How to Check Car Engine Type
1. Check the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN)
The VIN is a 17-character code that contains information about your car, including the engine type. You can find the VIN on the vehicle’s registration card, insurance card, or on a sticker on the driver’s side door jamb.
Once you have the VIN, you can use a free online VIN decoder to get information about your car’s engine type. Here are some popular VIN decoders:
- VIN Decoder from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
- VIN Decoder from CARFAX
- VIN Decoder from AutoCheck
2. Check the Engine Code
The engine code is a specific sequence of letters and numbers that identifies the engine type. You can find the engine code on a sticker on the engine itself or in the vehicle’s owner’s manual.
Once you have the engine code, you can use a free online engine code decoder to get information about your car’s engine type. Here are some popular engine code decoders:
- Engine Code Decoder from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
- Engine Code Decoder from CARFAX
- Engine Code Decoder from AutoCheck
3. Check the Engine Size
The engine size is the displacement of the engine’s pistons in liters. You can find the engine size in the vehicle’s owner’s manual or on a sticker on the engine itself.
Once you have the engine size, you can compare it to the engine sizes of different engine types to determine the type of engine in your car.
4. Check the Engine Configuration
The engine configuration is the arrangement of the engine’s cylinders. The most common engine configurations are inline, V-type, and flat. You can determine the engine configuration by looking at the engine itself.
- Inline engines have all of the cylinders arranged in a straight line.
- V-type engines have the cylinders arranged in two banks that form a V-shape.
- Flat engines have the cylinders arranged in two banks that are opposite each other.
5. Check the Number of Valves
The number of valves in an engine is the number of valves that control the flow of air and fuel into and out of the cylinders. The most common number of valves in an engine is four, but some engines have more or less than four valves per cylinder.
You can determine the number of valves in an engine by looking at the cylinder head. The cylinder head is the part of the engine that covers the top of the cylinders.
Conclusion
There are several ways to check the engine type of a car. The most common methods are checking the VIN, the engine code, the engine size, the engine configuration, and the number of valves.
Once you know the engine type of your car, you can better understand how it works and what kind of maintenance it needs.
