Starting in 2008 in New Zealand, we will say goodbye to the horsepower ratings on small engines. This will be  mildly confusing, to totally baffling for many of you. After all, we pretty much knew what to expect when we bought a 6.5hp lawnmower. Now we are going to buy a 190cc (cubic centimeter) with 8.25 foot pounds of torque, horsepower unknown. It could be 5hp and it could be 8hp. Now lets see what the salesmen do with that one. The important point here is the horsepower rating will not be available anymore and most engines now will be rated by cc's, not cid's. Outside the USA, maximum torque is given in newton meters (Nm), instead of foot pounds.

Foot-pounds of gross torque is what the engine produces when tested in accordance with the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) standard J1995 and labeled in accordance with SAE J1940. Cubic Inch Displacement (CID) will now be measured in Cubic Centimeters (CC). This is not surprising since the auto industry went to the metric system a long time ago, no more 409's. The popular 12 cubic inch Briggs Quantum will become  190 cc. Engines will now be grouped by series based on the foot pounds of gross torque they deliver.

Here is what Briggs & Stratton presented at the 2007 update about torque and displacement:

Gross Torque: "When it comes to cutting grass with a walk behind mower, nothing reflects an engines's ability to mow grass better than gross torque. Literally the turning or cutting power of an engine, gross torque allows the walk behind purchaser to compare the relative cutting power of engines as measured by foot pounds of gross torque - and tested in accordance with the SAE testing and labeling standards. The torque for horizontal applications is equally important, as the primary engine design characteristic is to develop the torque curve to match the application's power requirements. These test results will be available for all customers of our engines."

Displacement: "Each engine will be labeled with its displacement measured in cc's. While helpful in allowing the customer to identify the relative size of the engine, cc's lack specificity in measuring the power produced by the engine. In fact, depending on engine configuration (OHV vs. L-Head) and accessary components (carburetors, cams, valves etc.), engine with identical cc's can have significantly different power output levels. Because we believe that cc's alone will not accurately measure the power output of a given engine, we are also rating our engines by foot pounds of gross torque."

To sum this all up and what it means to you. Amercian engines will no longer be identified by their cubic inch displacement and horsepower. The new generation engines will be known by cubic centimeter displacement and foot pounds of gross torque. Briggs & Stratton has already outlined what they will do and many of the other engine manufacturers are adopting similiar policies. Goodbye horsepower and hello torque. To many of us in the small engine repair trade, its been that way all along.

What do the numbers on your new engine labels refer to?  How does the Series Number labeling system correspond to engine Model Series?