Howard wrote:

Paul:
    Horsepower is clearly defined.....   in terms of force distance and
time.   This is easily translatable to engine horsepower at the flywheel.
Any scales that measure horsepower should not exceed this figure.   They may
be a net horsepower figure which takes into account accessory drag, but
there is absolutely no justification for a scale that produces a figure
higher than this.    The only possible reason for using a scale that gives a
higher figure is to cloud and confuse the issue.

I use SAE horsepower because it pretty much matches these numbers:

    33000 Ft-lbs per  minute = 1 horsepower.

    1 revolution of a 1' radius circle is 6.283'

    33000 / 6.283 = 5252

Thus horsepower = Torque * RPM / 5252

Any result that produces a number exceeding this is simply a lie.... there
may well be clever justifications for the number, but it is still simply a
lie as far as I am concerned.

Unfortunately I don't get Road & Track.   I checked on line for the article
you mentioned.   I presume it is in the current issue rather than the '99
issue.     I would appreciate the name of the article which I presume will
be available on the web before too long if I don't manage to find a copy
somewhere to read.     I drive pickups (old) and fly trikes (inexpensive
home built) ......  The latest Porsche and Ferrari performance figures don't
interest me much which is the thrust of that publication.    I did however
make a note of the fact that there was some stuff on GDI which is of
tremendous interest to me as I feel it is the future of fuel systems.

                   H.W.

It is the Aug 2000 issue. Title is Tech Tidbits
What does GDI mean Howard?

Paul Lamar
 
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