Since car guys are as different as the cars people drive I think it would be a interesting topic to see what you guys prefer to increase HP. Examples would be increase displacement, higher rpm (cam), increase flow (heads), forced induction, etc.
Since each of these would increase power explain your reasoning. Here is a example. “I think the best way to increase power is with better heads. Since most factory heads can be improved, and porting or aftermarket heads can yield a significant increase in some cases and gives you a higher output over the whole power range without sacrificing fuel mileage.”
Since some wouldn’t care quite so much about mileage they may choose a higher cam as their choice for increasing power instead.
No replacement for displacement. Bigger engines are my favorite way to go.
However, good use of VVL has enabled me to use a high performance mid size V8 without sacrificing fuel efficiency. Thus providing a good amalgamation of the two.
Are we talking about real engines or in automation?
In real life I have 0 experience modifying a engine, but I guess I will go with little things, like chip, air filter, maybe a less restrictive exhaust, but I think I won’t gain much HP with those things. If I had a project car, I will supercharge it
DMV mostly uses better heads and VVL tuning. Forced induction is used in our smaller models and one of our high performance cars (one has a twin turbo 3.5L V8, the other has a 5.7L V12).
seeing he mentioned porting, i assume IRL. you can’t do that in automation
although personally, from the easiest to upgrade i’d say
first, the stuff you’d likely be able to do yourself in a day max.
performance filters
better ignition coils and spark plugs, due to increasing air coming in, the ecu is likely to compensate slightly. and a better electrical system never hurt anyway.
exhaust systems (after the header)
exhaust headers
even if you do the first 4, the gain in performance is likely to be surprisingly acceptable, like 1-3% increase in not rare. not to mention slightly better mileage, and better sounds
now to the slightly heavier stuff
port and polish
more aggresive cam replacement
ECU retune/ aftermarket ECU
anything after that is going considered relatively heavy mod i’d say
like, boring and stroking up, or putting a bolt-on turbo/supercharger.
but on my bike, i skipped all that and hopped to replacing the block with a bigger bore one. since it was leaking and burning oil, and need to replace the block, conrod, and piston anyway, and it cost nearly the same as staying with the same capacity, so why the fuck not?!
but now i’m having the problem of the engine burbling at mid range if don’t open the throttle enough. like it’s getting too rich specifically at mid range only, even when i didn’t retune my carb, which should’ve made it leaner, not richer.
right now, i’m thinking of getting a aftermarket CDI+coil+plug, but it seems like the rocker arm on it is on the edge of breaking, i might end up fixing that and replacing the camshaft first.
With the 302 I am rebuilding, it currently has a few “bolt-ons” like an aftermarket intake manifold for a (aftermarket) Holly 4bbl carb, maybe a lumpier cam, exhaust headers, performance distributor and wires & plugs.
Another possibility is to find a good set of heads for it as well.
I’m an N/A guy. I prefer to go the naturally aspirating route if I can.
Better intake and exhaust should be the first thing you do. Doesn’t help to stick a whopping great turbo on your car or a supercharger if it’s trying to suck up your stock air filter and fart through your stock exhaust.
Then, if I were going to go any further, despite my car being a 4-cylinder, I’d want to supercharge it. Low end grunt and a smooth power band, rather than the sudden surge available from a big turbo.
yeah, bigger intakes and exhausts are probabIy the easiest way. And that’s about all I’d trust myself to do on a car. If you’re talking serious increases, 200, 300+, Just let a professional tuner do it, like Saleen or Rousch.
Overall, I wouldn’t do anything major, unless the engine is underpowered. I’d try to get faster through other means. Grippier tires, limited-slip differential, lower drag coefficient, weight reduction, etc… But since the topic is hp increases, just some light tuning. Bigger throttle body, larger exhaust (although this is mostly for sound), high-flow catylitic converters, upgraded air filter (also mostly for the sound), and a light ecu tune to properly configure everything.
I was going for the fact that it’s possible to do exactly as I mentioned if you’ve got a factory turbocharged car.
Alternatively, if you’ve got a naturally-aspirated car, and you’re looking for an easy way to make power, you can’t go wrong with an intake and exhaust setup. One, it sets you up for further power increases (after all, dropping in high-compression pistons, forged internals, and flashing the ECU will do a lot of good, sure, but if it’s still sucking air through your factory intake and blowing air through your factory exhaust, you’ve left power on the table), and two, it’s fairly-simple bolt on stuff, rather than digging into your engine’s guts.
After all, a high-flow catalytic, performance muffler, and a cold air intake are all things that can technically be installed in your garage without too much in the way of specialized tools, and those three combined will make you a bit more power.
Yes, I know, technically installing a turbo wouldn’t take much more effort than what I’ve mentioned, but as you also said, if you’re going turbo, you’re already doing what I mentioned: upgrading your intake and exhaust.
When did that last bolt on part you bought simply bolt on? A common question to consider with aftermarket mods.
There’s also another way to gain horsepower, NITROUS!!!
On a serious note the biggest advantage to nitrous is that it isn’t always on. If you don’t need the extra power you’re not burning the extra fuel, but if you need that extra boost to climb a hill (For offroad applications) then hit it.
Of course there are some drawbacks…
Long story short, don’t use a larger shot than the engine can handle.
you know there’s an alternative to that that BMW are already using btw.
Water-Methanol Injection.
also, last bolt-on i did was an air filter, it took 5 minutes longer than expected, but done in 15-20 minutes and gives, eh, not as much as i was expecting, but not that bad either
Water-Methanol injection itself does not increase power. What it does is cool down parts of the induction system, reducing the risk of premature combustion. THEN one can go about making more power by adding compression, boost or ignition timing.
well i didn’t say replacement so… i’m technically correct
it does also allow more fuel to be pumped in while it’s active, which is where most of the extra power will be coming from.
but i do realise it might not give as much power boost as NOS.
but still, forced induction is still one of the best ways to gain significant amount of HP.
Richening up the fuel mixture actually has a similar effect to WMI with less added complexity, but with a noticeable negative effect on fuel economy and emissions.
what about ‘bogus’ parts that actually do something.
like those ‘power stabilizer’, or the things that doesn’t look like it will do anything, but actually does something
