Chassis Dynamometer and Engine Dynamometer
Dynamometer is a machine that is used for tuning up the car and simply measure the horsepower of your car. The two types of dynos are engine dynamometer and chassis dynamometer.
Chassis Dynamometer
The chassis dynamometer itself is only one element of the overall chassis dyno system, which you normally see on the tuners shop. Generally speaking, a dyno system consists of a chassis dynamometer plus a fuel measurement system, a room exhaust system, and a data acquisition and control system.
This is the ideal dyno for the car since you don’t have to remove the engine from the car. When measuring the horsepower of your car for the chassis dyno. Its as simple as driving your car to the rollers and then strapped it down so it wont fly when the tuner puts it pedal to the metal. This dyno also has it disadvantages because unlike the engine dyno that measure at the flywheel. This dyno measures it in the wheels, so the driveline, transmission, and tires are affecting the horsepower reading of the car.
Engine Dynamometer
The engine dyno is basically done while the engine is remove out of the car. The engine dynos can depict an accurate horsepower reading because they measure the power at the flywheel. So what this means is that the power from the engine is consistent and no interruption from the transmission or the driveline. This dyno is not the suited for the regular customer because it is expensive. It is usually used by the car manufacturer and oem tuners. Car manufacturer use them to test the engines longevity and also performance wise. A racing team would used it for their engines durability and power. So this is not for the aftermarket tuner whose looking to get his car check up for horsepower readings.