Direct injection

Fuel injected engines received a similar kind of discrimination that automatic transmission cars got back in the days. Buying a car equipped with a carburetor was the way to go. My perception of fuel injected cars changed when I, my brother and my Dad worked on getting “Lord Lugard’s” carburetor engine replaced with a fuel injected engine. (Lord Lugard was what we called my Dad’s 5 series). Yeah, it was an un-popular move and other than the fact that my family is not known to go with the flow, we were well aware of the benefits of petrol injection over the use of a carburetor. Instantly noticeable was an improvement in fuel economy. Early morning start ups were now easier than ever.
A petrol engine burns a mixture of petrol and air, this mixture is via a carburetor or an injector. The basic difference between a carburetor and fuel injection is that fuel injection atomizes the fuel by forcibly pumping it through a small nozzle under high pressure, while carburation relies on low pressure created by intake air rushing through it to add the fuel through the intake manifolds.

Fuel injection
Fuel and air mixture rush in to the engine through the inlet valves(blue)
Direct injection takes the advantages of fuel injection further. It injects fuel directly into the combustion chamber of each cylinder as against having the fuel and air mixture rush into the chamber through the intake manifolds. What this simply does is that it takes fuel efficiency and power up while lowering emissions. Power delivery is more linear and the engine runs smoother.

Direct Injection
Injector squirts fuel directly into the engine as air rushes in
While you order your next car, do try to get 1 with direct injection. It works for both sides: the petrol heads get more power and the green people can sleep better at night because they know they’ve done their bit to save the planet.