Updated at: 27-06-2022 - By: Lucas

Common terms like “cubic centimetre” (cc) and “horsepower” (hp) are often used to talk about engines.

Even though these two terms are not exactly the same, they give you an idea of the size and power of the engine.

Use the calculator below to change cc to hp or hp to cc for an engine!

How Is CC Converted to HP?

CC to HP-2

As was already said, cc and hp are not exactly the same units of measurement. Before we talk about how to change between them, let’s look at what each of these is.

A cc, which stands for “cubic centimetre,” is a way to measure the size of an engine.

More specifically, it is a measure of the volume of the cylinder that all of the pistons move through. Because of this, it is also called engine displacement.

Since 1,000 cc is equal to 1 litre, engine sizes may also be given in litres. A 5.7-liter engine, for example, is the same as a 5,700-cc engine.

In contrast, horsepower is a measurement of how much power the engine can put out.

As the name suggests, it was made as a way to compare the amount of work that horses and machines can do. As a point of comparison, 1 HP is the same as moving 550 pounds one foot in one second.

That’s a pretty strong argument!

Hopefully, that helps you understand why “cc” and “hp” are not the same units of measurement. HP is a unit of power, while CC is a measure of the engine’s size.

This means that they are connected, but not the same.

For a similar comparison, you could look at something like how much a car weighs. No matter if the weight is given in pounds or kilogrammes, they are both ways to measure weight and can be compared directly.

Even though an engine’s power output (hp) can be changed, its maximum power output will always be limited by its size (cc). This is why you can get a rough idea of the difference between the two.

The most common way to convert an engine’s cubic centimetres (CC) to horsepower (hp) is to divide the engine’s CC by 15, which gives you a rough idea of its horsepower.

You can also use this equation backwards to estimate the size of an engine by multiplying its horsepower by 15.

Technically, there is a range of 14cc to 17cc per horsepower, but most people use 15cc because it is easier to understand.

This is not a perfect conversion because the horsepower output of an engine can be changed by other things. But it’s close enough to give you a good idea of what to do!

Ex. 1 – Convert CC to HP

Let’s say we have a car with a 1500cc engine.

We could figure out that it has 100 hp by dividing 1,500 by 15.

Ex. 2 – Convert HP to CC

Let’s say we have an engine with 75 horsepower. If we take 75 HP and multiply it by 15, we get 1,125cc.

Let’s look at 1 HP to cc as an example of a simple number. 1 HP * 15 cc per HP equals 15 cc!

Compared to a bigger engine, 10 HP is equal to 150 cc’s.

Frequent Engine Conversions

How many cc is a 3.0 hp engine?

The size of a 3.0 horsepower engine is about 45 cc. This is not a perfect conversion because cc measures how much space an engine takes up, while horsepower measures how much power it has.

How many horsepower is a 1500 cc engine?

About 15 horsepower comes from a 1500 cc engine. This is not a perfect conversion because cc measures how much space an engine takes up, while horsepower measures how much power it has.

How many cc is a 16 hp engine?

A 16-horsepower engine is about 240 cc in size. This is not a perfect conversion because cc measures how much space an engine takes up, while horsepower measures how much power it has.

How many hp is 200 cc?

About 13 horsepower can be made by a 200-cc engine. This is not a perfect conversion because cc measures how much space an engine takes up, while horsepower measures how much power it has.

How many hp is 439 cc?

About 29 horsepower can be made by a 439-cc engine. This is not a perfect conversion because cc measures how much space an engine takes up, while horsepower measures how much power it has.

How many cc is a 5-horsepower engine?

The size of a 5-horsepower engine is about 75 cc. This is not a perfect conversion because cc measures how much space an engine takes up, while horsepower measures how much power it has.

How many HP is 547cc?

About 36 horsepower comes from a 547 cc engine. This is not a perfect conversion because cc measures how much space an engine takes up, while horsepower measures how much power it has.

How many hp is 160 cc?

About 11 horsepower comes from a 160 cc engine. This is not a perfect conversion because cc measures how much space an engine takes up, while horsepower measures how much power it has.

How many hp is 170 cc?

About 11 horsepower comes from a 170 cc engine. This is not a perfect conversion because cc measures how much space an engine takes up, while horsepower measures how much power it has.

How many hp is 1500 cc?

About 100 horsepower comes from a 1500 cc engine. This is not a perfect conversion because cc measures how much space an engine takes up, while horsepower measures how much power it has.

How many hp is 1000 cc?

About 67 horsepower comes from a 1000 cc engine. This is not a perfect conversion because cc measures how much space an engine takes up, while horsepower measures how much power it has.

How many cc is 6.5 hp?

A 98-cc engine with 6.5 horsepower is about right. This is not a perfect conversion because cc measures how much space an engine takes up, while horsepower measures how much power it has.