i have a question on this subject all i hear about is horse power numbers. And never hear about torque numbers. Now correct me if i am wrong but isnt torque what lauches your car off the line and horse carries the speed and the car the rest of the way to the end of the track. So if you want to build a drag car shouldnt you be just as worried about you torque numbers as your horse.

 

yes in theory, torque gets you there and horsepower keeps you there.

 

from how i understand it, torque is what you feel pushing you up through the rpms and gets you up to speed, kind of like the driving force. horsepower is more in the upper rpms. so in a race car, the majority of your time is spent in the upper rpms where horsepower is most important. torque is still very important though. thats just the way i picture it, others will probably have a more accurate response.

 

https://ls1tech.com/forums/advanced-engineering-tech/643731-horsepower-torque-relationship.html

This thread helped me out a lot. I didn't know there was so much involved. I still don't understand it enough to explain it, but when I feel like being productive, I'll go reread some of the posts and try to comprehend it more. This thread hooked me on the "Advanced Engineering Tech" section. Very thought provoking section.

 

yes that is a good read and makes you think. i started to get it but then that thread took a left turn and lost me again.

this is what i got torque is the work or grunt and horse power is the amount of time it can sastain the the work.

 

A buddy of mine said, horsepower is how fast you can go, torque is how fast you get there...

 

the reason i bring this up is i would like to start building a strip car and trying to decide on setup. FI is interesting me but the types are confuseing me on the one hand you have centri and the other a twin screw. these are what i am going to chose from. I like twin screw because of the torque from down low but centri has huge power but its all mid and up top. from what i have read or seen on dyno graphs. i know you need to run the rpm range for racing. but would it not be better to start with a 2500 or 3000 rpm grunt insted of 4500 rpm grunt to deliever more work load. and alow your gear to run at the full extent

 

horsepower essentially is a bi product of torque =)

 

torque is also used for driveability in a vehicle