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Next time you’re in a showroom looking at an electric vehicle you may ask, “How many kilowatts does that have?” But for most of us, we want to know horsepower, not kW. With this simple equation, you can convert kilowatts to horsepower and sound like a pro.

To convert kilowatts to horsepower is pretty simple.

Tesla Model S Plaid and Suzuki Hayabusa drag race line up
Tesla Model S Plaid Vs. Suzuki Hayabusa | YouTube: Edmunds

To convert kilowatts to horsepower, you multiply the motor’s kilowatt rating by 1.34. 

For example: the Nissan leaf puts out 80 kW of power. When we multiply 80 by 1.34, we get 107.2 horsepower. 

So when Tesla says its Model S p100d makes 567 kW of power, that means it puts out 760 horsepower. 

To go the other way, it’s just as simple. To convert horsepower to kW, multiply by 0.746. 

A 410-horsepower Dodge Hemi, for example, has 305.9 kW of power. 

One actual horse has about 35 horsepower (really), so one actual horse makes about 26 Watts.

Asknumbers.com has a convenient converter if you hate doing math. Just plug in the numbers you have to find the ones you want.

What are horsepower and torque?

Torque is the measure of how much force you can apply. Without it you can't tow.
The Ram 3500 towing a horse trailer

Racers say: “Horsepower is how fast you hit the wall. Torque is how far you move the wall.”

Without horsepower you have no speed. But without torque you can’t move, or tow.

They are two different ratings that tell you the overall power of a vehicle, even if that’s in kilowatts to horsepower.

Horsepower is a rating of work over time. So, the faster a motor can work, the more horsepower it has. A Formula 1 car, for example, has a 14,000 rpm redline, and spins really fast to make its power.

You can calculate horsepower by multiplying torque by the engine RPM (speed) and then dividing by 5,252. 

The original idea was that one actual horse could move 33,000 pounds of stuff in one minute. So, the formula to get 1 horsepower is 1 hp = 33,000 lb ft / minute.

Torque is the power that you actually feel, and it is expressed as pound-feet, or lb ft, or sometimes in Newton meters. Trucks like the Dodge Ram 3500 have more than 1,000 lb ft, which lets them tow giant things easily. But, those engines have a 4,400 rpm redline.

In pound feet, that means that it is the amount of energy required to raise a one-pound weight by one foot. 

Electric motors make power differently

A powertrain with an electric motor and battery of a VW ID.3 electric cars at the Volkswagen factory on July 31, 2020.
An electric car powertrain | Jens Schlueter via Getty Images

An internal combustion engine makes power by spinning. You’ve probably seen the graphs that show power increase as engine speed does (to a point). An electric motor makes power differently: electric motors make 100% of their torque at zero rpm. That explains how a Nissan Leaf that makes just 107 horsepower is so much faster than a Toyota Yaris that has 106. 

For example, the Yaris can go from 0-60 in about 9.4 seconds. The Leaf with about the same power can get to 60 in about 7.5 seconds.

While electric cars can be quicker than a gas-powered car, they’re not always faster. The new 9,000-pound GMC Hummer EV truck, for example, can hit 60 mph in about 3 seconds. But, it can is limited to only 106 mph.

Of course there is a lot more to putting the power that a motor can make to the ground. In an EV, that’s often limited by the batteries and discharge rate, as well as its transmission or its temperature. In a gas car, it comes down to transmissions, fuel injection, exhaust and much more.

RELATED: The Rivian R1T vs. the Hummer EV Truck: The Drag Race We’ve Been Waiting For

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Writer - Sedans & Coupes

Dan Mayfield

Dan joined MotorBiscuit in 2022 with over 20 years of experience in journalism and a lifelong passion for anything related to the automotive industry. He grew up wrenching a 1949 Ford pickup truck and an MGB with his dad, learning how not to wire a fuel pump (he inadvertently set the MGB on fire).

After earning a bachelor’s degree in photojournalism from the University of New Mexico, Dan has contributed his expertise to a range of local outlets, including the City of Albuquerque, US Eagle, and the Alliance for Local Economic Prosperity.

On weekends, Dan spends Saturdays enjoying “cars and coffee” chats and, on Sundays, he’s watching the Route 66 Cruise roll through town. He also races motorcycles, and it’s not unusual to find him elbows-deep in his latest cafe racer build.

Taking advantage of the local desert terrain, Dan also enjoys exploring and driving off-road in his trusty Ram Rebel pickup truck, which provides personal insights into his contributions to our Trucks, SUVs, & Crossovers coverage. Dan strives to give our readers unique information about the dynamic automotive market, reading anything that has to do with cars, trucks, bikes, 4X4s, and, in his words, “everything with a motor.”

Dan has earned a number of accolades from the Public Relations Society of America, and is a University of Southern California, Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism Fellow.