Torque is a myth! Or torque = right hand + right foot.

 

torques a movie?

 

Nope, other way around. HP is a function of torque.

HP = Torque * rpm / 5252

The more torque the engine can maintain at a higher rpm, the more HP it will make. You can have torque without HP but you can't have HP without torque.

Drive Safe,
Steve R.

 

Wouldn't that be the same as:

Torque = HP * 5252 / rpm

In that case, Torque is a function of HP. Let's just say that Torque and HP are related as a function of engine speed.

I like ha-evolution's definition of torque best, though. A car w/ more torque will feel like it's planting you back against your seat more firmly.

 

Yeah, torque is sort of like a "stop-short", without the gratuitous booby-grab.

 

More exactly it's like a fat chick sitting on your chest.

 

I love how torquey my S2000 is, especially down low.

 

For more info, look to one of the best websites on the web:

Horsepower Info

Torque Coolness

 

Couple of dissertations:

http://www.vettenet.org/torquehp.html

http://personal.riverusers.com/~yawpower/tqvshp.html

These will tell you the difference between TQ and HP.

I think the question you have is how will it feel. Well a car with more low-end torque will tend to slam you back in your seat, it's a more violent feel. However, more power at the top end will generally give you more speed, but with less drama.

In a road racing scenerio, if an S2000 and say, a Firebird were both making a 2nd gear turn, the Firebird will tend to pull stronger out of the corner because it is delivering more power out of the turn. At the end of a long straight though, the S2000 may be pulling stonger. (Of course, the lighter, better handling, better braking S2000 will carry more speed INTO the same corner, and hence more speed out, but that's another story)

At a drag strip that Firebird could make a wheel standing, wheel spinning launch at 3-4K RPM, where the S2000 would need to launch at or above 7,000RPM to launch anywhere near as hard. This is the reason so many people tend to frown on using the S2000 as a drag racer. To be even remotely competitive you must launch at a high enough RPM to risk substantial dammage to the car.

There are benefits and drawbacks to both higher torque and higher HP cars. Personally I like both (for those different reasons)

To really feel the difference between having lots of torque and not, launch a car (really any car, but prefferably manual transmission) in second gear. Then stop again and launch from 1st gear. The difference will be much more torque in 1st gear. Two cars you are comparing will probably NOT have that much difference (unless you are comparing an S2000 to a Corvette) but it will illustrate the point.

 

If that Firebird is popping wheelies, an S2000 is no comparison.