How much horsepower do you need in your sports car?

Yes, I did leave gearing out of my post, which is why we calculate horsepower in the first place ... but since this thread seemed, to me at least, to be about the "feeling of acceleration", I figured a more appropriate power number would be the torque figure.

Bill in Brooklyn

 

All that matters is that you have more hp than the guy your racing.

 

.............................enough power to ALWAYS require judicious application in ALL circumstances.

 

110 HP from an S2? Even with a Gordini that's optimistic; you must have done some custom work on it. Factory claimed 88 HP. They are lighter however than a TC if more cramped for the feet. I considered an S2 but decided the TC was just a better overall car. Plus I liked the power.

My TC is mostly stock with a few upgrades and no emissions, so I estimate I'm making a little more than the 117 HP factory. I can get 0-60 under 7 seconds which was plenty quick for the day if nothing special today. S2's are a tick or three slower, but still very fun cars.

Ken

 

I really agree with the points on balance and light weight. Recently at bondurant our entire class was again amazed at how much more fun--and quicker--the old, beat up formula fords were than the vette's which clearly had more grunt. That said on the street torque--i.e. a snappy delivery-- is hard to duplicate for grins and for "adjusting" the car in slow corners!

 

What!!!! That's crazy 800-900hp with 300lb-ft, makes me feal a little better about my NSX having 225!!!
I'll remember that next time I see a viper or vette

 

I dont know about that. Look at the Enzo. It weighs near what a viper does. Has less torque but more horsepower and it will absolutely kill a viper in the quarter. There are too many factors other than torque which determine QT time. But torque is a good indicator.

 

I need enough horsepower to get to 60 in about 3.5 seconds and cover the Qt in about 11.5. Thats feels fast enough. Whatever the weight is will determine how much power I need.

 

I bet their 60 ft times are close. but the extra hp in the enzo allows it to run away on the top end where hp really comes into play.

 

true that.

 

I need just enough HP to keep the woman out of the car ; )
Alan I just sent you an e-mail

 

For a 3200-3500 pound street car, 500hp is bare minimum, 600hp is nice, but I think right now I would like about 700-750hp. Hmmm...the new RWD Murcielago in 2006 (based on the R-GT) should fit the bill...yeah baby, YEAH!

I hear what you guys are saying about the other facets of a sports car, but why not have more power if it's available? Sure, 99% of the time you won't use it, but for those times when you do...very nice. The Enzo wouldn't be nearly as much fun if it wasn't 660hp. Sure, a Lotus Elise is fun, but why not the Exige Sport? Same weight & similar car, but 400hp instead of 180hp. Nice. It's not available for public consumption yet, but it's bound to be released at some point.

 

...because it has more HP which is based on TQxRPMx some constant. I don't know what number would be adequate. My 97 Viper GTS has about 630+ at the crank right now and I got used to it kind of quick. I just sent it off to Heffner Performance to get a Paxton supercharger place which should bring it to around 1000hp at the crank. From what I hear, that may be "too much" power if others I have spoke to with similar setups are spinning their 335 Pilots at over 90 mph. I guess I'll soon find out.

 

It's a very simple answer... You need the maximum horsepower that you can efficiently put down to the ground for your particular platform. Gobs of power is useless unless you can get it to the pavement. That being said, more power than what your platform can handle is only good for 1 thing: burning up tires.

I see it all the time... Guys with 800hp rear drive cars getting beaten on by 450hp cars because they just can't put the power down. It's pretty embarassing when you brag to everyone that you are packing 800hp and then get walked all over by a "slower" car.

 

My Tony cart has 50HP. It's more than enough. It's quicker than the Modena with 395hp. 0 to 60 in less than 4 seconds. It's all about the weight vs. HP.

Art

 

Come on, "all the time". I agree it's very driver dependent especially from a dig but from a 40 mph roll, no way. I don't advocate street racing but if you know your car, you will not lose.

 

Horsepower will dictate what speed you hit the wall.

Torque will dictate how far you move the wall.

 

Now THAT'S the best description of HP and torque ever!!!!

Ken

 

How about 280hp in the Elise? (280 crank ... dynos at 250 to the wheels)

I had the very good fortune to ride in a turbo modded Elise in Livermore, CA last month. Wild.
0-60 in the 3's and 0-100 in the bottom 9 second range. It was _scary_ fast. Here's my writeup on another forum...

http://www.elisetalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9260

Probably more HP than I need since I don't track it. (The turbo elise was someone else's ... mine is stock with 192HP)

Can you rate 'how much horsepower do I need' by a weight/HP ratio? If so then this setup was a 7. (1950lbs / 280HP) ... and I think a 7, in a lotus, ferrari, or any sports car, is a little more than I need.

Enzo weight / HP is about 4.5 I think. (3000lbs / 660HP)

-doma

 

Yeah, Custom AL Chevy 350 V8. My sister's Viper is all that but cost much more. I love driving the Z to work having people mistake it for a Ferrari at the gas station.

 

I don't know much about the Elise, other than i like the styling, and the auto mag reports are quite favorable...BUT, after reading about the engine in the rear, etc, i did wonder just how difficult it would be to stuff in a 328 motor and make it all work...would be an interesting experiment...be the first on my block to have a Lotus 328 Elise

 

Just give me the Ariel Atom please.

 

I want more horsepower and torque than I can use.

I never want to be able to top out my cars.

 

Had this discussion with a Ferrari dealer, who has personally owned a string of F-cars. He went from a 328 to a 348 to a 355 and then back to a 328, for a time. The rationale was that he could pretty well wring the 328 out on public roads (I'd guess when other cars weren't around...) while with the newer cars he could never go more than 4/10ths.

If you track your car, this argument doesn't hold up, but for street use it seems like there's a sweet spot where you can leave everyone behind at the stoplight, but where you also use the power band in every gear. So, after the first 300 horses, economists would say we get diminishing marginal fun, if you buy that argument.

Jon