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Determine the acceleration of the car and the tension in the cable when the speed is $20\,\text{m s}^{-1}$.
Mathematics 9709 · AS & A Level · Newton's laws of motion
Newton's laws of motion — practice question
A car with mass $1700\,\text{kg}$ is towing a trailer with mass $300\,\text{kg}$ on a level straight road. A light inextensible cable, parallel to the road, joins the car to the trailer. The constant resistive forces opposing motion are $400\,\text{N}$ on the car and $150\,\text{N}$ on the trailer. The car’s engine has power $14\,000\,\text{W}$.