In the “Transport” category on YouTube, channels have recently been growing by leaps and bounds: a huge number of people are appearing, providing both high-quality and, to be honest, not the most professional content. But among the things that are really interesting to watch - channel "ICE Theory", which has found great popularity in post-Soviet countries. At a car fight near Minsk we met its author - a Ukrainian Evgeniy Travnikov.
Evgeniy Travnikov - specialist in the field of engines internal combustion. His video presents a huge number of stories about various “pieces of hardware”, starting with theoretical explanations of all processes occurring in the engine, and ending with consideration of specific designs. And all this in simple and understandable language. If other bloggers review cars, then Evgeniy takes an engine, disassembles it and describes its design features.
- How did you come up with the idea of opening your own channel?
I worked in garages, repairing engines, and friends suggested that I make a video about a Harley-Davidson engine. This was more than five years ago, for me then the camera was like a jet plane now. After filming, I connected to the Internet and posted the video on a social network. Then I thought: why not make a video about setting up a carburetor? Everyone always asks how it should be configured. The quality of the first videos is, of course, terrible. They are still hanging on the Internet - you can look at them. Since this all started.
- Looking through the channel, you are surprised at your technical knowledge. What is your education?
Officially, I can only present a document confirming completion of 10th grade high school in Kyiv. I'm self-taught. Worked in garages. I took technical literature and studied it. I can’t say that it was easy; I could re-read one page for two days. The knowledge was simply not given.
- Did you promote the channel or did the popularity come on its own?
I learned what subscribers are when I had to apply for monetization. I started looking and discovered that I have 13 or 15 thousand subscribers. Before this I didn't think about it at all. At first, I generally uploaded to VKontakte. The first video appeared on September 26, 2010, that is, exactly 5 years ago. And I started uploading to YouTube later. But this is how the channel gradually develops.
- There is a lot of competition in auto blogging. There are a whole bunch of the same “reviewers”. Does it make sense for new people to show up?
Those channels that provide original content will gain popularity. It makes sense for those people to appear who can give the viewer something new. I'm talking about internal combustion engines. There are no analogues like this, that’s why they watch me. I would also like to mention your compatriot Oleg Nesterov, which interestingly and accessiblely talks about bodywork, is also gaining popularity. But there really are a lot of “reviewers” of new cars. Here you need to work hard to come up with something new and achieve popularity. There are several people I know who started making videos similar in content to mine, only about electrics and other interesting topics. I only welcome such undertakings, I am also interested in watching such video works.
- You have almost 180 thousand subscribers on your channel, 34 million total views. Who do you watch on YouTube?
I usually watch a little. Not because I’m not interested, I just don’t have time. There is a channel called urbanturizm about abandoned places - I like it. Among the “reviewers” of cars, I look at Zhorik Revazov, Konstantin Zarutsky (AcademeG). There is also a homeless blogger Zhenya Yakut - also original content.
- Did you come to Belarus to film car fights?
Not only. I have a lot of ideas on what can be done here. Yesterday I decided to buy a car, we went to see a Lancia Prisma for 250 dollars... It turns out you can buy a foreign car for that kind of money!
- We also have a similar project in our editorial office: we bought a Ford Sierra from confiscation for $200 (by the way, there will be new materials soon. - Note auto.)…
Yes, old cars are always interesting to watch. Lancia will have a 1.9-liter turbodiesel. We went to Molodechno, took her there and arrived on our own. What are we going to do with it? This is still an intrigue... We will shoot various videos with her.
- Are there any plans to include English subtitles in your videos? I think in the West no one does such reviews on engines, it would be interesting...
I was looking into this topic and had this idea. But I couldn’t find a person who would translate. There are difficulties with translating technical terms. It hasn't worked out yet.
- How long does it take to answer audience questions?
This is just something incredible, they send a lot of questions. Lately my father has been looking at his mail. If it's something small, he answers. If there is any serious question, then he tells me. Previously, I tried to check everything and answer everyone, but now this is unrealistic. You won’t have to shoot a video, but answer questions.
- Name the most popular videos of your channel.
The unconditional “hit” of the channel is “How to set up a Solex carburetor (part one).” The story has already received one million three hundred thousand views. This is one of the first videos, it still remains the most popular, people watch it, the views are increasing. The video “Acceleration of my VAZ-2101” looked good. Then, for some reason, the video “Engine 2106 with LPG after 300 thousand km.” The theory is of great interest - this is when I stand near the board. The last time subscribers liked how they started the Moskvich-403, which stood for 30 years. After the trip to Belarus there will be new interesting videos.
Yuri GLADCHUK
Photo by Olga-Anna KANASHITS
website
The man in the video calmly and confidently begins his explanation. The hero of the video talks about what kind of breakdowns and malfunctions can occur in these engines and what can cause such problems.
Travnikov’s speech is also accompanied by his depiction of the necessary details on the board, thus the material he presents becomes significantly more visual and understandable even to inexperienced car enthusiasts. During the video demonstration, viewers will certainly receive truly valuable information for themselves. Watch video « ICE theory- Travnikov" in good quality 720 HD. All materials from 2017 and 2018 are contained on Youtube.com and are available on our website without registration.
I think that many readers of the blog have heard about such a well-known personality on the Internet as Evgeniy Travnikov, the founder of the VKontakte group and the YouTube channel called “ICE Theory”. An excellent mechanic and master of his craft, he gives unique and useful materials not only on the theory of internal combustion engines, but also on the implementation of many technical ideas on practice.
- Evgeniy, I think that you had to deal with the maintenance and repair of the Lada Kalina. What is your objective opinion about this car? Can you name the main pros and cons of this car in your opinion, and why it is better or worse than other VAZ models?
— To be honest, I haven’t dealt with this car yet :) It’s just that we haven’t found any new VAZs in Ukraine widespread. Because of my great prices(if you count imports, etc.) and relatively not High Quality New Ladas are not in demand here. In general, I personally think that the Lada Kalina needs to either significantly reduce the price, or raise the quality at least to the level of Deu (Lanos, Nexia, etc.), then there is a chance for competition.
- I think you know that Kalinas at one time were equipped with 3 types of engines: VAZ 21114 (1.6 - 8cl.), 11118 (1.4 16cl.), 21126 (1.6 16cl.). Which power unit, in your opinion, is the most reliable and trouble-free? I would also like to hear your feedback about the new VAZ 21127 engine, which recently began to be installed on the new 2nd generation Kalinas. There is still very little information on it on the Internet, but perhaps, purely theoretically, you can give the main advantages and disadvantages of this modernized engine?
- Most reliable engine I personally think 21114 (1.6 - 8kL), because on these engines, in principle, 99% of the valves do not bend when the timing belt breaks, and in general the timing mechanism itself, both the belt and the camshaft, is a simpler and more reliable design. In principle, I can generally call this engine the most trouble-free and reliable of the VAZ family (both classics and PP). At one time I saw terrible abuse of these engines, from very “skillful” operation of the owners, and I must note that not a single foreign car can survive such operation.
— The rest of the engines, in principle, are also not bad, but the constant problem with a broken belt, and the eternal question: “does the valve bend or not?”, all this greatly spoils the reputation of these engines. I also personally don’t like the design of the cylinder head, it’s precisely that moment when the camshafts are pressed against one common plate; with this design, it’s easy to break this plate if you overtighten it in one place more than in others. I also cannot help but note that engines 21124 and 21126 are crushed by camshafts. They have a valve lift of only 7 mm, while on the vast majority of similar engine layouts (82 mm piston and 4 valves per cylinder) the valve lift is on average 9 mm, for example on the BMW M50v20 the valve lift is 10 mm, on the VW engine 9A lift valve 9 mm, etc. But at the same time, their phases are basically the same. And for VAZs, a valve lift of 9 mm is already considered a good tuning.
- Many owners of Kalina with a 1.6 8-valve engine would like to know the true reasons for the strange sound during its operation. It can be compared to work diesel engine, especially when cold. Can you somehow explain this characteristic bubbling and diesel noise of this internal combustion engine, and in what ways can this defect be eliminated?
— The reason for this sound is the increased clearance between the piston and cylinder. In general, I don’t understand why the factory does this, by the way, the same problem occurs on engines 21213 and 21214, but there this knocking is usually attributed to noise from the chain. In principle, there is nothing very scary here, so 100 thousand km is possible. drive through. This phenomenon can only be eliminated by replacing the pistons with fuller ones.
- Evgeniy, there is a lot of debate on the Internet about how to properly adjust the valves on a Kalinovsky engine (1.6 8-cl.). Some experts advise doing this in 4 steps, that is, after 90 degrees of rotation of the camshaft, while others say that you can do this in 2 steps, approximately as I did in my instructions here: Which method do you think is optimal, and why ?
— In principle, it makes no difference how exactly to do it. I even have a video with a visual explanation:
— But then I was still shooting with an old camera and the picture quality was not very good. In general, the gap can and should be measured at the moment when the cam is facing the pusher with its back side, and it is not necessary that the shaft nose should be pointing straight up, there is a large margin in the travel.
Have you had any practice in increasing power on Kalina engines, or similar eight-cylinder engines? What results can be achieved with minimal costs, say 10,000 rubles ($300), and what kind of power increase can you expect? And is it possible to increase the engine power without changing the internal combustion engine design And the cylinder head, that is, simply due to modernization exhaust system and chip tuning?
- There was practice. In general, the modification or modernization of any engine (not only VAZ) should begin in the following order:
— The very first thing you need is an adjustable star (or an adjustable pulley), 8 cl is easier, there’s nothing really to adjust, but 16 cl is a little more complicated. The essence of the entire adjustment is to put the camshaft in the overlap on an engine with one camshaft (8 cl), since the standard marks often do not match, that is, I want to note that the marks correspond to reality, but when the system is assembled and the belt is tensioned (and especially the chain) then if you install the crankshaft at TDC according to the mark, then the mark on the camshaft will not match; on standard components it will be enough to simply align the marks.
— In the case of a 16 cl engine, that is, with two camshafts, each shaft needs to be adjusted separately, this is more difficult if the shaft is not standard, but if the shafts are standard, then they can also simply be set according to the mark. The video on installing the camshaft on 8 cl is the same as with adjusting the valves (which I gave earlier), and I show the principle of adjusting non-standard shafts using the example of the ZMZ-406 engine with OBK 46 camshafts:
— After installing and adjusting the reg. stars, the improvement will be noticeable, that is, it will be felt immediately.
— The next stage of refinement should be chip tuning, or as I like to say “ECU tuning.” The essence of the adjustment is to make the mixture richer in all modes, since the ECU program is initially suppressed environmental requirements. And adjust the ignition timing, basically this means that the ignition needs to be done a little earlier. At the same time, the power of the engine will increase very noticeably; with adequate tuning, you can easily get about 10% of the power at peak. And at the same time, in normal driving around the city and on the highway (at partial loads), the consumption will become slightly less.
— The increase will be noticeable. I would like to note that any upgrade of the exhaust (even just installing a developed 4-2-1 spider) is best done before setting up the ECU, since if the exhaust is changed, something may need to be adjusted again.
— Well, then comes more serious intervention in the engine, for example, raising the compression ratio, lightening the flywheel, camshafts, etc. I would also like to note that I categorically do not recommend installing a filter zero resistance. The fact that they don’t really filter anything is one nuance, but what about high speed(when the air flow is high) these filters create additional resistance to the air flow; this is the second nuance, which I talked about in one of the earlier videos, and I should also tell you later using an example.
- Since Epiphany frosts have now begun, many would be happy to listen to the advice of an experienced motorist about starting the engine in winter. If possible - several useful tips from you as a specialist!
— Well, in general, if the engine and its systems are in good condition, then starting is carried out, in principle, without problems. The only thing I can advise is when starting injection engine V severe frost you need to press the gas 20 - 25% to improve the blowing of the manifold, otherwise there is a chance of flooding the spark plugs. I also want to note that the ignition system is responsible for starting in cold weather (if the engine is technically sound and there is compression), so if there are prerequisites for a poor or uncertain start, first of all change the spark plugs with new ones.
- Well, the last question, not related to the “ICE theory”. Is it possible in the near future to organize a similar interview with you, only with questions from readers of our blog?
- It’s easy 🙂
Evgeniy, thank you and your ICE Theory for the exclusive interview for our website, as well as for the comprehensive answers you gave! I personally have been watching your videos on YouTube for a long time, and I want to recommend it to everyone who has not yet subscribed to the channel “ Theory of internal combustion engines", be sure to do this if you are interested in the information that Evgeniy gives!
And of course, don’t forget to comment 😉 share your opinion!
Theory of internal combustion engines. Evgeniy Travnikov
Due to the fact that there are Niva-Niva-Niva around me, mainly 2121 and 21213, but there are also 21214 and 2131, then willy-nilly you begin to imbue yourself with the theory of the classical VAZ engine. The analysis of Kostya block 213, the practical questions that arose definitely led to the channel to Evgeniy Travnikov. The main link to the playlist on the classic engine and everything connected with it, well, I shared Evgeniy’s video on
"Nivovskie", VAZ engine repair, and others.
Here about repairing the VAZ 21213 “Taiga” engine
Motor 21213, assembly (refilled version)
Motor 21213 with crank 2130
Motor VAZ-21213 (Disassembly, design review)
Engine 21213 1.9 l for Niva
Difference between heads 21011 and 21213
Niva with 1.8 engine
Niva-21213 with engine 1800 (assembly, fuel consumption)
Motor for Niva 1.8, which we assembled
Niva 1800, dynamic tests
About VAZ engine repair. Concrete questions
Chain tensioner shoe VAZ-2101
Valve plates
How to press out a VAZ-Classic finger
Valve counters for VAZ-Classic
How much to mill the cylinder head of a VAZ-Classic
ICE Theory: Balancing ShPG VAZ Classic
Camshafts Niva and 2101
Cylinder head surface
ICE theory: “Pilot” tensioner (review)
ICE theory: Crankshaft 2130, whose production?
Other classic engines
In this section there is a video with options for what can be done with ordinary classic engine. Options for improvement and tuning. Lots of ideas on how to increase power, maintain reliability, increase output.
ICE theory: Engine 2106 1.8 with piston AUDI (part 1)
ICE theory: Motor 2103 with head 21214 with reg. star
ICE theory: VAZ-2103 cylinder head modification
ICE theory: Refinement of the cylinder head VAZ-2105 (Part 3)
ICE theory: VAZ-2105 1.7 l engine
