Learn
Every lesson, one place
34 lessons across 15 categories, from first principles to engineering detail. Lessons marked “Interactive 3D” include a working laboratory.
Showing all 34 lessons.
Basics & Fundamentals2
View category- Beginner
How a Car Works: The Big Picture
Follow energy from the fuel tank or battery to the tyre contact patch, and meet the supporting systems that keep that chain working safely.
10 minute read - Beginner
Torque and Power
Torque is twisting force; power is how quickly that force does work. Learn how they relate (P = Tω), why gearing changes torque but not power, and how to read an engine's curves.
12 minute read
Engine4
View category- Beginner
The Four-Stroke Cycle
Intake, compression, power, exhaust: how a petrol engine breathes in, squeezes, burns and breathes out over two turns of the crankshaft — with the piston, valves, camshafts and spark all kept in step.
15 minute readInteractive 3D - Intermediate
Engine Layouts: Inline, V and Flat
Why engines come as inline-fours, straight-sixes, V8s and boxers: how cylinder arrangement affects size, smoothness, firing order and where the engine fits in the car.
12 minute read - Intermediate
Pistons, Connecting Rods and the Crankshaft
How the slider-crank turns a straight push into rotation: piston, rings, wrist pin, connecting rod, crank throw, counterweights and flywheel — and why the piston does not move at a steady speed.
14 minute readInteractive 3D - Intermediate
Valves, Camshafts and Valve Timing
How spinning cam lobes open poppet valves at precisely the right crank angles: lift, duration, overlap, half-speed drive and why the valves open and close away from the dead centres.
14 minute readInteractive 3D
Fuel & Ignition3
View category- Intermediate
Diesel Engines
Diesels have no spark plugs: they squeeze air until it is hot enough to ignite fuel injected at very high pressure. See why that makes them efficient and torquey, and why they need glow plugs, turbochargers and elaborate exhaust cleaning.
14 minute read - Intermediate
Fuel Injection
Modern petrol engines meter fuel electronically: the ECU measures the air going in, works out how much fuel will burn cleanly with it, and opens the injectors for precisely timed pulses. Learn port and direct injection and closed-loop mixture control.
14 minute read - Intermediate
Spark Ignition and Combustion Timing
How a spark plug lights the compressed charge, why the spark is timed before top dead centre, how the flame spreads to build pressure, and what knock is.
12 minute readInteractive 3D
Cooling & Lubrication2
View category- Beginner
Engine Cooling System
Only part of the fuel's energy becomes motion; much of the rest is heat that must leave the engine. Follow coolant through the water jacket, thermostat, radiator and pressure cap, and learn why an engine must run warm — but never too hot.
11 minute read - Intermediate
Lubrication System
Engine oil keeps rotating metal parts from ever touching by holding them apart on a pressurised film. Learn how the pump, filter and galleries feed the bearings, what viscosity grades mean, and why oil pressure warnings are urgent.
12 minute read
Transmission & Clutch4
View category- Beginner
The Clutch
How a friction clutch connects and disconnects the engine and gearbox: a disc clamped between the flywheel and a spring-loaded pressure plate, released by the pedal. Covers the bite point, controlled slip and why slipping makes heat.
12 minute readInteractive 3D - Intermediate
Automatic Transmission
A conventional automatic replaces the clutch pedal with a fluid torque converter and swaps gears by clamping parts of planetary gearsets with hydraulic clutches. See how it pulls away smoothly, multiplies torque and shifts without interrupting drive.
15 minute read - Intermediate
Gear Ratios and Torque Multiplication
Why a car needs several ratios, how to work them out from tooth counts, and how a gearbox trades rotational speed for torque while keeping power almost unchanged, from 1st gear's leverage to overdrive.
15 minute readInteractive 3D - Intermediate
The Manual Gearbox
How a five-speed manual gearbox gives the engine a choice of ratios: gears that are always in mesh, a layshaft that drives them all, and synchronisers that pick which one drives the output — plus direct drive, overdrive and reverse.
18 minute readInteractive 3D
Drivetrain & Differentials3
View category- Beginner
Drivetrain Layouts
Front-, rear- and all-wheel drive differ in which wheels push the car and where the heavy parts sit. Compare packaging, traction, handling balance and efficiency, and see how weight transfer decides which layout grips best when accelerating.
12 minute read - Intermediate
Driveshafts and CV Joints
Wheels move up and down and steer, yet they must keep receiving smooth drive. Learn how propshafts, universal joints and constant-velocity joints carry torque through changing angles — and why a torn rubber boot can end in a clicking joint.
11 minute read - Intermediate
The Differential
In a corner the outside wheel travels further than the inside wheel, so driven wheels cannot be locked together. The differential lets them turn at different speeds while still sharing torque — and adds the final gear reduction on the way.
12 minute read
Brakes3
View category- Beginner
Brake Hydraulics
A light push on the brake pedal becomes tonnes of clamping force at the wheels. Follow the force through the pedal lever, servo, master cylinder and fluid lines to the calipers, and see why air or water in the fluid makes brakes spongy or fade.
12 minute read - Beginner
Disc Brakes
A disc brake slows the wheel by squeezing pads onto a spinning iron disc. Follow one stop from the pedal to the pads, see how a small push becomes tonnes of clamp, and watch the car’s movement energy turn into heat.
14 minute readInteractive 3D - Intermediate
Anti-lock Braking (ABS)
Brake harder than the tyres can grip and a wheel locks: the car slides, stops later and will not steer. ABS watches every wheel’s speed and, many times a second, eases and restores the pressure to keep each tyre turning near its best grip.
14 minute readInteractive 3D
Suspension & Steering3
View category- Beginner
Steering Systems
Turning the wheel moves a rack sideways, which swivels the front wheels on their pivots. Learn how rack-and-pinion steering works, why the inner wheel must turn more than the outer, how power assistance helps, and why a car straightens itself.
12 minute read - Beginner
Suspension Basics
The suspension lets each wheel rise and fall over the road while the body glides along and the tyre stays pressed onto the surface. Drive a double-wishbone corner over a bump and a pothole and see how the arms, spring and damper share the work.
14 minute readInteractive 3D - Intermediate
Springs and Dampers
Springs decide how far the wheel moves and how fast the body bounces; dampers decide how quickly that bouncing dies away. Try soft and stiff springs, a worn damper and an over-firm one, and see why a balanced setup keeps the tyre on the road.
16 minute readInteractive 3D
Wheels & Tyres1
View categoryElectrical Systems2
View category- Beginner
Battery and Starter Motor
Turning the key or pressing start asks a 12-volt battery to deliver hundreds of amps to a small, powerful motor that spins the engine until it fires. Learn how the battery stores energy, how the starter engages the flywheel, and why cold mornings are hardest.
11 minute read - Intermediate
Alternator and Charging
Once the engine runs, a belt-driven alternator powers every electrical load and recharges the battery. Learn how a spinning magnet makes alternating current, how diodes turn it into DC, and how the regulator holds voltage steady from idle to the red line.
12 minute read
Heating & Air Conditioning1
View categoryBodywork & Chassis1
View categoryAerodynamics & Technology2
View category- Intermediate
Car Aerodynamics
Above town speeds, pushing air aside becomes the biggest load on a car. Learn the drag equation, why drag power rises with the cube of speed, what drag coefficient and frontal area mean, and how spoilers, diffusers and smooth underbodies manage lift and drag.
12 minute read - Intermediate
Hybrid and Electric Drives
Electric motors deliver strong torque from standstill, run efficiently and can turn braking energy back into charge. Learn how a battery, inverter and motor drive an electric car, and how mild, full and plug-in hybrids share the work with an engine.
15 minute read
Maintenance & Troubleshooting2
View category- Beginner
Routine Maintenance
Most expensive failures start as something cheap that was not checked. Learn which simple checks an owner can make, which items are replaced on a schedule and why, and how to read a service schedule — with the understanding that your vehicle's handbook always takes priority.
12 minute read - Intermediate
Diagnosing Warning Signs
Cars announce most problems before they become failures — through warning lights, noises, smells, smoke and changes in feel. Learn what the common signs usually point to, how fault codes help, and a methodical way to narrow down a cause.
14 minute read