There's much more information on a dyno sheet than just peak horsepower. On this episode of Banks Entry Level, Erik Reider (Banks Special Projects Lead) explains how a dynamometer works, how to make sure the collected data is accurate, and how to catch someone who is faking their numbers.

We’ll start with the dynamometer itself and explore the differences between our eddy-current chassis dyno, and the five engine dyno cells that we use for engine development. Next, we’ll get into how we make sure that a vehicle on a chassis dyno is seeing similar conditions to what it would on the road. This includes high velocity, high volume air, stable temperatures across all cooling components and fluids, and ambient conditions that reflect the environment in which the vehicle is used.

Erik also explains the importance of sweep time, the direct-drive gear ratio, and the source of RPM data collection for the run. We also discuss steady-state testing and its importance in developing components that can stand up to anything from daily driving to a grueling military operation.

With the testing done, he details the dyno sheet itself. This includes how the data is organized, what data is the most relevant, and how two dyno operators in very different climates can compare results with the use of correction factors.

Finally, Erik helps you put this newfound knowledge to work catching cheaters who decide to inflate their power gains by hiding data or taking creative liberties with the graph curve.

Everything you’ve ever wanted to know about the dyno sheet and how a dynamometer works is in this video!

Every dyno at Banks logs the collected data using the Banks iDash DataMonster. Get one for your own vehicle. 👉 https://bnks.pw/idash

06:00 Intro
00:42 Dynos measure torque
02:42 Engine dyno vs chassis dyno
03:08 Simulating real-world conditions
05:03 Sweep time
07:38 Steady state testing
10:33 Correction factors
11:01 Air Density
13:49 Analyzing the dyno sheet
15:33 What is horsepower?
16:07 How horsepower is calculated
17:02 Catching a cheater