Jeff Winchell wrote:
>
> >The one big thing that I think makes the E36 M3 a fair match in ESP is
> >that after about $1000 in mods it's forever limited to 265-270 hp due to
> >head restrictions.
>
> The gearing available in a SP M3 provides a torque/weight ratio as good
> or better than the biggest torque monster SP ponycars out there.
And you still miss the point Jeff. If you had a 1000 lb car with 1 ft-lb
of torque and an overall gear multiplication of 1000:1, would you say it
has the same torque/weight ratio of another 1000 lb car with 1000 lb-ft
of torque and a 1:1 gear ratio?
Using gearing to equalize a torque/weight disadvantage just means you
have to shift more often. And in this comparison the M3 has a peakier
motor meaning that along with having to rely on gearing, it's more
likely to get caught out of it's powerband coming out of a slow corner
even with shorter gears.
All else is not equal in this comparison, but that's the one area where
the pony car will always have an advantage. Whether the driver and
suspension tuner can get that power to the ground is another debate, but
the fact is the pony cars have better power/weight ratios and gearing
doesn't change that.
--
Ron Katona
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