Scaling Math Example 3

Follow the full solution, then compare it with the other examples linked below.

Example 3

easy
A model car is built at a scale of 1:181:18. The model is 2424 cm long. How long is the actual car in metres?

Solution

  1. 1
    Actual length =24ร—18=432= 24 \times 18 = 432 cm.
  2. 2
    Convert: 432ย cm=4.32432 \text{ cm} = 4.32 m.

Answer

The actual car is 4.324.32 m long.
A 1:181:18 scale means the real object is 1818 times larger than the model. Multiplying the model length by 1818 undoes the scale reduction to recover the actual size.

About Scaling

Changing the size of a quantity by multiplying by a factor, making it proportionally larger (factor >1> 1) or smaller (factor <1< 1).

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