i-AFS
Intelligent Adaptive Front-lighting System - At night, a vehicle with i-AFS lets you see around corners. It estimates where you will be in three seconds' time, using sensors that monitor your speed and the angle of your front wheels, and shines the car's headlights in that direction. The left and right headlamps swivel by different amounts depending on the way you are turning - one swivels by 5°, and the other by 15°.
So when you approach a corner, your lights follow the road ahead rather than simply illuminating the edge of the road. It helps take the strain out of night driving, especially on unfamiliar winding roads. |
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iDrive
An innovative control concept allowing the driver to use their car in an intuitive, interactive manner. The driving functions are separated from the comfort functions and as the number of switches and control units is reduced to a minimum, the driver is hardly distracted from traffic conditions. To allow the driver to concentrate in full on road, all major driving functions such as the ignition starter switch, the start/stop button and the control switches are arranged around the steering wheel. Comfort functions such as the controls for the automatic air conditioning are in turn located in the middle, within direct reach of the driver and front passenger. All the comfort functions can be operated intuitively with one hand using Control Display and the single input unit, the Controller. All functions are subdivided hierarchically into primary (e.g. radio volume, windscreen wipers and cockpit temperature) and secondary functions (e.g. fuel consumption display). |
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Ignition System
The system that provides the spark to ignite the mixture in the combustion chamber. Basically, it consists of the battery, coil, distributor, ignition switch, spark plugs and wiring. |
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ILSAC
International Lubricants Standardization and Approval Committee |
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Impact Depending Airbags
Conventional airbag systems are unable to differentiate between a severe impact and a lighter one. When the are deployed, they are inflated to the fullest level, making the airbag as hard as possible. In a low-level accident, this is not necessary. The intelligent ID airbags are equipped with a two-stage gas generator. In a more severe impact, they inflate to their fullest level with minimum time delay, providing maximum protection for the occupants. However, when the accident is less severe, they allow for a slightly longer delay before deployment, protecting the occupants with a more gentle inflation. Whatever the severity of the impact, the airbags ensure that neither the driver nor the front passenger contacts the steering wheel or instrument panel.
:: Click for detailed Impact Depending Airbags information |
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Independent Suspension
A type of suspension in which each pair of wheels, either front or rear, is sprung so that a disturbance affecting one wheel has no effect on the opposite wheel. This type of suspension gives a better ride. |
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Induction System
The system that delivers the air/fuel mixture to the cylinders. It includes the carburetor or fuel injection system, intake manifold, intake ports and intake valves. |
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Injectors
The fuel injector is a fancy name for an electric solenoid valve. It is a valve that when you apply electricity it will open and allow fuel to flow through. The catch is that it is a very precision valve. The injector must flow a precise amount at a specific pressure and be able to open and close very fast.
The ECM controls the injector turning it OFF and ON for different amounts of time depending on how much fuel the engine needs. There are several different shapes of injectors for different applications but they still work the same way. Some operate at different pressure ratings.
:: Click for detailed Injectors information |
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Intake Manifold
An assembly of tubes, usually of cast iron or aluminum, through which the air/fuel mixture flows on its way from the carburetor in carbureted models or the air valve in fuel injected models to the intake ports. |
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Intake Stroke
One of the four 180-degree full "sweeps" of the piston moving in the cylinder of a four-stroke, internal-combustion engine (originally devised by Nikolaus Otto in 1876). During the intake stroke, the piston moves from TDC to BDC and inducts (draws in by lowering the pressure in the cylinder) air/fuel mixture through the induction system. Note: The 180-degree duration of the intake stroke is commonly shorter than the period during which the intake valve is open, sometimes referred to as the true "Intake Cycle." The intake stroke is followed by the compression stroke. |
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Integrated Seatbelt System
Through the interaction of the three-point seatbelt, pyrotechnic pre-tensioner, belt force limiter and anti-submarining protection on the seat itself, the BMW restraint system guarantees optimum protection in the event of a collision.
Compared with conventional protection systems, the integrated seatbelt system can reduce the force of an impact on you and your passengers by up to 50 per cent.
The pyrotechnic belt pretensioner, for example, incorporates a pyrotechnical actuator which is able to react to an impact with astounding speed, retracting the belt latch within fractions of a second, while at the same time tightening the shoulder and lap belts.
The anti-submarining protection is a wedge-shaped component at the front end of the seat that helps to ensure that you or your front passenger cannot slide forward beneath the lap belt. |
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Intercooler
A heat exchanger which extracts heat and reduces the temperature of a gas between stages of compression. This device is found on turbocharged or supercharged engines. |
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Intercooling
An intercooler is a heat exchanger. That means there are two or more fluids that don't physically touch each other but a transfer heat or energy takes place between them.
At wide open throttle and full boost the hot compressed air coming from a Turbocharger is probably between 250 and 350 deg F depending on the particular turbo, boost pressure, outside air temperature, etc.. We want to cool it down, which reduces its volume so we can pack more air molecules into the cylinders and reduce the engine's likelihood of detonation.
:: Click for detailed Intercooling information |
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ISOFIX
Used world-wide as the standard for child-seat installation in automobiles. |
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IVC
Intake Valve Closing: Considered the most important cam timing event. The point at which the intake valve returns to its seat, or closes. This valve timing point usually occurs early in the compression stroke. Early IVC helps low-end power by retaining air/fuel mixture in the cylinder and reducing charge reversion at lower engine speeds. Late IVC increases high-speed performance (at the expense of low speed power) by allow additional charge to fill the cylinder from the ram-tuning effects of the induction system at higher engine speeds. |
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IVO
Intake Valve Opening: The point at which the intake valve lifts off of its seat, or opens. This valve timing point usually occurs late in the exhaust stroke. Although IVO does not have a substantial effect on engine performance, it contributes to valve overlap (the beginning point of overlap) that can have a significant effect on engine output. |
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