Daily English 1290 Describing Car Speed and Power

Dialogue/Story

Slow Speed begins at: 1:07
Explanation begins at: 4:06
Normal Speed begins at: 21:14

Complete Transcript

Welcome to English as a Second Language Podcast number 1,290 – Describing Car Speed and Power.

This is English as a Second Language Podcast episode 1,290. I’m your host, Dr. Jeff McQuillan, coming to you from the Center for Educational Development in beautiful Los Angeles, California.

This episode is a dialogue between Martin and his friend Asta about the speed and power of a car. Let’s get started.

[start of dialogue]

Martin: Did you see that? It’s the new McQ. It does 0 to 60 in four seconds. It has amazing performance.

Asta: That car? I guess it’s nice. I like the color.

Martin: Color?! Who cares about the color? The McQ is supposed to top out at 155, but it’s been clocked at 160. Can you imagine?

Asta: No, I can’t.

Martin: It has more horsepower than any car on the market and amazing torque. You wouldn’t believe the RPMs.

Asta: So it can go fast?

Martin: Yeah, it can go fast. It’s supposed to be really responsive, too, and the reviews say that the acceleration is really smooth. I bet that’s because of the tuning.

Asta: I like cars with more trunk space.

Martin: You don’t drive a car like the McQ for its storage capacity. You drive it for speed.

Asta: My cousin doesn’t like it that much. He says it doesn’t have enough legroom.

Martin: What?! Your cousin owns a McQ?

Asta: Yes, but he only drives it when his Ediger is in the shop.

Martin: How is it possible that I’ve known you for years and this is the first time you’ve mentioned this cousin to me? You know that I’m the biggest car enthusiast in the world, don’t you?

Asta: My cousin isn’t in town very often. He’s usually traveling to races.

Martin: Your cousin is a race car driver?

Asta: Yes, didn’t I mention that either?

[end of dialogue]

Martin begins our dialogue by asking Asta, “Did you see that? It’s the McQ. It does 0 to 60 in four seconds.” “0” and “60” here refer to miles per hour – as in the speed, in this case, of a car. So, if a car “does,” or goes, “0 to 60 in four seconds,” it can go from 0 – that is, from not moving at all – to 60 miles per hour as a speed in four seconds.

In American television ads, or advertisements, for cars, you often hear the term “0 to 60” to describe how fast a car can accelerate, how fast it can speed up. The shorter the time it takes to go from 0 to 60, supposedly the better the car engine or motor – the part of the car that makes it move.

Martin says this car, which is called the McQ – no relation to me – has “amazing performance.” “Performance” (performance) refers to how well something works. You could talk about a person’s “performance” on the job. Their “job performance” would be how well they work at this particular job or in this position. The performance of a car refers to how well it drives, how fast it goes, how reliable it is, and so forth.

Asta says, “That car? I guess it’s nice. I like the color.” Martin is talking about the performance of the car, but Asta refers to its color. She’s not interested in how well the car runs. She’s interested in how the car looks. Martin is surprised, because of course he doesn’t care about the color of the car.

In fact, he says, “Who cares about the color? The McQ,” meaning this car named McQ, “is supposed to top out at 155.” “To top (top) out” means to reach the highest value of something, or to reach what we might call the “upper (upper) limit” of something. “To top out” in the case of a car would mean the fastest it can go, the highest speed it can go. In this case, it’s 155 miles per hour, which is pretty fast. That would be about 250 kilometers per hour for those of you who use kilometers, which is most of you.

Martin says that the car is “supposed to top out at 155,” meaning perhaps that’s what the car company says. “But,” he adds, “it’s been clocked at 160.” “To be clocked (clocked) at” means to be recorded at a particular speed or to be proven by someone else measuring the speed to be actually faster. So, if the car has been “clocked at 160,” someone has actually driven the car and measured its speed and found out that it can actually go faster than 155 miles per hour; it can go 160.

Martin then asks Asta, “Can you imagine?” That question, “Can you imagine?” is used when we are surprised by something, and we are indicating to someone else how surprising that is. For example, let’s say you go to work and your boss comes in drunk, having drunk too much alcohol that morning – because you know, you can’t drink too much alcohol before you go to work, just a little bit. Well, you may say to your friend, “My boss came in drunk today. Can you imagine?” You are indicating how surprised you are that your boss came in drunk today.

Asta responds to Martin’s statement “Can you imagine?” – his question – by saying, “No, I can’t,” meaning “I can’t imagine.” She’s also indicating by her response that perhaps she isn’t very interested in the same thing Martin is. Martin continues, however, “It” – meaning the McQ, the car – “has more horsepower then any car on the market and amazing torque.”

“Horsepower” (horsepower) is how we measure the power of a motor or an engine, in part because when cars were first introduced, people compared them to the most common form of transportation before the automobile, which was a horse, of course. So, “horsepower” would refer to how many horses you would need to travel as fast or to have the same power as the car. It’s equal to 550 foot pounds per second, which is the equivalent of 745.7 watts. I know, that isn’t a very helpful definition.

Martin says this car “has more horsepower than any car on the market,” meaning basically it’s more powerful than any car that is being sold right now. That’s what he means by the expression “on the market” (market). He says the car also has “amazing,” meaning very good, “torque” (torque). “Torque” refers to the power of turning or rotating something. In this case, however, it is a measure of how quickly the car can go faster, can “accelerate” (accelerate).

“To accelerate” means to increase in speed. That’s why in a car you have a, what we call a “pedal” (pedal), which is a long piece of plastic or metal that you press on with your foot to make the car go faster. We call that pedal the “accelerator.” That makes the car go faster. The other pedal is called the “brake” (brake) that slows down or stops a car. The opposite, however, of “acceleration” is “deceleration,” but we don’t call a brake a “decelerator.” We call it a “brake.”

Anyway, back to our dialogue. Martin also says to Asta, “You wouldn’t believe the RPMs.” “You wouldn’t believe” means I’m going to tell you something that is very difficult for you to believe because it’s so amazing. “You wouldn’t believe the RPMs” – the revolutions per minute. RPMs is a measure of how fast something moves around what we call an “axis” (axis). Basically it’s a measure of how hard the engine is working in a car.

Asta then says, “So it can go fast?” Martin says, “Yeah. It can go fast. It’s supposed to be really responsive, too, and the reviews say that the acceleration is really smooth.” When we say a car is “responsive” (responsive), we mean that when you, for example, try to turn the car to go left or right, it responds very quickly; more generally, the car seems to do what you want it to do very easily.

Martin also says that the “reviews,” meaning articles about the car in the newspaper or in a magazine, “say that the acceleration is really smooth.” We’ve already defined “acceleration” as how fast the car goes from one speed to another, how quickly it can accelerate. If the acceleration is “smooth” (smooth), it feels as though there are no bumps, or that you don’t have any difficulty going from one speed to another. Martin adds, “I bet that’s because of the tuning” (tuning). “Tuning” refers to how the car’s motor or engine is adjusted so that it runs smoothly. It runs without any problems.

Asta is not interested in all of these issues that Martin is. She says instead, “I like cars with more trunk space.” The “trunk” (trunk) of a car, in American cars, is in the back of the car. It’s where you can put things such as luggage or big boxes and bags. “Trunk space” refers to how much room you have in your trunk. In British English, the trunk is called the “boot” (boot).

Martin says, “You don’t drive a car like the McQ for its storage capacity.” “Storage (storage) capacity (capacity)” is the amount of room in something, the amount of space you have to store or put something in. Martin is saying that a car like the McQ is not one you would buy because it’s a car you can put a lot of things in. He says, “You drive it for speed.”

Asta then says, “My cousin” – that is, the son or daughter of my aunt or uncle – “doesn’t like it that much. He says it doesn’t have enough legroom” (legroom). “Legroom” refers to the amount of space in front of you for your legs. If you travel on an airplane, you know that many airplanes don’t have very much legroom, especially in the cheaper seats, the less expensive seats, where I go on an airplane. There isn’t a lot of legroom. There isn’t a lot of space for your legs, especially if you’re a tall person.

Martin is surprised by what Asta is saying. He says, “What?! Your cousin owns a McQ?” Asta says, “Yes, but he only drives it when his Ediger is in the shop.” “Ediger” here is another kind of car. I don’t think it’s a real car, but I’ll have to ask my friend Warren. In any case, Asta says that her cousin only drives his McQ when his other car, his Ediger, “is in the shop” (shop). If your car is “in the shop,” it is being fixed. It is being repaired by someone who fixes cars. We call that person, by the way, a “mechanic.” “Shop” here refers to a place where something is fixed or repaired.

Martin says, “How is it possible that I’ve known you for years and this is the first time you’ve mentioned this cousin to me? You know that I’m the biggest car enthusiast in the world, don’t you?” A “car enthusiast” (enthusiast) is a person who loves cars. You could be a “stamp enthusiast.” You could be a “coffee enthusiast.” An “enthusiast” is someone who loves something, who’s very interested in something.

Asta says, “My cousin isn’t in town very often.” “In town” here means he isn’t in the city or the town where he normally lives. “He’s usually traveling to races,” she says. Martin says, “Your cousin is a race car driver?” A “race” (race) “car” (car) is a car that goes very fast that competes in a race or a competition to see who can drive the fastest. A “race car driver” then, of course, would be someone who drives a fast car in a contest or competition.

Asta says, “Yes, didn’t I mention that either?” Asta hasn’t been telling Martin that her cousin owns these fast cars and is, in fact, a race car driver.

Now let’s listen to the dialogue, this time at a normal speed.

[start of dialogue]

Martin: Did you see that? It’s the new McQ. It does 0 to 60 in four seconds. It has amazing performance.

Asta: That car? I guess it’s nice. I like the color.

Martin: Color?! Who cares about the color? The McQ is supposed to top out at 155, but it’s been clocked at 160. Can you imagine?

Asta: No, I can’t.

Martin: It has more horsepower than any car on the market and amazing torque. You wouldn’t believe the RPMs.

Asta: So it can go fast?

Martin: Yeah, it can go fast. It’s supposed to be really responsive, too, and the reviews say that the acceleration is really smooth. I bet that’s because of the tuning.

Asta: I like cars with more trunk space.

Martin: You don’t drive a car like the McQ for its storage capacity. You drive it for speed.

Asta: My cousin doesn’t like it that much. He says it doesn’t have enough legroom.

Martin: What?! Your cousin owns a McQ?

Asta: Yes, but he only drives it when his Ediger is in the shop.

Martin: How is it possible that I’ve known you for years and this is the first time you’ve mentioned this cousin to me? You know that I’m the biggest car enthusiast in the world, don’t you?

Asta: My cousin isn’t in town very often. He’s usually traveling to races.

Martin: Your cousin is a race car driver?

Asta: Yes, didn’t I mention that either?

[end of dialogue]

The best way to accelerate your English learning is to listen to the dialogues written by our wonderful scriptwriter, Dr. Lucy Tse.

From Los Angeles, California, I’m Jeff McQuillan. Thanks for listening. Come back and listen to us again right here on ESL Podcast.

Glossary

0 to 60 – accelerating from 0 miles per hour to 60 miles per hour; a measure of how quickly a car can go from motionlessness to 60 miles per hour

* The fastest car in the world can go from 0 to 60 in just over two seconds.

performance – how well a car works, usually measured in speed, acceleration, turning radius, reliability, and more

* I don’t need a high-performance car. I just need something that will take me to work without breaking down.

to top out – to reach a maximum value; to reach the upper limit of something

* Housing prices in this neighborhood top out at $3 million.

to be clocked at – to be recorded at a particular speed; to be proven to have a certain level of speed

* Cheetahs have been clocked at more than 60 miles per hour.

horsepower – a unit for measuring power, equal to 550 foot-pounds per second (745.7 watts)

* You’ll need an engine with higher horsepower if you want to pull that heavy trailer.

torque – a measure of turning power or a measure of a twisting force that causes something to rotate; a measure of how quickly a car can accelerate (increase in speed)

* This car’s torque makes it really easy to accelerate on a curve.

RPMs – revolutions per minute; a measure of the number of times something moves around an axis (fixed point) in one minute; a measure of how hard a car’s engine is working

* Running your engine at high RPMs for a long time can damage the car.

responsive – responding quickly and reliably to an action; reacting in certain ways to the movements and actions of the driver or operator

* This car is so responsive! The slightest touch of the brakes immediately slows it down.

acceleration – an increase in speed

* Sudden acceleration and sudden braking is inefficient and can waste a lot of gasoline.

smooth – without any bumps; steady; like a straight line

* It is difficult to ride a bicycle over a surface that is not smooth.

tuning – careful adjustments to improve the performance on an engine or machine

* Regular maintenance and tuning could help this factory equipment last for several more years.

trunk space – a measure of the size of the storage space at the back of a car; a measure of how many objects can be put in the back of a car

* Once we had a child, we realized that we didn’t have enough trunk space for a folding stroller.

storage capacity – the amount of room that is available for holding or keeping something

* This rolling suitcase doesn’t have very much storage capacity because the wheels take up too much space.

legroom – the amount of open space in front of a seat where a tall person can comfortably rest his or her legs

* Have you ever paid more for an airplane seat with extra legroom?

in the shop – at the mechanic’s; being repaired

* Can I borrow your car? Mine is in the shop.

car enthusiast – a person who loves cars, knows a lot about them, is excited about them, and often spends a lot of money on them

* Lyle is a car enthusiast who loves to buy old cars and fix them up.

racecar driver – a person whose job is to drive cars very quickly in competitions of speed

* Racecar drivers have to be so careful! At those speeds, even a small mistake can be deadly.

Comprehension Questions

1. What aspect of the car’s performance does Martin most admire?
a) The car’s quick acceleration
b) The car’s energy efficiency
c) The car’s comfortable interior

2. When does Asta’s cousin drive his McQ?
a) When he is selling his Edinger
b) When he is tired and bored
c) When his Edinger is being fixed

Answers at bottom.

What Else Does It Mean?

performance

The word “performance,” in this podcast, means how well a car works, usually measured in speed, acceleration, turning radius, and reliability: “We were really disappointed with the car’s performance in the mountains over rough roads.” The word “performance” also refers to when someone plays music or dances for an audience: “A few people began crying while listening to the violinist’s beautiful performance.” Or, “Do you think the dancers will be ready for their first performance next week?” The phrase “job performance” describes how well someone is meeting expectations at work: “If Harold’s job performance doesn’t improve, we’re going to have to fire him.” Finally, the phrase “financial performance” refers to whether an investment or a business is making money: “The stock market rewards companies with strong financial performance.”

in the shop

In this podcast, the phrase “in the shop” means at the mechanic’s or being repaired: “Greg’s car is in the shop because it needs new brakes.” In high school, “shop class” is a class that teaches students to make things out of wood and metal: “Fifty years ago, boys took shop class and girls took cooking classes.” The phrase “to set up shop” means to start a small business: “They were just teenagers when they set up shop and started manufacturing in their garage.” The phrase “to shut up shop” means to close a business: “After years of struggling to make a profit, it was a relief to shut up shop and move on.” Finally, the phrase “to talk shop” means to talk about work, especially when the topic is uninteresting for others: “Promise me that if we go out for drinks together you won’t spend the evening talking shop.”

Culture Note

Demolition Derbies

Some people like to go to the “racetrack” (an oval path used for competitions of speed) to see high-performance cars race against each other. But other people prefer to see cars be destroyed in “demolition derbies.”

A “derby” is a horse race, but a “demolition derby” is an event where drivers try to “demolish” (destroy) each other’s cars. Demolition derbies are usually held on a field or in an “open-air” (without a roof) “stadiums” (large oval or circular areas with raised seating all around, typically used for sporting events or large concerts). Usually there are at least five drivers and cars competing against each other. The drivers “deliberately” (on purpose; intentionally) try to “ram” (hit forcefully and directly) each other’s vehicles. The winner is the driver of the car that is still “operational” (able to be driven) after the other cars are no longer working.

A few rules try to protect the drivers from serious injury. For example, all glass is “prohibited” (not allowed), so the windows must be removed before the demolition derby begins. And drivers are not allowed to ram the area around the “driver’s side door” (the door closest to where the driver sits). This area is often painted with a bright color so that other drivers can avoid it. In addition, the dirt field is usually “sprayed down” (covered with some water) so that it becomes muddy, which slows down the cars and makes the “impact” (hit) less forceful and less damaging.

The first demolition derbies may have been held in the 1930s, but they became popular in the 1950s. Today, they are mostly held at “state fairs” (rural community celebrations) and similar festivals.

Comprehension Answers

1 - a

2 - c