Dyno Expectations and Advice

1SLO85 · 12-09-2006, 09:02 PM

This was written by 2000GT4.6....THANKS.

A couple helpful tips/questions to ask:

1. What brand and model of dyno was used? Different brands/models of dyno read quite a bit differently from each other. On average, the mobile/above ground dynos will read the highest (dyno dynamics etc), followed by the dynojets, and then the mustang dynos which read the lowest. For reference, my car is making 38x on a mustang dyno, but around 415-420 on a dynojet.

2. Are they using corrected or uncorrected numbers? In either case, ask what the other numbers were. I have seen corrected numbers be both high and low from uncorrected ones, as this is taking into account weather conditions. I place very little stock in corrected numbers if they vary much from uncorrected ones.

3. GET a BASELINE done on your car. It is much easier to swallow that the dyno is screwed up if you get a baseline on your car (no mods done) and it reads 250 WHP or something crazy. At least you know that the dyno is not accurate right off the bat. Most shops will let you do one or three dyno pulls without a/f for like 30 to 80 bucks, its well worth it. Another plus is that you get a TRUE feel for how much power you have added to the car.

4. Do NOT get pissed if everyone comes on and tells you your numbers are messed up. If everyone is telling you this, its not a consipracy, its just because YOUR NUMBERS ARE SCREWED UP. People are trying to help you, not to metion saving you embarassment from being called a ricer at your local car hangout.

5. There is NO such thing as a "factory freak". You are not going to get a car that makes any more than 5-10 WHP more than another person with the same mods, assuming you both have a good tune. This is not the 60's, and there arn't freak camshafts etc laying around the production floor just waiting to be accidentally installed. I should know, I worked in automotive for over 4 years. You are not going to make 20+ more WHP than another person with the same setup simply because you have a "super great tune" from "joe at supernatural motorsports". There are definatly bad tuners out there, but espcially when talking about a n/a boltons car, there simply is not that much difficulty in tuning the car.

6. ANY SHOP can at ANY TIME make a dyno read whatever they want. With a few clicks of the mouse I can have your stock 96 NPI car making 500 WHP. It really is that simple. There HAVE been quite a few shops known to dyno your car, add a few simple parts, and then crank up the dyno and give you false numbers to make themselves look good. If your getting 20 WHP out of that catback and 30 out of a CAI setup, its time to start looking for another shop. If they are shady on the dyno, what else are they shady about?

On to what to expect:

Your average stock 5 speed 99-04 GT will make around 225 to 230 WHP. The auto cars will on average read 10 to 15 WHP less, so figure around 210 to 220 WHP. ALL of the 99-04 cars (autos vs autos etc) are THE SAME. The differences in the engines were nothing more than ford saving money/refining the manufacuting process.

Your average 5 speed car with all the boltons, that is to say LTs, midpipe, catback, filter to throttle body aftermarket, (be it a RAI or CAI) throttle body, plenum, and underdrive pulleys, will make somewhere around 255 to 265 WHP, depending on tune, and around 300 FT/LBs. I have not personally seen ONE car over 265 WHP, but I would say that 270 WHP is believable with all the boltons and the stock gearing, as the stock gearing will read SLIGHTLY higher than a set of 3.73s/4.10s If you are making signfincantly more than this YOUR DYNO IS OFF, plain and simple.

Adding a set of cams to the above mentioned car will put it in the 280 to 290 WHP range, with a few of the more agressive camshaft profiles and great tunes making power in the low 290s. The more agressive cams will generally loose a bit of torque, but with the proper tune a stage 1 or even 2 should still make 295/300 ft/lbs.

Adding a set of ported heads will put you somewhere in the 310 WHP range, assuming you still have the factory shortblock.

If your car is significantly out of wack with any of these numbers, you are simply on a dyno that is reading high/low. The most important thing to realise is that THIS DOESN'T REALLY MATTER. Dynos are not ment to be tools for bragging/racing (although the mustang dynos do allow you to run a 1/4 mile on them, but I am extremely sceptical of the results). The ENTIRE purpose of a dyno is to show the difference between before and after your modifications, and to help tune the car. So long as a dyno is CONSITANT it doesn't really matter if it tells you 10 or 1000 WHP.

I dunno if it is so, but I almost feel this quailfys as a stickey? Not that anyone ever reads stickeys, but at least we can just point to the top of the forum and give em a link the next time a boltons only car comes in making 300+ WHP

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