Bolt-ons = more HP, What about measurable acceleration improvements?

spearfish25

Naturally like the rest of you, I've been very excited to see the great WHP gains achieved by the bolt-ons available thus far. When reading through one thread, someone who had done the headers, intakes, HFCs, and CBE estimated that the total increase in WHP was in the ballpark of 40hp. I know many people have said they feel a difference with their bolt-ons, but has anyone clocked acceleration times to see just what kind of gains this 40-50whp really gets us?

Essentially, these additions get about 20% more whp than stock. If this made the car run a 0-60 in 4.2s or a 12sec quarter mile, I'd be having a garage sale tomorrow to raise the cash to buy the bolt-ons. However, if this makes the car 0.1sec faster, the gain is merely a better exhaust note and the accolades attained by showing off your modded car.

So, anyone have some 0-60 or quarter mile times to document the acceleration gains from the bolt-ons? I'm dying to know what they amount to.

RCZ

uh, its going to be closer to .1 better hehe. Maybe .2 on a good day.

Modshack

Knowing HP and weight, the numbers are easily calculated.
...RCZ is right though, It's not much. Use this calculator and plug in 3500 lbs (approx. real weight with a driver) for the weight and target wheel horsepower. The difference from 275 to 300 is less than .4 seconds...

1/4 Mile ET Calculator

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spearfish25

This is my concern...why risk warranty issues and CELs (perhaps minor risks, but real none the less) if I'm not really getting more in real world use? Now if I did the bolt-ons and started smoking the corvettes that were passing me on the last HPDE day, I'd be under the car installing them right now . The exhaust sound with the full kit is still sweet though.

spearfish25

Found a calculator for 0-60 as well. Granted this is a ballpark figure and it uses flywheel HP. 332HP gets you 4.9s, 370 drops it to 4.5s.

Modshack

Assuming an Expert driver.....

I agree...You need to make big jumps (turbo or supercharging) to really make signifcant gains..

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spearfish25

I suppose the takeaway for me is that one can do the the bolt-ons for a few, varying reasons:

1) slowly add improvement on improvement until the gains are considerable
2) do the bolt-ons because you enjoy the process or aesthetic improvements
3) need the bolt-ons as a primer for other, larger modifications

In the end, a single bolt-on modification alone is really only beneficial if you're changing an aesthetic (exhaust sound) or prepping for some other addition (turbo, etc). If you think just putting on an intake or a HFC alone is going to make your car noticeably faster, you're really just fooling yourself.

m4a1mustang

I get the feeling that you're new to this. Not a bad thing... that's just what I get from reading the above.

Bolt-ons aren't just for aesthetics. They make a noticeable improvement.

Assuming we can take off .4 seconds in the 1/4 mile (let's say the car goes 13.3 stock) and run a 12.9... you're going to feel the hell out of that. If you can't, something is seriously wrong with your butt dyno.

I remember a simple throttle-body + intake plenum combo I added to my old Mustang. It was only good for a peak 5rwhp, but it sure as hell felt like a ton more. Why? Because I picked up 18 rwhp at 3800 RPM and averaged a 12ish rwhp gain through the mid-range. Huge difference in feel.

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spearfish25

I'm certainly new to this...let me be the first to admit it.

You kind of confirmed what I said though. Bolt-on changes alone may just be aesthetic. But in combination, the combined gains can be substantial. To take off 0.4sec, you have to do ALL the bolt-ons. Just doing, say, the HFCs won't amount to much in terms of difference in the numbers but perhaps the butt dyno gain is worth it just for the fun of it.

To add to this, I have the only 370Z in the area that I'm aware of. Thus, I have yet to experience a 370Z with any of these bolt-ons so I surely don't have any grasp of how any of them feel or sound.

Somebody with bolt-ons come on by to give me a ride-along so I can experience what I'm missing with my stock Z.

FricFrac

... who cares about the 1/4 mile unless you are street light racing. This car was made to go around corners fast! A few 1/10ths of a second per lap on a small track can make a big difference... of course its the driver that can also make the bigger difference than HP in shaving (or adding) those 10ths...

Even without the performance boost the exhaust is a gotta do upgrade - the Z should sound like it looks!

tru_Asiatik

a .5 sec difference is a big gap on the strip
i kinda learned the hardway my first time in the strip with my celica

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m4a1mustang

Yeah, half a second is huge.

Rough math here but if you pass the finish line at a constant 105 mph you will have traveled 77 feet from the line in half a second, which is roughly the length of 5.5 370Zs positioned nose-to-tail.

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m4a1mustang

Do the HFCs and I bet you're going to realize they aren't just "aesthetic."

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tru_Asiatik

yup lost to a 350 with the celi by like 3 sec and it seemed like he was 30 cars away lol

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spearfish25

Well. Maybe I'll just do that...