Engines - Switching the order of them

[Anhalter]

tl;dr

The order of "engine" and "electric engine" should be switched or altered

What

Replace "engine" with "electric engine" or "basic electric engine"
Replace "electric engine" with something else. "engine", "advanced electric engine", something else.

Why

The current order of research and manufacturing implies that an electric engine is more complex than a conventional engine. Imho, this is not the case. Also, as to my best knowledge, a electric engine does not recquire a lubricant to work. Most conventional engines do. So that does not make too much sense.

Sorry if this has been suggested before, my search did not find anything.
I am also fully aware that this is a rather low priority problem and does not really affect the game to much.
I am also aware, that there might be electric engines more complex than basic conventional engines.

[Deadlock989]

These things are purely subjective and partly based on accidents of history, a history that may be irrelevant to the fantasy world that Factorio is set in. Individual cultural experience also plays a large part in it. When I was developing an overhaul mod and struggling to deal with the huge translation/localisation project that suddenly materialised out of thin air, it also became very clear that some languages/cultures make much less of a distinction between motors and engines than Anglophone cultures do. Factorio, a game originating in Czechia, may reflect this: the icons have changed over time but they have switched back and forth between things that look to me like motors and then engines and then motors again. I did some research on it and quickly realised that like anything to do with language, it's a subjective mess, but the good kind of mess.

TL;DR - this is not a problem. Even it were, there would be no perfect solution that suits everyone. Words don't mean; people mean.

[starlinvf]

Plus making them both electric engines means the entire Automotive branch would not be able to use fuel. This would demand an entirely new charging system for them, unless they also get Equipment Grids for Personal Batteries and Solar panels. But going grids would require moving that whole branch of research around to make it accessible that early in the game.

Or if we ignore Equipment grids, it would instead demand anything using an engine in the recipe to also require batteries to store power.

OP is also ignoring the an entire logical angle where Engines are designed for high torque applications, while electric engines are used in similar applications to Lower torque, high efficiency Micro-Motors. Which is partly why Lubricant is an ingredient; as does every other high efficiency upgrade of existing items.