Would just like to see people's opinions on this!

how much BHP do you think is needed to have fun in a car?

& how much BHP would you say is classed as "Powerful"?

Not including super cars! Lambo, Bugatti etc! 

Or busses and lorrys!

BHP isn't so important for fun, if a car handles well it can be just as fun if not more fun than a more powerful car

 

Powerful Cars: Surely it's all about power to weight ratios? 200HP in a Fiesta would be faster than 200HP on a huge 4x4

You have a car like an Aerial Atom that has a smaller BHP than a Ferrari, but will be quicker as it's half the weight.

 

Hmm I test drove the 1 litre ecoboost 125 Focus before getting my 1.6 TDCi 115 sure it's got less BHP but the torque is what I got sold on, so much pulling power and you can really feel it pull no matter what kind of weight I have in the car.

 

So in conclusion I would have to say it's the torque that makes a car fun for me

Depends if you are asking powerful or fast.

A Lorry or Bus is VERY powerful, but also very slow, lol.

1 minute ago, Jon84 said:

BHP isn't so important for fun, if a car handles well it can be just as fun if not more fun than a more powerful car

 

Powerful Cars: Surely it's all about power to weight ratios?

You have a car like an Aerial Atom that has a smaller BHP than a Ferrari, but will be quicker as it's half the weight.

 

That is a valid point but some people may not chose certain vehicles due to the BHP Output.

i know some people who wouldn't own a vehicle that is N/A, some people may not chose a vehicle that is FWD, etc.

Obviously BHP isn't all we look for in a car, there are many other factors.

this is really just to see disregarding all the other factors what BHP would people ideally look for in a vehicle etc and what they personally would deem powerful.

1 minute ago, alexp999 said:

Depends if you are asking powerful or fast.

A Lorry or Bus is VERY powerful, but also very slow, lol.

Haha true! I'll edit the post but this is only for cars!

But it is still the same point.

1.0 Ecoboost in a Fiesta vs same engine in a Mondeo....

Both equally powerful, one considerably faster,

5 minutes ago, Ryan_Tango said:

Hmm I test drove the 1 litre ecoboost 125 Focus before getting my 1.6 TDCi 115 sure it's got less BHP but the torque is what I got sold on, so much pulling power and you can really feel it pull no matter what kind of weight I have in the car.

 

So in conclusion I would have to say it's the torque that makes a car fun for me

Love a good bit of torque steer!

what are the ecoboost vehicles like, a few friends have got them but I'm not to keen.

1 minute ago, Jordpx said:

Love a good bit of torque steer!

what are the ecoboost vehicles like, a few friends have got them but I'm not to keen.

In a word.... Awesome.

Depends entirely on the car...  I don't class anything under ~180bhp powerful in a midsize ~1300kg hatch.  But other people think of anything in 3 figures being powerful...

Having fun in a car doesn't depend on power though.  The 140bhp Focus is slow and boring (to me) everywhere, just doesn't have the kick that I've had in previous cars, BUT it's got good road holding despite a smooth ride and I can get it to kick a back wheel when pushed as well, without it feeling unpredictable like many faster cars I've owned.

TL:DR - Power doesn't equal fun.  Different cars need different bhp to feel fast.  A surge of turbo boost will 'feel' quicker than a smooth speed pick up even if it's not.

250 minimum in a family hatch.

1 minute ago, iantt said:

250 minimum in a family hatch.

I'd say 247 is enough :P

I agree, but just rounded it up. Lol

493hp in a family hatch is powerful

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/peugeot/308/93626/peugeot-308-r-hybrid-review

 

2 hours ago, Jordpx said:

Love a good bit of torque steer!

what are the ecoboost vehicles like, a few friends have got them but I'm not to keen.

The ecoboost vehicles are great but lack the surge of power I get when I hit 2k RPM throughout to 4k - 4.5k RPM, my friend has the ecoboost 125 he wins to 40MPH but not by much but from onwards I seem to fly past. Love how my car grips the road would like to get lowering springs eventually.

I had a Megane R26 before the Mondeo

Now that was a quick car,Ok it was French ! But loved driving it everyday and it handled brilliantly.

But did have to grow up.......just a little bit

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

10 hours ago, alexp999 said:

Depends if you are asking powerful or fast.

A Lorry or Bus is VERY powerful, but also very slow, lol.

Actually many buses are around the 250 HP mark, which I don't think is "very" powerful.

Just thought I'd add to this...  I now realise why the Focus feels so damn slow to me...

The claimed torque of the 1.6 TDCi remap is 285Nm.  I'm comparing it to my old remapped PD130 which was ~460Nm.  Yeah, it makes a bit more sense now!  

 

Ya daft bu@@er Tom rofl

150 BHP per Ton weight 

and around 250-300nm Torque 

light weight cars with big engines that's the way to go to hell with mpg

6 hours ago, theredfox said:

light weight cars with big engines that's the way to go to hell with mpg

Agree 👍

get a vehicle from late 90's 

Has electric windows central locking and all that jazz,

But didn't have ESP, or EGR it wasn't a simulator like today's builds with "drift button" 😀 

spend 3k on somthing petrol and turbo, then spend 50 quid on a boost gauge and manual boost controler,

Plumb It in to drivers footwell and have some fun without the administration of ESP and the fear of wrecking a financed vehicle.