When cars were originally being made and designed, why was “gasoline” used rather than crude oil, especially since it was what came from the Earth?

Question

Cars today run on “gasoline” which has the hydrocarbons that work with the air and make the combustion possible, but why design engines like this, especially since the refining process is so arduous? Would it not have been easier and more logical to try using the crude oil straight from the Earth?

In: 16

Answer 1

No there are many reasons as to why gasoline was and still is used. The most significant is that, while crude oil is flammable, it is nowhere close to as flammable as gasoline and doesn’t burn nearly as fast and not very cleanly. Making a car engine operate on a slow burning fuel that leaves large amounts of residue behind would be an engineering nightmare.

Answer 2

No there are many reasons as to why gasoline was and still is used. The most significant is that, while crude oil is flammable, it is nowhere close to as flammable as gasoline and doesn’t burn nearly as fast and not very cleanly. Making a car engine operate on a slow burning fuel that leaves large amounts of residue behind would be an engineering nightmare.