Whether you refer to horsepower as BHP (Brake Horsepower) or just HP (Horsepower), it’s a metric that’s good to know. In terms of what it is, it’s simply a figure used to measure the power of an engine and the more horsepower your car has, the faster it can go (in a straight line). However, as you can probably imagine, a car’s horsepower isn’t the only metric you need to consider when determining the performance of a car because there are many other crucial factors.
BHP or HP?
In the UK, when most people talk about the horsepower of a car, they tend to use either BHP or HP as a metric. With regards to the difference between BHP and HP, BHP is the actual measurement of horsepower that a car has at its wheels whereas HP is the amount of horsepower that exists in the engine. However, with regards to what’s used the most out of BHP and HP, BHP is the “go-to” measurement most people use as a comparable metric.
Other metrics of a car’s horsepower that’s used around the world include:
- PS – Stands for “pferdestarke“, which translates to horsepower in German and it’s mostly used across Europe (HP measurement)
- CV – Stands for “Chevaux-vapeur“, which translates to horsepower in French (HP measurement)
- kW – Stands for “Kilowatt” and it’s mostly used in Europe as a metric of an electric car’s power output (1kW is equivalent to 1.3HP)
What Factors Affects Horsepower
The main factors that determine how much horsepower a car has from the factory include:
- The size of the engine (i.e. a 4,000cc engine will more than likely have more BHP than a 2,000cc engine)
- If the car has a turbocharger or supercharger, it’ll produce more BHP than the same engine without one
- Dynamic/race/sport modes (i.e. if a car is put in “race” mode, it may output extra BHP)
With regards to the factors that affect the horsepower of tuned cars, the above list would be a lot longer. However, if you want to find out more about tuning your car to increase horsepower, read our guide on remapping cars.
How To Check Your Car’s Horsepower
Putting It On A Dynamometer
The most accurate way to check a car’s horsepower is to put it upon a dynamometer (also referred to as a “Dyno or “rolling road”). Regardless to whether your car has had a remap or is using a tuning box, the dynamometer will provide you with your car’s exact horsepower. However, putting your car on a dyno will cost at least £50 in most cases.
Reading The Manual
If your car came with a manual, there may be a section that shows the horsepower of all the engines the manufacturer offered for that particular model. You may also be able to find the horsepower within your service schedule book because most come with a vehicle data sticker/certificate inside.
If you are looking within your car’s logbook (V5), you won’t be able to find the horsepower listed. However, there are many other interesting figures in the V5 such as your car’s towing capacity and so much more.
Online Search
Simply searching in Google for your car’s horsepower is often the easiest way to find out. Whether you come across an official website or an owners’ forum, unless you have a really rare car, it should be easy to find.
Calculate It
If you know your car’s torque value, it’s possible to calculate your car’s horsepower by multiplying the engine’s RPM by the torque and then dividing that number by 5252.
Horsepower vs Torque
A common misconception among car owners is that torque and horsepower are the same thing. However, this isn’t the case because horsepower is the total output of an engine whereas torque indicates the turning ability of the engine (i.e. the engine’s ability to turn the flywheel).
If you have ever driven a car with large amounts of torque, you’ll notice that you feel a lot more force during heavy acceleration (particularly from standstill). However, to achieve maximum power and speed, you’ll need the horsepower to match.
My Car Doesn’t Feel Like It Has The Stated BHP
If you’ve found out how much horsepower your car has but it doesn’t feel that it has the amount stated, you could try to restore any lost BHP. Below are some of our top tips to restore lost horsepower that work particularly well on older cars:
- Use a fuel injector cleaner to improve efficiency and clear any harmful deposits away in the fuel lines
- Ensure the car is fully serviced and is using the correct engine oil for the car
- Check the spark plugs and replace if they are fouling/black
- Check the air filters and replace if they are dirty
- Check the catalytic converter isn’t blocked and replace with a more free-flowing exhaust if it is
Depending upon the car’s age, it can simply be the case that it has lost horsepower and this can sometimes be up to 1BHP loss per year. Therefore, if you really want to restore lost horsepower and you’ve tried the above recommendations, you may want to consider some performance based modifications.
Conclusion
The amount of horsepower you require to keep up with today’s traffic on the road isn’t actually that much but of course, the more BHP you have will affect how your car performs. Hopefully our guide has answered all the questions you may have with regards to your car’s horsepower but if not, feel free to get in touch and we will try to help out where possible.
