How is a supercar’s engine kept cool?
If the latest Lamborghini supercar was parked next to a humbler, budget-minded hatchback, it would be forgivable for the casual observer to think that, other than both vehicles technically being cars, they don’t have anything in common. In many ways, that’s correct. Looking at how the engines of these vehicles work, there really isn’t much in the way of notable differences. Sure, a Lamborghini is going to make more power, but it still uses an internal combustion engine that has all the same needs as a power plant under the hood of the hatchback. So, how is a supercar’s engine kept cool? This is an important and interesting question we here in the Prestige Imports showroom from time to time. Let’s take a look.
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What does a radiator do?
Any vehicle that uses an internal combustion engine to move needs to be concerned with heat. In the early days of automobiles, engines made less power than an average lawnmower. The engine could easily be kept cool by having air flow over it. However, as engines got more powerful, air cooling just isn’t as effective as it needs to be. This is where the radiator comes into play. A radiator is the primary component of a vehicle’s cooling system.
Some high-performance automakers do still use air-cooling and it works exactly how you think it does. Like anything else, there are pros and cons to engines using this technology.
Liquid is circulated throughout the engine and it collects heat along the way. Air cooling makes a return the system when the hot liquid is filtered through the radiator. However, it is the coolant substance itself that does the bulk of the work.
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Are supercars water-cooled?
The automotive industry is built on jargon as much as it is anything. If someone hears that a vehicle is water-cooled, that almost certainly means that it uses a radiator filled with a chemical coolant, like antifreeze. The term is more or less a holdover from the earliest days of vehicle development when engines were actually cooled by water.
If you have any questions about how your vehicle works or why owning a supercar is the right decision for you, make an appointment to speak with a Prestige Imports product expert today.
