Five of the Most Popular Car Mods | Team C

Five of the Most Popular Car Mods

Since the first Model T rolled out of the factory 100 years ago, car buyers have been customizing and modifying their vehicles, adding parts to make them go faster, tow harder, and look cooler. Today, automotive enthusiasts have an almost endless variety of aftermarket performance auto parts and accessories to choose from to improve their vehicle’s performance or give it a unique, custom look.

Whether your automobile is a brand new model or you’re restoring a custom hot rod, you have so many options for performance-enhancing and aesthetic modifications that it’s hard to pick what upgrade you want to buy first. The following is a list of 10 of the most popular mods for automobiles.

Cold-air intake – This is an easy mod that many performance enthusiasts have done to their vehicles to increase engine power. To perform a cold-air intake modification, you or a mechanic will modify the engine to reduce obstruction to airflow into the engine. Cooler air is denser and contains more oxygen than hot air, so, by improving airflow to the engine, you’ll produce more power.
Supercharger – A supercharger pressurizes air intake to supply more air to the engine, thus allowing it to produce more combustion and more power. Superchargers are powered by a belt or a chain and spin to force air into the combustion chamber of the vehicle, thus allowing for more fuel to combine with the air to produce a greater combustion. A supercharger can boost horsepower output by up to 50 percent.

Although a supercharger upgrade is a relatively simple modification to make, you want to ensure that you get a good quality part for the job. Edelbrock superchargers are among the best in the industry, and auto owners who use these products can rest assured that they will be equipping their car with a reliable product.

Air filters – This is an inexpensive means of allowing greater airflow into the engine while still protecting your vehicle from contaminants. High-quality performance air filters are easy to install and allow for the more efficient use of air and fuel.
Performance chips – Newer vehicles have computerized parts that regulate many functions of the engine. These parts often don’t allow the engine to operate to its full power potential, however. Performance chips are designed to increase fuel usage or air consumption to boost your vehicle’s power.
Specialized pistons – High compression pistons can increase the compression ratio, creating more power. Consulting with a machine shop you trust can help you find just the right piston upgrade to improve your vehicle’s performance.
Rebores – Reboring an engine can give it greater capacity, giving it more space for air and fuel and creating more powerful combustions, thus making the engine more powerful. Not all engines are capable of being re-bored, so it’s important to work with a qualified mechanic on reboring jobs.
Transmission upgrades – Your vehicle’s transmission takes the power generated by your engine and uses it to drive the wheels via gears and gear trains. By upgrading the transmission, you can improve the transmission’s efficiency, delivering greater power to the wheels. Also, if you put a more powerful engine in your vehicle, you may have to upgrade the transmission, as the factory transmission may not be able to handle the additional power.
Fuel system – Performance fuel injectors are a great way to boost your vehicle’s fuel system, allowing it to help generate more power. Consumers have several options for improving fuel systems. Hi-flow fuel pumps maximize fuel flow to your engine, facilitating greater horsepower and torque and improving throttle response. Fuel pressure regulators allow experienced drivers to have greater control over their vehicle’s fuel consumption. Methanol injection kits, which work to cool the vehicle’s powerplant, can also help increase power and fuel economy.

Products you may want to look into include Holley Performance Fuel System Kits, Edelbrock fuel pumps, and parts by MSD Ignition.

Intake manifold upgrade – An aftermarket intake manifold upgrade is one of the easiest and least expensive modifications you can perform to coax greater performance from your vehicle. Good products can get seemingly miraculous results from your engine. A performance intake manifold has smoother contours and larger ports that allow an easier flow of air to the engine, enhancing combustion and performance. When purchasing an intake manifold, consumers should make sure that the upgrade is made by a reputable manufacturer, is legal in your state, and is designed to fit your engine.

Some of the top intake manifold products include parts made by BBK, Edelbrock, and Nitrous Express.

Spark plug wires – Believe it or not, the humble spark plug wire can be a big player in engine performance. While plug wires won’t generate any additional horsepower, damaged or low-quality wires will inhibit the power being delivered.

Your spark plug wires have two basic jobs: transmitting energy to your spark plugs and dampening voltage interference. While factory spark plug wires typically are 8 mm wires, aftermarket performance wires are often made up to 8.8 mm. These thicker wires perform their task better than factory wires. Having your wires inspected and replaced, if necessary, by products such as MSD Ignition wires or Taylor Cable wires can help improve your vehicle’s performance.

Radiators – If upgrades to your vehicle’s performance cause the engine to run hotter, your factory cooling system may not be able to compensate. An overheated engine is a huge problem and can be expensive to repair, so it makes sense to upgrade your radiator. When choosing radiators, you’ll typically have to choose between crossflow and downflow radiators. In downflow radiators, coolant enters through the top of the radiator and moves down the tubes. In crossflow radiators, tanks are on either side of the radiator core and a pump pushes the coolant across the radiator.

While these are some of the most popular car modifications, there are still many other ways you can turn your vehicle into a performance monster. When modifying your beloved automobile, it pays to do business with parts suppliers and machine shops that really know their business. There’s a huge difference in quality among parts shops and service providers in the aftermarket industry, so it pays to work with companies with a good track record of success.

When checking out parts stores and machine shops, don’t be afraid to ask questions. Ask about part inventories and whether the parts store can order hard-to-find parts. Talk to machine shop managers about their experience in doing the type of work you require and any professional certifications their staff may have. Upgrading your vehicle is a significant investment, so you want to make sure the job is done correctly.

Team C Performance Center combines a great parts store with an exceptional machine shop, providing one stop for all your automobile modification needs. Located in Los Angeles, Team C Performance Center has served the area for decades, providing quality performance auto parts, custom parts and car accessories, and a full-service machine shop.

The Team C Performance Center machine shop can ensure that all of your precision performance enhancements are installed correctly the first time. Team C Performance Center’s machine shop can help with boring, decking, honing, and rebalancing, valve jobs, resizing rods, crank polishing, complete engine rebuilds, and much more.

Whether you’re doing a DIY modification project or need the help of experienced professionals in enhancing your vehicle, Team C Performance Center has the expertise, equipment, and quality parts to help. Visit today to begin making your dream car a reality.

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