Resolving Issues with Car Pistons and Fuel Injectors

The engine is powered by four pistons that move up and down, causing the crankshaft to turn. This up-and-down motion is caused by the burning of fuel, which causes small explosions in each of the four cylinders.

When one piston moves down, the attachment to the crankshaft causes one other piston to move down with it, and the other two to move up. There are 4 stages – or ‘strokes’ in a normal petrol engine, and at any given time, each piston is completing one of the four.

1. First stroke: the piston is forced down and the inlet valve opens, sucking air into the cylinder.
2. Second stroke: fuel is injected into the cylinder and the piston moves back up, compressing the fuel-air mixture.
3. Third stroke: the spark plug ignites the fuel and it explodes, forcing the piston down and turning the crankshaft. This is the stroke that powers the engine.
4. Fourth stroke: the piston moves back up and the outlet valve opens, pushing the waste gases into the exhaust manifold.