# Horse power **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 17, 2011, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/horse-power/571740 "2011-02-17T19:53:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![lk1932](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/aeb1de/32.png) [@lk1932](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lk1932)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/horse-power/571740/1 "2011-02-17T19:53:17Z")
I’m in the market for a new snowblower. The rating on the engine is 250CC. I am used to horse power rating so I do not have any idea as to the size of this engine. Is there some sort of formula to change cc to horse power or horse power to cc? ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/horse-power/571740/2 "2011-02-17T20:02:48Z")
Not really. Can you tell us more about the snowblower in question? We have ways of finding things out with more information. Give us some info. You’re saying that you are in the market for a snow blower, and one particular machine your are considering is equipped with a 250cc engine… right? We want to know more about that machine: Name, model, year, etc. It is probably in the range of 6-8 HP. You want it nailed down, we need specifics. ---
**Author:** ![TravisFromOR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cc9497/32.png) [@TravisFromOR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TravisFromOR)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/horse-power/571740/3 "2011-02-17T20:07:08Z")
Typically speaking, the larger the engine, the more horsepower provided. 250cc is the displacement of the engine. (250 cubic centimeters or 15 cubic inches) ---
**Author:** ![lk1932](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/aeb1de/32.png) [@lk1932](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lk1932)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/horse-power/571740/4 "2011-02-17T20:08:05Z")
The blower is a 28 inch sears with a Briggs engine. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2011, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/horse-power/571740/5 "2011-02-17T20:12:30Z")
Congratulations! You’ve stumbled into Briggs $ Stratton hell! They sorta got out of talking about horsepower and use the more relevant torque ratings. You’re looking at about Torque (ft./lbs.) being 11.50 I can’t really blame them for talking torque – it’s really the proper way to look at these engines. See, H.P. ratings are misleading for a single-use type engine. I mean, this thing won’t be running up/down through a gearbox, trying to accelerate something. In this case, the torque number is the most important. It’s the torque that measures how this puppy is gonna churn thru snow. Heck, they might have boosted torque over some models and realized the HP ratings were going down or going no where, so they talk torque now. Good for them! You need to compare torque numbers now or ask for feedback from other owners about their blowers. My $.02: I have 6hp (probably less torque, too) in my blower and I’ve been hit with about 6 blizzards of more than 15" each in 13 months. All good. Big driveway, etc. Just some anecdotal evidence for ya. . ---
**Author:** ![RandomLetters](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8edcca/32.png) [@RandomLetters](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandomLetters)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2011, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/horse-power/571740/6 "2011-02-18T12:12:26Z")
Horsepower and displacement are two different things; and are only partially related. Horsepower is a measure of power; how much work can be done in a period of time. One horsepower is enough to lift 550 pounds one foot in one second. Displacement (in engines) measures how much space the cylinders of the engine occupy. 250 cc being 250 cubic centimeters. Generally, a bigger engine means more power, though due different ways of engines design, this isn’t always true; some engines of the same displacement will make different amounts of power, and sometimes smaller engines can make more power than certain larger engines.