Thursday, May 16, 2013

5 Ways to Improve Engine Response
  • Open the pod bay doors, HAL.
There's actually a good reason your car's computer might be limiting engine response. Fuel economy is the biggest one. Hard acceleration is one of the biggest fuel drains on the road. By dampening engine response, the computer can save fuel. That saves you cash and also gets the car a better fuel economy rating. Since car companies have to hit a certain average fuel economy rate for all their models, limiting engine response benefits them as well. In some cases, however, the electronic throttle control systems on some cars are just not well-engineered, leading to poor engine response and delays between the driver's request for more engine power and the car actually delivering it.

  • Sense the Problem
Two main sensors are usually the culprits for bad engine responsiveness: the mass air flow sensor and the engine speed sensor. The mass air flow sensor (MAF) measures and reports on the airflow into the engine so the computer can request the appropriate amount of fuel. If the MAF is bad, the engine won't be getting the correct amount of fuel, which will throw off the engine's combustion (we're talking about internal combustion engines, after all) and decrease engine response.
  • Do Some Lines
The fuel pump sends fuel from the gas tank to the engine, but that fuel has to get there somehow. That's where the fuel lines come in. A leak or a kink in your fuel lines, even a tiny one, can rob your engine of performance. Because the fuel lines won't be able to maintain the pressure needed to transport the fuel through the lines, a car with a leaky fuel line won't respond quickly to driver inputs. The fuel lines are like train tracks: If there's a problem with the tracks, the train won't be coming through -- at least not a full speed.

  • Get PUMPED!
Most cars today use an electric fuel pump (but if your car has a carbureted engine, it will likely have a mechanical fuel pump). There are two types of electric fuel pumps: suction type and pusher-type. True to their name, sucker-type fuel pumps suck fuel from the tank by creating a vacuum. Pusher-type pumps are placed in a car's gas tank and push gas to the engine. They should really try to make these pump names less complex.

  • Cough it Up
One of the easiest ways to improve engine and throttle response is by making sure your fuel filter is clean. When you stomp on the gas pedal, it sends a signal for more fuel to go into the engine. To get there, it has to pass through the fuel filter (which filters out impurities and sediment, keeping your engine clean). Asking and engine with a clogged or dirty fuel filter to respond to throttle input is like asking someone to sprint with a muddy towel over their nose and mouth. They can probably do it, but it won't be pretty

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