Boxer Engines - The Good, The Bad & The Ugly!
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Being a car enthusiast has many perks, and one of them is discovering technologies that will surely leave a lasting impression on your psyche.
Speaking of car technologies, we are sure that you have heard of, seen, or even ridden in a car that came with a Boxer Engine.
What Is A Boxer Engine?
Car boxer engines are also known as horizontally opposed engines. These engines, compared to a straight, inline, V, or W engine, have pistons that move outward and inward – similar to the fist movements of a boxer.
Like other automotive technologies, boxer engines have a good side, a bad side, and an ugly side. These will be discussed in this blog. Let us begin.
Boxer Car Engines - The Good
The appeal of boxer car engines can be summarized as follows.
Reduced Vibration
All pistons inside a boxer engine fire simultaneously, horizontally opposed to each other. The outcome is that the movements of the pistons counteract each other's momentum as well as forces, thereby balancing out the entire engine block, leading to an engine that runs exceptionally smooth!
Low Center of Gravity
The cylinders inside a boxer engine lie parallel to the ground, thus allowing these engines to be mounted lower to the ground. As an engine is one of the heaviest components in a car, when it is placed close to the ground, the vehicle, as a whole, returns impressive stability, enhanced handling, and impeccable cornering performance.
Boxer Car Engines - The Bad
The downsides of boxer engines can be summarized as follows.
Costly Maintenance
The costs of making boxer engines are relatively high compared to straight, inline, V, or W engines.
Manufacturing the horizontal layout found inside boxer engines demands a specialized manufacturing process. Furthermore, during routine maintenance, mechanics always have a hard time accessing critical components, like spark plugs or seals, after specific ECU fault codes pop up on the Multi Information Display in the vehicle’s dashboard – thereby increasing the labor costs the owner of the vehicle has to bear – every time!
Head Gasket Issues
Boxer engines, after running for hundreds of thousands of miles, tend to develop head gasket issues. The reason is that due to their unusual design, the engine cools unevenly, leading to premature failure of head gaskets, resulting in external leaks instances where coolant ends up mixing with engine oil.
For the best results, owners of cars with boxer engines can use connected vehicle devices like Vyncs GPS trackers. These devices are capable of reading vehicle Diagnostic Trouble Codes and showing them in the companion app dashboard, which can be referred to in an attempt to understand whether the vehicle needs to be taken to the service center.
Boxer Car Engines - The Ugly
The ugly aspects of boxer engines are summarized as follows.
Specialized Equipment is needed To Maintain Boxer Engines
One has to take their boxer engine powered cars to specialized mechanics who, in turn, have specialized ratchets, extensions, and sockets that are capable of working at unique angles!
Mating Transmissions With Boxer Engines Are Complex Affairs!
Mating boxer engines with transmissions is challenging to state the least. Mechanics have to ensure they have engine hoists and equipment compatible with the specialized bell housings and adapters one can see in a boxer engine.
Boxer Car Engines Are Cool, But
Enthusiasts swear that cars with boxer engines give them the edge they need to win street races, track events, or drift championships. However, they are also aware that these unusual engines come with their fair share of ‘unusual’ demands! In this context, if one can cater to these less than normal requirements, cars with boxer engines are fun, powerful, and desirable!
What is your opinion about these engines?