My nephew(Subaru RS) tells me there a boxer engine in his ride- where can I find info about the relationship (if there is one?) between these 2 engine series? I noticed that there are visual similarities while working on his car recently but don't know any history?

there is no "connection"...the only thing the Subarus and the Porsches have in common is the layout of the engine, both being a flat 4 or flat 6


the subaru motor is based on a copied version of a VW Bug Type I motor converted to watercooling

lots of cars use the boxer design, and have for about a hundred years.

even some Ferraris called their flat engines boxers, although AFAIK, they weren't, they were actually 180-degree V engines...

i don't think there is any direct connection between the Subaru engine and Porsche.

OTOH - Porsche has licensed AWD technology from Subaru for the Carrera 4's front drive.

we have an all-Boxer fleet: 1 Porsche 4, 3 Porsche 6's, 1 Subaru 4, 1 Subaru 6.
_______________
technical footnote: a Boxer engine is a flat engine with pair of cylinders 180-degrees apart. in operation, they move toward another, then away. this does tend to compress the air in the crankcase when the pistons move toward one another at high speeds and there can be a fair amount of air moving around inside the engine in operation. but it makes for very smooth operation.

in a V-engine, pairs of cylinders share a crankpin. in a flat V engine, such as Ferrari's 312, the cylinders move back and forth in pairs, always the same distance apart (since they are both on the same crankpin...)

QUOTE (ArtechnikA @ Jun 30 2005, 12:37 PM)

lots of cars use the boxer design, and have for about a hundred years. even some Ferraris called their flat engines boxers, although AFAIK, they weren't, they were actually 180-degree V engines... i don't think there is any direct connection between the Subaru engine and Porsche. OTOH - Porsche has licensed AWD technology from Subaru for the Carrera 4's front drive. we have an all-Boxer fleet: 1 Porsche 4, 3 Porsche 6's, 1 Subaru 4, 1 Subaru 6. _______________ technical footnote: a Boxer engine is a flat engine with pair of cylinders 180-degrees apart. in operation, they move toward another, then away. this does tend to compress the air in the crankcase when the pistons move toward one another at high speeds and there can be a fair amount of air moving around inside the engine in operation. but it makes for very smooth operation. in a V-engine, pairs of cylinders share a crankpin. in a flat V engine, such as Ferrari's 312, the cylinders move back and forth in pairs, always the same distance apart (since they are both on the same crankpin...)

I believe the Testarossa engine was an actual boxer layout. The 312 F1 engine from the 70s was a 180d Vee, though. The 512BB (Berlinetta Boxer) I'm not sure on, despite the moniker.

BMW and Citroen also used the boxer layout of twins, BMW only on bikes, Citroen on the 2CV series of cars. Both were also air-cooled, but there was no connection with VW or Porsche there, either.

Didn't the Subaru 360 also use a boxer layout?

here is a funny fact the suby 2.7 six and the porsche 2.7 6 have the same exact specs on the pistons and connecting rods. i mean the are interchangeable the piston pin hieght, crank end bearings everything matches.

That is interesting!

I'd be interested to also know the difference in price for the two engines?