6 Ways To Increase Horsepower In A 4 -Cylinder Engine Car

Most of the cars you see on the road today are four-cylinder engine cars. Its advantages include small and compact, which makes it fit easily in nearly any engine bay. It’s also lightweight, and with only one exhaust manifold, weight is further reduced. With only one cylinder head and a few moving parts than engines with multiple cylinder banks.

They are versatile in modern vehicles, one may be disappointed with the power they produce. There are several steps that can be taken to get more horsepower from a 4-cylinder engine. There are many different ways to get better engine performance. Modern technology and advancements in transportation and engineering, automakers have finally come up with ways to improve one of the most versatile components in a vehicle (The horsepower).

It’s no doubt that anything is possible and increasing the horsepower of one’s car isn’t left out. There are a number of ways to pull more power out of the four-cylinder motor in your car or truck. Depending on your budget and skill set, you may choose to pursue a number of options, but be aware that many of these modifications may void your warranty.

Here are some steps to increase your horsepower;

Maintain your vehicle

Owning a vehicle comes with extra responsibility and one of such is proper vehicle maintenance. One way of carrying out the above stated is by following instructions and directives provided in the vehicle’s manual.

It is important that fluids such as oil are changed routinely. Ensure that air and fuel filters are periodically replaced. This allows free airflow into the engine.

Install a cold air intake

Installing a cold air intake is one sure way to improve a car’s horsepower. To install a cold air intake, you would first need to remove your car’s stock intake tube and airbox that surrounds the air filter.

When air is compressed it will increase in temperature. However, when air is hot, it will not expand much when it ignites. To ensure that the most expansion occurs on combustion, the air should be cold. So a cold air intake is key. Most superchargers tend to have an intercooler that will chill the air before it goes into the cylinder. When you increase the amount of air that flows into your engine, you are also increasing your gas mileage. It, therefore, gives you big savings in the long run. However, most aftermarket intakes tend to produce an obvious noise during operation. This is their only downside since stock ones are a lot quieter.

Improve your car’s exhaust flow

A car’s exhaust refers to a  system that is responsible for conveying burnt gases from the engine and may include one or more exhaust pipes. A car’s exhaust flow can be improved by replacing the portions of the exhaust with pipes that have larger diameters. This will reduce the backpressure that limits the speed that  the exhaust takes to the car’s engine.

Reprogram your vehicle’s computer

There are chances of reprogramming for contemporary car models as it is believed that lots of it’s activities and a number of variables are controlled by a computer. There are computers programmed to balance efficiency, emissions, reliability, power output and gas mileage. Reprogramming the computer to prioritize power can often free up horsepower without installing any new components. You can have the computer reprogrammed so that power can be prioritized. This way, more horsepower will be generated without having to install anything else on the vehicle. You can search the web or your locality for people or companies that offer computer replacement for your vehicle. This can be achieved in two ways; firstly, Your car’s present computer can be sent to a servicing company for reprogramming or you purchase another for it’s replacement.

Get a new throttle body

The throttle body is a tube containing a pivoting flat valve (butterfly) that is used to control the amount of air entering an engine. The throttle bodies are usually kept in place by four bolts. These will also require a new gasket that needs to be placed in between the intake manifold and the throttle body. installing a throttle body with a larger diameter will allow even more air to flow into the engine, resulting in an increase of power.It is important to note that a throttle body is often measured in millimeters.

Increase the Compression ratio

The compression ratio refers to the volume of the cylinder when the piston is at the bottom of its stroke versus the volume of the cylinder when the piston is at the top of its stroke. when the compression ratio increases, then a higher octane fuel is needed. Higher octane fuels will not combust too early. This is the reason why most high-performance vehicles require high octane fuel and this, in turn, will improve a car’s engine.