Five essential, tried-and-true ways to get more power and longevity from your motor
UPGRADES
ENG
INE
EXHAUST
It’s crazy how choked up
engines are from the factory.
Manufacturers lean much more
towards motors that are quiet
enough not to offend new
vehicle buyers than ones that
run as efficiently as possible at
the sake of a little extra exhaust
noise. Then there are of course
regulations surrounding the
noise a vehicle can legally
make, but a simple upgrade to a
free-flowing 3inch exhaust will
make a MASSIVE difference,
letting the motor breathe
properly, improving the power
and torque and, by way of not
needing to sink your right boot
in as much, improve your fuel
economy too. A no brainer!
PERFORMANCE
CHIP/TUNING
Next up after an exhaust, you’ve
got a couple of options for
extracting more power from
your motor. Traditionally, a
performance chip or module
intercepts the signals between
the engine and the injectors and
modifies them in a way to
produce more power. Newer to
the scene is ECU tuning, where
the computer itself is modified
by a tuner to produce more
power. Whatever option you
choose, ensure you go with
someone reliable, who can
show you the real difference
their product makes, and not
just some dodgy backyard
‘tuner’ with a laptop.OIL CATCH-CAN
Almost without exception, all
modern diesel motors –
especially those that run EGR
systems – will benefit from
fitting an oil catch-can. The
problem lies in the fact that in
normal operation, oil vapours
find their way up through
the PCV and into
the intake piping. This very
quickly contaminates the
manifold and EGR system,
mixing with recirculated
exhaust gasses to form
blockages. A catch-can
separates this oil and allows
you to drain it off manually
instead of forcing it back
through your engine.AFTERMARKET
FUEL FILTER
Poor quality fuel filtration will
kill a common-rail diesel fast.
That’s thanks to the incredibly
fine tolerances that the pump
and injectors operate under.
Factory fuel filters generally do
a decent job, providing that
they’re changed regularly –
best practice is every time you
change your oil and oil filter. A
primary aftermarket fuel filter
is installed before the factory
filter, and filters fuel down to 30
microns to prolong the life of
your factory filter. A secondary
filter can filter down to 2 or 5
microns, and in some
applications is run after the
factory filter as a last line of
defence.THROTTLE
CONTROLLER
Modern 4WDs almost all use
‘fly by wire’ throttles that do
away with a traditional throttle
cable providing a mechanical
link between the throttle pedal
and the injector pump.
Instead, sensors and servos
pick up your throttle input and
control the injector pump and
turbo to suit. A throttle
controller allows you to
change the feel of the throttle
and vary its responsiveness. It
can reduce pedal lag that is
evident in a lot of
newer vehicles, or it can be
setup to dampen the throttle- perfect for those rough
low-range tracks where your
foot jumps around.
W
W
W. 4
W
D
A
CT
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.A
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(^03)
5
Modern diesels are pretty
good from the factory –
but you can always make
them better
One of the single most
essential modifications for
any vehicle – a catch can