recently plug in hybrids like BMW M5 are getting a lot of crap for being heavy and failing to meaningfully best their predecessors on the track despite having a lot more power …
indeed on the race track power doesn’t matter. only power to weight ratio and tire grip to weight ratio matter on the track. adding weight is almost always going to make track performance worse even if it comes with extra power as in the case of the new M5.
the boys from “Throttle House” who are also now running “The Grand Tour” on amazon said people need to stop looking at power and start looking at power to weight ratio …
i used to think that way myself only a few years ago … the whole “just add lightness” mantra from Lotus seemed to make a lot of sense to me … and then i drove a 20,000 pound diesel Penske truck for 1,000 miles …
( generic picture, not my actual truck )
The Penske truck only had 220 horsepower to 20,000 pounds weight, or roughly one horsepower per 100 pounds of weight. if Honda Civic had the same power to weight ratio it would only have 30 horsepower ! And yet i felt safe in the Penske because i knew it wouldn’t be MY problem if some civic crashed into me - it would be HIS problem as he would get squashed like a bug and nothing much would happen to my truck.
And that’s when i realized that in the real world it’s not about power to weight ratio - it’s just about power. 220 hp is 220 hp. it doesn’t matter if it’s in a Ducati Superbike or a Penske Truck.
Depending on how heavy your vehicle is you trade performance for respect you get on the road. 220 hp in a Ducati Panigale will get you crazy performance and zero respect - you will be getting cut off by grandmas in 20 year old Corollas. the same 220 hp in a Penske Truck will get you respect but NO performance. people will think twice about cutting you off but it will take you 40+ seconds to merge onto the highway with gas pedal to the floor.
thus while optimal design for the race track involves light weight, sticky tires and lots of aerodynamic downforce … with power being almost an afterthought … in the real world you need power because you want to be big and heavy.
so real world is almost the opposite of the track.
the car you want on the track ( Cayman GT4 RS: 3200 lbs, 490 hp )
the car you want on the road ( Rolls Royce Cullinan: 6,000 lbs, 560 hp )
