Firing orderFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The firing order is the sequence of power delivery of each cylinder in a multi-cylinder reciprocating engine.

This is achieved by sparking of the spark plugs in a gasoline engine in the correct order, or by the sequence of fuel injection in a Diesel engine. When designing an engine, choosing an appropriate firing order is critical to minimizing vibration, to improve engine balance and achieving smooth running, for long engine fatigue life and user comfort, and heavilyinfluences crankshaft design.

For this inline-4 engine, 1-3-4-2 could be a valid firing order.

Contents

  [hide] 

1 Ignition 2 Various firing orders for different engine layouts 3 Cylinder numbering and firing order

o 3.1 Notes on left/right and front/rear 4 Cylinder numbering and firing orders for various

engine layouts 5 Odd and even firing order 6 Ships 7 See also

8 References 9 External links

Ignition[edit]In a gasoline engine, the correct firing order is obtained by the correct placement of the spark plug wires on the distributor. In a modern engine with an engine management system and direct ignition, the Engine Control Unit (ECU) takes care of the correct firing sequence. Especially on cars with distributors, the firing order is usually cast on the engine somewhere, most often on the cylinder head, the intake manifold or the valve cover(s).

Various firing orders for different engine layouts[edit]

number ofcylinders firing order example

3 1-2-31-3-2

Saab two-stroke, Perodua Kancil  engineBMW K75 engine, Subaru Justy engine

4

1-3-4-21-2-4-31-3-2-41-4-3-21-2-3-4

Most straight-4s, Ford Taunus V4 engineSome British Ford and Riley engines, FordKent engine, Riley NineSubaru 4-cylinder engines, Yamaha R1 crossplaneVolkswagen air-cooled engineProton Wira VDO engine

5 1-2-4-5-3 Straight-five engine, Volvo 850, Audi 100

6 1-5-3-6-2-4

1-4-3-6-2-51-6-5-4-3-2

Straight-6, Volkswagen VR6 engine, Opel Omega A, Nissan L Engine

Mercedes-Benz M272 engine, Volkswagen V6's (both engines are

1-2-3-4-5-61-4-2-5-3-61-4-5-2-3-61-6-3-2-5-41-6-2-4-3-51-6-2-5-3-4

90-degree V6's)GM 3800 engine, Rover KV6 engineGeneral Motors 60° V6 engine, Mazda JE 3.0 litre 60-degree V6 engineMercedes-Benz M104 engine, Ford Cologne V6 engineChevrolet CorvairSubaru Alcyone/XT-6/Vortex ER-27 Flat-6Porsche Boxster Flat-6Maserati Quattroporte IV V6-4AC-24

7 1-3-5-7-2-4-6 7-cylinder single row radial engine

8

1-8-4-3-6-5-7-21-8-7-2-6-5-4-31-3-7-2-6-5-4-81-5-4-8-7-2-6-31-6-2-5-8-3-7-41-8-7-3-6-5-4-21-5-4-2-6-3-7-81-5-6-3-4-2-7-81-5-3-7-4-8-2-61-2-7-8-4-5-6-31-2-7-3-4-5-6-8

1988 Chrysler Fifth Avenue, Chevrolet Small-Block engine, PontiacGM LS engine, Toyota UZ enginePorsche 928, Ford Modular engine, 5.0 HOBMW S65Straight-8Nissan VK engineFord Windsor engineCadillac V8 engine 368, 425, 472, 500 onlyFerrari V8's, (all are flat-plane crank)Holden V8Cadillac Northstar Engine

101-10-9-4-3-6-5-8-7-21-6-5-10-2-7-3-8-4-91-8-7-6-5-4-3-10-9-2

Dodge Viper V10BMW S85, Ford V10Izusu v10

12

1-7-5-11-3-9-6-12-2-8-4-101-7-4-10-2-8-6-12-3-9-5-111-4-9-8-5-2-11-10-3-6-7-121-12-5-8-3-10-6-7-2-11-4-9

2001 Ferrari 456M GT V121997 Lamborghini Diablo VT3412EAudi VW Bentley Spyker W12 engine

141L-1R-2L-2R-4L-4R-6L-6R-7L-7R-5L-5R-3L-3R

(Wärtsilä)-Sulzer 14ZV40/48 V14 marine diesel

16 1-12-8-11-7-14-5-16-4-15-3-10-6-9-2-13 2003 Cadillac V16 engine

Although the vast majority of automobile engines rotate clockwise as viewed from the front, some engines are designed by the manufacturer to rotate counter-clockwise to accommodate certain mechanical configurations.In these applications, the firing order is shown in a reverse order (though it still starts with 1). For the most common inline configurations, this gives firing orders of 1-3-2, 1-2-4-3, and 1-4-2-6-3-5. In addition to the reconfiguration of the plug wires or injector tubes,the valve timing must be accordingly modified.

Cylinder numbering and firing order[edit]Notes on left/right and front/rear[edit]When referring to cars, the left-hand side of the car is the side that corresponds with the driver's left, as seen from the driver's seat. It canalso be thought of as the side that would be on the left if one was standing directly behind the car looking at it.

Saab B engine, "firing order 1342" marked on inlet manifold. #1 is towards the front (left side of picture).

When referring to engines, the front of the engine is the part where the pulleys for the accessories (such as the alternator andwater pump) are, and the rear of the engine is where the flywheel is, through which the engine connects to the transmission. The front of the engine may pointtowards the front, side or rear of the car.

In most rear-wheel drive cars, the engine is longitudinally mounted and the front of the engine also points to the front of the car. In front-

wheel drive cars with a transverse engine, the front of the engine usuallypoints towards the right-hand side of the car. One notable exception is Honda, where many models have the front of the engine at the left-hand side of the car.

In front-wheel-drive cars with longitudinally mounted engines, most often the front of the engine will point towards the front of the car, but some manufacturers (Saab, Citroën, Renault) have at times placed the engine 'backwards', with #1 towards thefirewall. One notable car with this layoutis the Citroën Traction Avant. This layout is uncommon today.

See also: Automobile layout

Cylinder numbering and firing orders for variousengine layouts[edit]In a straight engine the spark plugs (and cylinders) are numbered, starting with #1, usually from the front of the engine to the rear.

1-3-5-2-4 would be the firing order for this 5-cylinder radial engine.

In a radial engine the cylinders are numbered around the circle, with the #1 cylinder at the top. There are always an odd number of cylinders in each bank, as this allows for a constant alternate cylinder firing order: for example, with a single bank of 7 cylinders, the order would be 1-3-5-7-2-4-6. Moreover, unless there is an odd number of cylinders, the ring cam around the nose of the engine would be unable to provide the inlet valve open - exhaust valve open sequence required by the four-stroke cycle.

The cylinder numbering scheme used by some manufacturers on their V engines is based on "folding" the engine into an inline type.

In a V engine, cylinder numbering varies among manufacturers. Generally speaking, the most forward cylinder is numbered 1, but some manufacturers will then continue numbering along that bank first (so that side of the engine would be 1-2-3-4, and the opposite bank would be 5-6-7-8) while others will number the cylinders from front to back along the crankshaft, so one bank would be 1-3-5-7 and the other bank would be 2-4-6-8. (In thisexample, a V8 is assumed). To further complicate matters, manufacturers may not have used the same system for all of their engines. It is important to check the numbering system used before comparing firing orders, because the order will vary significantly with crankshaft design (see crossplane).

As an example, the Chevrolet Small-Block engine has cylinders 1-3-5-7 on the left hand side of the car, and 2-4-6-8 on the other side, and uses a firing order of 1-8-4-3-6-5-7-2.[1] Note that the order alternates irregularly between the left and right banks; this is what causes the 'burbling' sound of this type of engine.[2]

In most Audi and Ford V8 engines cylinders 1-2-3-4 are on the right hand side of the car, with 5-6-7-8 are on the left.

This means that GM LS V8 engines and Ford Modular V8s have an identical firing pattern despite having a different firing order.

Likewise, the firing pattern is the same for Chevrolet & Chrysler V8 engines with a firing order of 1-8-4-3-6-5-7-2, and for Ford's V8 engines with a firing order of 1-5-4-2-6-3-7-8.

An exception is the Ford Flathead V8 where the number 1 cylinder is on theright front of the engine (same as other Ford V8's) but this cylinder is not the front cylinder of the engine. In this case number 5 is the front cylinder. A similar situation exists with the Pontiac V8's 455 etc. where the cylinders are numbered like a Chevrolet V8 but the right side bank is in front(like a Ford), this puts cylinder number 2 in front of number 1.

V8 Cylinderbank

Audi

Ford

GM &Chrysler

GM(Northstar)

GM(Holden)

Right side ofvehicle

1234

1234 2468 1357 1357

Left side of vehicle

5678

5678 1357 2468 2468

Odd and even firing order[edit]Firing order affects the balance, noise, vibration, smoothness, and sound of the engine.

Engines that are even-firing will sound more smooth and steady, while engines that are odd, or uneven firing will have a burble or athroaty, growling sound in the engine note, and, depending on the crankshaftdesign, will often have more vibrations due to the change of power delivery (with the exception of the Crossplane crankshaft, which has an uneven firing order, found in most V8s and in very few Inline 4s, such as the Yamaha YZF-R1, and due to the 90° crankshaft arrangement rather than the 180° flat-plane crank, it causes the engine to have less vibrations than a flat-plane crank and thus no additional balance shaft is

necessary). Most racing engines such as those in Formula One often have aneven firing order, mostly for quicker acceleration, less vibrations, and more efficient exhaust system designs. Most engines that utilize the Big-bang firing order system will often have an uneven firing order.

Examples of odd-firing engines are any crossplane V8 (such as the GM LS engine), Harley-Davidson Evolution engines, 2009–present Yamaha YZF-R1, All Ford V10 engines,Audi V10 FSI, GM Vortec 3500 Inline 5, Viper V10, Mercedes-AMG V12s, Aston Martin 6.0L V12, Yamaha V-Max and VMAX, Buick 231 Odd-Fire V6, and Chevrolet straight-6 engines.

Examples of even-firing engines are most current production inline 4s (with the exception of the Yamaha R1), most current production V6s, all Ferrari production engines, Lotus Esprit V8, Porsche 918 Spyder, McLaren M838T engine, Toyota LR engine, and all Lamborghini production engines (with the exception of stroked Audi FSIV10 engines).

Ships[edit]Contrary to most car engines, a ship's engine or a power plant engine is numbered from the flywheel end towards the free end.

In ship and power plant V-type engines the numbering is A1... and B1... where the A-bank is on the left hand side and the B-bank is on the right hand side, looking from the flywheel end.

See also[edit]

Engine configuration Four-stroke engine Two-stroke engine

References[edit]

1. Jump up^ "Boxwrench.net". Retrieved 2009-02-04.2. Jump up^ Reyenga, Craig. "Craig's website - V8

engines - exhaust sound". Retrieved 2009-02-04.

1997 Dakota firing order diagram

External links[edit]

Firing Orders, Cylinder Numbering and Distributor Rotation for American V8 engines

V8 Engines , an analysis of firing orders and cylinder numbering of V8 engines.

[show] V T E

Automotive engine

Categories:  Engine technology

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