Double A-arm front suspension cars are also referred to as double-wish-bone suspensions. Either name is an accurate description of the parts being discussed in this chapter. I refer to them throughout this book as A-arms. Depending upon the vehicle, … [Click here to read more...]
Suspension Basics and Drag Racing Dynamics
This chapter explains the basic physics occurring on the starting line when you launch your car, along with why it does (or doesn’t do) what it should. Your understanding of what is happening can give you an advantage over your competitor. Put this … [Click here to read more...]
How to Build Racing Engines: Connecting Rods Guide
Stroke length aside, connecting rods are one of the basic tunable components in a competition engine. As rod length (center to center) varies, it affects piston motion such that it can be used as a primary tuning ingredient. By influencing piston … [Click here to read more...]
Getting Started: Automotive Bodywork Projects
Pounding and forcing thin metal sections into shapes that humans want and need has a long history. While there is disagreement about exactly when and where people began to work with metals, it was certainly in prehistoric times and began with soft … [Click here to read more...]
How to Blueprint Engines: Connecting Rods Guide
Connecting rods are placed under more stress than any other component in the engine. Selecting the strongest rod for a performance target is absolutely essential. You have a variety of materials to choose from: powdered metal, forged steel, aluminum, … [Click here to read more...]
Automotive Metalworking Overview and Techniques – Part 1
Simply put, metalworking is anything you do with metal. Bend it, hammer it, weld it, or drill a hole in it it’s all metalwork. Welding, on the other hand, is more specific. Because metal melts when it is sufficiently heated, two or more pieces of … [Click here to read more...]
Engine Measuring EFI Inputs-Best
Before we delve into the tables that control engine operation, it is important to understand what the computer sees. The old saying, “garbage in, garbage out,” applies directly to EFI systems. More often than not, the cause for a poor-running car … [Click here to read more...]
Developing Highly Functional Ports in Cylinder Heads – Part 8
In Chapter 1, I brought attention to the fact that the number-one impediment to flow on both the intake and exhaust side of things is the valve seat. You can know how influential it is, with reasonable accuracy, by determining the mean velocity at … [Click here to read more...]
Exhaust System Performance Math
Choosing exhaust pipe diameter and header primary-tube diameter and length can be confusing. Generally, people tend to copy what others have done, often choosing too-large tube and pipe diameters with the belief that bigger is always better. Not so. … [Click here to read more...]
How to Build a Wiring Harness
This chapter covers the last major topic—harness basics. In addition, I’m going to present a number of examples that tie together what you’ve learned in the first eight chapters of the book. I chose examples that I feel most readers of this book will … [Click here to read more...]