The
term V-8 when applied to engines refers to the fact that the
engine has eight
cylinders that are
arranged in the form of a "V" when looked at from the
front. So, cylinder 1
slopes up at an
angle to the left, cylinder 2 at an angle to the right, and so forth.
One of the
advantages of such an
arrangement is that the engine runs a lot
smoother than engines with all the cylinders arranged in line.
The
sound produced by a V-8 engine is
unmistakable.
Engines with more or fewer cylinders arranged in a V are found too. In Formula 1 racing, for example, nearly all cars have V-10 engines.