METRIC CONVERSIONS

1995 Volvo 850

GENERAL INFORMATION

METRIC CONVERSIONS

METRIC CONVERSIONS

Metric conversions are making life more difficult for the mechanic. In addition to doubling the number of tools required, metric-dimensioned nuts and bolts are used alongside English
components in many new vehicles. The mechanic has to decide which tool to use, slowing down the job. The tool problem can be solved by trial and error, but some metric conversions aren’t so simple. Converting temperature, lengths or volumes requires a calculator and conversion charts, or else a very nimble mind. Conversion charts are only part of the answer though, because they don’t help you “think” metric, or “visualize” what you are converting. The following examples are intended to help you “see” metric sizes:

LENGTH

Meters are the standard unit of length in the metric system. The smaller units are 10ths (decimeter), 100ths (centimeter), and
1000ths (millimeter) of a meter. These common examples might help you to visualize the metric units:
* A meter is slightly longer than a yard (about 40 inches).
* An aspirin tablet is about one centimeter across (.4 inches).
* A millimeter is about the thickness of a dime.

VOLUME

Cubic meters and centimeters are used to measure volume, just as we normally think of cubic feet and inches. Liquid volume measurements include the liter and milliliter, like the English quarts or ounces.
* One teaspoon is about 4 cubic centimeters.
* A liter is about one quart.
* A liter is about 61 cubic inches.

WEIGHT

The metric weight system is based on the gram, with the most common unit being the kilogram (1000 grams). Our comparable units are ounces and pounds:
* A kilogram is about 2.2 pounds.
* An ounce is about 28 grams.

TORQUE

Torque is somewhat complicated. The term describes the amount of effort exerted to turn something. A chosen unit of weight or force is applied to a lever of standard length. The resulting leverage is called torque. In our standard system, we use the weight of one pound applied to a lever a foot long, resulting in the unit called a foot- pound. A smaller unit is the inch-pound (the lever is one inch long).
Metric units include the meter kilogram (lever one meter long with a kilogram of weight applied) and the Newton-meter (lever one
meter long with force of one Newton applied). Some conversions are:
* A meter kilogram is about 7.2 foot pounds.
* A foot pound is about 1.4 Newton-meters.
* A centimeter kilogram (cmkg) is equal to .9 inch pounds.

PRESSURE

Pressure is another complicated measurement. Pressure is described as a force or weight applied to a given area. Our common unit is pounds per square inch. Metric units can be expressed in several ways. One is the kilogram per square centimeter (kg/cm ).
Another unit of pressure is the Pascal (force of one Newton on an area of one square meter), which equals about 4 ounces on a square yard. Since this is a very small amount of pressure, we usually see the kiloPascal, or kPa (1000 Pascals). Another common automotive term for pressure is the bar (used by German manufacturers), which equals 10
Pascals. Thoroughly confused? Try the examples below:
* Atmospheric pressure at sea level is about 14.7 psi.
* Atmospheric pressure at sea level is about 1 bar.
* Atmospheric pressure at sea level is about 1 kg/cm .
* One pound per square inch is about 7 kPa.

CONVERSION FACTORS

CONVERSION FACTORS
TO CONVERT TO MULTIPLY BY

Inches.03937

Millimeters25.4

Feet3.28084

Meters.3048

Miles.62137

Square Centimeters6.45159

Cubic Inches.06103

Cubic Centimeters16.38703

Cubic Inches61.025

Liters.01639

Quarts1.05672

Liters.94633

Pints2.11344

Liters.47317

Ounces33.81497

Liters.02957

Ounces.03527

Grams28.34953

Pounds2.20462

Kilograms.45359

.06895

.06805

CONVERSION FACTORS (Cont.)
INCHES DECIMALS mm
1/64 …………………. .016 …………………… .397
1/32 …………………. .031 …………………… .794
3/64 …………………. .047 ………………….. 1.191
1/16 …………………. .063 ………………….. 1.588
5/64 …………………. .078 ………………….. 1.984
3/32 …………………. .094 ………………….. 2.381
7/64 …………………. .109 ………………….. 2.778
1/8 ………………….. .125 ………………….. 3.175
9/64 …………………. .141 ………………….. 3.572
5/32 …………………. .156 ………………….. 3.969
11/64 ………………… .172 ………………….. 4.366
3/16 …………………. .188 ………………….. 4.763
13/64 ………………… .203 ………………….. 5.159
7/32 …………………. .219 ………………….. 5.556
15/64 ………………… .234 ………………….. 5.953
1/4 ………………….. .250 ………………….. 6.350
17/64 ………………… .266 ………………….. 6.747
9/32 …………………. .281 ………………….. 7.144
19/64 ………………… .297 ………………….. 7.541
5/16 …………………. .313 ………………….. 7.938
21/64 ………………… .328 ………………….. 8.334
11/32 ………………… .344 ………………….. 8.731
23/64 ………………… .359 ………………….. 9.128
3/8 ………………….. .375 ………………….. 9.525
25/64 ………………… .391 ………………….. 9.992
13/32 ………………… .406 ………………….
27/64 ………………… .422 ………………….
7/16 …………………. .438 ………………….
29/64 ………………… .453 ………………….
15/32 ………………… .469 ………………….
31/64 ………………… .484 ………………….
1/2 ………………….. .500 ………………….
33/64 ………………… .516 ………………….
17/32 ………………… .531 ………………….
35/64 ………………… .547 ………………….
9/16 …………………. .563 ………………….
37/64 ………………… .578 ………………….
19/32 ………………… .594 ………………….
39/64 ………………… .609 ………………….
5/8 ………………….. .625 ………………….
41/64 ………………… .641 ………………….
21/32 ………………… .656 ………………….
43/64 ………………… .672 ………………….
11/16 ………………… .687 ………………….
45/64 ………………… .703 ………………….
23/32 ………………… .719 ………………….
47/64 ………………… .734 ………………….
3/4 ………………….. .750 ………………….
49/64 ………………… .766 ………………….
10.319
10.716
11.113
11.509
11.906
12.303
12.700
13.097
13.494
13.891
14.288
14.684
15.081
15.478
15.875
16.272
16.669
17.066
17.463
17.859
18.256
18.653
19.050
19.447
25/32 ………………… .781 …………………. 19.844
51/64 ………………… .797 …………………. 20.241
13/16 ………………… .813 …………………. 20.638
53/64 ………………… .828 …………………. 21.034
27/32 ………………… .844 …………………. 21.431
55/64 ………………… .859 …………………. 21.828
7/8 ………………….. .875 …………………. 22.225
57/64 ………………… .891 …………………. 22.622
29/32 ………………… .906 …………………. 23.019
59/64 ………………… .922 …………………. 23.416
15/16 ………………… .938 …………………. 23.813
61/64 ………………… .953 …………………. 24.209
31/32 ………………… .969 …………………. 24.606
63/64 ………………… .984 …………………. 25.003
1 ……………………. 1.000 ………………… 25.400