Power Converter
This power converter turns any power rating into another unit instantly, moving between watts (W), kilowatts (kW), mechanical horsepower (hp), metric horsepower (CV) and BTU per hour (BTU/h). Type the figure from the spec sheet, mark which unit it is in and which one you need, and the equivalent shows up on its own. Use it to compare car and motorcycle engines, size electric motors, or find out how many kW hide behind an air conditioner rated 12,000 BTU/h.
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How it works
Every reading is routed through the watt, which lets a US brochure, a European registration and an EV badge describe the same engine. Take a car whose spec sheet says 150 hp: to get the kW figure that registration papers use, the tool converts the horsepower into watts (150 × 745.7 = 111,855 W) and divides by the target factor (÷ 1000 = 111.9 kW). Point the target at CV instead and those same 150 hp come out as 152.1 CV, because a metric horse (735.499 W) is a shade smaller than a mechanical one (745.7 W). With the factors fixed — 1 kW = 1000 W, 1 hp = 745.7 W, 1 CV = 735.499 W, 1 BTU/h = 0.293071 W — the three engine ratings always agree.
Typical car engine power, side by side
Car and motorcycle brochures switch between horsepower and kilowatts depending on the market. This table lines up the engine outputs you actually meet on the road, from a small city car to a sports coupe, in mechanical horsepower (hp), kilowatts (kW) and the metric CV/PS that European papers print.
| hp | kW | CV |
|---|---|---|
| 60 | 44.7 | 60.8 |
| 75 | 55.9 | 76.0 |
| 90 | 67.1 | 91.2 |
| 100 | 74.6 | 101.4 |
| 110 | 82.0 | 111.5 |
| 120 | 89.5 | 121.7 |
| 130 | 96.9 | 131.8 |
| 150 | 111.9 | 152.1 |
| 180 | 134.2 | 182.5 |
| 200 | 149.1 | 202.8 |
| 250 | 186.4 | 253.5 |
| 300 | 223.7 | 304.2 |
| 400 | 298.3 | 405.5 |
| 500 | 372.9 | 506.9 |
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Preguntas frecuentes
- What is the difference between hp and CV?
- Mechanical horsepower (hp) equals 745.7 watts, while metric horsepower (CV, also PS) equals 735.499 watts. So 1 hp is about 1.0139 CV. Carmakers in Europe usually quote CV/PS, while US and UK specs use hp.
- How many watts are in 1 horsepower?
- 1 mechanical horsepower equals 745.7 watts, or about 0.7457 kW. A 200 hp car engine therefore produces roughly 149 kW.
- How do I convert kW to hp?
- Divide the kilowatts by 0.7457 (or multiply by 1.341). For example, 100 kW ÷ 0.7457 = about 134 hp. This converter does it automatically using the watt as the common base.
- What is BTU/h used for?
- BTU per hour (BTU/h) rates heating and cooling capacity, especially air conditioners. 1 BTU/h is 0.293071 watts, so a 12000 BTU/h AC unit is about 3517 watts or 3.5 kW of cooling.
- How many kW is a typical home AC unit?
- A common 12000 BTU/h (1 ton) air conditioner delivers about 3.5 kW of cooling. Its electrical draw is lower, since efficiency ratings measure cooling output versus power consumed.
- How many CV is a 150 hp car?
- 150 hp equals 152.1 CV, because 1 hp (745.7 W) is slightly larger than 1 CV (735.499 W). The gap is about 1.4%, which is why the very same engine looks marginally "stronger" when its output is quoted in CV rather than hp.
- The A2 licence caps power at 35 kW — how many CV is that?
- 35 kW equals about 47.6 CV (35000 ÷ 735.499) or 46.9 hp. That is why motorcycles homologated for the European A2 licence top out around 47 CV, the legal power ceiling for that category.