Re: stock Tii horsepower (archive)

Gotta disagree. If someone is asking, then they just might use the HP curve. Won't argue that most folks drive in such a way as to make HP less desireable than torque. But, if someone is trying to find the fastest way around a track, I'd suggest they 1) basically ignore torque if the track is longer than about .25 miles, and 2) concentrate on gearing the car so that they can take advantage of the area under the HP (v. torque) curve. I doubt we have an argument, but you gotta assume someone might be trying to get around as fast as possible.

I'll also state that peak HP and peak Torque are almost useless pieces of information - particularly when they are spikes in some ratty curve. Always evaluate a motors potential by examining the entire curve(s).

Unfortunately (or fortunately), I read a book called "The Red Car" back in the late 70s (8th grade) which forever biased me toward use of the HP potential. Gotta love any book about taking out muscle cars of the late 60s by driving weak motored MGs through the twisties . Still can't remember a better discussion of driving physics in a fiction novel. To this day, my parents wish I'd never picked up that book .

: Each vehicle, even those produced in series, is different in performance. To get a good idea of the performance range, check out the last page of the specifications section of the factory shop manual. It lists the rear wheel power of all 2002 models including the Ti and Tii.

: Maximum horsepower is really only of slight academic interest. More important is the shape of the torque curve (actually the area under the torque curve) and the throttle response characteristic. Almost no time is spent driving at the peak horsepower RPM point. But car salesmen and amateur engine builders love it, so....

Follow Ups:

Re: stock Tii horsepower Nobody Special 12:22 7/10/2000 (2)
- its easy! HP/torque controversy(more) Rob S. 22:31 7/10/2000 (1)
  - Making more torque at higher RPM... Mark S. 01:05 7/11/2000 (0)

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