I Was Drivin' Around In My Shoebox Car

March 29, 2007 4:16 PM

Animated CGI engine assembly. (YouTube)
posted by fandango_matt (33 comments total)

Well that was pretty damned neat. But it did let me know that I don't think I ever want to replace the starter motor on a Ford Duratec engine. Or the serpentine belt for that matter.
posted by quin at 4:26 PM on March 29, 2007

That is one incredibly gnarly serpentine belt routing.

And they don't seem to feel any need for gaskets.
posted by paulsc at 4:38 PM on March 29, 2007

That was quite cool. I know little about engines, and it was kind of fun trying to decide if I knew what the hell was going on at any given point in the assembly.
posted by cortex at 4:43 PM on March 29, 2007

it's amazing how essentially primitive the gas motor (or most motors for that matter) actually are. Just pieces of shaped metal and screws.
posted by parmanparman at 4:44 PM on March 29, 2007

So Ford engines are designed in Germany? Interesting.
posted by OverlappingElvis at 4:52 PM on March 29, 2007

My engine has been making a funny noise exactly like that (the soundtrack).
posted by hal9k at 4:55 PM on March 29, 2007

Huh, check out this related video, starts getting interesting a minute in.
posted by delmoi at 5:05 PM on March 29, 2007

That was a really cool video - I've always wanted to see something like that done.
Now I want a company like Chilton to hire the team who put that video together and make a an interactive digital version for every model of vehicle which they produce a manual for. With chassis!
posted by Demogorgon at 5:07 PM on March 29, 2007

The spinning oil pan combined with the techo music caused an acid flashback.
posted by Burhanistan at 5:15 PM on March 29, 2007

delmoi's video taught me something. At 6700rpm, engines sound really evil. And the manifolds get crazy hot.
posted by quin at 5:26 PM on March 29, 2007

Found this reference on wikipedia and cannot... look... away.
posted by fatllama at 5:29 PM on March 29, 2007 [3 favorites has favorites]

Metafilter: Suck, squeeze, bang, blow.
posted by furtive at 5:34 PM on March 29, 2007

Somewhat related: Animations of various engine cycles.
posted by Rhomboid at 5:38 PM on March 29, 2007

So where does the hamster go?
posted by ZachsMind at 5:52 PM on March 29, 2007 [1 favorite has favorites]

Engines are cool. Deltic engines are insanely cool.
posted by Skorgu at 6:09 PM on March 29, 2007

Furtive: I have a t-shirt with that description of the Otto cycle on it; I generally pass on youtube links but this was cool.

And if you think that serpentine belt is bad, you obviously haven't had to get under/behind the dashboard of many late model cars.
posted by TedW at 6:10 PM on March 29, 2007

There are some sick engine designers out there.
posted by Skorgu at 6:11 PM on March 29, 2007

And crazy people to use them.
posted by Skorgu at 6:13 PM on March 29, 2007

Ever notice the massive proliferation of comments such as these on YouTube?

In 1932 A Girl was Raped And She Said Hei Do Laki Before She DIed. IF You Dont Repost This In 5 Topics She Will Appear By Your Bed With Glowing Red Eyes And Stare At You Until YOu Fall ASleep

Guess I'll be getting a good nights sleep, how about you

posted by bhouston at 6:14 PM on March 29, 2007

last one I promise
A Deltic, writ small, with aliens.
posted by Skorgu at 6:17 PM on March 29, 2007

The video was intelligent and fun, but why oh why is the audio on these things always so dreadfully uninspired?
Is generic techno the only option?
Think Kubrick.
Think of the children.
posted by Dizzy at 6:31 PM on March 29, 2007

I enjoy all manner of internal combustion goodness, but had never heard of deltic engines until this thread. I wonder if anyone has ever built a deltic motorcycle?
posted by TedW at 6:38 PM on March 29, 2007

Yeah, what bhouston said: what's with the bizzarre comments under the video?

Cool video, BTW.
posted by ZenMasterThis at 6:41 PM on March 29, 2007

This is an excellent use of CG. If I'd been able to see stuff like this back in, say, grade school and high school (that is, when dinosaurs ruled the earth) I might've become more mechanically inclined.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 7:08 PM on March 29, 2007

Sweet.
posted by IronLizard at 7:42 PM on March 29, 2007

Is it wierd that watching this video made me feel a little funny in my pants?
posted by Wonderwoman at 7:45 PM on March 29, 2007

And they don't seem to feel any need for gaskets.

Having read your comment, I watched for them and they're there. There's only a couple as the block is really only three pieces.
posted by GuyZero at 8:00 PM on March 29, 2007

That was really cool. Like some other people in the comments, I'm pretty clueless about engines so it was amusing to see how much I really knew as it was going on. Saving this for future reference.

Also, could anyone tell - were the screws actually screwing themselves in or just slowing down in their slots? I thought they spun but maybe it was wishful thinking.
posted by BlackLeotardFront at 8:09 PM on March 29, 2007

I love things benign and German.
posted by slogger at 10:07 PM on March 29, 2007

My fantasy would be a future in which every new car purchased would have available to the home mechanic / geek enthusiast. a DVD containing CGI animation like this for all major subsystems of said car. But then again, I'm someone who bought the factory workshop manual of my old Miata, and loved looking at all the exploded engine diagrams and electrical wiring layouts. I eventually gained enough confidence and visual familiarity that I successfully changed things like the timing belt, water pump, starter and suspension pieces of that car, even though I never had any prior wrench-turning experience.
posted by jaimev at 10:45 PM on March 29, 2007

The thing I find most amazing is that you could show this video to a model T Ford mechanic, and he would understand pretty much all of what was going on. (Fuel injection might throw him a bit).

Is the ICE that perfect? Or are car makers just stuck in their ways (except for perhaps maza)...
posted by nielm at 12:25 AM on March 30, 2007

I thought they spun but maybe it was wishful thinking.

I saw them spinning, too.
posted by ZenMasterThis at 5:19 AM on March 30, 2007

I saw them spinning, too.

Me too, but then, I've been drinking.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 5:43 AM on March 30, 2007