When you turn the AC on, turn the speakers louder or turn on a subwoofer in a car, does fuel economy decrease in order to create more power?
In: Engineering
1 hp is about 750 watts. The alternator is in the ball park of 70 % efficient. Your AC compressor will take 2 or 3 hp mechanically from the engine. Take your electric load, divide by .7 and divide by 750, this is the load your placing on the engine.
A modern car engine will have a fuel consumption of .4 to .5 pounds of fuel per horsepower per hour.
This is the extra fuel your burning for accessories.
ETA: double checked my numbers, some new cars are getting fuel consumption down into the low .3s. Didn’t think they could go that low.
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