There are 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, and 12 cylinders for the number of cylinders used in automobile engines. Engines with a displacement of 1L or less commonly use 3 cylinders; (1-2.5)L is generally a 4-cylinder engine; 3L or so engines are generally 6 cylinders; 4L is 8 cylinders; and 5.5L or higher is a 12-cylinder engine. In general, the same number of cylinders, the more the number of cylinders, the greater the displacement, the higher the power; Under the same displacement, the more the number of cylinders, the smaller the bore, the speed can be increased to obtain greater power .

The arrangement of cylinders is mainly inline, V-shaped, W-shaped and so on. Generally, the cylinders of the engine below 5 cylinders are arranged in an inline manner, and a few 6-cylinder engines also have an in-line mode. In the past, there have been in-line 8 cylinder engines. The cylinder block of the in-line engine is lined up in a straight line, the structure of the cylinder block, cylinder head and crankshaft is simple, the manufacturing cost is low, the low-speed torque characteristics are good, the fuel consumption is low, and the application is extensive. The disadvantage is that the power is low. Generally, gasoline engines with a power consumption of 1L or less use three-cylinder in-line engines. (1-2.5)L gasoline engines use inline four-cylinder engines. Some four-wheel drive vehicles use in-line six-cylinder engines because they have a small width and can be equipped with boosters and other facilities nearby. The in-line 6-cylinder has better dynamic balance and relatively small vibration, so it is also adopted for some medium and high-polar cars.

(6-12) Cylinder engines are generally arranged in a V-shape, in which the VIO engine is mainly mounted on a racing car. The V-shaped engine is small in length and height, and is very convenient to arrange. It is generally believed that the V-shaped engine is a relatively advanced engine and it is also one of the symbols of the sedan level. The V8 engine has a very complex structure and is expensive to manufacture, so it is less used. V12, the engine is too heavy and heavy, and only a few of the limousines are used. At present, the most common engines are mainly in-line 4-cylinder (14) and V-type 6-cylinder (V6) engines. In general, the displacement of the V6 engine is higher than 14 and the V6 engine is more stable than the 14. U is mainly installed on ordinary cars, while V6 is installed on mid-to-high-end cars.