The Story of the 5 Cylinder. #blogpost by BoaBlogs

None of us know what it is about the 5 cylinder that makes it so odd, yet evoking. May it be it’s unique, brash engine note, or its egregious commonality in todays car world. Today, I will discuss the story of the 5 cylinder!

The story of the 5 cylinder starts with an innovator. This innovator, sought out to find the best compromise between a 6 cylinder and a 4 cylinder. This innovator was named Henry Ford. Ford came across this idea in the 1930’s or so, with the thought of making a compact, economy car. Ford wanted to do something nobody has seen before. He needed an engine for the car. but an inline 6 was too large, yet an inline 4 would be too small. So, Ford and his R&D team churning out ideas and theories. Months pass, with good and bad ideas constantly flowing through meetings and development workshops. Eventually, someone said, “Hmm… If a 6 cylinder is too big and gas guzzling, and if a 4 cylinder is too small and underpowered, than why don’t we make a 5 cylinder engine!” I have no clue why such a simple compromise took this long to figure out. So, Ford got down and dirty, and eventually, came the inline 5. Sadly enough, neither the engine nor the car never made it to production, for the market for compact economy cars was too small. After Ford’s failure, a little old Italian automotive company by the name of Lancia came along and rightfully took their idea on a compact, yet powerful little engine. At the time, Lancia were manufacturing and distributing military and commercial ordinance trucks by the name of the Lancia RO. By then, they had either a 2 or 3 cylinder diesel engine option. These small engines were peppy for what they were, yet a bigger power-plant was needed, for the industrial world was just starting to get a kick in the pants, hurrying pre-war production. So, just like Ford, Lancia went back to the drawing table. After more thinking and teamwork, they returned with the idea of a diesel 5 cylinder. Now called the 3RO, the truck had an upgraded 5 cylinder, now plenty enough power to haul whatever it needed; being either steel girders or Axis soldiers of WWII. The truck was in production all the way up to the 1950’s, until demand for large commercial/military (mostly military) trucks declined to a halt.

The lack of 5 cylinders lasted up until the mid 70’s, when a drab Mercedes realized that it needed a new lineup of engines to power their W115 series automobiles. Mercedes developed and created the new engine, called the “OM617”. This new 5 cylinder was a diesel, like the Lancia, yet this one was more suited for road use. In fact, the OM617 was just a 5 cylinder version of its predecessor, the 4 cylinder OM616. The OM617 also holds the title of being one of the most reliable engines to ever leave a car manufacturer, regularly getting over 500,000 + miles on the odometer before needing a rebuild! The OM617 proves as one of the main reasons why Mercedes was doing so well in North America at the time. The engine was manufactured from the 1970’s through the 1980’s. This was the first instance in which a 5 cylinder was fitted to a production car. Next up, came the infamous Volkswagen manufactured 2.1 R5 (R is the German letter counterpart for I [inline 5, reihe 5]) for the Audi 100. This exact engine was the engine fitted to the 450+ bhp, Audi Quattro Sport S1, the Group B legend! The engine was hugely successful in it’s rally pedigree, winning Audi numerous races and championships.

As a new driver, I will soon be looking for a car which I may call my own. So, I delved into some research to find the perfect first car that suited me. I like in a car, what I like in me. Unique, stylistic, uncommon, and good looking. So I commenced my search. After about 2 hours on the computer doing looking for potential cars, I reached a consensus. The Volvo 850 R. Cheap, quirky, unique. It’s classic, modest, and beautiful, all at once. I immediately do my homework on the car. The first thing that touches my thoughts? It has a turbo 5 cylinder. A 5 cylinder. I really don’t know why the idea of it turned me onto the car so much, but it did, massively. Maybe its the fact that 5 cylinders are so unique. Or rare. Or cool. Or all of the above. All I knew is that I wanted this car, and I wanted it now. So, checking, checking, more checking, aha! Average Kelly Blue Book price of $1,200 USD. Within my budget. Now, all I have to do is stop writing and get off my a** to find my dream first car.

Personally, when I think of a 5 cylinder, the first car that I think of is the Ford Focus RS500 (soon, Ill write an article about vehicle appreciation/depreciation, and discuss further on that article). The RS500 uses a Volvo derived, turbo 5 cylinder. Honorable mentions are the Audi TTRS, Volkswagen Jetta 2.5, and the Honda G series. Like mentioned previously, the 5 cylinder is a perfect compromise between a 6 cylinder and a 4 cylinder. 5 cylinders are compact, yet make almost-6-cylinder power.

When talking pros and cons, there are many to be disputed. One major pro of the 5 cylinder is that it is compact, only a little bigger than a 4 cylinder, yet able to make similar power to that of a 6 cylinder. Another notable pro of the 5 cylinder is the engine stability. For example, in a flatplane oriented crankshaft V8, there is a large amount of engine shanking. This is because the weight of the crankshaft is split into 2 axis or ends of the crankshaft, instead of 4 on a conventional cross plane crankshaft. (See picture) Meaning that when a flatplane crankshaft is rotating, there are two points of weight instead of an equal four. When a cylinder bank has an even number of cylinders (4, 6, 8), it means that half the pistons are at the top of the cylinder, while the other half are at the bottom of the cylinder. Because half of the pistons are now at the top, while the other half are at the bottom, there is a lot of engine shaking when firing. When you have a cylinder bank with an odd number, only one piston is at the top of its cycle, instead of the even number’s half pistons. Meaning, a lot less engine shaking.

One major con, though, is the 5 cylinder’s lack of production. They haven’t been used in large masses since the end of the 1990’s. The main reason for the lack of the 5 cylinder? There is no need for them. I remember the day when I was telling my father about the A45 AMG and the CLA45 AMG, and how they both used turbo 4 cylinders squeezing out 355 horsepower(along with the GLA, but not really relevant)! That number is just absolutely crazy, especially in terms of his time. He told me that he remembered when it was a marvel to get 150 hp out of a 8+ liter V8 Caddy engine. The Mercedes engine is getting more than double the power, is a quarter of the Caddy’s displacement, with just half the cylinders! Just look at how far we’ve come! looking at this, you see that there is clearly no real need for 5 cylinders any more. Now, I know what you’re thinking. “But Boa, what about all the 6 cylinders and 12 cylinders and 8 cylinders out there? Why are they still on the market but 5 cylinders aren’t?” Well, my dear commenter, look at the 5 cylinder’s history. About half the time, it was an average citizen’s car. And about half the other time, they were is sports cars meant for the inner racer. You don’t need a turbo 5 cylinder in an average citizens car, because its too overkill. Yet, you don’t need a turbo 5 cylinder in a sports car. Why? Because other engines could do it better.

In today’s world, the 5 cylinder is a dying breed. Well pronounced car manufacturers who used to use 5 cylinders, are turning their heads in the other direction in favor of cheaper, more efficient means. Volvo, for example, discontinued their 5 cylinder breeds 4 years ago. Volkswagen stopped using them, and Audi is only using them in one of their current cars - The RS3, in which we Americans don’t get. I’ve always found the 5 cylinder to be intriguing, mysterious, and shrewd. I’ve always thought of it as an engine that bent the rules, breaking out of what we previously thought were the norms. And that, is what I feel made the 5 cylinder special. That it was willing to step out of it’s boundaries, and test what people thought was normal. The 5 cylinder was unique. With that, I bid you goodbye.

By the way, I apologize for not writing for a few months. I thought I lost my touch, but here I am! Back Again! If you’re wondering, Ill be writing a lot more now. I have many topics that I’d love to share with you guys. Thank you all for the support.