Automobile Production

All specialists in automobile industry must know that the production of the automobile comprises the following phases: 1.designing;2.working out the technology of manufacturing processes;3.laboratory tests;4.road tests;5. mass manufacturing (production). It is important to know them, as before the automobile is put into mass production it should be properly designed and the car must meet up-to-date requirements. What are these requirements? The automobile must have high efficiency, long service life, driving safety, ease of handling and maintenance, pleasant appearance. Also it must be comfortable and ecological. In order to obtain these qualities the specialists should develop up-to-date methods of designing cars using new types of resistant to corrosion light materials. Before the car is put into mass production the units of the car are subjected to tests in the Works laboratory and then the car undergoes a rigid quality control in road tests. The modern automobile must be rapid in acceleration, have smooth acting clutch, silent gearbox, dependable braking and steering systems, dependable ignition system, low fuel consumption and be stable on the road.

1. What should automobile specialists know?

2. What requirements must modern automobiles meet?

3. When are automobile units subjected to road tests?

4. What materials should be used for automobiles?

Components of the Automobile

The automobile is made up of three basic parts: the power plant, the chassis and the body. The engine is the source of power that makes the wheels rotate and the car move. It includes fuel, cooling, lubricating and electric systems. Most automobile engines have six or eight cylinders. The chassis includes a power train (power transmission), a running gear, steering and braking systems as well. The power train carries the power from the engine to the car wheels. The power transmission, in turn, contains the clutch, gearbox, propeller shaft, final drive, differential, rear axle and axle shafts. The running gear consists of a frame with axles, wheels and springs. The body has a hood, fenders and accessories: the heater, stereo tape recorder, windshield wipers, conditioner, speedometer and so on. The body should provide protection to the passengers from wind, cold and rain. Brakes are necessary for stopping the car. Most braking systems used today are hydraulic.

1. What is the engine?

2. How many cylinders do engines have?

3. What is the function of the power train?

4. What provides protection to the passengers?

Internal Combustion Engine

The internal combustion engine is one in which the energy of the fuel is turned into mechanical work by an explosion behind the piston. The first such engine was built by Samuel Brown in England in 1823. The modern internal combustion engine is a heat engine in which pressure necessary to produce motion of the mechanism results from the ignition or burning of a fuel-air mixture within the engine cylinder. Internal combustion engines may be classified: according to the fuel they work on (gas engines, gasoline engines and oil (diesel) engines); according to the number of piston strokes in one complete working cycle (two-stroke engines and four-stroke engines); according to the number of cylinders (four-, six-, eight-, ten- and twelve-cylinder engines). The part of an engine in which the energy of the working fluid is converted into mechanical effort is called the cylinder. Within the cylinder there is a closely fitting piston. The reciprocating motion of the piston is converted to a rotary motion. The crankshaft revolves and delivers power to whatever machine the engine is driving.

1. When was the first combustion engine built?

2. What does the pressure necessary to produce motion result from?

3. What fuel do internal combustion engines work on?

4. What is a cylinder?