[Nutella]

Here's the way I understand the torque/HP thing.

More torque is usually better for acceleration wrt to gas engine cars.
-HP is power - the rate of transfer of energy.
-Torque is 'twisting force'.

Power = Torque X RPM

In other words, HP is how fast the torque is being delivered. They are quite interconnected. The more HP you have, the faster you can go for sustained periods (i.e. top speed, more friction + wind resistance you can overcome.)

-If you have LOW-torque engine, you can only get high HP's when revving like hell. e.g. VTEC engines.

-If you have HI-torque engine, like turbos, you get that 'twisting force' early in low revvs, translating to faster acceleration.

-Most small 2.0L gas cars suck for acceleration b/c they can't get enough torque under like 5000rpm, so they can't deliver that 'twisting force' to accelerate the car fast enough.

-For diesels, torque is very high at really low revvs. The tranny gears are prolly different ratios than gas to harness this torque and give crazy acceleration (e.g. Merc bluetec)


I'll take more torque any day!