Improved internal combustion engine, particularly, an improved two-stroke,
diesel aircraft engine. A first improvement includes a wrist
pin/connection rod assembly. A plurality of fasteners extend through a
wall of a wrist pin and into a wrist pin insert to secure the wrist pin
to a cradle-like portion of a connecting rod. A second improvement
includes a fuel injection system which cools fuel injectors with overflow
fuel from a fuel pump. The overflow fuel is warmed as it cools the fuel
injectors, thereby preventing ice-build up on a fuel filter in cold
weather as the overflow fuel is recirculated to the fuel pump. A third
improvement includes a new cylinder head cooling arrangement. The
cylinder head and a cooling cap define an annular cooling passageway.
Cooling fluid flows through the annular cooling passageway to cool the
cylinder head. The cooling cap includes an inlet port and an outlet port
which are not diametrically opposed. Accordingly, the annular cooling
passageway includes a restricted portion to ensure cooling fluid flows
completely around the annular cooling passageway to better cool the
cylinder head. The cooling cap is adjustably mounted on the cylinder
head, so that the cooling cap can be coupled to a cooling jacket
independent of the location of the cylinder head on the engine or
cylinder block, as when the cylinder head threads into the engine block.
The same clamping device used to connect the cooling cap to the cylinder
head can be used to secure the fuel injector to the cylinder head. A
fourth improvement includes a cross-feed cooling passageway extending
between multiple cylinder banks to provide thermal coupling between the
cylinder heads and the lower crankcase of the engine, and to provide a
safety arrangement for continued cooling fluid flow at least in the event
a thermostat in communication with a cooling jacket should fail.