Originally posted by Dan Nixon:
I would like the best "area under the curve" in the relevent rev range, HP or tourque - no difference.
Another way to phrase your question is: do you prefer tourque that peaks early & falls off (yielding lower peak power but improved off the line & low RPM driveability) OR a flat tourque curve with a lower "plateau" (more than peak) but that is maintained higher into the rev range (yielding higher peak power)? The latter gives the feeling of "revabilty" which I like so that is my pick..Also, I think it is more appropriate to FWD cars which suffer from torque steer with too much torque (which corrupts steering feel) and difficulty getting big low RPM torque effectively to the pavement. RWD/AWD much better for big tourque. A minimum of low RPM tourque is nice for around town improved driveabilty/avoid excessive shifting in town - a problem with many small 4-bangers of a certain brand..
What brand would that be...the zetec seems to be excellent in that respect. I drove a 96 Jetta w/4 and it was terrible had no power (or more correctly torque, I guess) until it was time to shift.
