Performance w/o Induction

I don't think I'll ever have enough saved up for a turbo or supercharger, so what can I throw on the go-kart to gain some modest power? I figure a cold air intake, but what else will improve performance without forking out thousands?

What year car?

You can do an exhaust system upgrade... including a free-flow cat.

There's also a timing bump to 14 degrees. Won't work on cars with VVT (Variable Valve Timing)

There was an article somewhere (maybe linked off the pointy board) that detailed what some folks did on a normally aspirated car to increase performance. They used a different ECU, upgraded fuel pump & injectors, and some other things on the car.

You can also take out everything that isn't bolted down (and a lot of things that are!) to lighten the car. This will help improve the performance according to the butt dyno ;)

RJ

Sorry about that, 94 Laguna Blue Package A.

You could do a 99 head swap. This has produced good results even on NA cars. Both the head and intake flow much better than the old M1 heads and it has more aggressive cams. You can usually pick them up for $450-$600 for both the head and intake. You will need both as well as the fuel rail and a few other parts to make it all work. You will also need an RPM switch to control the variable length intake runners on the 99.

I've gotta get a better job.... :)

There was a post on the Honda board that I really liked regarding this sort of thing...

You can have two of the following:

- Cheap
- Fast
- Reliable

I like that, mainly because it's so true. Guess I'll start saving my pennies. I do want a FMI or U1, guess I'll just do some tasteful cosmetic add-ons until then. First off, being one of those wind blockers (Orvis?).

I did the Cold air intake, 14 degree timing bump, hi-flow cat, and cat back exhaust, and was very happy with those results (on my 1.6 engine). I still want more though...