Horsepower is horsepower?

kfp673 wrote:
I am not into the tech statistics part of this thread at all but it is surprising to me how many folks dont believe how much better a diesel truck pulls then a gasser just generally speaking. Lots of arguments and I totally see the value in a gasser 1- if you dont want to spend the extra money or 2- if you are hauling light enough / are happy with the gasser performance. It really is fine. But that does not mean it performs as well. All I can say is find someone who has a diesel and try it. I promise it will only take one time of sitting behind the wheel of a diesel pickup with a heavy trailer to make you realize that V10, Big V8, etc, there just is no comparison when it comes to pulling. WIth that said, each person should buy what makes them happy!

I've said a few times over the years, if I were deaf and didn't have a tach, I couldn't tell the difference towing with the gas or diesel rigs I've owned. Diesels are stronger but, not necessarily faster. The newest ones are by a small margin as they have gobs of horsepower at lower rpm. The previous diesels as recently as ten years ago didn't have much on their gas engine counterparts. Twenty years ago they had nothing on them. I owned one. 160 hp doesn't get much work done with even a light TT against any wind at all. All that torque (400 ft/lbs) and it couldn't apply it above 2500rpm so O/D was the only option at hw speeds. That meant 400 ft/lbs X .69 = 276 ft/lbs to the drive shaft. It was pathetic. Flywheel torque is just the beginning. It's what's at the rear axle that counts. Just the same, every one of my trucks has made me happy!