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Originally Posted by illusionv6
It's just how honda tunes them. Tune it for peak torque at some absurd number and you get fuel economy and emissions when you're not in the gas. Like my little V6 accord. I've run a 15.13, but on a recent trip got 32mpg, so it's kind of peppy, but when I drive nice I get pretty damn good fuel economy. I think honda's specific goal is the best emissions ratings, as well as some of the best gas milage for the horsepower they claim, but it comes at a sacrifice. I've had a hard time explaining to my best friend why I barely take him in his 98 maxima v6 since he's really not much into cars(he designs semiconductors, and has a hard time getting matching socks on, so I give him a break). The concept of torque escapes him. He's into the HP number which means a little, but not as much as torque to me. Off the line he murders me, then I play catchup in second gear, and finally leave pull away from him in 3rd gear, and I dyno with almost as much hp to the ground as he has to the crank, but his car is making peak torque before my torque convertor even thinks about engaging, and LONG before my Vtec is even considering switching cam profiles, so by the time my slow pig gets out of the hole, he's pulling like a mother. Aside from the piss poor auto transmission in a 6th gen V6 accord, the torque just makes for a gutless car off of the line, however it's pretty strange that from a roll(30mph on) I can keep up with one of my other friend's Autotragic 96 Mustang GT Ragtop, even though his torque is much better than mine my HP pulls me but along just fine after I get to a decent rpm. Off the line he rapes me. By the time I can feel my car start pulling he's already 3-4 cars ahead, and it takes me to about 80 to finally get even with him.
I noticed someone else here mentions it in this thread, but the old concept of push pull really plays a strong part in the performance of a car. The torque pushes a car off of the line, and the HP pulls it through the rest of the trip. If you get a superb hole shot because of massive torque you're already up in a higher ramp letting your hp pull you through. If you have a torqueless wonder like my accord I have to rely on the HP on the high rpm to let me catch up.
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