Posted: Fri Jan 30, 2004 6:00 pmThere are many different ways to measure engine power for tuning and development, but for some of us a lot of these are either too expensive or not practical.
I will never be able to build a home dyno because of the noise it would produce and the closeness of neighbors in a (snobby) residential area. But for a road car, there are other ways.
The easiest is by data logging and doing full throttle acceleration runs, and using software to plot torque and power curves on your home PC. This has its limitations though.
Another possibility is to use a Telma eddy current retarder built into a small trailer towed behind the vehicle. You could hold the vehicle at full throttle at any desired RPM, and read draw-bar pull. If you can accurately record road speed as well, power and torque calculation is easy.
The main advantages are that you can do all your testing on a quiet back road somewhere well away from neighbors, and a dyno trailer would be very easy to construct. It could do everything a chassis dyno can do. It also has the advantage of proper airflow around the engine while on the move, sometimes a big problem on a chassis dyno.
I have not built one, and probably never will, but it is just presented as a nutty idea that just might appeal to one of you guys.
I will never be able to build a home dyno because of the noise it would produce and the closeness of neighbors in a (snobby) residential area. But for a road car, there are other ways.
The easiest is by data logging and doing full throttle acceleration runs, and using software to plot torque and power curves on your home PC. This has its limitations though.
Another possibility is to use a Telma eddy current retarder built into a small trailer towed behind the vehicle. You could hold the vehicle at full throttle at any desired RPM, and read draw-bar pull. If you can accurately record road speed as well, power and torque calculation is easy.
The main advantages are that you can do all your testing on a quiet back road somewhere well away from neighbors, and a dyno trailer would be very easy to construct. It could do everything a chassis dyno can do. It also has the advantage of proper airflow around the engine while on the move, sometimes a big problem on a chassis dyno.
I have not built one, and probably never will, but it is just presented as a nutty idea that just might appeal to one of you guys.