How Hondas VTEC System Works to Balance Performance and Economy

Introduction
As we become increasingly aware of our planets limited resources, it is of upmost importance to
more efficiently manage consumption. In the case of modern transportation, fuel economy is the
headline issue. However, cars of today are safer and more technologically laden, much heavier
and more powerful, all at the expense of efficiency. Consumers are not looking to give up any
modern conveniences; if anything, they expect next years models to offer more. It is a common
expectation that as fuel efficiency increases, performance and luxury must suffer. But because
most people expect to see improvements without sacrifice from year to year, this cannot be the
case. One the many technological advancements easily and effectively addresses this issue is
Hondas method of Variable Valve Timing and Lift Electronic Control, commonly known as
VTEC.
This document is designed to explain how the VTEC system works, and evaluate its effect on
engine performance and efficiency. Some basic technical knowledge is necessary on the part of
the reader, but advanced understanding of internal combustion engines is not needed. The
application of VTEC is dependent on engine speed, so after a description of the mechanical
components and concepts involved, this explanation will run through two engine cycles; one at
low and one at high engine RPM.
Valves
Before one can understand the operation of this system, it is important to be able to visualize the
engine components involved. Readers can see many of the basic engine components in Figure 1
below.
For the operation of the VTEC system, we are concerned with the intake and exhaust cams and
valves. The role of these components is to let fresh air and fuel into the cylinders and expel
exhaust gases after combustion. The opening and closing of the valves is critical; if air is not
able to fill maximum space in the cylinder, and waste gases are not totally evacuated,
performance suffers dramatically. As the engine is running, each of these valves are opening and
closing very quickly. Balancing the timing of the valves is a set of camshafts, with individual
cams for each valve.
Cams
Cams are oblong discs which change their radius as they rotate. Imagine the cam like a flat
profile of an egg. As the cams rotate, they alternatingly press on their valves, opening and
closing them in a specific order. In an ideal engine cycle, the intake valve opens as the piston is
at the top of the cylinder, so that it descends and draws in fresh air for the maximum amount of
volume. Conversely, the ideal exhaust valve opens when the piston is at the bottom of the
cylinder, so that it can travel upwards and totally expel the gases.
Engine Speed
In reality though, things are not this simple. The actual combustion reactions taking place are
more complex, and are dependent on both temperature and engine speed. At low speeds, the
Comment [SmF1]: Very true
Comment [SmF2]: Good indicates that the
focus will be on process
Comment [SmF3]: This is smart provides
useful information up front and shows very good
audience accommodation.
Comment [SmF4]: Maybe an umbrella heading
here before you start describing the parts?
Comment [SmF5]: V. good to use
examples/analogies will be helpful to the reader.
engine operates similar to ideal conditions, and an arrangement of cams to suit these conditions
is ideal. However, at higher engine speeds, the pistons are moving much faster, and so the air
has much less time to enter the cylinder, combustion has less time to take place and exhaust has
much less time to leave. This is the problem; in order to maintain high efficiency, the valves
have let the same amount of gas pass through in less time, any allow that gas to combust as
efficiently as possible.


Figure 1: Schematic of typical 4-cylinder engine (Longhurst 2013)

Combustion Process
The method employed by VTEC for solving this problem is elegantly simple; introduce several
cam profiles that can be alternately switched on and off depending on engine speed. The
profiles, or shapes of the secondary cams have a larger radius, so that they force the valves to
open further, as seen in Figure 2. Now, each intake valve lets in more air in the same amount of
time, while the exhaust valve allows more gas to escape. Additionally, the position of the high
RPM cams is slightly offset from that of the low RPM cams. This has to do with the more
complex properties of combustion at high RPM. Without going into too much technical detail
here it is important to note that by slightly advancing the opening of the valves, the air and gases
enter and exit just before the piston is fully up or down. This is a more efficient process at high
engine speeds, and has everything to do with how high-pressure turbulent gases combust and
move within the piston. We can see then that the VTEC system is solving two combustion
Formatted: Centered
Comment [SmF6]: Would a bulleted list have
worked well in this paragraph?
problems, the amount and timing of gas entering and leaving the cylinders, with one simple
mechanism.

Figure 2: Movement of valves without and with VTEC system activated (CarThrottle 2014)

Operation of VTEC: Pins and Arms
In order for this mechanism to work, small synchronizing pins are located within the rocker arms
(the arms connected to the valves, upon which the cams push). At a certain RPM (depending on
the engine on which the system is used) a switch controlled by an engine speed sensor slides the
pins using hydraulic pressure, moving them between adjacent low and high RPM rocker arms.
Again referencing Figure 2 above, these pins activate either two independent rocker arms per
cylinder, or both together by means of a central rocker arm. At low RPM, two separate rocker
arms move independently, pushed by two cams for two valves. At high RPM, one central rocker
arm is activated by the synchronizing pins, and the center large cam now pushes both valves
further using the central rocker arm. This process occurs for both the intake and exhaust valves
simultaneously. For Hondas Inline-Four cylinder engine (I-4), this means that there are eight
high-RPM cams, rocker arms and synchronizing pins operating in the VTEC system.



Conclusion
Even though it may seem like the internal-combustion engine has been around long enough to be
developed to the point of maximum efficiency, there is still much we have to learn and
understand about the combustion process. The rise of hybrid and full-electric automobiles has
caused some to herald the end of the gasoline engine, but until we can create an alternative
without consumer sacrifice, innovations like the brilliantly simple VTEC system are crucial to
consumer demand and resource awareness.




















Comment [SmF7]: Sean This is an excellent
document. It has a clear audience and purpose in
mind, utilizes description effectively, and it
thoroughly and logically presents the information.
Well done!

Grade = A


References
2014. Graphic. CarThrottleWeb. 21 Mar 2014. <http://cdn.carthrottle.com/wp-
content/uploads/2013/07/VTEC-Sys.jpg>.
Longhurst, Christopher. 2013. Graphic. The Car BiblesWeb. 20 Mar 2014.
<http://www.carbibles.com/fuel_engine_bible.html>.

Comment [SmF8]: Look good!