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Is Power (rwkw) Figure Everything? Why Are People So Hung Up On Kw Figures

djvoodoo

By djvoodoo,
in Engines & Forced Induction

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DCIEVE Mentor

DCIEVE

Posted
Posted
jump in a 400kw+ gtr and you will realise :laugh: If you havent experienced it, how can you understand i suppose. 300rwkw to me seems abit slow and not that exciting like it used to be years ago when it was the fastest car i had been in.

Agreed, the acceleration in your 430odd kw animal was quite special. I need drag radials to put the power down anywhere near as well, so as a street car they don't compare. Then again my gearbox isn't worth 10k haha.

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NYTSKY Grand Master

NYTSKY

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There are people who strap on big turbos for the sake of saying they have a big turbo, most of the time on a mismatched combo and mismatched application.

Creating peak torque early and sustaining it as long as you can is where its at. Alot of research and trial and error is involved to achieve this, most people either lose interest, settle for what they have or simply run out of money :laugh:

Lonewolf1983 Enthusiast

Lonewolf1983

Posted
Posted

having owned peaky n/a 4 cylinders before, having any torque is great for me, so my goal is to get as much torque and as early as possible, this will also suit the type of motorsport I want to get involved with, where response and punch out of corners matters most.

PM-R33 Grand Master

PM-R33

Posted
Posted
There are people who strap on big turbos for the sake of saying they have a big turbo, most of the time on a mismatched combo and mismatched application.

Creating peak torque early and sustaining it as long as you can is where its at. Alot of research and trial and error is involved to achieve this, most people either lose interest, settle for what they have or simply run out of money :laugh:

Couldn't f**king agree more.

joeyjoejoejuniorshabadoo Grand Master

joeyjoejoejuniorshabadoo

Posted
Posted
On the street?

You know, where 99% of us do our driving :laugh:

I just came back from a DECA day (motorkhana) with my new GTR (350rwkw)... Not one car launched harder/faster.

This included blown Monaro's on slicks that I believe run 10's with relative ease :banana:

But yes, power is important to an extent - power delivery however is IMO the most important.

lol @ slicks @ DECA

MBS206 Grand Master

MBS206

Posted
Posted
Not to get too far off topic, but it's not only off the line. So many times through twisty roads they can't get power down out of corners (and I'm not talking hairpins), yes in the drag world rwd with tubs and slicks is quick but who drives that on the street, this is more about realistic street cars than purpose build racecars with no rego

What I find funny is how people making comments such as the ones in this thread then they go in a fast gtr and all of a sudden they change their tune so to speak.

Anyway back on topic, do what feels good and as long as you're happy good for you

This man, is correct...

I was running "250RWKW" or so the dyno claimed (Injector Duty Cycle and AFR claimed around another 100RWKW), and even sitting at 130KM/H on semi slicks, I just couldn't put that power down without rolling off the throttle as it came on boost...

On the street tyres it even turned them in 4th if you quick shifted 3rd - 4th.

If it were a GTR, it would have started to spin, attessa would kick in, and it'd be all over... Although, there's nothing like giving it a big crack of throttle for the first time to overtake and ending up sideways trying to grab 4th... Sorry Mr Baxter... but your ute just didn't keep up!

hypergear Grand Master

hypergear

Posted
Posted

The whole point of doing power upgrade is for the "power".

Generally any thing that can boost 20psi around 4000RPMs is pretty drivable for the road. So a turbo that can produce the max amount of power within that response range is most acceptable. On the same time you can get some cam gears or cams to advance response for better driving ability.

SimonR32 Grand Master

SimonR32

Posted
Posted (edited)

My mate a few years ago went for a drive with me in my 427rwkw GTR and could not believe the acceleration through the gears... He owns a R32 rwd that runs a 11.1 at 127mph

They don't compare, if you think they do you have not been in a GTR with decent power. The difference between 300rwkw to 370rwkw is phenomenal, going from 370rwkw to 430rwkw is going into another reality!

Edited by SimonR32
DVS JEZ Grand Master

DVS JEZ

Posted
Posted
My mate a few years ago went for a drive with me in my 427rwkw GTR and could not believe the acceleration through the gears... He owns a R32 rwd that runs a 11.1 at 127mph

They don't compare, if you think they do you have not been in a GTR with decent power. The difference between 300rwkw to 370rwkw is phenomenal, going from 370rwkw to 430rwkw is going into another reality!

agreed, on the strip in RWD with decent rubber he might run 11.1 but on the street would just fry tyres if he even thought about planting it,

300KW GTR can run 11.3 with a good driver

370KW GTR runs 11.0ish i think on the road they feel stronger, most cars with lag feel really fast once on boost especially cause they hit right when at the max torque of the motor.

Harey Veteran

Harey

Posted
Posted
The way i see it, power is a by-product of torque so i look at power anyways BUT at rpm points.

+1 Power is calculation of torque and rpm.

I think your title should be "Is the peak power figure everything or is average power more important".

zebra Grand Master

zebra

Posted
Posted

Peak power means stuff all in a street car,

For example, how many dyno queens have actually run a quick time down the strip?

I can think of 2, Eddie Tassone's VH commodore (Twin turbo 383ci V8) and the Trick and Mansweto Capri (604ci NA V8)

but these were both built as drag cars from the outset.

yet a heap of other cars have made big power but are useless at anything other than being strapped to some rollers.

Beer Baron Grand Master

Beer Baron

Posted
Posted

PM-R33 is right. dyno's torque measurement is highly suspect. and the simple fact is power = torque. yes the exact numbers can vary but there is a very fixed relationship between power, torque and RPM. so unless your car makes it's 170kw at 2,500rpm it's torque production will not be fantastic. given all our skylines rev to somewhere between 7500 and 8500rpm and all make peak power somewhere above 6,000rpm the amount of torque produced wont vary massively form car to car with similar amounts of power. ie. if power is the same, rpm is the same. torque will be pretty close. you can move the curve around a bit with different tuning techniques and different parts but the peak won't change too much.

simpletool Mentor

simpletool

Posted
Posted

Agree. The torque won't be 457Nm, but it should be a touch above 400Nm (at the flywheel).

Area (depends on gear & shift points) under the curve is EXACTLY where it is at.....this area = energy.

dano4127 Veteran

dano4127

Posted
Posted

At the end of the day when your standing around the BBQ if yours has 10 more killer wasps you instantly gain 10 more inches

*ohoh but mine has more power under the curve*

It will get you nowhere.... till you see them at the lights :D

ARTZ Grand Master

ARTZ

Posted
Posted

most people wouldnt even understand what "power under the curve " means ..including me...

Just sounds like another excuse for losing,So what does it mean?

Cause the more excuses i have for losing the better :P

zebra Grand Master

zebra

Posted
Posted
most people wouldnt even understand what "power under the curve " means ..including me...

Just sounds like another excuse for losing,So what does it mean?

Cause the more excuses i have for losing the better :P

Average power, or the total area underneath the little red line on the dyno print out.

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