Porsche patents six-stroke engine

The humble four-stroke engine has been around since the mid-1800s, and it’s a concept still used in many combustion-powered vehicles today.

But Porsche has just made it better.

Or so it seems… meet the six-stroke engine.

The principle is similar to that of a four-stroke engine, which goes through four ‘strokes’ or cycles – intake, compression, combustion, exhaust – but the six-stroke adds another compression and combustion cycle, before the final exhaust stroke.

That’s intake, compression, combustion, compression, combustion, exhaust.

The result is thought to not only produce more power but also boost efficiency and reduce emissions.

A major mechanical difference between the four- and six-stroke engine designs is in the camshaft and valve timing.

Images patented by the German manufacturer reveal redesigned internals; the crankshaft spins within a ring on planetary gears, with two different top-dead-centre and bottom-dead-centre positions with the six strokes, creating variable compression within the engine.

It’s not the first time someone has designed a 6-stroke engine.

Back in 2006, US engine builder Bruce Crower reportedly woke from a dream, building a workable solution that he claimed reduced fuel consumption but also ran cooler than a conventional four-stroke engine.

A major difference between this and Porsche’s design however, is that Crower’s six-stroke engine added water to the mix.

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