random question on engines and how "hard they're working"

random question on engines and how "hard they're working"

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E38Ross

Original Poster:

35,116 posts

213 months

Wednesday 1st August 2012
quotequote all
was talking to a mate the other day about how bigger capacity engines, or engines with more cylinders and appropriate gearing are, probably, "working" less than a smaller capacity engine at a given speed (if you take the countless variables such as aerodynamics etc etc out of the equation).

he proposed that a V12 will always be "working less" than something like a V8. my question would be for example, if there was a V12 car which only produced sufficient power to go 170mph and there was a V8 engine of higher tune but smaller capacity produced sufficient power to make said car go to 190mph, which engine would be doing "less work" when cruising at 150+ mph? what about a small block V12 vs a big block V8 or something? or a turbo 4 pot vs NA 6 cylinder and so on?

i suspect it's a question which cannot be answered simply, mind!