It’s a pretty great time for hardcore car enthusiasts. Cars have never had more horsepower. Remember when 500 horsepower was a lot? Things have certainly changed. Almost every major car manufacturer is getting into the big-power race. Dodge is leading the pack with the Hellcat and Demon, boasting 700+ and 880 hp respectively. Ford is close behind with their Shelby GT500, although the power figures have not been announced. Even Porsche is getting into the game with their 700 hp GT2 RS, the most powerful 911 ever made. 500 hp is plenty of power for you to execute freeway passes and do the occasional burnout, so why do people need to much power?
Maybe it’s an over-correction?
What is people are dying for big power because eco-cars such as the Prius and Focus Hybrid, while practical, kind of suck? I can personally attest to the lackluster performance of the Focus hybrid. In San Francisco, it’s almost useless going up those hills. The response is awful, the power is nonexistent, and driving it makes me feel bad for the people behind me. There’s not a lot of credibility to this theory, though. The people who buy eco-cars are likely not the ones dying for speed and excitement. Maybe average consumers want a sporty car sometimes, but the big power muscle cars are definitely marketed for enthusiasts.
It Might Be a Test Bed for New Tech
Car manufacturers who partake in racing often use that technology in their road cars. Supercar manufacturers use active aero similar to DRS systems on their racecars. Many modern eco-cars and electric cars (such as the Focus Hybrid and Tesla Model S) utilize regenerative braking to recharge the battery, technology first used in Formula one. This theory begs the question of “what exactly are the car manufacturers testing then”? There no sustainability benefits from 700+ horsepower. Forced induction can be used to boost fuel efficiency, but not at those power levels. The only feasible reason would be to develop engine longevity under heavy stress, but that doesn’t make a whole lot of sense.
Let’s be Honest, it’s Because We Want Them.
The blunt reason to why there are so many big-power cars out there now is because we can. Car nuts like us always want more power, and car manufacturers recognize that. While they still need to worry about sustainability and fuel economy, there are those of us that want to throw all of it out the window for tire-burning, gut-turning, neck-snapping power, and we’re not sorry either. Let us have our fun now. We promise we’ll switch to hybrids in a few years (wink* wink*).
