Truth, Rumor or a bit of Both?
03-07-2009, 01:52 PM
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Originally Posted by one4thethumb' post='809583' date='Mar 6 2009, 04:33 PM
Apologies to all in advance should you find the following query a bit contrived.
Several months ago, whilst in the midst of due diligence and evaluating my eventual E60 purchase, several of my law partners were lauding German sports sedans and the virtues of German Horsepower.
According to them, while my 06' 530 has a horsepower rating of 255, it is actually greater (by a factor of 10 -15%). I ask them independently how can that be, and their response: German Horsepower.
Am I getting a cock and bull story from my brothers in arms? Did they lead me down the primrose path, or has anyone else heard of this?
Any and all comments on the subject are appreciated.
Several months ago, whilst in the midst of due diligence and evaluating my eventual E60 purchase, several of my law partners were lauding German sports sedans and the virtues of German Horsepower.
According to them, while my 06' 530 has a horsepower rating of 255, it is actually greater (by a factor of 10 -15%). I ask them independently how can that be, and their response: German Horsepower.
Am I getting a cock and bull story from my brothers in arms? Did they lead me down the primrose path, or has anyone else heard of this?
Any and all comments on the subject are appreciated.
I mentioned this in a focus group I was asked to participate in. My little 184 HP 325i was a blast to drive and felt more like cars that I had driven with 250 hp
03-07-2009, 02:47 PM
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My Ride: 2007 BMW 550, Sport, Navi, PS, CWP, Sirius
Originally Posted by mhs525' post='810234' date='Mar 7 2009, 05:52 PM
Interesting... I had many cars before my first BMW which was a 325i. I almost didn't test drive the BMW because at the time I was in a higher horse power Acura TL type S... So glad I did. Every BMW I have had has felt so much faster and more responsive than other manufacturer?s cars with similar or even higher power ratings. When you are cruising at speed and you add more gas the BMW accelerates. In some other car unless you floor it the car just doesn't respond when you want to go faster.
I mentioned this in a focus group I was asked to participate in. My little 184 HP 325i was a blast to drive and felt more like cars that I had driven with 250 hp
I mentioned this in a focus group I was asked to participate in. My little 184 HP 325i was a blast to drive and felt more like cars that I had driven with 250 hp
03-08-2009, 02:09 PM
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My Ride: 07 550 i, mystic blue, black leather, cold weather package, nav, sport, shades, bags, rear heat, V1 hardwired.
05 F350 TD Crew Cab
04 Range Rover HSE
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Horsepower is a term used to denote work, not typically the power output. However the term has been widely used to determine the power of a particular engine. The reason for different horsepower ratings for the same identical engine lies in the method used to convert the power to horsepower. In Europe, an American Horsepower is determined by using the ratio of 1:745.7 Watts. However, a METRIC horsepower is 1:735.499 Watts. So if you have a Euro car, and you report the horsepower in Metric terms, it would appear lower than American terms. BTW the origin of the term horsepower was for steam engines, comparing them to the amount of work a horse could do.
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