTEC ) organization is a bench mark in automotive engineering that has importantly contributed to the brand ’s leading report . But , what is VTEC ? Glad you asked .
Since its origin , VTEC technology has evolved , becoming synonymous with delivering enhanced engine performance and fuel efficiency . It ’s time to take a close tone at Honda ’s benchmark system .
Understanding VTEC
If you have readHow Car Engines Work , you know a bit about the intake and fumes valve that let air into and out of the railway locomotive . You may also know about the camshaft that controls the valves . In short , thecamshaftuses rotating lobe that force against the valve to open and close up them .
VTEC is an groundbreaking valve power train organization developed by Honda to better the performance of this mental process in its . introduce in the later 1980s , the system marked a substantial progress in engine engineering [ source : Honda ] .
Its designed to optimize railway locomotive performance at different RPMs ( revolution per bit ) , adjusting the timing and lift of the railway locomotive ’s valves to ensure optimum performance and efficiency across a wide range of operating conditions .
How VTEC Works
It turns out that there is significant relationship between the way the lobe are ground on the camshaft and the way the locomotive performs in different rpm ( rotations per minute ) kitchen range . To infer why this is the caseful , imagine that we are running an locomotive engine extremely easy — at just 10 or 20 rev , so it takes the piston second to complete a cycle .
It would be impossible to in reality break away a normal engine this slowly , but imagine that you could . You would require to toil the camshaft so that , just as the piston lead off prompt downward in the intake stroke , the intake valve would open up .
The intake valve would come together right as the piston bottoms out . Then the exhaust valve would open up decent as the piston bottoms out at the oddment of the combustion stroke and would close as the piston completes the fumes cam stroke . That would sour peachy for the railway locomotive as long as it break away at this very slow speed .
When you increase the rpm , however , this configuration for the camshaft does not make well . If the locomotive engine is running at 4,000 rpm , the valves are opening and closing 2,000 time every minute , or thirty to fourty times every s . When the intake valve opens correctly at the top of the intake cam stroke , it turn out that the piston has a lot of difficulty getting the aviation prompt into the piston chamber in the brusque time uncommitted ( a fraction of a 2d ) .
Therefore , at high rpm ranges you require the intake valve to open prior to the intake stroke — really back in the exhaust fumes stroke — so that by the time the piston start moving downwardly in the intake diagonal , the valve is overt and air moves freely into the cylinder during the entire intake accident .
This is something of a simplification , but you get the idea . For maximum engine performance at miserable engine speeds , the valves need to open up and close-fitting otherwise than they do at higher engine speeds . If you put in a good humiliated - amphetamine camshaft , it hurts the engine ’s functioning at high-pitched speeds , and if you put in a good high - speed camshaft it hurts the engine ’s performance at down speed ( and in extreme lawsuit can make it very hard to commence the engine ! ) .
VTEC ( which stands for Variable Valve Timing and Lift Electronic Control ) is an electronic and mechanically skillful system in some Honda engines that allow for the locomotive to in effect have two or more camshafts . As the railway locomotive move into different revolutions per minute reach , the engine ’s computer can activate alternate lobes on the camshaft and change the River Cam ’s timing [ root : Motortrend ] .
In this elbow room , the engine gets the skilful feature of speech of low - speed and gamy - speeding camshaft in the same locomotive engine . At scummy RPMs , a River Cam profile with humble raising and short duration is used for dear fuel efficienvy and fluid operation . As the engine ’s rev addition , the system switch to a cam profile with higher lift and longer duration , unleashing more king and torque .
Types of VTEC Systems
Over the years , Honda has developed several variate of the VTEC system , each tailored to encounter different performance and efficiency goals .
The VTEC Effect
VTEC technology has had a profound impact on automotive engineering , pushing boundaries of what is possible with home burning engines . It has permit Honda to attain a balance of power , efficiency , and reliability that is hard to match . The arrangement ’s power to offer high execution without sacrificing fuel efficiency has made it a favorite among car partisan and quotidian drivers alike .
VTEC engines have inspired other manufacturers to grow similar variable valve timing and lift technologies too , drive innovation across the entire manufacture . It has demonstrated that with canny engineering science , internal burning engine can meet the requirement of advanced drivers and stringent environmental standards [ source : Perkins ] .
The Honda Advantage
The Honda VTEC system is a testament to the baron of innovation in automotive engineering . By optimizing valve timing and lift , VTEC locomotive drive home higher-ranking carrying out , efficiency , and ram pleasure .
Wether it ’s in a operation sport car or a reliable daily driver , VTEC technology stay to make its mark on the road , raise that level-headed technology can top to pregnant advancements in vehicle functioning .
