The Basics of Performance Upgrades
It’s every guys dream to have his car, truck or SUV go faster than the next. The problem is, there are no real good roadmaps for every car, and a lot of money can be wasted chasing a few extra horsepower.
Let’s look at a few common upgrades that can gain you some horsepower and earn you some respect on the road. The first upgrade that can make the most difference and make your car sound awesome is the exhaust system. Many aftermarket manufacturers are producing bolt-on exhaust systems, which can help free up 5 – 20 HP depending on how restrictive your factory exhaust is. Most systems replace the pipes and mufflers from the catalytic converter back. These are commonly called Cat-Back Systems and can be had for a price of $250 – $750 depending on materials used. Stainless steel pipes will cost you more, but will last a lot longer than plain steel. If you plan on keeping your car more than 50,000 miles or live in a state that uses salt on the roads during the winter, I would suggest stainless steel. I personally like the sound of Flowmaster Mufflers as well as Borla… your taste may vary.
The next most common way to free up some horsepower is a performance air filter. By helping your engine breath better, the air filter will help you get more air and fuel into the cylinder and thus make more power. Be aware that most aftermarket filters will require some kind of cleaning and maintenance to work properly. K&N is my favorite brand and has been around the scene for a long time.
Related to the air cleaner, a cold air intake relocates the air filter so your engine is breathing cool outside air instead of hot under hood air. Not all cars can benefit from this modification, as it’s sometimes hard to get the air filter in a position to scoop up that cooler outside air. Check at your local parts store to see if they have a cold air intake for your specific vehicle.
Your car came from the factory built for long life and easy maintenance. The engineers at the factory have programmed your engine computer to err on the safe side at the sacrifice of more power. Aftermarket companies now produce computer chips, which will alter your engine computer and help it run at peak efficiency. For a little more than $150 you can pick up 10 – 30 HP by just changing your engine computer chip. Not bad for about an hours worth of work.
The old saying, nothing beats cubic inches is still true today, but unfortunately the new cars available today no longer come with 426 Hemi engines under the hood. Most of today’s cars do not have the room for bigger engines, so what is a car guy to do? Turbo charging or super charging is the answer for today’s cubic inch challenged engines.
Normally aspirated engines use outside air to fill the combustion chamber. To maintain the proper air/fuel ratio to support combustion, the engine can only burn so much fuel dictated by the size of the cylinders. This is why a larger displacement engine can produce more power, since the cylinders are larger, they can burn more fuel. In a turbo or super charged engine, the air coming into the cylinder is compressed and thus contains more oxygen, therefore requiring more fuel to completely burn. This gives you an increase in power, without adding more size to the cylinders. If you can cram twice the air and fuel into the same cylinder, you have just doubled the displacement and power of your engine.
This is a very simple overview of how a turbo charger or supercharger works, and there are some downsides to both systems, but you can now see why this method of making horsepower is used commonly on today’s street machines. If you are interested in adding a turbo or super charger to your vehicle, check around and see what kits are readily available for your vehicle. Start at your local parts store, or on the Internet to do your research. It won’t come cheap, but you can add 50 – 150 HP in about a weekend’s time and have the fastest car on the block.
Posted: 13th June 2006 | Author: Kevin Schappell | Category: Engine, Exhaust
Life expectancy of turbo engine
Question:
I am looking to buy a new car and have narrowed it down to 3. The Mazda3s Grand Touring, the GTI 2.0t, and the Honda Civic si. My last two car’s were tried and true Corolla’s. Both lasted longer than I would have expected (about 300,000) – but I want a change.
I’ve always steered clear of Turbo’d engines thinking that they either burn out over time, or burn the engine up just by their nature. But in all honesty all I know is the concept, and not the actual detail. With the high miles that I intend to put on a car in a short amount of time, should I discount the GTI due to the inevitable failure, or extra maintenance that may be involved in keeping it going?
–Jordan
Answer:
I think you have a valid concern about turbo charged engines, especially if you are looking to put on 300,000 miles. I would discount the GTI unless the extra performance outweighs the additional maintenance, that would be a personal decision.
If you do decide to go with the GTI, here are a few things to help it last longer… The bearings of the turbo charger are typically cooled with engine oil, so changing your oil at recommended intervals is very important, also letting the engine cool down before shutting it off, will allow the oil to cool some and not break down in the turbo and turn to sludge. I would also use synthetic oil in any engine, but especially in a turbo charged one.
There are turbo timers on the market which will keep the engine running for a set interval after you remove the key. I used one on my twin turbo Stealth with good luck, you just have to be careful where you park and use the emergency brake. Since you have to leave the car in neutral (if it’s a manual transmission) you are only relying on the emergency brake. If I had to park on a big hill, I would not leave the turbo timer on and rely on just the emergency brake to hold the car.
If you are looking to get 300,000 miles, I would also resist the urge to modify the engine in anyway to get more performance. A high flow filter or exhaust would be ok, but turning up the boost with a chip would not help the life of the turbo.
Also your driving style will dictate to some extent how long your turbo engine lasts. If you are putting on a lot of highway miles with a steady foot, you won’t be using the turbo that much and the life will be extended. If you are racing stoplight to stoplight, then I would be a little more concerned.
Good Luck in your decision,
Kevin
Posted: 9th June 2006 | Author: Kevin Schappell | Category: Engine
Cracked Piston Replacement
Question:
It’s a lovely site and easy to understand for people who are not mechanically inclined. My garageman said one of the pistons is cracked and therefore he must change all the pistons. Is that true? Why not just change the one that’s cracked?
Thank you,
Mrs. A
Answer:
It is general practice to change all the pistons at once. If one piston is cracked, there is a good chance the others will crack in short time. When replacing the piston, the cylinder walls sometime need to be remachined, and at least honed, to allow the new rings to seat. It is important for the rings to seat properly or your engine will not have good compression and may burn oil. The labor to replace one piston or all of them is not much more, and the pistons are generally purchased in sets, so his advice to replace all pistons is good.
Kevin
Posted: 11th May 2006 | Author: Kevin Schappell | Category: Engine
Valve Seal Replacement
Question:
There’s a good chance I have to replace my valve seals on my ’98 Jeep GC – 5.9 since I am using up 5 qts of oil in about 4-5 mos, no leaks nor smoke except at start-up. How much damage am I causing by not repairing it ASAP ?
How much does a repair like this cost ? Am I better off going to a dealership or a private mechanic ? Everyone knows dealerships will charge an arm and a leg and your 1st born.
Thanks for taking the time to answer.
Regards,
Tom
Answer:
As long as you keep the oil level up, I would not be too worried about the damage being done to the engine. You may be wearing out the spark plugs a little sooner due to having to burn that oil and the deposits left on the plug. I would estimate between 4 and 8 hours of labor depending on how involved it is to get to the seals. If it is an overhead cam engine, expect a little more time, but I believe the 5.9 is a V-8 with the camshaft in the block. The seals themselves are usually very cheap and the expense of the job is mostly in the labor.
Good Luck,
Kevin
Posted: 5th May 2006 | Author: Kevin Schappell | Category: Engine, Oil & Lubrication
Bent Valves and How to Diagnose
Question:
Hey Kevin,
I have a 1990 mitsubishi ecl. 2.0l l4 turbo ic fi.
Would the car start and or idle if the valves were
bent.
Thankyou,
Pam
Answer:
It is possible for the valves to be bent and the engine still run. It probably would not run very strong, but it could run and idle. The best way to check for bent valves, would be to have your mechanic run a compression test and see if there is air leaking past the valves. If the valves are bent, the mechanic will be able to hear air leaking into the exhaust or intake, depending on which valves are bent.
Kevin Schappell
Posted: 7th April 2006 | Author: Kevin Schappell | Category: Engine
