Here Is How You Can Make Your Car Faster Without Modifying The Engine
Buying a car and then running it in stock condition is just not the American way. It is a right of passage to make your car more powerful and thereby faster. The experienced hand knows though, that modifying your engine is not that easy and if not done properly could lead to some disastrous results.
Engine modifications can also be quite an expensive affair and you might not know as much about engines to make such serious changes. If you are stuck in such a case does that mean you get left behind from all your pals? Don’t worry. We’ve got you covered. Here are some simple ways you can boost your car’s performance without having to increase the engine horsepower as such.
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One of the primary and most important aspects of improving your car’s performance is weight reduction. As physics taught us the heavier an object is, the more force is required to push it. A car carries quite a lot of heavy components, some of which are even unnecessary, especially in the pursuit of speed. As a result, a good part of the engine power goes behind pushing the weight of the car into motion. If the excess weight is lost, that power will be used towards more speed.
Simply put, a Bugatti Veyron is insanely fast and can do top speeds of Formula 1 cars. But a Formula 1 car has a power-to-weight ratio of over 1,000 brake horsepower per ton while a Bugatti being a much heavier car has a power-to-weight ratio of a little more than 500 brake horsepower per ton.
Making your car lighter by, say, fitting sports seats and lighter wheels can improve your car’s performance significantly. Yes, look away from those fancy 20-inch rims and get yourself some lighter rims.
One of the primary requirements for any internal combustion engine is good airflow. Proper air flow allows more air to go into the engine which provides better combustion since oxygen is a key element for fire. You can upgrade your regular air intake system by replacing it with a proper performance air filter or cold air intake that can increase airflow to the engine and provide more boost.
It is also important to note that higher air intake has to be complemented with higher air outlets. You let your car take in all the air it wants but if you do not let that air out, it will not matter. So, as such, it would not be a terrible idea to invest some money on a higher capacity exhaust that lets the car breathe more freely. Plus the exhaust note couldn’t hurt, right?
Another method of improving your car’s performance is by improving the brakes. Now how is a contraption that is built for stopping cars going to help a car go faster? Well, upgraded brakes allow you to brake much later into the corners thus allowing you to stay on the throttle longer, meaning that you keep an average higher speed for longer. Moreover, upgraded brakes can also stand the intensity of constant hard braking. Upgraded brake pads, stainless steel brake lines, and performance rotors can improve your car’s performance by leaps and bounds.
If you want your car to go fast, performance tires and sports-tuned suspension require your attention. Replacing regular tires with performance tires can improve your car’s handling and traction, especially while going around corners. Performance tires reduce rolling friction while also sticking to the road to prevent the car from spinning off as much as possible.
Sports-tuned suspension can be firm, and if you are willing to sacrifice comfortable ride quality, then these tuned suspensions will come of good use when you are sitting in the car with your foot hard down. The firm suspension helps maintain the weight of the car on all 4-wheels as much as possible thereby preventing body roll that is seen in cars with soft suspensions trying to take a corner too hard. During hard turnings or hard acceleration, G-forces push the car in the opposite direction usually causing a large amount of body roll and in many cases even causing the car to spin off. The hard suspension prevents unequal distribution of weight and keeps the car on all 4 wheels, allowing you to corner absolutely flat.
Another minor but important addition you can make to your car to make it go faster is a front splitter. While, on the face of it, it may seem quite useless, it actually helps cut the air in front of the car thereby reducing friction and resistance which means that the car can push harder and reach higher speeds. It’s the same concept of running a car ahead of your car to punch a hole through the air so your car faces lesser air resistance and can go faster. In Formula 1 this phenomenon is called towing. Though a splitter will not create the same effect as driving down someone’s slipstream, it still has a considerable edge and takes a few seconds off of your lap times.
Today there are many types of engines that are fitted to various types of cars. So it is quite understandable if the entire task of engine modification and tuning seems daunting to some. Fortunately enough, you do not need an engineering degree to make your car fast. One of the simplest and easiest ways to ensure your car provides top-notch performance at all times is by ensuring that it is kept in good nick. And if you still want it to go faster, you can try our tips without having to modify your engine or having to dig too deep into your pocket. It is always hilarious to drive a fast car as long as one follows the rules and drives responsibly.
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