What Are Car RPMs?

RPMs tell you how fast your engine is moving.

RPMs are an indication of how hard your engine is working to propel your car in any direction. If they stop entirely, your car will stall. If they rise to a high level, you risk damage to your engine.

Definition

RPMs, or revolutions per minute, tell a driver how fast his motor is spinning. A car engine can usually handle spinning up to 6,000 revolutions per minute, but each vehicle is different. The reader on your dashboard will tell you how much your engine can take, indicating a speed too fast by sectioning off those RPM levels in red.

How RPMs Work

You car engine spins to create energy necessary for the car to move. As you send more gas to the motor, the motor revs in anticipation of movement and in anticipation of your foot moving off the brake. If you're at a stop sign, or otherwise halted, your engine should idle at around 1,000 revolutions per minute.

Red Lining

If your RPMs get up too high, you will damage your vehicle. rpm indicator showing a very high reading image by Steve Johnson from Fotolia.com

If you give the engine too much gas for the movement it is able to achieve at that moment -- whether your foot is on the brake, you're trying to go up a slippery hill, or your car is stuck spinning its wheels -- you can red line your vehicle. Doing so will cause costly damage to your car, by potentially freezing your engine.

References

• Parker's: Car Glossary
• Metro: Who Says You Can't Have Fun in a Honda Civic?