There are lots of reasons to want smoother and more powerful performance out of your vehicle. You don’t necessarily need a sports car or want to take your vehicle to the race track—nor do you necessarily need to be a mechanic to get the best performance out of your vehicle. Whether you want to get more enjoyment out of your daily commute or increase endurance and power while driving for pleasure, here are some ways to get a more powerful and enjoyable ride by enhancing your engine’s performance.

Ways to Improve Engine Performance

(Tim Mossholder/unsplash)

Understanding Your Engine

If you want more power, you should first know how the engine works. In a nutshell, the engine mixes fuel and air, causing it to burn, which then turns into power. The smoother and better the engine moves cold air and fuel through to exhaust out of the vehicle the more torque and horsepower it will be able to produce. There are lots of small tweaks and bigger changes that you can do, depending on how much power you want to draw out from your engine, that will allow you to enhance your vehicle’s engine performance.

1. Utilize Quality Synthetic Lubricants

Oil lubricants work to ensure that your engine’s components run smoothly and minimize component wear and overall friction. Motor oil comes in different varieties. But if you want something durable for all-temperature use, then you should choose a synthetic variety.

Synthetic lubricants perform better and don’t break down as quickly as conventional oil when the motor gets hot. As such, they are a better lubricant for high-performance and high mileage vehicles. In addition, you might also choose to use an oil additive to improve certain aspects of lubricants in your engine.

2. Make Sure to Have Good Compression

As wear and tear begin to affect the parts of your engine, your engine will lose compression pressure. This loss will lead to reduced performance and power for your vehicle. One way that you can help restore compression and repair the wear between engine components is to use an oil supplement meant for compression repair, which can help seal leaks and restore your engine parts to their original compression pressure. It can be difficult to tell whether your vehicle is losing compression pressure, but here are some possible signs.

  • Losing Oil: If your oil level drops, this shows there could be a leak somewhere.
  • Lower Gas Mileage: If your gas mileage has decreased but your driving habits have stayed the same, you need to take a look at the engine.
  • Blue Exhaust Smoke: If your engine is not burning its fuel thoroughly, then there may be some loss in compression.
  • Strange Noises: If you hear unusual noises in your engine, and it’s accompanied by any of the above issues, then you may want to consider improving your engine compression.

3. Check the Ignition

Your ignition system needs to be working properly in order to get your engine to attain peak performance. In particular, if the spark plugs are mistimed then this will sap the engine of power. However, unless a major problem arises in the ignition system, your vehicle may not send an error code. If you think this might be a problem, visit your trusted Utah auto repair technician today.

4. Install a Cold Air Intake (CAI) System

Colder air is denser than warmer air. Because engines burn colder, denser air better, feeding your engine cold air increases engine power. To help your engine burn more powerfully, you can choose to install a cold air intake system, which includes an air filter that brings colder air into the engine.

5. Lighten Your Vehicle’s Load

An easy, cosmetic fix to maximize your vehicle’s engine performance is to clear out the interior and trunk of your car. The more your vehicle carries, the more the engine has to work to keep up. By removing what you don’t need in your trunk and car interior, you can help your vehicle to run easier.

If you have removable seats in the back for extra storage space, you might take them out so that your vehicle can run even lighter. If you usually carry a lot of extra weight in your vehicle, then this could make a sizable difference in your engine’s performance.

6. Use High-Quality Fluids

Using high-quality fluids, as well as additional treatment products, can go a long way in keeping your engine working smoothly at high performance. The kinds of fluids you put into your vehicle, including the quality of engine oil or gasoline, can make a big difference in how well your vehicle will run. Using specific treatment products can also help conventional fluids to function like high-quality products. You can also find other products to help remove deposits and improve engine parts to help older vehicles perform as well as ever.

7. Keep Good Maintenance Habits

Maintaining your vehicle is key to taking care of your engine so that it can perform at its best. Keep an eye on whether your engine parts are working properly. Be sure to change your oil regularly. Old oil gets dirty and can eventually lead to engine damage. Keep the engine filters clean and replace them regularly. If you don’t, a clogged filter will reduce your vehicle’s efficiency. Check your manual for maintenance intervals and stick to them.

Remember that neglecting your vehicle’s basic maintenance will lead to increased damage to your engine, and using the best additives or other products will not necessarily counteract the damage that you might avoid by doing basic maintenance. If you want your vehicle to run at its best, take care of it with simple maintenance and upkeep.

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