Too much horsepower is never enough

themoose · Oct 19, 2012

Back in the day (my day) if your car had 450 hp and only weighed a couple thousand lbs you had one of the hottest rides around. You could get yourself into plenty of trouble if you werent careful and for a street driven car it seemed to have all the go you could ever need. Now you hear numbers thrown around like 800hp or more. Its nice to brag about having all of that HP but how much can you really use in a street driven hot rod. It has been said thatToo much horsepower is never enough but in the real world street driven rod how much is really enough without being overkill or is there no such thing as overkill ?

el Scotto · Oct 19, 2012

Depends who you are!!

edwardlloyd · Oct 19, 2012

Depends on the car. I have 260, 300 and 370 in my late models. Thats not enough sometimes. I'd be more than enough in a buggy sprung pre-war Ford though!
Ed

porknbeaner · Oct 19, 2012

You can only use as much HP/torque as you can put to the ground.

Waddayacare · Oct 19, 2012

I've got 5xx + horse and I can plant it but not on the street. If I just burp the throttle I blow the tires off and I feel like I'm on a carnival ride.

Ole don · Oct 19, 2012

Horse power is just another number to brag about. Show me your time slip. If you don't have a time slip to back up the brag, I don't want to hear it.

el Scotto · Oct 19, 2012

Hell, I just like doing donuts and burnouts!

My 'fast' OT car only has about 400 horsepower based upon the weight and quarter mile time but it sure makes me happy!!

GregCon · Oct 19, 2012

I had an OT Challenger with a lightweight rotating assembly'd 526" blown EFI Hemi. That car was the only car I've owned with too much power. If you chose to push the throttle open all the way, you had to first make sure you had lots of open road in front of you. It got exponentially faster, it seemed, the longer you held it open.

Grumbler · Oct 19, 2012

I have 550 foot pounds torque at 5000 RPM with a 455 Olds, I don't care about horsepower

Sent from my DROID device using the TJJ mobile app

Waddayacare · Oct 19, 2012

Ole don said: ↑

Horse power is just another number to brag about. Show me your time slip. If you don't have a time slip to back up the brag, I don't want to hear it.
Click to expand...

You want to see my slip we'll do it at a track. Then you'll have one of your own, it may be yellow, but at least you'll have one.

firingorder1 · Oct 19, 2012

You hear the phrase "Pics or it didn't happen". Time slips and dyno sheets or it didn't happen. I could tell you how fast I went at Bonneville this year and show you a time slip or I could tell you how fast I'd like to have gone and not produce a time slip.

Master of None · Oct 19, 2012

I've had a client that has a Keith Black aluminum 426 hemi in his O/t 68 road runner. It dyno's at 730 hp(I've seen the sheets). We were talking about the amount of power and cubic money it takes to even make 700 h.p. He and I both agree one man's 300 hp motor is closer to 200 actual. Not to start a argument, but seems most of the bench racing is just that, fun and not factual.

olskoolspeed · Oct 19, 2012

firingorder1 said: ↑

You hear the phrase "Pics or it didn't happen". Time slips and dyno sheets or it didn't happen. I could tell you how fast I went at Bonneville this year and show you a time slip or I could tell you how fast I'd like to have gone and not produce a time slip.
Click to expand...

How true. I agree.

Master of None · Oct 19, 2012

porknbeaner said: ↑

You can only use as much HP/torque as you can put to the ground.
Click to expand...

You are very correct. I live in a heavy dirt circle tract racing area. The fastest guys on the track usually don't have the "high dollar" newest, greatest motor parts. They just have the best track set up. It doesn't matter how fast you are in the straits, if you can't turn!

Waddayacare · Oct 19, 2012

Master of None said: ↑

I've had a client that has a Keith Black aluminum 426 hemi in his O/t 68 road runner. It dyno's at 730 hp(I've seen the sheets). We were talking about the amount of power and cubic money it takes to even make 700 h.p. He and I both agree one man's 300 hp motor is closer to 200 actual. Not to start a argument, but seems most of the bench racing is just that, fun and not factual.
Click to expand...

Absolutely!

Dyno sheets tell a story but still not the whole story.

You can have someone with 1000 horse and they can't drive it. Then there's the guy (like the guy out by me) that has a blown car and the damn thing goes 10's in the 1/8th. Let me repete that, a blown car that goes 10's in the 1/8th!

Yes a dyno sheet tells something but it certainly doesn't tell the whole story.

Oh and about egging people on about posting time slips, who's to say it's theirs?!?!

I show my cards at the track. You can't fudge those.

merking56 · Oct 19, 2012

It depends on what you do with your ride. Drag race, salt flats, dirt tracks, auto cross, ect ect. For me, I am low and slow so it doesnt mean much

31Vicky with a hemi · Oct 19, 2012

Look at the top dog late models a around 600 or more
Cts-v caddy
Shelby
Camaro

All held " worlds most powerful production " title.

They are just fine as DDs and getting groceries as they are at the test @ tunes.
They have some torque management and traction control that virtually eliminates a 600 HP sledge hammer blow. Much like rolling into the throttle without the electronics.

Waddayacare · Oct 19, 2012

31Vicky with a hemi said: ↑

Look at the top dog late models a around 600 or more
Cts-v caddy
Shelby
Camaro

All held " worlds most powerful production " title.

They are just fine as DDs and getting groceries as they are at the test @ tunes.
They have some torque management and traction control that virtually eliminates a 600 HP sledge hammer blow. Much like rolling into the throttle without the electronics.
Click to expand...

True, but I question the REAL numbers.

There's a guy out here that races one of those Caddys and I've watched the car go low 12's. Respectable... Yes, but I've got a little less that that car has and I go high 10's to a low 11. So what's the REAL numbers on those cars. Oh and by the way there's a new O/T Shelby Mustang out called the "Shelby 1000" and you guessed it, it has 1000 horse. Well.... Does it really?

GregCon · Oct 19, 2012

I never had the chance to get any time slips for my car I mentioned above.....but I'll tell you a very well known race-engine-guy drove it and said it felt to him like a 9.90 car (in street trim) and about 1000HP. All I know for sure is it hauled ass a whole lot.....

Waddayacare · Oct 19, 2012

1000 horse and 9.90??? Mmmkay!

johnybsic · Oct 19, 2012

I suppose you could always use more, If applied right.

My BBC "Should" be just at 475-500hp. I've never dyno'd it, my buddies have a dyno in their shop, but then again im not sure if i'd like to really know yet?
All i know now is that its not getting all those horses to the pavement.
It's a metric shit ton of fun, but i can't see having TOO much more on the street. Thing can already scare me if i dont stay on top of it.

I too get tired of the "baller ass horsepower" numbers which get thrown around...
I say my engine should be around 500hp, and you tell me your "BRO" has one with 800
To me a bunch of guys standing around claiming higher numbers then each other is just a drag. I'd rather have a drag race... More fun.

johnybsic · Oct 19, 2012

On another note.

A friend of a friend who has been building an import inline-six. and just going on about how his 2JZ (240sx) will make just as much horse power as my big block if not more...
And I mean going-on-and-on. Spends boo-koo cash on shit. hi dollar aeromotive pumps (-10 AN stuff) etc...

Yea his just put down 385hp...But he's still, uh having issues .

Cantstop · Oct 19, 2012

I was just having this same conversation the other evening....450hp and you were kicking a lot of ass....now v6 mustangs and camaros are 305hp. Buddie just bought an '12 tang...412hp stock. Looks like I'll have to go big if my 63 Galaxie is gonna have a chance on the street.
By the way one of the guys I do some work for has a OT '09 supercharged vette with work done....850-900hp and driving it you would think its "just a fast vette" until you start redlining the tach rowing gears.

Pete1 · Oct 19, 2012

Quote>"Oh and about egging people on about posting time slips, who's to say it's theirs?!?!"< Quote

Time slips and dyno sheets are easily cloned and forged.
It's hard to alter the results sheet from the track though.

Jimv · Oct 19, 2012

Horse power is like penis! If its too much just don't use it all!
Theres your quote of the week right there!!lol
JimV

oldguard · Oct 19, 2012

If we are talking race cars, too much horsepower? Never!

But, if we are talking street cars, then it's a case by case deal, chassis capability and driver skill...and if your not driving it, then whats the point?

I have been accused of BBD (Bigger Better Deal) and I am not driving it, yet, but everyday the "build" gets closer, then I will find out if I can get the chassis and driver in sync for fun ride.

The engine is a Dart Big M 540 with Callies Magnum swinging in the bottom and Pro 1's on top capped with a 8-71 and dual 950s backed by a Lenco 5 speed in a 1942 Chevrolet Coupe Gasser/Street Freak.

CutawayAl · Oct 20, 2012

In the "old days" both race and performance street engines were built with mostly production based parts. Today it's possible to buy heads and other parts that weren't available back then, and they are better than anything available back then. Even top fuel dragster engines had production blocks and heads.

There are theoretically streetable naturally aspirated small block Mustangs today that are nearly as fast as blown fuel dragster were in the mid '60s. Today's pro stock cars are quite a bit faster than those dragsters were. Putting it into perspective, 95 HP V-8 Fords were considered to be fast when they were new.

GasserTodd · Oct 20, 2012

Ole don said: ↑

Horse power is just another number to brag about. Show me your time slip. If you don't have a time slip to back up the brag, I don't want to hear it.
Click to expand...

627hp blown 454 that ran 10.2@132 in 2700lb T bucket (yeah I know it is as heavy as a McDs junkfood model). The 627 was on the dyno, rather than some made up figure. Was a very mild engine set up and the car never went up in smoke.

New motor is 540 cubes of fresh BBC and engine builder rang today to say new motor made 825hp on 5 lbs of boost (blower is underdriven) and 750 ft/lbs of torque.

He said it went to 650 ft/lbs not far off idle so should be a fun street engine. Tyres may go up in smoke this time round.

I NEED 800+hp because I want to be able to drive to the track and run a nine on street rubber thru the mufflers, and then drive home again. Couldnt do that with the old (now deceased) blown 454

Truckedup · Oct 20, 2012

Waddayacare said: ↑

True, but I question the REAL numbers.

There's a guy out here that races one of those Caddys and I've watched the car go low 12's. Respectable... Yes, but I've got a little less that that car has and I go high 10's to a low 11. So what's the REAL numbers on those cars. Oh and by the way there's a new O/T Shelby Mustang out called the "Shelby 1000" and you guessed it, it has 1000 horse. Well.... Does it really?
Click to expand...

Maybe so. Does your car weight 3800 pounds,have street tires 3.50 gear,A,power windows,full emissions controls,safety crap,and have a usable top speed north of 175 mph and cruise at 85 MPH in complete quiet?
The torque and HP of new cars is real as shown on many dyno tests.
But this site isn't about new supercars.....so let's see your car running high 10's

31Vicky with a hemi · Oct 20, 2012

My hemi , 421 cubic inches (354 bored and stroked) with a 671 should be enough.
Its variable HP depending on the amount of boost thru different pulleys or a switch to 8-71.
Its built to handle 1000 HP & wasn't cheap. I don't think I'll be able to use all of that in my Vicky, but that engine could go into anything.

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