Hypothetical race...

[ellinopedo182]

I have a question. Here is the hypothetical scenario.

2 Cars. Both have equal mass. Both have equal power to weight ratio.
1 Car is a 4 cylinder and the other is 8 cylinder.

After 120mph, who will start to pull on who? Will it be an even acceleration, or will there be an obvious car pulling?

[IHRTWRX]

The answer lies in gearing. Also whats the need to know?

[BobbyD]

I have a question. Here is the hypothetical scenario.

2 Cars. Both have equal mass. Both have equal power to weight ratio.
1 Car is a 4 cylinder and the other is 8 cylinder.

After 120mph, who will start to pull on who? Will it be an even acceleration, or will there be an obvious car pulling?

First of all...you have to be more specific about the power. Do you mean they both have equal peak power to weight ratio? Or do their power bands look identical? I doubt their power bands are similar even if they do have similar peak power. Area under the curve will give you a better idea of who will pull. The V8 should technically have better area under the curve. Naturally, gearing also plays a big part not to mention the aerodynamics since at 120 mph the wind will prove to be a tough adversary. So really...your question is impossible to answer without gear ratios, dyno plots, and drag coefficients .

[2004NeonSRT4]

there are way more variables then this, gearing, aero, power to weight, hp and tq curves. if one guy took a piss before the race. all this is very important.

[TurboWill]

I think if both engines are putting down the same wheel horse power, it will come down to who can hold redline longer, and keep the most power to redline.