Unlimited amount of engines hooked up to one transmission?

[770]

The output of 2 engines can put to one crank. Can the cranks of two DOUBLE ENGINES be hooked up to one crank(4-2-1)? If so, two of these quad engines could be hooked up together and so on, keeping in mind that a tranny may only be able to handle so much. Can anybody elaborate on the possible combinations (inline,V)and how it could be done?

[Coventrysucks]

I've seen a tractor-pull tractor with at least 5 seperate supercharged V8s, so it must be possible.

Hugely impractical in anything other than a freakishly huge tractor, but possible.

[Matra et Alpine]

With multiple engines you can't link the cranks as possible with 2.
Keeping more than that reaonably in sync becomes impossible.
So more than 2 and you are lookign at torque combining transfer cases/gearboxes. IT gets complicated and expensive and LOTS of weight. So not too practical for small vehicles.

PS: Eureopan tractor pulling has a 9 engined beastie. Never saw the point of the races, but the engineering to make it work is superb

[drakkie]

PS: Eureopan tractor pulling has a 9 engined beastie. Never saw the point of the races, but the engineering to make it work is superb

and the sound i will never forget wen sleeping at my aunt's and uncles place, waking up because of the starting of the tractor puller at the other side of the street no better way to start the day

[jediali]

oh dear....these ideas are imaginative to say the least. What you are talking about is the principle behind the W18 engine and various rotary engines...

[nota]

Try imagining this 30 cylinder engine, which comprises 5 banks of I-6 cylinders connected to a common driveshaft, producing 425hp @ 2850rpm. And yes it was a mass-production reality and fitted to almost 7,500 vehicles

[henk4]

T fitted to almost 7,500 vehicles

flying ones?

[nota]

Oh ye of little faith

To be exact it was 7,499, or so I'm told. These vehicles weighed somewhere in the vicinity of 31,600kg, so flying was not permitted. They were restricted to terra firma, eg on-road and off-road etc

[henk4]

Oh ye of little faith

To be exact it was 7,499, or so I'm told. These vehicles weighed somewhere in the vicinity of 31,600kg, so flying was not permitted. They were restricted to terra firma, eg on-road and off-road etc

and fitted with a large gun

[nota]

and fitted with a large gun

boom boom


It's the famous Chrysler A57 Multibank - basically five Chrysler flathead I-6s in one unit - as fitted to many Sherman tanks, which wasn't exactly the best design of its kind in WWII. Being petrol-powered made them even more vulnerable, so this version (the M4A4 or Sherman V) was very prone to fire and/or catastrophic explosion. Ironically an updated version was called the Firefly, but tellingly the German nickname for them was 'Ronsons' or 'Zippos'

The crews of these Shermans must have been very brave men indeed :salute:

<Canada/the Netherlands>
http://www.cyberus.ca/~ggfg/Forceful.htm