Let’s face it — when you drive a brand new car off a dealership lot, it only comes stocked with just enough to offer a smooth and enjoyable ride.
While your shiny new whip may possess leather interior, a sunroof, seat warmers, a backup camera, or other luxury features, it’s unlikely that your car will come loaded with high-quality performance upgrades.
Especially if you’re a car guru who takes pride in the way your car looks and feels, you want to be able to show it off and maneuver it in ways that most drivers can’t. This means a few mods are going to be needed.
Here are seven of the top upgrades to consider when looking to improve your car’s performance.
1. Performance Brake Pads
One of the first mods you’ll want to make is upgrading to performance brake pads.
As you’re making big changes to your car’s performance, safety should always be the priority. Given all of the other upgrades that are likely to impact your car’s speed and power, you’re going to need your braking system operating at peak levels.
Performance brake kits typically come with rotors, pads, shims, and hardware — everything you need to install them yourself!
2. Performance Tires
If you plan to make modifications that boost your car’s power, you’re also going to need to make a few handling upgrades.
More specifically, one of the areas you’ll want to improve is your car’s traction. Without the appropriate grip, your vehicle won’t be able to keep up.
Not to mention, the repercussions of poor traction can be significant. In fact, tire failure and brake failure are the two most common causes for mechanical failure-related road accidents.
This means that you’re likely going to need a better set of tires than the ones that came equipped with your car.
Performance tires will give you the necessary responsiveness and precision to not only complement your vehicle’s extra power but also navigate a wider range of weather conditions.
3. Forced Induction
Now for the really fun stuff!
If you want to transform your whip into a race car, you’ll need to turn your naturally aspirated vehicle into one that uses forced induction — the process of delivering compressed air into your engine.
You can achieve this by installing a turbocharger or supercharger, either of which will increase your engine’s output.
These kinds of changes don’t only boost your car’s horsepower by upwards of 150 but also give you the potential for better gas mileage.
4. Spark Plugs
Although spark plugs are seemingly minor components of your car’s system, they play a critical role in your engine’s functionality.
In many cases, upgrading your standard, aging spark plugs to premium spark plugs can improve your car’s performance significantly, allowing for better combustion and fuel economy.
The best part is that swapping out your spark plugs is an extremely affordable modification. Cheap spark plugs may cost you only a few bucks, and a deal on a set of high-end spark plugs might not cost a whole lot more!
5. Nitrous Kit
For short bursts of added horsepower, consider adding a nitrous kit to your ride.
When nitrous oxide is heated, it produces a large amount of oxygen that is capable of giving your vehicle a sudden burst of power.
You will need to make sure, however, that your use of nitrous is in compliance with state laws. It’s worth noting that, while you may have no issues installing your nitrous kit, the use of nitrous is prohibited outside of a traditional racing setting in most states.
6. Cold Air Intake
Naturally, your car is equipped with factory intake plumbing. However, this doesn’t necessarily prevent your engine from heating up; and we all know that the more cold air you can feed your engine, the better.
By installing a performance cold air intake, you’ll be able to create better airflow, with colder air, and even boost your car’s horsepower.
Not to mention, this is even an upgrade you can perform on your own!
7. Full Exhaust
Your stock-standard exhaust might not be doing your vehicle (or the environment) any favors. A full exhaust, on the other hand, uses a more efficient design and better materials, which creates a better pathway for gases to flow.
This means that everything gets a boost — your car’s power and sound, as well as its overall fuel efficiency.
Plus, full exhaust systems are much better for the environment. As transportation is already responsible for over 55% of NOx emissions in the U.S., anything you can do to reduce your carbon footprint should be considered.
5th May 2020
