Why does a car have both a motor and engine?
Why does a car have both a motor and engine?
I don't understand why a car would have both if they both provide rotational energy, unless they just stack? I don't know what's going on.
"Engine" is used to describe an assembly of parts that contain a motor and the systems to make the motor more efficient and self-sustaining.
"Motor" is used to describe a device that converts energy into motion
Bringing up details from my comment below, the motor component of a traditional car engine is the piston/crank/cylinder assembly; as this is the part that converts fuel into motion. The rest of the engine is a necessary part to keeping the motor running.
However, when it comes to cars, people tend to use the terms interchangeably. If you have a hybrid car, your engine will have two types of motors (combustion motor and electric motor).
4Thank you for breaking down the definition. I’d heard that about motors as “energy converters” but not specifically the definition difference of engines needing a “self sustaining fuel source”. All engines are technically heat powered motors, but only heat powered motors are engines then, right?
0Think of an engine as a self-contained package. You give it fuel, and it converts that fuel into heat, rotational motion, electricity, and cooling. It also lubricates and cools itself. Technically speaking, the piston/crank system is the motor component of the engine. The alternator, AC compressor, and water pump are engine accessories.
1Not all engines are heat powered motors, and vis versa. I should have clarified earlier as well, but motors convert energy into motion. Engines have a motor, but contain other systems and accessories to aid the motor, and have the potential to create other forms of energy from that conversion process.
Think of an engine as a self-contained package, also known as an assembly. Multiple systems come together to form the engine. You give it fuel, and it converts that fuel into heat, rotational motion, electricity, and cooling. It also lubricates and cools itself. The piston/crank system is the motor component of the engine. The intake, exhaust, and cooling systems are part of the engine, and they allow the motor to keep working efficiently. The alternator and AC compressor are engine accessories.
It gets much easier to understand if you picture other types of engines. In a jet engine, the turbine section is the motor core of the engine. On a steam engine, the motor is the steam piston component that drives the wheels.
I edited my original comment to help clear up the half-asleep explanation I gave before.
1
All these comments are correct but also missing the fact that gas-powered engines do also have a separare starter motor, which is powered by the car battery, whose purpose is to start the gas engine's crankshaft rotating so it can start burning gasoline and sustain ignition on its own. It is only used for a few seconds, unlike a hybrid car's electric motor which is used continuously while driving.
1All these comments are correct but also missing the fact that gas-powered engines do also have a separate starter motor, which is powered by the car battery, whose purpose is to start the gas engine's crankshaft rotating so it can start burning gasoline and sustain ignition on its own. It is only used for a few seconds, unlike a hybrid car's electric motor which is used continuously while driving.
1They're referring to the same part. Technically speaking, an engine is a combustion powered motor. EVs only have a Motor, but ICEs have an engine that's also a motor.
-3