Taboo performance tips n tricks

Could be a useless thread but I'm sure there are many Taboo performance tips n tricks. The kind that get you flamed and lectured about safety.


One comes to mind is I remember a long while ago. [years] them talking during some NHRA racing that back in the day they used plywood carb spacers for better performance. They were easily modded and shaped. Cheap as heck, transfers no heat but they needed changed every 2-3 runs from being gas soaked.

Coat the plywood in clear silicone. actually rub it into the wood and the gas problem would never happen. What other dangers come from plywood spacers??? If gas soaked is the only down side; the rest is all up.

Should I put down the 2x6 and jig saw???

 

The problem with wood spacers is that they warp very easliy and can cause a horrendous vacuum leak. Resin types are the best.

 

Taboo:
Trusting someone else's wiring. We had a customer with a once gorgous 2nd Gen Camaro, he paid $20,000 for it, the third day he had it, it was almost completely destroyed by fire.

Always make sure all wires are secure. The one car we built (it's in my sig) was in the middle of doing a burnout down the track, coil wire comes loose, and the hood got destroyed. Nothing that a lot of racing tape couldn't fix.

 

With 4 bolts horsed down at the corners and a plastic stock spacer /gasket it should have a hard time doing anything but maybe lose torque if it dried out. It could then warp but horsed down between two flat solid surfaces the wood shouldn't do much but sit there.

Maybe run a sandwich. plastic wood plastic.

 

Hmm, I think I need to catch up with my sleep. I think I totally misunderstood the topic of this thread.

 

its OK it hard to keep an even flow around here. Just go with it.

aluminum foil is always handy for them blown fuses and very taboo. I never use it or have in years but always have a patch of foil tucked away in the car somewhere.

spray primer is very taboo around here.

Think we need taboo things that really work in some way and arn't just dangerous.

Like snapping off the tab making a Qjet full manual along with removing the secondary vacuum control land just let the top air vain flap open when needed. [still have spring tension that controls the speed it opens but it will just flop open with control].

 

running a quart or so of oil, increse in HP but good chance on trashing an engine. see it a lot in NHRA stock class racing.
i tihnk just about any fuel additive or enhancer would be somthing NOT to do, like moth *****, pop, or alky.

 

Using super light - thin wall tubing like exhaust tubing to make a roll cage.

Retracting the front brake pads so they don't touch the rotors at all, only using the rear parking brake before the race. Then would require several pumps to get the front brakes to work after the race or qualifing.

Installing the wrong cam on the secondary causing the throttle to stick at wide open. Don't ask how I know Think G0D for my (opps I mean 'A') dash mounted kill switch.

Ron

 

I assume you mean a quart low.

I knew a guy with a mustang that would get n go a quart low and only a quart low.

I am the other way. I am about a half a quart over full. As I like my system full of oil running. I want it reading full while the heads n other parts r full of oil.


here is my own taboo trick

I run straight 30w oil in my T5. It was recommended to me by the JY that sold it to me. He said if I wanted it to last run 30w oil and let it warm up a min when its cold. So far, so good. And the guys has been in business before I was born and seams to know a thing or two.

 

no i mean with a quart or two in the pan. i run 75w-90 synthetic in every t5 or wct5 i've had or been around with zero problems.

 

This can hurt more than help. More oil in the pan means more oil getting whacked by the crank and getting areated.

 

yep more oil isn't better

 

Just a thought about the wood carb spacer trick... what happens if it's soaked in gas and the engine backfires?

Most taboo "performance" trick I can think of is neutral bombing an automatic. Theoretically it works, but we all know why we're laughing at the guy limping out of the burn-out box.

 

not completely related, but I can't even run ANY more than 1 quart below full in my motor without it loosing pressure when I accelerate, do you think this is be of oil going to the back of the pan and then getting thrown around by the crank. The Taboo part is it runs best with around 3-3.5 quarts, but I can't sleep with it that low. Another Taboo may be running a car with a lock-up converter with the converter locked in all the time at the track.

 

taboo:


removing bumper supports (or door supports, or other saftey supports) on a street car for weight savings.

running a single plane intake on the street.

driving around on the street without a sway bar...

 

Whats wrong with that??? Ive run Victor Jrs for the past 8 years without problems..... anyways i dont want to start a single vs dual plane debate...

 

exactly. taboo because its single VS dual plane, and modern dual planes are quite good....



like he said:
yea, that statement will bring up some flames and debates... but lets move on, theres more threads on that subject...


another taboo thing is....................................? (someone post one, im drawing a blank)

 

Driving around on the street/highway on ET Streets or Quicktime DOTs.

I can almost forgive driving around on DRs. Almost...

 

whats more fun then that?
a sudden downpour when you're the passenger in a car with ET streets and skinnies.. and the car has the front bumper support out, and you know this is a mid 11second car, and its night, and the only way home is on the hwy.

that was a fun night. i almost wet my pants twice. and then of course, we were called wusses online the next day for not showing at the track. (apparently it rained everywhere uptill 1/2mile from the track)






anyhoooo back on topic.

the last taboo thing i forgot...

driving/racing without a air cleaner.

 

The one that gets me the most is replacing the IAT with a resistor to fool the engine into thinking it's getting colder air.

One problem with that is when the air temp really does get colder, the engine thinks it's hotter.

The other problem is when it's 90*+ outside and you're fooling the ECM into thinking it's getting air that's ~45*, it's always trying to figure out why the O2 says the mixture is too rich.

That's more of a "*****" trick, but it still irks me to pieces.

 

Oh, oh, oh - me next, call on me!

Removing the serpentine belt!!!!!

 

you could always steal a viper, thats pretty taboo, and pretty fast

 

I drive everywhere on ET Drags @ 15psi

 

Here's one a lot of us have done, gutting the cat or removing any other emissions device.

Or how about running waaaayy more nitrous and or boost than recommended for your internal engine components.

Spools on the street.

Running 11:1 or more compression with iron heads.

Running leaded race gas on the street, which if you haven't already done it will quickly lead to the need for the first one.

Running pure water in your cooling system.

Overinflating your front tires/reducing pressure in your rear tires.

 

air cleaner lid upside down, i had a buddy think that disabling his choke would make him go faster that was a quick debate, everclear in the gas tank (bad idea)...

 

heres a little somethin' for your sweet tooth.....

when drag racing dirt bikes in the backyard as kids the sure-fire method to beat the oponent was to soak part of your air filter in ether and lean out the carb right before the race.

 

lol, yea i thought i already said that...


but i guess it was in the other thread when i was telling that kid about it.... lol.

 

I got the best one of all.

Run your spark plugs finger tight.


I got a buddy who does this in everything he owns. 4wheelers,lawn mower, everything. You can argue with him till your blue in the face and all he will do is demonstrate how well any of them run. doing wheelies or what ever. Its way to much work to find the proper wrench every time so he runs them all finger tight.

 

1/8th of a turn past a good finger tight and most plugs will seal...

athough i would turn them a bit more, not to seal, but to keep the vibration from backing it out.

 

cutting springs

 

absolutly nothing wrong with that on a strip car. works better with a little water wetter, but you DONT want to run coolent at the strip. if a line blows and you get coolent on the track, it doesnt ever clean up all the way... and coolent is slippery.

again, that a effective fine thing to do at the dragstrip... athough you will get alot more tire wear doing that on the street.


that stems from a old racers trick.... and believe it or not, with the right factory lid, that actually works.


anyhoo another stupid thing to do thats done alot...
disconnecting the speedo so you can go faster then the limiter.... lol TGO even has a tech artical on that.

 

The local track around here I believe actually has a rule that trailered cars have to run straight water.

 

running water in the summer isnt bad. I had a chevette that would puke coolant in the summer heat but be fine with water.

 

1. uncoated headers with a open air cleaner
2. having circuit city put in speakers and head unit (not really performance though)

 

uncoated headers with open air cleaner???

 

Adds heat to engine compartment that the open element will suck in.

 

i really wouldnt call that taboo.. esp since thats been the norm from the invention of headers until about 7 years ago...

id say it isnt the best way to do it, but you wont get the same "you're insane/stupid" look that you get when you have somthing taboo.. like no bumper supports or ET streets in the rain or somthing like that.

 

descreening MAF

 

big engine mods with stock brakes and suspension.

 

That'd be me! I'm gonna see just how quick I can go on bone stock suspension. "Suspension? Thats for rich people!"

 

A) Running no air cleaner on your carb. Maybe at the track, but on the street? Ugh... :nono:

B) Building up a 305... some people question your sanity

 

if your car isnt driven in moist conditions and you still have a factory hood, you can remove the weatherstripping on the rear of your hood (near the windshield) thus making it a crappy cowl induction ;-) only problem with that is when it does get wet, your distributor is VERY open to water damage

 

They don't question my sanity anymore, (they all know I'm "nuts" now).

Taboo: How about running engine low of oil and water (for a short time) to stop engine from smoking by getting cylinder walls and piston rings hot to possibly "heat bore" the cylinders. I knew a fellow that swore by this method to stop oil from getting by the (worn) rings.

 

Sound liek a DIY engine restore product. Things get so hot that bits of metal fill any holes or gaps as the rings n cylinder try to become one.

 

how is that taboo?

taboo:
Nitrous injection going to the to valve train, instead of going into the intake .

using EZ OFF oven cleaner instead of carb cleaner/degreaser to remove gunk deposits. better have a can of brake cleaner around to displace the water, after rinsing

 

Its just a general belief by the performance crowd that 305s are not performance engines. They are usually pulled out and replaced with a 350 or something by people who wanna go fast.

My 305 is gonna be wicked fast though.

 

EZoff works great for removing clear coat off motorcycle engine cases. It actualy eat the metal so be careful.

small pickle jar, ball of tin foil, big blast of EZoff, tighten and tape lid, toss in a sunny spot, watch out for flying glass.

 

Ahhh... There's nothing like transferring all your underhood heat to your passenger compartment

 

EZ off oven cleaner ROCKS. I use that stuff to remove the paint and crud off engine blocks. Spray it on let it sit for a few then hose it down with a power wash and its as good as new.

I seriously dont remember the last time I used Brake Cleaner to actually clean brakes.

And, I'm also one of those guys who drives around without an air cleaner 80% of the time. Only time I put one on is when I go on long trips. Driving around town, rarely ever.

 

it doesnt heat up the passenger compartment much more than it would with it on there... its got a windshield to go through 1st.. haha, at least i havent noticed a difference.. but its hard to notice temperature changes in a vert ;-)