V engine

An internal-combustion engine with cylinders arranged in two angled banks that share a crankshaft. The bank angle gives the engine a compact layout compared with a single-row engine of similar cylinder count.

Crankshaft: A rotating shaft that converts the pistons’ reciprocating motion into torque. Both cylinder banks drive the same shaft, combining their power into one rotating output.
Internal combustion engine: An engine that releases energy by burning fuel inside a working chamber. A V engine is one cylinder arrangement within this broader engine family.
V6 engine: A V engine with six cylinders, usually arranged as three cylinders per bank. Its compact size and power make it common in passenger vehicles.
W engine: An engine with multiple cylinder banks arranged in a W-shaped configuration. It extends the multi-bank idea to fit more cylinders into a compact length.
Gottlieb Daimler: A German engineer and industrialist who helped pioneer early internal-combustion engines and automobiles. His 1889 steel-wheeled automobile used an early two-cylinder V engine.
Firing order: The sequence in which an engine’s cylinders produce power strokes. The sequence coordinates combustion pulses across the two banks.
Cylinder (engine): A chamber in which a piston moves and combustion drives the engine’s output. The V engine’s cylinders are divided between two banks.
V8 engine: A V engine with eight cylinders, usually arranged as four cylinders per bank. It combines substantial power with a shorter package than many larger inline engines.
Radial engine: A piston engine whose cylinders radiate outward from a central crankshaft. Its circular cylinder arrangement contrasts with the V’s two linear banks.
Daimler Stahlradwagen: An 1889 automobile powered by a two-cylinder V engine designed by Wilhelm Maybach. It is an early documented example of the V layout in a road vehicle.

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Straight engineCompared with: It fits cylinders into two banks instead of one row.