How to Convert Horsepower to CV

The units "horsepower" and "CV" are both measurements of power. CV, short for "cheval vapeur" (essentially, horsepower in French) is itself just another name for the metric horsepower. By contrast, horsepower in the United States is based on the British system of measurement. Horsepower and CV are very close in value. One horsepower is equal to about 1.01 CV; thus, it is slightly larger. For a scientific conversion, a calculator is handy.

Things You'll Need

• Calculator

Instructions

1. Multiply the number of horsepower by 1.013869 to convert them to CV. As an example, 50 horsepower times the conversion factor of 1.013869 comes to 50.69345 CV.

2. Divide the number of CV by the conversion factor from Step 1 to convert from CV to horsepower. Thus, 250 CV equals 246.58 horsepower.

3. Use horsepower and CV interchangeably, on a one-to-one basis, for a simple back-of-the-envelope conversion, as 1 horsepower and 1 CV are roughly equal.

References

• University of Virginia: Measurement Unit Converter
• Magtrol: Conversion Calculator