Can someone explain the differance between horsepower and torque.

Horsepower is a measure of power.

Torque is a measure of rotational force.

There u go:

HORSEPOWER

Definition: A unit of measure for quantifying power output. Invented by James Watt, the term was originally used to describe how much effort a horse exerted when lugging coal out of a coal mine. One horsepower was the amount of effort one horse put forth in raising 33,000 lbs. one foot in one minute. Engine horsepower ratings are determined on special equipment (See Dynamometer), and are usually expressed as so much "brake" horsepower (the amount of horsepower the engine actually delivers after internal friction and parasitic loses are taken into account).

TORQUE

Turning or twisting force such as the force imparted on the drive line by the engine. Usually measured in lb-ft. It differs from work or power in that torque does not necessarily produce motion. Basically, the magnitude of a torque acting on a body is the product of the magnitude of a force and its force arm (perpendicular distance from the axis of rotation of the body to the line of action of the force). This product is called the moment of the torque about the axis or the torque.

Usually, torque goes with this also:

Pound-Feet

The unit of measurement for torque (for example, 132 lb-ft @ 4800 rpm), which is a gauge of an engine's power. One pound-foot is equal to the twisting force produced when a one-pound force is applied to the end of a one-foot-long lever.

HOPE IT HELPS YOU !!!

I heard this somewhere:

horsepower sells cars, torque makes them go.

my take on it, Im not sure if I am right, is that horse power is the maximum power that an engine produces. Torque is the product of that power which is exerted on the road.

(Torque x Engine speed) / 5,252 = Horsepower

thats torque in lbft

Hey, you want to make this conversation really interesting? Ask about headers and low-restriction exhaust, and if it produces more 'power'. Leave your question really vague. Just say, "power". Not torque or HP. You will get 500 different answers.

steve(header, K&N---"easy in, easy out"= more power)77

Ivan's got it right. The more revs you can extract from your engine, the more power it should produce... in theory. Unfortunately, the engine will need to have sound underlying torque characteristics to produce the expected power. So... when you're planning you engine mods, think torque not power. After all, its the torque that you really feel when driving.

For instance, Vipers have huge amounts of HP cos they have heaps of torque but dont really rev much, but S2000s also have a lot of HP but they dont have much torque at all - they just rev like banshees...

Hey alfadog have you driven a S2000? I have and I'm buggered if I could get the rear wheels to spin. I tried the old 1st gear, 6000rpm and slide the foot sideways off the clutch trick... but it just launched (and I mean REALLY launched!!) but no chirp of the tyres, no smoke, nothing. Technology has robbed us.:disappoin

no I've never had the pleasure (?) of driving an S2000, but I have heard mixed opinions... most people speak of their lack of torque however... so yeah I'll just imagine

hÉ HÉ!!!

THis is why I put it in my signature..

HP sells, Torque moves!!!:stupid: