What is the best first mod?

March 17, 12:42 AMTampa Sports Car ExaminerMichael Berenis

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New owners of performance vehicles often ask themselves the question, "What is the best first modification to do to my car?" The answer isn't always easy. Each vehicle is setup different, so your first mod should be done to your brain; modifying your knowledge. Research about your car and learn what other already know by reading forums related to your vehicle. Use Google and search "Your car" and the term "Forum" to find the right community. Local to Tampa, FL? Check out TampaRacing.com for great info, making friends, finding meets, and more. There is a wealth of knowledge out there, be informed!

First modifications should be one that can be easily, and safely accomplished within your skill level and budget. The most common first mods are:

• Air intake (Cold air and Ram style)
• Emissions removal (cats, tgv's, and heat sources)
• ECU programming (chip, programmer, dyno tune)

Changing the air intake is the most common first modification and is a great way to improve horse power, torque, throttle response, while simultaneously increasing gas mileage. This works great for naturally aspirated vehicles. Are you forced induction? Avoid this modification until you can be properly tuned. This is how shade tree performance enthusiasts typically blow up engines.

Changing the air intake isn't always the best first modification with out a proper tune or other supporting mods. Both forced induction and naturally aspirated vehicles should invest in air to fuel ratio gauges before changing intakes. A rule of thumb for forced induction vehicles, "If you upgrade your intake and exhaust, upgrade your fuel system too." In rare circumstances, even naturally aspirated vehicles can run lean from an air intake modification and require addition fuel system mods. Not properly accomodating the increased amount of air can cause engine problems due to running lean. Some ECU's adapt to air flow, while some don't. It's always best to reset your ECU after all modifications that affect air flow. 

Emissions removal is usually done by removing or hollowing out catalytic converters, reducing the amount of heat in your intake charge, and by removing obstructing designs incorporated into the intake. Some emissions modifications include tumble generator valve (TGV) delete, exhaust gas return delete, throttle body coolant bypass, and other. These mods are an excellent way to increase power, throttle response, and let all vehicles produce much louder exhaust sound. These modifications are typically safe, but in rare circumstances also require tuning. Get creative and take a close inspection at your intake. Ask your self ,"How can I make air flow cooler and faster?"

Being the third most popular modification, ECU programming and tuning is a great way to get extra power out of a vehicle. Is your vehicle completely stock? A tune can increase your power, gas mileage, and more. Tuning and ECU programming can be accomplished by using a third party "chip", a hand held computer "programmer", or a "dyno tune" where a professional with a dynometer changes the parameters exactly to your vehicle. The dyno tune is the best tune available, because the others are considered generic and aren't specific to your vehicle. They are specific to the make and model, but not actually specific to your vehicle.

Looking for a cheap way to "tune" for a modified intake and exhaust? Some model vehicles like the 1999 Chevy Monte Carlo Z34 can be retuned to run rich by adding a resistor to the intake temperature sensor pig tail. Simply connect the resistor to each connection in the harness, seal with electrical tape and your done. This modification tricks the ECU into thinking the air intake temperatures are as cold as ECU will allow, thus releasing more fuel into the combustion chamber. Each vehicle varies on type of resistor you can use, so check out your ECU parameters and go from there. These type of chips are found on Ebay but can be replicated by purchasing the right resistor from Radioshack.

The best first modification is indeed a combination of all three. It turns out there isn't actually "a best first modification", but a careful balance of the above three according to the specifics of your vehicle. If you increase the flow of air through your engine, chances are that it needs to be retuned. You'll gain performance, and extend the life of your engine by changing your ECU parameters to accomodate modifications.

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