Ok, you're almost finished with your new engine - all the machine work is done and you're ready to assemble. But, you're starting to worry about power - it won't be enough. Now what?

Well, this is no time to fiddle with cubic inches, compression or new cylinder heads, but there are still things you can do to help power that won't require starting from scratch.

Camshaft
If you've got enough piston-to-valve clearance (measure it, don't assume) and you're not sure about your cam choice, maybe it's time to sell it and try again. For more power focus on picking the right intake duration and then getting as much lift as possible for that duration. Make sure the valve springs (and your maintenance schedule) can handle the increased stress from a more aggressive lobe design.

Rocker Arms
More intake rocker ratio can be a real help - especially if you think the cam is a fuzz short on duration. In addition to the warnings above, make sure the increased rocker ratio won't create clearance problems between the side of the pushrods and cylinder head. A rough estimate for the piston-to-valve clearance lost with a 0.1 increase in rocker ratio is 0.1 x lobe lift @ TDC (a spec listed by most cam companies).

Intake Manifold
Not a ton of power to be found here, but an easy swap. If your manifold was designed 40 years ago (many were), you may want to look at some of the newer offerings. Also, don't get all caught up in having a perfect gasket match - As long as the manifold port is smaller, but not radically smaller, than that of the cylinder head, you'll be fine. Don't believe me? Back to back it on the dyno.

Carb Spacer
Most applications will benefit (max power) from having the tallest carb spacer the hood will allow. Try a 4-hole spacer nicely blended into an open - It doesn't work on all applications, but it works more often than not.

Carburetor
If your carburetor still has a choke tower on it, you're leaving at least 1ohp on the table. Upgrade to a newer high flow model or modify the one you've got - which is not that hard.

Headers
Not that cheap anymore, but a simple bolt on. If your headers are the wrong tube diameter, replace them. If you think you've got the right tube diameter, then cut off the collectors and get a set of merge models - they do work. Buy the slip on models if you want to do some tube length testing by adding extensions between the header and collector, or if you want to try different collectors down the road.

Oil Pan
Wet or dry sump, anything you can do to get the oil away from the crankshaft will help free up horsepower. In fact, it's impossible, from a power standpoint, to get the oil pan too big or too deep. And when you're done, don't defeat the whole purpose by adding more oil to the pan.

Source: www.RacingSecrets.com

Here at ER, we are often lucky enough to get to try out and test a variety of products from different companies.  One of our most recent companies whose products we tested really impressed us, SpeedHut. This established company offers automotive gauges; tachometers, speedometers and the like. A few things impressed us with these guys... Product Selection:  A lot of manufacturers of these type of products only offer universal versions.  Now, that's all fine and dandy, but what about when you do not want to buy a pillar to hold everything?  That's when you need to go custom.

Why not take out you stock tachometer and replace it with a custom one that will fit perfectly?  Why not take that ugly clock out of the dash and put something useful in it's place?  They offer a variety of stock fitted replacements and global sized gauges to fit in your pods too.

Customization:  Have you ever seen a tach with your name on it?  Have you ever seen one that had someone's car club name on it?  Maybe you want to convince your girlfriend to get into cars.  You have the perfect idea.  You'll make her a pink speedometer with Hello Kitty. SpeedHut is the only company that we know of that offers total customization.  You can pick your colors, add words, logos, whatever.  Even better, you can do it all from the comfort of your home by visiting their online store.

Reputation:   One search on google for these guys and you will see why they have been in business for so long.  Their reputation is spotless.  By being dedicated to one-on-one customer support, allowing group buys and guarantees these guys have built a well-deserved reputation of excellence.

Price:  We all know how expensive new gadgets for your car can be.  These guys have to pay their bills too, but their prices seem to be considerably less than the competition... and a lot better product.  Pick yourself up a new boost gauge for a lot less.  Now, maybe you'll have enough left over to buy your girlfriend her new present.

Warranty:  It's always scary spending money on something new.  Will it work?  More importantly... will it last?  With these guys you don't need to worry about anything.  Yes, it will work.  Their reputation proves it.  Yes, it will last.  They offer a Life-Time Warranty.  I don't know about you, but I haven't seen any of their competitors offer that.

Posted Jun 12th 2007 4:54PM by Sam Abuelsamid
Filed under: Sports/GTs, Euro, Green