Volkswagen's V5 engine — when a VR6 is too big

What Is A V5 Engine? What Happened To V5 Engines?
V5 engines are a rare anomaly in the automotive world. Honda used a 1.0L V5 engine in motorcycles, with great success, though the setup hasn't been seen in many production cars. VW produced a V5, or more accurately a VR5, for its packaging and power benefits versus a larger VR6, or a smaller inline four cylinder.

The VR5 engine style, though only requiring two camshafts (SOHC, 2 valves per cylinder, or DOHC, 4 valves per cylinder), has its complications. The intake and exhaust paths are shorter for two of the cylinders, the crankshaft geometry is offset from the cylinder center lines, and ultimately it's not much more powerful than an inline four cylinder. Check out the video for full details about how the engine works.

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