Speed Limiters

Perhaps the most overlooked thing when hooking up cars are speed limiters. For serious car enthusiasts, speed limiters pose a very serious (not dangerous) threat. Despite the exhaust, intake, turbo, and other modifications, the car will not be able to go past a set speed. Speed limiters do exactly what they sound like they do. The simply limit your speed. Why do they do this? One main reason: the car cannot handle higher speeds, so the company stops you from overworking the engine. Of course, there is always a way to either eliminate the speed limiter or modify it, but that is NOT something you want to do by yourself. There are special companies out there that will modify your speed limiter, but it will cost a large amount of money. No matter how hard you try with your speed limiter, you cannot outsmart it. The car will cut off the gas and it will feel as though your car just stalled. Don’t worry though. After the RPM and MPH drop, the gas will pick up again and you are in control.

With all your modifications, the car will only accelerate/look/sound faster, but at higher speeds, both a stock and modified car (without a modified limiter) will travel at the same speed. But then again, you shouldn’t be going that fast anyways, right?

So what does this mean for you who don’t care for speed? Well, if you are talking to somebody about his or her car it is important to know what the speed limiter is set to on that car. The 1994-1997 Honda Accord is set to 115 MPH. So if someone owns one, and they claim to have gone 125 on the highway while running from the cops, you immediately know that they are exaggerating, if not lying.

Note: Please do not try and find out your speed limiter for yourself. It is a very very dangerous task.

Turbos vs Superchargers

Turbos and superchargers are two of the easiest and fastest ways to add a large amount of horsepower to any car. They are, however, very expensive. While they are similar in purpose, they operate on two different fields.

The difference between a turbo and a supercharger is through the means by which they are driven. A turbocharger, to put very simply, compresses the incoming air, thereby creating boost, or pressurized induction. A wastegate is built into the system to prevent over-pressurization by venting the exhaust gases away from the impeller. Turbo assemblies can spin at speeds in excess of 100,000 RPM. The biggest drawback to a turbo system is turbo lag. Turbo lag is, simply, poor low speed performance. It will cause any car to perform WORSE than before. Turbos are only efficient when the car is at high speeds. Today, however, twin-turbos (two turbos in one car) are used in cars to reduce turbo lag. Despite the extra turbo, any car with a turbo in the engine makes a poor daily driving car.

A supercharger, on the other hand, is driven by an accessory belt. Internally, there are two or three lobes that rotate, sucking in the air and force-feeding it to the engine. Unlike the turbo, superchargers have no lag. They, however, have the opposite effect. Superchargers cannot handle higher revs and do not give as much power as turbo kits offer.

If you are considering any of these kits to install in your car, you should be aware that they require much maintenance. Since they wear away the engine faster, the engine must be kept in good condition in order to handle the extra power.

Body Kits

Let’s face it. Body kits are cool. Everybody can identify a car with a body kit. It’s one of the most obvious things you can do to a car. But as always, there are a huge amount of drawbacks to having one. On a scientific level, body kits, at least the ones offered for streetcars, are not designed for functionality purposes. Unlike racecars’ body kits, they will probably make you slower because they cause more air resistance. Another drawback is that they will not protect you in a car crash. Stock body parts are designed to absorb and reduce impact. Most body kits alter the body and will not ensure the same protection.

For buyers, body kits should be selected very carefully. The quality of the body kit is more important than the price. Let’s start off with the basics. Stock bumpers are made of polyurethane, a material that can bend and will fix itself when hit. A cheaper, yet lighter, material is fiberglass, which many after market companies will use for their body kits. The catch? Unlike polyurethane, they will not fix themselves after being hit. Instead of being bent, they will be shattered. Also, fiberglass tends to “sag” as time goes by. This means that the body kit will start separating itself from the body and droop, leaving gaps in the body. Look at this 1991 Honda Accord:

Notice how the gap gets larger as you reach the center of the car compared to the ends. This shows the effect that gravity has on cheap body kits.