Red J Posted January 7, 2006 Share Posted January 7, 2006 Was beside a Lotus Esprit V8 (which we don't get many of here in Kayn-suhs) which took off into traffic as I was pulling a right onto a cross street. Unfortunately, I was in the MR2. The sound it makes, awesome. Those of you who have heard them, know of what I speak. Those of you who haven't, pull up a chair. Most V8 engines such as the Chevrolet small block, are built with a cross plane crankshaft, whereby one pair of cylinders has a crankshaft center pin in one of four quadrants of the crankshaft. Equidistant from the neighbor journals, and diametrically opposite the fourth pair Flat plane cranked engines are two pairs of cylinders which share a crankpin centerline with each other, and those are diametrically opposed to the other two cylinder pairs. The effect is that of two inline fours (which are also flat plane, two on one side, two on the other) in a single engine block. The sound is unmistakable, basically that of two XXs revving in sync but shifted half a revolution from each other. The result is spine tingling. Some second order vibration is normally induced, but for a sporting powerplant with lightweight components, short stroke and high revs, not really a concern. Ferrari V8s also employ flat plane crankshafts, and the sounds they make are very similar to the Lotus, but something about those twin turbos in concert with the engine in that Esprit... Plus, she's not bad to look at, either: One of my favorite cars, now out of production, nice to see one being enjoyed. That is all. J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phalanx7.62 Posted January 7, 2006 Share Posted January 7, 2006 Sort of like a Big-Bang motor, right? MotoGP uses this too, or I could be wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red J Posted January 7, 2006 Author Share Posted January 7, 2006 Where's the sound bite? :twisted: Sorry, was on my way home without any audio recording gear, and these things are better experienced in person anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cbrxxquad Posted January 7, 2006 Share Posted January 7, 2006 was just thinking about that the other day,,,,was with a harley buddy and the thought crossed my mind about doing a v8 with a 180 crank and firing order like a harley where both pistons on the crank pin fire in sucession. would give a lot more torque. like four harleys ganged. he had done a dual harley nitro bike and was talking about timing the motors together and the results. could do a standard crank i guess??? have a cam guy and has a custom grinder. might be fun?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Northman Posted January 7, 2006 Share Posted January 7, 2006 The "180" crank has been around for some time, mostly in sand drags & tractor pulling, where traction is everything. The delay in firing gives the tires a chance to keep up, maximizing traction. Much like a V-twin, MotoGP 500's, and Formula 1 use. Can't really see it's advantage in a street car with less than insane power levels, other than the sound & bragging about "Formula 1 technology". IMO, my favorite engine sound in the whole world is a V-12 revved out. I could listen to the beginning of "Cannonball Run" for hours without getting tired of it. Was in a hotel in Toronto once, and could hear a rattling/vibrating noise outside. I was on the top floor, so opened the window, and looked down on a Countach idling at the front door. Watched it the whole time until it pulled away, turned left onto the street, then right onto a street that went straight away from where I was. He had to have been doing 70mph in first gear, as it just kept revving. Better than porn, IMO. 8) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red J Posted January 7, 2006 Author Share Posted January 7, 2006 I worked at a shop where we wrenched on some exotics. A Countach is one car we worked on, and I agree about the sound. IMO, the only thing better is the flat twelve in the Testarossa. Or, say, a Ferrari 275 GTB. The six dual throat Webers did it for that engine. Did not sound cheap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardCranium Posted January 8, 2006 Share Posted January 8, 2006 You guys are making me moist. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cbrxxquad Posted January 8, 2006 Share Posted January 8, 2006 I remember a blown car at the drags that had a 180 crank, was really a great sound and ran ok i guess, wonder about a turbo,,,best of both worlds low end torque and high rpm hp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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