Horsepower variability?

How much will HP vary from block to block on the factory? I only ask
because occasionally you get a car that just seems faster than its
brethren. My '97 Intrepid really has some pickup, even competing well
(down low) with some of the 300M's.

Jimbo

 

Wasn't a 3.5 available for the old Intrepid? If you have it the hp isn't
much different and torque may have been on your side. Didn't your mother
tell you not to race?

 

I guess it is just like it used to be. Anything assembled on an
assembly line is the same but different then the rest of the product
being assembled. I can't give you exact numbers(I don't think ANYONE
can do that) but I know that some vehicle engines can be "Hotter" then
others, coming off of the same line.
I had a 69 Plymouth GTX 440 cu.in.- 4 speed that had one of those
engines in it, from the factory. Super quicker, right from the show
room, then the other STOCK vehciles.

 

I would imagine that 5% variation isn't too far off. Ford had a
severe problem related to manufacturing with it's Mustang SVT in 2000
that resulted in engines being up to 50hp short - that would be
closer to 15% - and had to recall them.

Think about bell curves when you think about stuff like this.

Floyd

 

You really can't compare a 69 vintage engine with a modern electronically
controlled engine. The timing in the old carburated engines was whatever
you set it at when you did a tuneup (remember those, you had to do them
twice a year back then). A modern engine has a computer that's making
constant adjustments to insure that the engine is operating in the range
that it's designers intended. I'd expect that the variability from one
engine to an another that's using the same firmware is pretty small. Of
course the manufacturer might be tweaking the firmware every now and then
and that would effect the relative performance of a engine produced on one
day and one produced at a leter date.

 

I had a 69 Plymouth GTX 440 cu.in.- 4 speed that had one of those

Gears play a big difference in these cars. A 69 GTX could have 2.92 or 4.10 or
anything in the middle.

A 383 RR with 3.91 was way faster then a GTX 440 with 2.92.

Several years ago I came across an old R&D paper that had the following
expected performance speed info for a 68 RR 383 4speed

Gear 1/4 time MPG
2.92 15:10 20
3.23 14:80 17
3.55 14:50 15
3.91 14:10 13


Larry