how long will it take a bus travelling at 60 miles per hour to overtake a car travelling at 40 mph if the car had a 1.5 hour head start

Answer 1

Let x = the time to overtake

60x = 1.5 + 40x

Solve for x.

Answer 2

Let the time taken by the bus for the trip be t hours
Let the time taken by the car for the trip be t+1.5

distance covered by bus = 60t
distance covered by car = 40(t+1.5)

60t = 40(t+1.5)
60t = 40t + 60
20t = 60
t = 3

bus goes for 3 hours and the car for 4.5 hours

check:
3x60 = 180
4.5x40 = 180