Engine construction

Claim 1

A V-type engine construction which comprises, in combination: an engine block having a pair of upwardly diverging cylinder banks and also having a plurality of engine cylinders defined in each of the cylinder banks, said cylinder banks being displaced a certain distance from each other in a direction parallel to an engine output shaft; cylinder heads of identical shape having respective coolant water jackets defined therein and adapted to be mounted on the respective cylinder banks, each of said cylinder heads having intake ports communicateable with the respective engine cylinders in the associated cylinder banks and defined therein so as to open generally towards a space between the cylinder heads and also having two spaced coolant outflow ports, said outflow ports in each of the cylinder heads being located adjacent to and inwardly of the two intake ports, which are respectively closest to front and rear ends of the respective cylinder head with respect to the direction of arrangement of the engine cylinders in the associated bank, and defined therein so as to open generally towards the space between the cylinder heads; an intake manifold adapted to be mounted on the cylinder heads with a downstream end thereof communicated with the intake ports in each said cylinder head, said intake manifold comprising a surge tank positioned within the space between the cylinder heads, an intersecting area where a first suction manifold communicated with the surge tank and with the intake ports in one of the cylinder heads at a location beneath the surge tank and a second suction manifold communicated with the surge tank and with the intake ports in the other of the cylinder heads at a location beneath the surge tank, an intersecting area intersect with each other, and a generally U-shaped area curved so as to represent the shape of a figure "U" for communicating the intersecting area and the surge tank together; lids formed integrally with the intersecting area of the intake manifold for closing off flow through respective ones of the outflow ports in the associated cylinder heads when the intake manifold is mounted on the cylinder heads; a coolant conduit means formed integrally with the intersecting area of the intake manifold and adapted to be communicated with the other of the outflow ports in each said cylinder head; each of the cylinder heads having a water jacket defined therein, the two coolant outflow ports in each of the cylinder heads in communication with the water jacket of the cylinder head; the lids positioned so as to align with and close off flow through one of the outflow ports in one cylinder head and one of the outflow ports in the other cylinder head, the one outflow port in the other cylinder head being in a juxtaposed position with respect to said one of the outflow ports in said one cylinder head when the manifold is mounted on the cylinder heads.