Car pictures

[NWDiver]

@ReefLogic I have a lot of respect for cars that are "set" right. You can't drive a BMW and not be impressed with the feel. I was sorely tempted to buy a used M3 or M5 last time around, and I may well when I sell this one. I tried to get Patty to buy an M3 instead, but she wanted a snow car for all 5 days that it snows here. Ah well, the 328xi has been a really good car.
Suspension: Yeah, I have the basic upgrades, springs, caster\camber plates, IRS support, sub-frame connectors blah blah blah, it still sucks compared to a basic bimmer
As to the driver upgrade issue, I ran against a new Z06 a few weeks ago (He started it), and beat him on both lights. He didn't even try the third light. There is NO WAY that that would have happened with a decent driver! The 06 is 1000lbs lighter than my car. I still smiled the rest of the day. I'm not a great driver by any means, but I do ok for an old guy...
I'm looking forward to getting my butt kicked at the auto-cross thing next month, I should sell tickets to comedy central.

@iPisces When you are ready to have a tune built I know two guys that are VERY good at on the dyno tuning. We have two cobra dyno days every year, and you would be welcome to come up and run with us. We rent the dyno for the day and invite some really smart ford tuners. I think the next one is on June.
I don't know a ton about your car, but there are several ways to add horsepower to any car, some more costly than others. I would hit a few of the 2010 sites and see what mods are making the best difference for the money.
Does your car have the modular 4.6?

 

[IPisces]

It is the modular 4.6 5 speed manual

Oh and I was just kidding with him about the dissin stuff...

 

[NWDiver]

Ok, then it is just a matter of money You need to check for sure, but I expect that you can bolt a cobra blower on with not too much additional costs. New program, MAF, perhaps booster pump. There are quite a few stock Eatons out there on the mustang boards from the guys that have upgraded. That will give you a really nice increase. You can of course go with a whipple or Kenne Bell, but that adds to the cost considerably.
You can also add a turbo or two, but for the cost I much prefer the torque gains of the supercharger. It just FEELS better. And the whine. The wonderful sound of the blower ;-)
Consider having the blower ported before you install it, Steigmeier can do awesome things even with a stock Eaton.
Exhaust is a great starting point, you get better sound and a modest increase.
All depends on the pocket book and what you expect the car to do...

 

[IPisces]

Ok, then it is just a matter of money cost I much prefer the torque gains of the supercharger. It just FEELS better. And the whine. The wonderful sound of the blower ;-)
Consider having the blower ported before you install it, Steigmeier can do awesome things even with a stock Eaton.
Exhaust is a great starting point, you get better sound and a modest increase.
...

This sounds good to start
New hobby in the making...Sounds like a gas gussler too.

 

[spllbnd2]

Port and polish the heads. Gasket match the intake and exhaust gaskets. Index your spark plugs. These are easy for the average auto tech (or mechanic) to perform and are a relatively minor cost too. And they will give some improvement gains without breaking the bank.

Get a nice good flowing set of headers would be good gains in both HP and torque. If you plan on having the car smogged, I'd do away with the blower and go supercharged, if that is the road you wish to travel down. There's easier ways to make naturally aspired HP and torque, you just need to know how to bring them out of the drivetrain assembly as a whole.

And remember that the cars these days are very picky about how you play with them. You have to know what you can do with the programming of the computer modules as a whole and not just individually. If it is a Pre OBDII then you probably wouldn't run into many issues. If it is a CAN bus vehicle, take it to the pros, hence Auto Tech not a mechanic.

 

[spllbnd2]

IPisces: 2010 Mustang may have a nice little PCM (computer) update that would be covered under warranty. 8 year/80,000 mile Federal emissions warranty. There's a TSB 09-16-1 (Tech Service Bulletin) on the update due to poor A/C lack of cooling performance. Poor A/C performance = loss of HP. There's also an update to the Sync system under TSB:10-13-4

 

[IPisces]

I have some experience with cars mechanics, but its been a long time since I have wrenched on a car. It was a lot easier back when. Everything I've worked on was all 60's and early 70s fords. I do most all my own work on my 03 harley heritage, so I am mechanically enclined. Not nearly as complicated as what is under the hood of this mustang.

I am considering stepping up the exhaust for now. Besides sounding a little nicer, adding just a little extra horse power.
I need to research my cars specs a little more or even better yet talk to someone about it. I'd like to supercharge it, but I want to understand how it is going to effect the engine and transmission and rear end. If I can just get together with someone and talk about it, I have no problem understanding it all. But yeah, I would definately take it to a tech. But I also want to know what is being done, how and why it works and what problem there can be. So maybe I can get a little insight from others this saturday.

 

[IPisces]

IPisces: 2010 Mustang may have a nice little PCM (computer) update that would be covered under warranty. 8 year/80,000 mile Federal emissions warranty. There's a TSB 09-16-1 (Tech Service Bulletin) on the update due to poor A/C lack of cooling performance. Poor A/C performance = loss of HP. There's also an update to the Sync system under TSB:10-13-4

I'll check with the dealership on this
thanks

 

[NWDiver]

A few items of note:
The 4.6 gets almost no gains from headers. The stock Ford manifold is actually rather good. This is a bit unusual, but well documented on these cars. In my opinion your money is better spent on cat back exhaust.
Porting and polishing the heads is never a bad thing, but very modest gains with this motor.
A blower IS a supercharger.

-Todd

 

[IPisces]

I was looking at the cat back exhaust earlier today. I think for now I will start with that.

 

[spllbnd2]

IPisces: I can probably help some as I am a 10 year certified veteran auto tech for Dodge/Chrysler/Jeep and my specialties include driveability, electrical, passive restraint systems, along with all the basics. Most of the vehicles being made these days all have a lot in common as for how everything works. It's just how the manufactures go about implementing the process. With that said, there's no difference between say a BMW, Dodge, or a Hummer (now defunct). It's all in how it is all put together in the end.

Cheers,
Alex

 

[spllbnd2]

p.s. Todd, I know that a Blower is a Supercharger. I just picture the old Blowers versus the Superchargers these days. There's no large diameter belt on modern superchargers like back in the day. At least not for a factory supercharger these days.

Here's a few photos of "SuperChargers" And then the last is what most people call a "Blower" or Blown Camaro. One thing you should quickly notice is how the serpentine belt runs on the newer motors versus that huge belt on the one in the Camaro. Do they do the same thing? Yes. The difference is carburated versus FI.

 

[spllbnd2]

Most of the superchargers sold today are centrifugal-style superchargers, which are
internal-compression superchargers, meaning they create the boost (compress the
air) inside the supercharger head unit (blower) before discharging it into the engine’s air intake.
External compression superchargers (roots or screw-type superchargers) have become less popular as
centrifugal superchargers have evolved. Centrifugal superchargers (Vortech and
Paxton) are more reliable, especially at higher boost levels, and are capable of creating much more
boost than external compression superchargers, while creating a much cooler intake charge (which
results in an even denser intake charge).

 

[spllbnd2]

Auto Tech 201:



The Roots Supercharger (aka “blower”) The roots supercharger was originally designed as an air moving device for industrial buildings.The roots supercharger features two counter-rotating lobes that trap air from the intake side of the supercharger (normally at the back of the supercharger), move it around the outside casing of the lobes, and out the bottom of the supercharger through an outlet/discharge port. Like the twin screw supercharger, the roots is a “positive displacement” aka “fixed displacement” supercharger,meaning that it moves a fixed volume of air per rotation. Notwithstanding minor amounts of air-leak at low rpms, the roots supercharger cannot flow backwards like a centrifugal supercharger, and is thus nearly as efficient in its ability to pump air at low rpms as it is at high rpms.What this means is that roots superchargers are very capable of making large amounts of boost even when engine rpms are very low.This makes for great low-end and midrange power, and also makes them great for trucks and towing vehicles.The roots is also self lubricated, and is the simplest of the supercharger designs, meaning it is reasonably priced and very reliable.This is why roots superchargers have been the choice of GM, Ford, Mercedes, and Toyota for OE applications.

The only real disadvantage to the roots supercharger is that it creates a lot of heat.There are two reasons for this. First, the roots supercharger does not compress air—it only moves from the intake port to the discharge port (i.e. it is the only supercharger design with no internal compression ratio). All of the compression is done in the intake manifold. Laws of thermodynamics kick in in favor of
supercharger designs with an internal compression ratio (centrifugal and twin screw) because they do less work on the incoming air charge.We will leave the mathematics of
this phenomenon to a later (much more boring) discussion. Another reason roots superchargers create higher amounts of heat is because they tend to carry some of the
compressed air in the intake back into the supercharger because it gets trapped by the rotating lobes that are exposed to the hotter air in the intake manifold.
A roots supercharger (“blower”).

 

[spllbnd2]

Auto Tech 201 Continued:



The Twin Screw Supercharger (Kenne Bell, Whipple, Vortech, Saleen, Eaton)

The twin screw supercharger at first glance appears to look similar to a roots supercharger both inside and out.The two technologies are indeed similar, however there are significant differences.At the heart of the twin-screw supercharger are two rotors, or “screws” that rotate towards each other. The rotors mesh together and draw air from the back of the supercharger.The twisting rotors move the air to the front of the supercharger, while compressing the air before discharging through a port at or near the front of the supercharger.

Because the compression is done inside the supercharger, this design produces less heat than a roots supercharger— in fact, it is almost as thermally efficient as a centrifugal design. Like the roots design, the twin-screw is a fixed displacement supercharger (meaning that it pumps a fixed volume of air per revolution), and because the tolerances between the rotating screws are very tight, its ability to create boost at low rpms is unparalleled. These characteristics make it ideal where low to mid range power is primary in importance. Another important advantage of the twin screw compressor is its reliability. Unlike a roots supercharger, the rotors in a twin screw supercharger do not actually touch, so there are virtually no wearing parts.

Like roots superchargers, twin screw superchargers are self lubricated and do not tap into the engine’s oil supply.

One disadvantage of the twin screw design is that, because it has an internal compression ratio, the twin screw is compressing air even when it is not sending boost to the engine (i.e. under cruising or deceleration). An internal bypass valve releases the pressurized air, but because it takes work to pressurize the air in the first place, the twin screw supercharger draws more power from the engine than while not under boost. Like the roots, the throttle body must be placed before the compressor because it is a fixed displacement supercharger.

 

[spllbnd2]

Auto Tech 201 Continued:



The Centrifugal Supercharger

Although the centrifugal supercharger is founded on a technology much newer than either the roots or the twin screw, it was the first supercharger to be successfully applied to automotive applications.

Unlike the roots, the centrifugal supercharger is NOT a positive displacement/fixed displacement supercharger because it does not move a fixed volume of air per revolution. The centrifugal supercharger essentially operates like a high speed fan propeller/impeller, sucking air into the center of the supercharger and pushing it to the outside of the rapidly spinning (40,000 + rpm) impeller blades. The air naturally travels to the outside of the blades because of its centrifugal force created by its rotating inertia. At the outside of the blades, a “scroll” is waiting to catch the air molecules. Just before entering the scroll, the air molecules are forced to travel through a venturi, which creates the internal compression. As the air travels around the scroll, the diameter of the scroll increases, which slows the velocity of the air, but further increases its pressure.

The centrifugal supercharger enjoys several advantageous characteristics that make it the most popular supercharger design in the aftermarket world.

First, it is simple and reliable because it has very few moving parts—just a few gears and the impeller. Second, the centrifugal supercharger produces very little heat because of its internal compression ratio. It is also small in size and very versatile because it can “freewheel” and allow the engine to suck air through it or even flow air backwards. For this reason it can be placed anywhere in the intake tract—it can even “blow through” the throttle body, meaning it can be mounted nearly anywhere. It is also the most thermally efficient supercharger,meaning that it produces the lowest discharge temperature.

The only significant disadvantage of the centrifugal supercharger is that it must be spinning at a relatively high speed before it begins to make a significant amount of boost. For this reason, it is not helpful in creating boost (and power) at low engine rpms. Normally the supercharger only begins to create boost at around 3000 rpm, and the boost curve gradually and increasingly rises with engine RPM.

Many centrifugal superchargers do not have a self-lubricating oil system, and draw oil from the engine’s oil supply. The disadvantage to this is that you must tap the oil pan for the oil return line.However, in doing so, the supercharger becomes virtually maintenance free. Some manufacturers make a “self-contained” centrifugal supercharger that is self-lubricated like roots and twin screw superchargers.

 

[spllbnd2]

Superchargers and how they work.

A supercharger is mounted to the engine and is driven by a pulley that is inline with the crank (or accessory) belt. Air is drawn into the supercharger and compressed by either an impeller (centrifugal-style supercharger), twin rotating screws (screw-type supercharger), or counter-rotating rotors (roots-type supercharger).The air is then discharged into the engine’s intake. Faster crank speed (more engine rpm) spins the supercharger faster and allows the supercharger to produce more boost (normally 6 to 9 psi for a street vehicle).

Typical peak operating speeds for a supercharger are around 15,000 rpm (screw-type and roots style superchargers) and 40,000 rpm (centrifugal style superchargers).

 

[spllbnd2]

According to Merriam-Webster’s dictionary,

a supercharger is defined as:
"A device (as a blower or compressor) for pressurizing the cabin of an airplane or for increasing the volume air charge of an internal combustion engine over that which would normally be drawn in through the pumping action of the pistons."

A turbocharger is defined as:
“a centrifugal blower driven by exhaust gas turbines and used to supercharge an engine”.

Okay, well I guess I could continue on about Turbo versus Supercharger and how they differ and what advantages there are of the supercharger over that of the turbo. But I think I'll leave it at that for now.

If anyone would like a write up on turbo and the benefits of the supercharger over that of the turbo, I'd be more than happy to.

You're now being returned to your normally broadcast programming.

Cheers,
Alex

 

[FreakinReefin]

Turbos are my choice. Alex, a blower style supercharger can be placed on a FI system as well, just not too common to expect. However, many enthusiasts are moving to procharging due to the HP loss and boost lag of the typical supercharging systems. Prochargers still have lag though. If I had all the money in the world, I would turbocharge everything! I love turbo technology!

 

[NWDiver]

Sorry Alex,
Gah, damn phones... I was being brief because I was typing on the stupid phone, NOT trying to be a pain
I was sure that YOU knew that a blower=supercharger, but I was trying to clear it up for iPisces.
As to the other things, they are unique to the 4.6 with which I have had a bit of experience.
Your advice on headers is right on the money for every other car I have owned... Not so much with these. Who'd a thunk it?
The cat-back (with x-pipe if you wish) makes the largest gains and has the side benefit of sounding nice. I use MagnaFlow currently.
The CAI also works well, cheap and good for a few HP.
Just like our aquariums planning ahead is a great way to save time and money!