Engines are what power your ship's FTL drive. The more you upgrade and power your engines, the higher your Evade percentage will be. This means that you will evade more enemy fire and thus take less damage during a fight. To take advantage of this, you must have a crew member in the Piloting room or have a level 2 or above Cockpit. If you don't, the evade percentage will remain zero.
For reference to the table below, it takes 68.0 seconds for a level 1, unmanned engine to charge its FTL Drive.
(Credit to Twinge for the FTL Charge Rate resource table)
| Rank | Unmanned | Manned Level 0 | Manned Level 1 | Manned Level 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1.0x (68.0s) | 1.10x
(61.8s) |
1.17x
(58.1s) |
1.25x
(54.4s) |
| 2 | 1.26x
(53.1s) |
1.41x
(48.3s) |
1.50x
(45.4s) |
1.60x
(42.5s) |
| 3 | 1.58x
(43.6s) |
1.72x
(39.6s) |
1.82x
(37.3s) |
1.95x
(34.9s) |
| 4 | 1.84x
(37.0s) |
2.02x
(33.6s) |
2.15x
(31.6s) |
2.30x
(29.6s) |
| 5 | 2.11x
(32.1s) |
2.33x
(29.2s) |
2.48x
(27.4s) |
2.65x
(25.7s) |
| 6 | 2.40x
(28.3s) |
2.64x
(29.2s) |
2.81x
(24.2s) |
3.00x
(22.7s) |
| 7 | 2.68x
(25.4s) |
2.94x
(23.1s) |
3.13x
(21.7s) |
3.35x
(20.3s) |
| 8 | 2.96x
(23.0s) |
3.25x
(20.9s) |
3.47x
(19.6s) |
3.70x
(18.4s) |
| Rank | Cost | Stats |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Evasion +5% | |
| 2 | 10 
|
Evasion +10% |
| 3 | 15
|
Evasion +15% |
| 4 | 30
|
Evasion +20% |
| 5 | 40
|
Evasion +25% |
| 6 | 60
|
Evasion +28% |
| 7 | 80
|
Evasion +31% |
| 8 | 120
|
Evasion +35% |
An engine room.