How Many Crankshafts Are in a W16 Engine?

How Many Crankshafts Are in a W16 Engine?

A W16 engine contains one crankshaft, which drives all 16 cylinders. 

This design is standardized in production models, such as Bugatti’s Veyron, Chiron, and W16 Mistral.

Key Design Details

Structure

The W16 engine combines two narrow-angle VR8 engine blocks (each with a 15° cylinder bank angle) arranged in a 90° "W" configuration. Both banks share a single centrally mounted crankshaft.

This compact layout allows the engine to fit within hypercars while maintaining a size comparable to a V12.

Materials and Performance

The crankshaft is forged from high-strength steel or titanium alloys to withstand extreme forces, such as the 1,600 Nm torque in the Bugatti Chiron.

Lightweight components, including carbon fiber parts and hollow crankshaft designs, reduce the engine’s total weight to approximately 400 kg.

Applications

Bugatti is the sole automaker using W16 engines in production cars, including:

Veyron 16.4 (1,001 horsepower)

Chiron (1,600 horsepower)

W16 Mistral (limited-edition roadster, 1,600 horsepower).

Exceptions and Experimental Designs

No production W16 engine uses dual crankshafts. However, non-automotive fields (e.g., marine or aerospace) have explored multi-crankshaft configurations for specialized purposes, though none have reached commercialization