Calculating Engine Capacity

To work out the capacity of an engine we need to know the BORE and STROKE of the engine

Bore

The BORE is the diameter of the CYLINDER

Stroke

The STROKE of an engine is the distance the piston moves when travelling from bottom dead centre (BDC) to top dead centre (TDC) or vice versa.

Once we have this information we can work out the volume swept out by each piston in the engine

We can use the formula V = 3.14 × (B ÷ 2) 2 × S

Where V = Swept Volume of Piston B = Bore of the Cylinder S = Stroke of the Engine

Then to find the total engine capacity

Engine Capacity = V × N

Where V = Swept Volume of Piston N = Number of cylinders

NOTE: The engine capacity is usually quoted in cubic centimetres (cc’s) so we have to make sure that the measurements we put into our formulas for the Bore and the Stroke are in centimetres

Austin 7

Straight 4 Engine with : Bore = 56mm ×× Stroke = 76mm

Use the information above to calculate the engine capacity of the car

1968 Pontiac Superior Ambu- lance

V8 Engine with : Bore = 105mm ×× Stroke = 95mm Dodge Viper

V 10 Engine with : Bore = 100mm ×× Stroke = 99mm

Use the information above to calculate the engine capacity of the car

Jaguar XJS Convertible

V12 engine with : Bore = 90mm ×× Stroke = 70mm

1996 Ferrari Formula 1 Type F310

V 10 engine with : Bore = 98mm ×× Stroke = 40mm

Use the information above to calculate the engine capacity of the car

Given they were in the year that was using the 3L formula, were Fer- rari cheating? H.P.. max was 900bhp, and the Ferrari engine gave 300hp/litre on the dyno.