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In Reply to: Yes and no. posted by JL on April 24, 2000 at 17:13:15:
I drive a '94 325is, and before that, a 84 '325e. Both of them had similar amounts of torque, but the 325e was severely constrained by the lack of hp. Although the 325is, with it's markedly higher hp figure, is overall a faster car, the real difference between the two is noticable in top-end punch (i.e., when passing on the freeway). This is where horsepower makes a clear difference.
Now, fast-forward to the newer 328i's, which have essentially the same hp as my 325is, but a lot more torque. Yes, the 328's have a lot more punch through the lower and middle range of the rpm band. But at freeway speeds, the difference between the two engines diminishes significantly.
So, the 330i/530i will have more of a hp jump instead of a torque increase, but although the difference may not be readily apparent off-the-line, it should be felt on the road at speed.
Final comment: ever driven a 911?
: : Without it, you're not going to go very fast, no matter what the torque. Ever driven a fork lift or golf cart?
: HP is basically a product of torque and rotational speed (RPM). In order to generate more HP, you can either increase torque, or have the engine rev higher. Your example of fork lift not being able to go fast is because fork lifts are not designed to go fast, not because of the engine alone.
: Now back to the E39, with 225HP at upper end vs 193HP, you may gain 5-10MPH at the upper end, but the top speed is electronically limited anyways, so you won't be able to _see_ the gain unless of course you chip it and remove the top speed limiter. What's more important is the torque _curve_, not the peak torque.
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