Tachometer

  • Aug 3, 2011
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A tachometer is a device that shows the engine speed of a car. Read onto know more

The engine speed of a vehicle is known by the rotations of the crankshaft inside the engine. A tachometer is a device that measures the speed of revolutions per minute (RPM) of the crankshaft. Analog meters are calibrated to display the rpm an engine is working at, digital rpm meters are also fit to some cars.

Tachometers are installed in cars to let the driver know of the speed at which the engine is running so that the driver can shift a gear up or down depending on the road speed of the vehicle. It is important to drive a car within the rpm band that an engine is comfortable at in relation to the road speed of the vehicle.

Analog rpm meters have the top of the rpm band marked in red. This is done to indicate that revving the engine to those engine speeds can harm the engine. It is recommended to keep the engine in the white rpm band. Most normal road going cars have the red zone on the tachometer marked from about 5500 rpm. Cars also come with electronic rev limiters that limit the engine from performing revolutions beyond a certain engine speed. It is not recommended to drive at too low an rpm also as excessive strain is put on the engine and gearbox. However, sports cars and super cars have engines that can perform much higher revolutions per minute.

Different engines feel comfortable cruising at different engine speeds. Once you get used to driving a car you will realise at what engine speed a car is comfortable in a certain gear.

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