Alistair Bell wrote:

> While the rated hp is around 108, it puts out 170-180 ft-lbs of torque.
> Thats not far off what the VR6 produces. It is this torque (which is
> produced at reasonable rpms) that, in my opinion, gives the van the hwy
> cruising qualities that Bill and Ric enthuise about.
 

 If you can get one with 170-180 ft-lbs. of torque, I'd snap it up. VW list
 the engine as having 144 ft-lb @ 2200 rpm, 109 bhp @ 4500 rpm.

> Its been said before but it bears repeating :
> 
> 	"horsepower sells cars, torque wins races"
> 
> Well, actually, I think reliability wins a good share of races too ;)
> 
> Alistair, bravely wading into the hp vs torque tarpit
> 
 Remember, what the engine delivers is a twisting force at the end of the
 crankshaft. The neverending hp vs. torque debate stems from how we measure
 it - instantaneous or integrated over time. If manufacturers would publish
 the output curves rather than the most impressive peak values this whole
 issue would be a lot simpler, wouldn't it?

 I'll step into the breech <briefly> and say that, while my exposure to the
 EV is limited, I have been mostly impressed. This is an EV MV owned by
 parents of a kid on Max's soccer team. I've ridden in the EV to several 
 distant games and find it comfortable. It seems to have quite adequate  
 acceleration and hill climbing ability, certainly way better than my
 1800 cc '74. I think that the 5 spd gearbox gives it a nice "long-legged"
 feel on the highway. The engine noise is audible as a "growl" when the
 vehicle is accelrating or climbing but is reasonably quiet on level ground.
 The noise I found annoying was the amount of tire noise transmitted into the
 vehicle interior. This particular EV has been on several major road trips
 <Germany, Norway, Sweden, Netherlands Germany and U.S coast to coast>. They
 say it has been very reliable and they love the thing.

 Interestingly, in this area the asking price for a used '93 EV is usually
 several thousand dollars less than for a '91 Vanagon! Perhaps EVs will
 become a used car bargain.

 Dave