How a car engine really works.

How many of you reading this actually knows how an engine really works?
Well, as of late I've been really curious, and with no previous knowledge I think I can explain more or less how an engine works, as well as what a break in period is.

First of all, let's look at the heart of the matter, the engine. (This post is going to be a rather long post, as I will try to explain how an engine really works in simple words, so excuse me, if my post exceeds 1000 words.)

This is an engine (More or less what MY car's engine looks like, not exactly it because this is VW Gol's from 2010.)

My car has a 1.6m^3 - 4 cylinder engine. What that means, is that my car has 4 piston rings, or, err, cylinders. (And 4 pistons, DUH.)
Now, WHAT IS a piston cylinder?

A representation of a piston cylinder in a combustion engine (Thanks to Brittanica encyclopedia for this post)

Now, you're going to notice that the bottom part of the cylinder (Most commonly referred to as the crankshaft.) works in a fashion so that when the crankshaft spins, it also sets the piston in motion.
Now, when the piston retracts, (Goes down.) the intake valve (Upper left of piston.) opens, and lets in a mixture of gasoline and air.
Now, once the piston goes all the way down, the intake valve closes, and the exhaust valve (Upper right of piston cylinder.) begins to open.
When the piston starts to generate pressure (As it begins to move upwards.) the spark plug ignites, creating an explosion, and generating what we call co^2.
This will be it for today, but I'll try to explain more about how this works in a different post, as this one is beginning to get long.
Please, stay tuned, and drive safely.