An engine block and, yes, that is my hand. (Photo credit: Robert Hilborn)

The engine coverts the energy in fuel into motion. I had the fortune of meeting Bill Davis Racing's Engine Technical Director Dr. Andy Randolph (aka 'Tigger'), who helped me understand what makes a NASCAR engine so much more powerful than the engine in a stock car.

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• Harold Schock of Michigan State University has great movies on his course website showing how engine parts fit together and the combustion sequence.