What exactly is ... NA Tech?
- Thread starter Trevoke
- Start date
twilightprotege
Member
- :
- 2001 323 Astina SP20 (P5)
depends on how much you want to increase your performance....
TheBryGuy said:
Lose the CAI, and add a custom intake manifold and intake, or Individual Runner Throttle Bodies. Lose the catless midpipe and cat-back exhaust, and add full custom exhaust from the header back. Lose the fuel upgrades, and add stand-alone engine management, which can control ignition as well as fuel. Lose the stroker kit if you have an FS-DE. Add, fully balanced, forged internals, including connecting rods.
Sounds like a lot of fun in perspective.
(newbie warning!)
My old car was a Scion Tc, which I totaled (that was fun! Let's do it again!). My current car is.. Yeah, the one under my name on the left
The Tc had more torque than the Mazda3 does, in my current experience, so I'd like to give the car more torque.
I also read somewhere on these forums that someone's gas mileage improved when they added in the CAI. I may have misread/misunderstood, but given the current situation, improving the gas mileage is also something which I think would be beneficial!
Assuming I know my way around a car (which I rather obviously don't, yet), what kind of mods would be good for these two things? Do these mods work together or against one another (ie +torque = -gas mileage) ?
(newbie warning!)
My old car was a Scion Tc, which I totaled (that was fun! Let's do it again!). My current car is.. Yeah, the one under my name on the left
The Tc had more torque than the Mazda3 does, in my current experience, so I'd like to give the car more torque.I also read somewhere on these forums that someone's gas mileage improved when they added in the CAI. I may have misread/misunderstood, but given the current situation, improving the gas mileage is also something which I think would be beneficial!
Assuming I know my way around a car (which I rather obviously don't, yet), what kind of mods would be good for these two things? Do these mods work together or against one another (ie +torque = -gas mileage) ?
Trevoke said:Sounds like a lot of fun in perspective.
(newbie warning!)
My old car was a Scion Tc, which I totaled (that was fun! Let's do it again!). My current car is.. Yeah, the one under my name on the left
I also read somewhere on these forums that someone's gas mileage improved when they added in the CAI. I may have misread/misunderstood, but given the current situation, improving the gas mileage is also something which I think would be beneficial!
Assuming I know my way around a car (which I rather obviously don't, yet), what kind of mods would be good for these two things? Do these mods work together or against one another (ie +torque = -gas mileage) ?
Was your Scion supercharged? Anyway, anything that makes more power, makes more torque. I'm assuming you want more low-end torque, and most mods will get you that also, although they'll mostly enhance upper-RPM power. Just do all the regular mods, like intake, header, exhaust.
No, it wasn't supercharged. I didn't expect too much of a difference (this is probably dumb mathematics) because of this :
Scion Tc : 160 hp, 2.4L, ~3000lb
Mazda3 s : 160 hp, 2.3L, ~2200lb
And yes, I'm looking for some low-end torque. I really dislike not being able to get to the 55mph speed limit by the time I'm off the acceleration ramp on parkways or highways (some of them on Long Island are stupidly short).
I guess I'll get to reading as far as price, amount of knowledge required, amount of work required and all that for the 'regular' mods. How will these three (intake, header, exhaust) affect the gas mileage, assuming one stays in the optimal/peak torque area of RPM ?
Scion Tc : 160 hp, 2.4L, ~3000lb
Mazda3 s : 160 hp, 2.3L, ~2200lb
And yes, I'm looking for some low-end torque. I really dislike not being able to get to the 55mph speed limit by the time I'm off the acceleration ramp on parkways or highways (some of them on Long Island are stupidly short).
I guess I'll get to reading as far as price, amount of knowledge required, amount of work required and all that for the 'regular' mods. How will these three (intake, header, exhaust) affect the gas mileage, assuming one stays in the optimal/peak torque area of RPM ?
The Scion website says the tC weighs 2905lbs. Anyways, forget about this 'leaving it in peak torque' stuff. Low-end torque doesn't help you do anything other than pull a lot of weight. If you want better acceleration, you need to worry about creating more horsepower in the useable rev band. I've never seen a dyno chart of a tC's powerband, but just like any 4 cyl engine out there, you'd do well by reving it til redline before shifting. Your car will be faster, even if it doesn't feel as fast. You need to take advantage of gearing.
Hmm.. Revving it 'til redline, I'm guessing this is applicable for all gears, although I understand it to mean from neutral to first gear (I thought revving the engine was what one did when, say, preparing to race and trying to intimidate the other person).
I'll try that and see what I get Thanks.
I'll try that and see what I get
Thanks.SilverBulletES
Member
- :
- '90 MX-5, '00 328i
The Mazda3 weighs 2200 lbs??
I guess my Miata weighs 1500 lbs then.
I guess my Miata weighs 1500 lbs then.
Hm. Oops. Mea culpa. I don't know where I got the idea that the Mazda3 was 2,200 lb. It is about 2,800.
On another note, yes, holy s*** this car has more torque in high RPM's! I guess that's why you can pull stuff with the Tc and not with the Mazda3.. Less low-end torque on the Mazda. Thanks! I guess I'll just play with the stock engine some more for now..
On another note, yes, holy s*** this car has more torque in high RPM's! I guess that's why you can pull stuff with the Tc and not with the Mazda3.. Less low-end torque on the Mazda. Thanks! I guess I'll just play with the stock engine some more for now..
it's not reallly torque that you're feeling at any point. when people say they "feel" low-end torque, usually they really mean they feel low-end power. torque (how hard the wheels turn) does things like burnouts and pulling things, as Gen1 said.
anyway, roughly speaking, power = torque x engine speed. an engine makes a given amount of torque at each given engine speed (e.g., 100 lb-ft at 2500 rpm). so if torque stays relatively constant (which it usually does), you can see that as the "engine speed" side of the function increases, the resulting "power" must also increase. power is what moves the car.
as an example (avoiding the actual formula), if an engine makes 100 lb-ft of torque at 2000 rpm, that will equate to a particular power level. let's call it X horsepower. if that engine makes the same 100 lb-ft of torque at 4000 rpm, that equates to double the power, or 2X horsepower.
so by running the engine up through the rev range (in a given gear), you're allowing the engine to make more and more power. the faster the engine spins, the more power it will make (as long as the torque output stays constant). an engine's torque production will usually fall off at some point towards the top of the rev range, usually b/c the engine can't pull in and expel any more air than it already is.
this is where mods like headers, intakes, cams, etc. come in. they alllow the engine to "breathe" better and keep making torque higher in the rev range. b/c the engine can keep making torque higher in the rev range, the power level also goes up. in reality, it's more complicated than that, but hopefully you get the basic idea.
the tC makes its peak torque lower in the rev range than the mazda; not coincidentally, it makes its peak power lower as well. however, both cars put out the same 160hp b/c even though the tC's torque peak is lower, its actual torque number is higher, which compensates (remember: torque * engine speed = power).
the bottom line for you is that you'll probably need to run the mazda longer through each gear than the scion to get the same acceleration (as you've apparently found out); the flip side is that b/c the mazda is a little lighter, it's probably a little faster.
anyway, roughly speaking, power = torque x engine speed. an engine makes a given amount of torque at each given engine speed (e.g., 100 lb-ft at 2500 rpm). so if torque stays relatively constant (which it usually does), you can see that as the "engine speed" side of the function increases, the resulting "power" must also increase. power is what moves the car.
as an example (avoiding the actual formula), if an engine makes 100 lb-ft of torque at 2000 rpm, that will equate to a particular power level. let's call it X horsepower. if that engine makes the same 100 lb-ft of torque at 4000 rpm, that equates to double the power, or 2X horsepower.
so by running the engine up through the rev range (in a given gear), you're allowing the engine to make more and more power. the faster the engine spins, the more power it will make (as long as the torque output stays constant). an engine's torque production will usually fall off at some point towards the top of the rev range, usually b/c the engine can't pull in and expel any more air than it already is.
this is where mods like headers, intakes, cams, etc. come in. they alllow the engine to "breathe" better and keep making torque higher in the rev range. b/c the engine can keep making torque higher in the rev range, the power level also goes up. in reality, it's more complicated than that, but hopefully you get the basic idea.
the tC makes its peak torque lower in the rev range than the mazda; not coincidentally, it makes its peak power lower as well. however, both cars put out the same 160hp b/c even though the tC's torque peak is lower, its actual torque number is higher, which compensates (remember: torque * engine speed = power).
the bottom line for you is that you'll probably need to run the mazda longer through each gear than the scion to get the same acceleration (as you've apparently found out); the flip side is that b/c the mazda is a little lighter, it's probably a little faster.
Last edited:
The gears are a little more even than on the Tc, which means that I can push the gears a teeny bit longer and go a little bit faster before switching. The fifth gear is also slightly better on the Mazda, keeping slightly lower RPMs for given speeds.
Thanks for the correction and lesson!
Thanks for the correction and lesson!
