Increasing Your Car's Horsepower: Top Mods and Parts for Engine Performance Gains

No matter what kind of driving you do, having extra horsepower can give your vehicle a serious boost. Adding a little more power to the engine can help you enjoy your time behind the wheel and fall back in love with your car. If you’ve ever asked yourself “how to make my car faster?”, you’re not alone. Fortunately, there are all kinds of ways to increase your vehicle’s horsepower to get more speed and better acceleration. Knowing some of the top mods and components for your car’s engine performance gains will help you make the right choice for yourself and take your car to the next level.

How to Have More Horsepower

If you’ve ever looked up “how to make my car faster”, you know that there are a lot of different methods for improving power output and engine efficiency. However, some methods require complete engine replacements or major component upgrades that could potentially be out of your budget range. Fortunately, some of the top mods are relatively inexpensive and easy to do while having a major impact on how your car performs and how it feels in the driver’s seat.

Turbochargers & Superchargers

Perhaps the most popular and well-known way to add horsepower to your vehicle is to install a turbocharger or supercharger. Turbochargers use excess exhaust gas to increase airflow into the engine and improve the combustion process. If you’re asking “how much HP does a turbocharger add?”, the answer depends on the component itself. A small turbo can add up to 50 horsepower while a larger turbo can add between 150 and 300 horsepower but will require some other modifications to the engine to ensure that it can handle the boost. Superchargers work much in the same way as turbochargers but they use the belt drive system of the engine instead of the exhaust gasses, so they can have a significant impact on the fuel efficiency of your car.

Cold Air Intake

If you’ve been wondering how to have more horsepower without making massive modifications or doing an entire engine replacement, a cold air intake is your best option. The cooler the air coming into your vehicle is, the more concentrated it will be with oxygen. More oxygen means a more efficient combustion process and you can improve your car’s power output as well as its gas mileage. Cold air intakes are installed either on the outside of the engine compartment or further away from the engine toward the hood. They are relatively simple devices that don’t require much in the way of installation and they can be incredibly effective.

High-Performance Exhaust

When asking “how to have more horsepower?”, the exhaust system may not be the first thing that comes to mind. However, improving the flow of exhaust can have a big effect on how your engine produces power. If exhaust can’t get out of the combustion chamber fast enough, you could end up with back pressure in the engine. Back pressure brings the power output down and puts a strain on engine components like the pistons and the camshaft. A high-performance exhaust system will reduce back pressure and ensure that your engine runs as efficiently as possible for maximum horsepower.

Aftermarket Headers

If you’re going to install a high-performance exhaust system on your car, it’s a good idea to also include some aftermarket headers. Upgrading your headers can improve exhaust scavenging and, like the upgraded exhaust system, reduce pressure in the combustion chamber, which encourages more power production. New headers can also beef up the tone of your engine and give it the sporty growl you’ve been looking for.

ECU Tuning

For drivers who have newer vehicles, reprogramming your car’s engine control unit, or ECU, is a great way to coax a little more horsepower out of it without making a lot of modifications or adding expensive components. Your ECU comes with stock programming for things like engine timing and the air-fuel ratio. However, most of the time, this is meant to be as fuel-efficient as possible so manufacturers can get the best rating from the EPA, and this doesn’t always encourage good horsepower output. By making adjustments with a tuner, you can unlock power and give the engine a higher-performance tuning, even if your engine is completely stock. If you’re ready to get your engine specs up and make the most of your vehicle, AmericanMuscle has what you need. With everything from cold air intakes to turbochargers, no matter what methods you decide to use, you can get the very best from the brands you trust. Plus, with fast shipping, you don’t have to wait for top-notch performance.