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The reason people perceive diesels to be better is that they have much flatter torque vs RPM curves, so any schmuck can make them accelerate without shifting to
by semi-extrinsic 11y ago
The reason people perceive diesels to be better is that they have much flatter torque vs RPM curves, so any schmuck can make them accelerate without shifting to the correct gear. If diesel engines gave better performance at the same amount of horsepowers, and used less fuel, why don't we see diesel engines used in horsepower-limited racing car classes? Why has Ferrari and Lamborghini not ever offered a single diesel engine?
- deelowe 11y agoAudi did make a diesel race car. It was quite famous actually. That said, the main issue with diesel is that while they have a much better torque curve, diesel engines have a much lower RPM limit. This plus the emissions issues make for pretty big compromises.
- zik 11y agoDiesels are great for having a wide spread of torque from very low RPM which makes them very tractable for everyday driving. Race cars have different priorities. They need maximum power which generally results in a very peaky engine. They substitute a highly skilled driver for tractability.
- mpweiher 11y ago"The Audi R10 TDI, usually abbreviated to R10, is a racing car from the German car manufacturer Audi. The car is a classic at Le Mans, winning every year since its introduction until it was replaced by the R15. [..] It was the first diesel-powered car to win either of those events. " https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audi_R10_TDI https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audi_R10_TDI
- semi-extrinsic 11y agoThe LMP1 class is not restricted by horsepower, which is what I said. Nascar or WRC would be examples of classes with horsepower limits.