Some Subaru History Facts

[SVX-FF]

I am doing a research paper on the SVX motor. I want to find out when the boxer engine was first designed and by whom. In the process I have found out some interesting infomation about Subaru itself.

1. The boxer engine was first used in 1966 in the Subaru 1000 which also had front wheel drive.

2. The Current Subaru logo "In 1954 the familiar Subaru celestial logo was designed to represent the original six companies that had formed Fuji Heavy Industries. Subaru is the Japanese name for the cluster of six stars — Sterope and Taygete, Pleiddes, Alcyone, Celaeno, Electra, and Maia."

3.We share the boxer engine with the following cars ; VW Beetle, Porsche 911 and Ferrari 512 Boxer and Testarossa!

4. Fuji Heavy Industries parent company Nakajima Aircraft Inc. made the Zero fighter in WWII.


If anyone has more infomation on the EG33 engine please let me know.

Steve

[914helo]

There's a website out there where someone adapted an eg33 to their home-built airplane. Traditionally, air-cooled flat fours have been very popular with individuals home-building their planes.

[paddlesnz]

Originally Posted by SVX-FF

3.We share the boxer engine with the following cars ; VW Beetle

And that's because in the early '60s, Subaru Japan imported several boxer engines from Volkswagen in Germany for study and research.

[michael]

Mabey helpful? EG33's are used in vanagon conversions, which I believe are also boxer engines. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

The Ferrari 512BB and Testarossa engines aren't boxers, they are 180-degree V-12s.

[svxfiles]

Originally Posted by Tofu

The Ferrari 512BB and Testarossa engines aren't boxers, they are 180-degree V-12s.

And ours are 180 degree V6s .
I believe they use the "V" nomenclature for marketing purposes, as no one understands the benefits oh a horizontally opposed engine.

[UberRoo]

Originally Posted by svxfiles

...as no one understands the benefits oh a horizontally opposed engine.

I don't understand the benefits. There are niche applications where certain configurations simply fit better, but I believe that multi-head engines are generally a terrible design, and the directly opposed variation is the worst example. Don't misunderstand, I love 'em anyway, but I see no advantage to pancake motors.

[SVX-FF]

Originally Posted by paddlesnz

And that's because in the early '60s, Subaru Japan imported several boxer engines from Volkswagen in Germany for study and research.

Is there any concrete infomation on this that I could use for my research paper?

Steve

[SVX-FF]

Originally Posted by UberRoo

I don't understand the benefits. There are niche applications where certain configurations simply fit better, but I believe that multi-head engines are generally a terrible design, and the directly opposed variation is the worst example. Don't misunderstand, I love 'em anyway, but I see no advantage to pancake motors.

I quess that you will have to read my paper when I am done. It just might change your mind a litte.

Steve

[SVX-FF]

Originally Posted by 914helo

There's a website out there where someone adapted an eg33 to their home-built airplane. Traditionally, air-cooled flat fours have been very popular with individuals home-building their planes.

Yes I fouund one of those sites very useful.
Linkie

Steve

[svxfiles]

Originally Posted by UberRoo

I don't understand the benefits. There are niche applications where certain configurations simply fit better, but I believe that multi-head engines are generally a terrible design, and the directly opposed variation is the worst example. Don't misunderstand, I love 'em anyway, but I see no advantage to pancake motors.

You can start with a lower center of gravity.
A horizontally opposed engine can give a lower hood for better aerodynamics.
They can have perfect primary balance, our engines have never needed a balance shaft.

[immortal_suby]

Originally Posted by svxfiles

You can start with a lower center of gravity.
A horizontally opposed engine can give a lower hood for better aerodynamics.
They can have perfect primary balance, our engines have never needed a balance shaft.

exactly.
a perfectly balanced engine.

try setting a full glass of wine on GM's 3800 v6 while it's running and see how quickly Ron can grab it before it spills.

[svxfiles]

Originally Posted by immortal_suby

exactly.
a perfectly balanced engine.

try setting a full
box of wine on GM's 3800 v6 while it's running and see how quickly Ron can grab it before it spills.

Fixed your post!

[UberRoo]

This "better balanced" or "lower center of gravity" stuff seems to be mostly rubbish. Just about every Subaru four vibrates just as much - and often more - than any Honda four. My old 1.8 motors shake like a Harley Davidson. Six is the minimum number of cylinders required to fully balance an engine without balance shafts. An inline six is about the smoothest running engine you'll ever find, except for inline eights.

The limiting factor on center of gravity seems to be the exhaust and oil pan, and Subaru seems to pay no special attention to keeping the engine low. Yes, the hood is lower because, as I mentioned, the advantage is that some configurations simply fit better. There's no reason an inline motor couldn't be turned on it's side for an equally low center of gravity. Saab tends to lean their motors over pretty far for a very low hood. (Lower than a Subaru.)

The disadvantages? Multiple heads is the biggest one. It means more parts, more weight, complexity, more exhaust plumbing, intake plumbing, larger valve train, twice as many cams, manufacturing complexities such as the wrist pin ports, and most importantly; higher production costs.

Our valve covers are rather inaccessible, they leak because of their orientation, changing spark plugs requires a hole in the frame rail. Pulling the crankshaft on any other motor doesn't require pulling the heads or removing the engine.

The engines, much like BMW motorcycles, are terribly wide, thus the reason they are always longitudinally mounted. That orientation requires a second set of bevel gears to change the driveline's rotational axis which means lower fuel economy and power transfer.

The only advantage seems to be their center of gravity, which in practice is never realized. (It would require a dry sump and radically bent exhaust headers.) Even this potential advantage is no greater than an inline motor. In fact, imagine if you turned a V8 on it's heads? The heads are heavy / the oil pan is not.

[Conn SVX]

No Gravity problems is the advantage , along with the low hood ... On the minius Excessive wear, but that doesn't seem to be a problem. BMW likes it on the bikes so does Honda . A Goldwing with it's subaru look alike engine, will time and time again run 100,000 to 200,000 with no problems . The 45 deg. V engine in motorcycles will need work after 45,000 .