A mechanic scoffed at a warning sticker on a Buick SUV, advising drivers not to do something that they probably wouldn’t ever think to do in such a vehicle.
The short video came from Ontario-based creator John Force (@johnforce03). It went up on TikTok on Saturday and garnered nearly 348,000 views as of Monday.
He says, “It’s so cool that car companies now, they expect you to dyno your car. So no rear wheel dyno, no front wheel dyno, because all-wheel drive.”
While he’s narrating this, he shows the sticker on the inside of the Buick’s hood, depicting the car in two views. One resting its front wheels and then rear wheels on a dynamometer.
“It’s a [expletive] Buick SUV, buddy,” he then remarks. “Nobody’s [expletive] putting it on a dyno.”
What is a dyno?
Dyno is short for dynamometer. According to Power Test, Inc., it is “a device that measures force, torque or power.”
It continues, “For chassis or engine applications, a dynamometer is designed to create a load to duplicate various speed (RPM) and torque (Nm or lb-ft) requirements. From this data, power (HP or kW) can be calculated. This in turn provides a snapshot of the chassis or engine performance for comparison to the manufacturer’s specifications. Typically, a dynamometer gives the operator the ability to vary the load applied to the unit under test to mimic specific requirements.”
A 2017 article in The Truth About Cars titled, “Spinning Your Wheels: Here’s Why Dyno Results Are Incomplete and Useless,” saw things a little differently.
“The real truth behind the dyno test is that it is valueless,” the author argued. “We do not have any data on its calibration or the weather, and the dyno operator could have applied any correction factor on the data to boost the results. This is not an isolated case in reporting sketchy dyno results, as I see it multiple times per month from various outlets and, in just about every case, the data and reporting are meaningless.”
A Redditor, responding to a post in the r/cars forum showcasing the article, noted, “A single dyno result on it’s own, yes that is incomplete and useless. However, when combined with other tests from the same car under different configurations, no, those are not useless.”
Viewers have divided opinions on the Buick sticker
The presence of the sticker amused some.
“I guarantee someone’s trying to get more out of it,” one commented, with a laughing emoji.
“I’m surprised they haven’t slapped a Grand National sticker on it,” said one.
“Look hear me out let’s put a Chevy 454 in it,” another remarked.
But some contended that dynos are used in some emissions tests.
“You do realize, emissions testing sometimes uses a dyno?” one pointed out.
“Every state that does emissions tests will put that car on a dyno to measure the emissions while it is rolling,” claimed another.
@johnforce03 ♬ GTA San Andreas Theme (Remake) – Ben Morfitt (SquidPhysics)
The Daily Dot has reached out to the creator via TikTok and Instagram direct message and to General Motors (the parent company of Buick) via email.
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