How To Gain Five Horsepower Quickly

Do you know how to gain several horsepower in a matter of days ? For a pretty low budget ? I mean very low ... Do I get your attention?

Well, the truth is, it's really possible to gain a lot of power over the next couple of days for less than $25.00 USD. Here is the "recipe", you will realize there is no magic, just simple and effective tricks.

Use Synthetic Oil

The use of synthetic oil will add from one to two 2 horsepower instantly, because it reduces the friction in your engine, improves efficiency, and therefore gets the engine to work faster. Multiple studies conducted over the years have supported this simple fact.

Insulate Fuel Lines

As the fuel travelling through the engine bay heats up, it produces less power. If you can cool it down then you increase the power of the engine. You can do just that by wrapping the fuel lines with refrigerator/air conditioning insulation. For better results, extend the insulation to the intake arm.

Index your spark plugs

This is an old trick, guaranteed to add one horsepower. The objective is to "aim" the open end of the spark plug terminal towards the intake side of the head. In order to do that, mark on the plug a small line to indicate where this gap is, and install the plug as normal.

Then, align the line with the intake side as best as you can. You may need 2 sets of spark plugs to do this, just in case you fail to succeed the first time around. Please be careful not to over-tighten the aluminum heads, otherwise it may cause some costly damage.

Increase the water ratio in your coolant

The cooler the engine, the better it performs. It is a proven fact that pure water cools much better than the engine coolant. However, the use of 100% pure water would create corrosion and freezing issues. What's the solution ? Kind of in-between ...

Typically, the engine coolant is mixed with water in a 50/50 ratio. Try to increase the proportion of water to 55% or 60%. Don't use water only. DO NOT use pure water as this may cause premature corrosion. Consult with your mechanic and discuss the "safe" way to add water content without any side effects.

Relocate the Intake Air Temperature Sensor

This is a very effective trick for fuel injected vehicles. The Intake Air Temperature sensor informs the computer on the temperature of the incoming air. The amount and timimg of fuel being injected is adjusted based on that reading.

In several vehicles, the Intake Air Temperature sensor is located in the intake manifold, near the cylinder head. The air temperature in that area is much higher. If you relocate the sensor to the intake arm it will cause the computer to believe that the incoming air is slightly cooler, causing it to inject more fuel and advance the timing a bit.

If you relocate the sensor you will have to patch up the old port. This operation will require a bit of welding work and needs to be well done to avoid problems. Check with your local mechanic if you are not comfortable to do it yourself.

There you go! The above are simple, yet inexpensive ways to add horsepower quickly. Have a great ride!