What Is Horsepower & Why It's A Dumb Unit - America vs Metric

What is the difference between HP, CV, PS, and kW? Why is horsepower a dumb unit?

Horsepower is a unit of power created by James Watt in the 1700's. Who knew all these years later we'd still be using a unit he developed to compare steam engines to horsepower. We'll go through Watt's back of the napkin math, discuss in simple terms what horsepower means, and look at metric horsepower as well: PS, CV, and the many other abbreviations. Whether metric or imperial, horsepower as a unit makes no sense at all. We'll wrap up the video learning what unit we should actually be using.

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[skyeozga]

Horsepower = horsevelocity * horseforce

[steven]

If you were Australian you would get to enjoy cars being rated in kilowatts as well as being upside down.

[FAB]

Fun fact: "cv" means "cavallo vapore", or quite literally "steam horse"

[BradGrove]

As a 62 yo Australian (and ex-tradesman) I grew up with the old imperial system and then had to learn the metric system after we made the transition after 1970. I remember at first everyone kept converting metric units back to their imperial equivalent so that it made sense and had meaning. Over time you just understood what it all meant. Americans have yet to make that journey but believe me when I tell you that it's not a difficult journey and once you get there you won't look back. The metric system is in fact perfect. We've all moved on from using horses as our main power source so it makes sense to move on to a more logical system of measurement. Did you know that one litre (correctly spelt) of water weighs one kilogram... perfect!

[jonnybmk]

"A horse could have more than one horse power." That's poetry, man.

[guillermomonroy]

A recommendation for the unit of complexity:

A fenske = how many whiteboards you need to discuss a topic

[SpartanFore]

>laughs in australian
>remembers I'm not australian
>proceeds to brag about my car making 61, 500 duckpower

[mobiledev]

Conclusion: American horses are 1.4% stronger than everyone else.

[ojask]

I knew it!, the correct unit should be Llamathrust

[ifindkeinschlauename]

In Switzerland, actually I think in all of Europe the power of a car is most of the time mentioned in kW and PS (hp).

[davidaprians]

Hey Jason, we need your analysis on the SSC Tuartara's top speed record😂. I know several youtuber already making video about it, but I think you can explain it better..

[earthsteward]

Maybe James Watt was just horsing around when he came up with horsepower

[BeefIngot]

I wonder how many manufacturers stick with horsepower purely because it gets higher numbers

[jamesf]

I'm counting 7 colors on the whiteboard and I see a few horses drawn as well. This must be serious!

[Sithhy]

Should've said "Thank you for watt-ching" at the end

[bluceree]

This is the most popular and thoroughly researched community college class I ever got into.

[DanielJaegerFilms]

Interestingly, a lot of heavy duty industrial diesel engines used in marine or generator applications have their power measured in kilowatts. I never really understood why until now. It just makes more sense!

[thenfactor]

Everytime you mention horsepower on your videos just mention the watt equivalent with it. You have a large audience and it would start putting it in people's heads. I know I would appreciate it.

Be the change you want to see 🙂

[marcoconci]

In Italian "CV" (cavalli vapore), literally means "steam horses", I think derived by the idea of steam machines.

[TheOneWhoMightBe]

"A horse could have more than one horsepower."
Clydesdale: hello.