How to Fine Tune a Small Engine
Fine-tuning a small displacement engine can be challenging. The amount of air an engine breathes largely depends on the engine's size. As such, it's more difficult to tune a small engine to make horsepower gains than it is for a large-displacement engine, which is more likely to benefit from minor modifications. Short of installing a complicated forced induction system, it's hard to make substantial power gains with bolt-on modifications to a small-displacement engine. Nevertheless, fine-tuning your small engine can be a fun and rewarding job. Bolt-on modifications to a small engine will increase your vehicle's performance while giving it a personalized touch.
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Things You'll Need
- Air intake system
- Exhaust header
- After-cat exhaust
- ECU tuning software or piggyback ECU tuner
Instructions
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Replace your small engine's stock intake with an aftermarket air intake system. Aftermarket systems are more tuned for peak performance than stock systems. Alternatively, replace the stock intake's air filter with a higher-flowing aftermarket unit.
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Replace your small engine's exhaust header with an aftermarket unit. Aftermarket units are fine-tuned to increase the exhaust volume. This lets the engine more efficiency expel exhaust gasses, thus increasing horsepower.
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Replace your small engine's after-cat exhaust with an aftermarket system. Just like exhaust headers, performance after-cat exhaust systems offer increased exhaust flow through larger diameter piping. Just be aware that replacing your engine's after-cat exhaust system might substantially increase exhaust noise.
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Purchase ECU tuning software for your engine. For many makes and models, aftermarket ECU reflash kits are available. These fine-tune the ECU's fuel maps to take advantage of intake and exhaust modifications. Alternatively, piggyback ECU tuning systems can be installed. These are electronic devices that allow the user to fine-tune the stock fuel curves by hand. For best results with a piggyback ECU tuner, have your vehicle professionally tuned on a dyno system.
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