horsepower and torque
#1
horsepower and torque
alright, to most of you, i know you'll look down on me for asking what you would consider a newbie questions, but to me it isn't.
so, what is horsepower and torque? even after being active in the tuning scene for about three years, i have still never found a true and simple definition for the two terms.
from what i can gather myself from reading and physics, torque is the force applied on a radius, so it is how much force is making something turn, right? then where the **** does horsepower come from?
sure i know how to use the numbers to rate a car and such, but that doesn't really answer my real questions.
so what does it mean when people say a car feels more torquey when they drive it, what are they feeling? because to me, a car is just accelerating fast or not. please explain all you greatly knowledgable people on hcf
thankz for taking time to look through my questions
so, what is horsepower and torque? even after being active in the tuning scene for about three years, i have still never found a true and simple definition for the two terms.
from what i can gather myself from reading and physics, torque is the force applied on a radius, so it is how much force is making something turn, right? then where the **** does horsepower come from?
sure i know how to use the numbers to rate a car and such, but that doesn't really answer my real questions.
so what does it mean when people say a car feels more torquey when they drive it, what are they feeling? because to me, a car is just accelerating fast or not. please explain all you greatly knowledgable people on hcf
thankz for taking time to look through my questions
#2
#3
RE: horsepower and torque
Hp is actually a funtion of torque. It's an arbitrary number.
Tq x rpm
----------- = Horsepower
5252
When someone says a car feels "torquey," they probably mean responsive, or the torque curve beinglower in the rpms. Or they could have no idea what hey are talking about.
Tq x rpm
----------- = Horsepower
5252
When someone says a car feels "torquey," they probably mean responsive, or the torque curve beinglower in the rpms. Or they could have no idea what hey are talking about.
#6
RE: horsepower and torque
ORIGINAL: theblackpearl
then shouldn't torque be way more important than horsepower. why do people put horsepower first and torque second if they state the torque at all??
then shouldn't torque be way more important than horsepower. why do people put horsepower first and torque second if they state the torque at all??
Look at a 4.2L JeepI6 motor. It's rated for like 120HP and over 200lb/ft at the crank in stock form. It can yank a tree stump out of the ground at just above idle but even in 1st it accelerates like a tractor, whether it's in a lightweight CJ5 on stock 30" tires or a heavy fullsize Cherokee on 33s.
Compare that to a new Civic Si sedan DOHCVTEC motor that puts out like 200HP andaround 140lb/ft of torque at the crank. It won't easily pull a stump at just over idle, but it accelerates better than even the similar-weight CJ5 unless you really load it down. It also happily runs the car athigher speeds.
Compare both of those to a 4.0L I6 Jeep TJ that's rated for around 190HP and 230lb/ft. It moves the 4000lb Jeep 0-60 in under 10 seconds, can still pull a stump out of the ground at just over idle, and manages to power the brick-shaped Jeep to over 100MPH. It will happily idle the heavy Jeep over axle-high rocks or spin mudders fast enough to clear the treads with just a blip of the throttle.
Torque is for if you want to move something without bogging the engine. HP is for if you want toaccelerate it quickly. This is why a low-torque/high-HPmotor is affected more by added weight in a car and a high-torque/low-HP carwon'tpass as wellon a 2-lane.
#7
RE: horsepower and torque
ORIGINAL: my05civic
in layman terms...
torque = acceleration capabilities
hp=top speed
in layman terms...
torque = acceleration capabilities
hp=top speed
A low torque machine can still accelerate fine if used at higher rpm's. Since they have an inverse relationship, they can compensate for eachother, based on gearing and the like. So a low torque, high hp car would need pretty short gearing to keep rpm's high to compensate.
#9
RE: horsepower and torque
i've always thought the more equal hp and torque were..the more powerful and fast the vehicle is. a lot of civics have great hp for such tiny cars but their torque is pretty low so at first when u accelerate it's pretty weak but later on the civic will catch up depending on which car ur racing.