BHP= Power at the wheels
HP = Output given by engine

HP, is the amount of total horse power the engine is capable of making on paper. This is calculated using formulas, using engine parameters such as bore, stroke, etc...

BHP, is the number what is shown on the dyno...

BHP is the power available for use after all the frictional losses encountered while transmitin.......
HP-power produced
for bikes bhp is used but for aircrafts hp is used due to no rollin resistance......
now i think u got wot is diff betwn hp and bhp......................................

there is no difference between hp and bhp ... it's amazing how ppl here give advice without knowing anything!!!

it's called bhp coz to measure power output, engines are connected to a brake dynamometer ... most maufactureres give power output's at crank while some give power output at the rear wheel.... obviously the power output at the wheel is less than that at the crank ...

nikhilsc,right on mate!
adding to that,
usually when crankwheel power is given we deduct 10% in form of transmission losses to get rear wheel power

Very true & thats why BHP is quoted & not HP ( higher number u see)

and what's the physical difference between BHP and PS??(I know that 1 ps = approx 0.98bhp but what does PS mean in physical terms??)

PS = Pferde Starke or HorseStrength in German . Its a different standard , another one os CV which is French ( I think ) word , also slightly diff from hp .

hmm bhp=hp, hp=bhp ... since they are the one and the same thing, neither is higher or lower ....

Hey ricci, thx for the full form of PS but what is PS??? I mean HP is power measured at the crank and BHP is power measured at the wheels...similarly what is PS???

dude firstly we banging our heads telling u BHP=HP !!!!!!!!!!!!
secondly ps is just a unit..like how u have inches and centimeters like tht!

hmm this is getting interesting, now this is what i found on the net & it has confused me further

This is the long answer... brake horsepower: (bhp) A measurement of the actual usable power (not calculated power) measured at the output shaft (usually the crankshaft) rather than at the driveshaft or the wheels. Thus none of the auxiliaries (gearbox, generator, alternator, differential, water pump, etc.) are attached. It is called the brake horsepower because the shaft power is usually measured by an absorption dynamometer or "brake." This is not the brake on the vehicle's wheels but a testing device applied to the shaft. This instrument is applied to stop or absorb the rotation of the output shaft and returns a value. horsepower: (HP) A measurement of the engine's ability to perform work. One horsepower is defined as the ability to lift 33,000 pounds one foot in one minute. To find horsepower, the total rate of work in foot pounds accomplished is divided by 33,000. If a machine was lifting 100 pounds 660 feet per minute, its total rate of work would be 66,000 foot pounds per minute. Divide this by 33,000 foot pounds per minute to arrive at 2 horsepower. In metric terms, it is the ability to raise 250 kilograms a distance of 30 centimeters in one second. It is also equal to 745.7 watts.



Check out the post by "LearjetMech" on

Wow I see how this thread can get out of hand. Here is my $ 0.02! Horsepower and torque! Two totally different things that interact with each other. Lets deal with Horspower first. Indicated Horspower (IHP) is the horsepower developed by the engine, that is, the total horsepower converted from heat energy to mechanical energy. If the charateristics of the engine are known, the IHP can be calculated using long drawn out formulas. Brake Horsepower (BHP) is the ACTUAL horsepower delivered by the engine to a propellor or other driven device (car wheel, etc...) It is the the IHP minus the Friction Horsepower (FHP). FHP is the part of the total horsepower necessary to overcome the friction of moving parts in the engine and its accessories. Thus BHP=IHP-FHP.
So to answer your question, YES there is a difference!



All the B means is "brake". The old word for a dyno - because the engine torque was measured by applying a brake to the flywheel rather than a torque converter or electrical motor which is how it's done nowadays. There's no other difference between the two and they both just mean horsepower.

in short, what he's saying is that BHP=HP and HP=BHP!!!!!!

no difffference ... for obvious reasons, bhp/hp will be 'less' than indicated horse power (IHP)due to frictional losses ...

or that there is no HP its either BHP, IHP or FHP i.e. variatns of it no actula Hp for vehicles [?] i mean y do the manufacturers give figures in BHP & not in HP coz HP is know to common man [?]