A couple Nissan GTRs over at DynoTech Tuning. They had a nice long dyno tuning session, that went late into the night. You can catch a short run on a dyno at the end of you don’t know what it’s like along with a horsepower readout.
Performance products are an essential part of this if you are looking to go for some big power tuning on the dyno. This is geared towards someone who is learning about this, as you may already know this.
If you don’t know about dyno tuning, this post is for you. More than likely, your type of car, if you haven’t modified it and are seeking some decent power, you will need a good baseline of performance products to allow the power and also to handle the power.
The list of performance products is as long as you can imagine. There are basically different levels, for some horsepower, more, more and more.
If you are not even in the seat of a car and are reading up to decide which path to go, you will want to look up the specifications of the car, mainly in forums where they all own that car, and research the potential it has for power, by itself and then with added modifications. This is with money mind. Without money in mind there is no limit to the power you can produce. This is speaking from the average reasonably modified cars that have anywhere between 200-1000 horsepower. Above that, then there is a lot more involved. Even 1000 is a decent amount that is going to cost some decent money, but the average cars out there are pretty much in between there. Above that and we are talking just about professional level drag cars on F1 type of thing.
You will start with the basic performance products to get started, such as a cold air intake or short ram intake, and exhaust. This allows the air to flow through less obstructed, which adds horsepower and raises fuel efficiency. No matter what you have, at the very least a clean air filter should always be in, and a high flowing even better, just for the slight extra potential gas mileage, alike the exhaust.
From there, now you decide how far you want to go, and what the options are for your particular car. A very common step from here is a turbo kit, with a bigger turbo. This is easily the biggest potential power adder and this, the most expensive external type of performance product pretty much you can add.
With a turbo kit, you need to find out the potential power your motor can handle, and also get a few parts to make sure all components can hold up, such as a clutch, and oftentimes a built motor for those looking to push the power over what their stocker can handle. With a turbo kit, you will also need to add a numkber of items such as an intercooler, fuel upgrades and a tuning device. This is just one upgrade path, though it’s being mentioned for it is one of the most common paths to take.
There is much more that could potentially be covered within the realm of performance products, yet hopefully this gives you the gist of it, so you can prepare yourself to make an educated decision.
Dyno Tuning is one form of tuning.
It isn’t the only sort of tuning, but it is the most popular and preferred by most. Other forms of tuning include street tuning, which isn’t preferable because for a decent tune, most cars need to go over the speed limit, and at the same time, it is free in comparison to the cost of dyno tuning, and it entails nearly the exact same load with real world conditions, giving a reasonably accurate tune.
Then there is tuning at the circuit where the car is being tuned for. This is another option, and some people do tune this way, whether doing 1/8th mile passes, or launches, or top end runs at the dragway, or by data-logging certain runs at the race track of choice, for a really accurate tune. This works well with drag racing, for a lot of drag racing is done in the low gears which often can’t be tuned on a dyno due to tire spin.
Tuning isn’t limited to any particular one of these couple examples, as a combination can be performed as well, such as a base dyno tune, and then final tweaks made at the racetrack, where the vehicle is run all out, or nearly all out, and then the data logs are looked over, tweaked, then logged again.
Tuning is a constant thing, that ideally is frequently monitored, for different conditions, such as air density and temperature have an effect on most tuning applications.
Of all these listed above, dyno tuning remains the most popular form of tuning, for the sheer convenience that the car is always there in one place, and the tuner or tuners can put all of their attention into the readings displayed, especially if something doesn’t seem right, like the air fuel mixture and knock readings, where they would want to shut the car down immediately.
For ideal dyno tuning, you or your tuner should have a familiarity with the car being tuned and it’s set up, and preferably some familiarity with the vehicle to be able to take an educated guess, with the given set of conditions, how the tune will be affected. That way they will be able to save time by starting off with a base tune, rather than working their way up from scratch. That isn’t an option, but when taking tuning costs into account, this way could still lead to a better cost for the tuning session if there isn’t a fixed price.
As with all topics, you need to do your research and ideally map out ahead of time your action plan for all of this, before jumping in, so you have a grasp of whether this is something for you and then possible for you.
Dyno Tuning For Performance
Dyno tuning for performance is where the real results come from. Dyno tuning for performance is both a skill and an art, that entails lots of tuning calculations, taking into account a whole manner of calculations and compensations for certain algorithms.
The first factor to take into consideration for performance tuning your vehicle is what sort of performance you are shooting for. For instance, the types of performance tunes for different events such as auto X, drag racing and track racing are all going to be different.
Some factors that the tuner takes into consideration in dyno tuning for performance are the possible conditions of the event, and then the optimal transference of your vehicles power to the ground in whichever event you are competing in.
The primary goal of a dyno tuning for performance is maximum power while still remaining in a safe operating zone.
Another aspect that needs to be considered is what the car’s limits are in the engine components. You will have basic specifications for your components, such as the rev limits for the top end, and the peak recommended horsepower for the bottom end components. A well build motor and an understanding of the ratings of it’s components is crucial before attempting a performance tune.
For instance, yes a turbo-charger has the capability of adding in excess of double the horsepower to any given set up, yet if the components aren’t built to handle it, it will blow up, fast.
Then you need to make sure all of the supporting modifications have the capacity to keep up with the desired result. You are only as powerful as the weakest link, such as a fuel pump or injectors that can’t produce the fuel necessitated to create the level of desired power.
Once you have a set up ready to go, you now want to decide on a tuner. You may want to research this and take a look at their track record, which you can do by asking around and observing their associations and customers.
Now you will need to do an assessment of what this going to cost, and meet an understanding and agreement with whatever tuner you decide to go with. It will be impossible for them to know exactly how long it will take. Hopefully they can give you an upfront accurate guess. This is where if you really don’t know, you may want to pay them to go over your car initially, as then they can give either a more acccurate estimate, or guide you to better prepare your car as to avoid wasting your money on an unsuccessful performance tuning session.
You will want to also find out ahead of time what all you will need for the tune itself. You will want to know ahead of time if there are any essential things you’re missing, such as a wideband, or a certain type of fuel to tune.
Bottom line is, do your research thoroughly to make this all as efficient as possible when you are set for a session of dyno tuning for performance.
This is just to give an explanation of what a dyno is, if you don’t know. This will be in layman’s terms. Dynamometer is another word used, but a dyno is more common in the car tuning and performance world, which is what is being addressed here.
A dyno is what is used to measure the horsepower of a vehicle. There are a number of places where the dyno measures it, including at the motor, brakes and wheels. That explains why you have heard of an engine dyno, and then the power to the wheels. At the brakes is called a chassis dyno.
There are also a few different styles of dynos. The more popular ones are Mustang Dyno, Land and Sea Dyno, Dynojet and Dyno Dynamics.
We will be talking about a Mustang Dyno, and primarily horsepower at the wheels. A Mustang Dyno, and Land and Sea are lower reading than a Dynojet, which are the 3 main types of dynos used in a lot of performance shops,
Dynojets read the highest, and are very popular for high horsepower readings, although for tuning, a loaded dyno such as a Mustang Dyno is preferred by a lot of tuners, for the tune is the closest to real world conditions. We will get into more of this later.
If you are looking for a mere horsepower reading, you will preferably want to go to the same dyno, as to have an accurate reading. If you go from a Dynojet over to a Mustang Dyno, A.K.A. the heartbreaker, you will see a bit less horsepower. Some shops will deny this, but look up any Dynojet versus Mustang Dyno real comparison in the same conditions.
A dynamometer has a large roller inside, and the wheels of the car are placed on it, and the car is strapped down.
Welcome to dyno tuning performance