what makes cars hp more than others? Like why can’t all cars be 800hp like a challenger for example
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Power is the product of torque and speed.
Speed limits are dependent on material properties of the engine, as well as the ignition system (i.e. 4000 RPM is considered fast for a diesel, but is barely a jog for a spark ignited engine).
Torque is fundamentally determined by how much air the engine can ingest per cycle (i.e. displacement), as well as how much the air mixture is compressed before combustion occurs (i.e. compression ratio), and obviously the number of cylinders. Both factors are also affected by aspiration (i.e. turbocharging, supercharging or natural aspiration). There’s also fueling to consider, but realistically fuel delivery is a solved problem in engine controls; it’s comparatively easy to provide more fuel than you actual need due to how well-developed fuel injection technology is.
Smaller engines tend to be more efficient for automotive applications. You don’t need 800 hp to get to 60 mph in a timely manner; 80 hp is perfectly sufficient, and it’ll cost way less to make an engine that can only hit 80 hp. But 80 hp isn’t as much fun as 800.
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