DRIVE ON
Cheap hack ‘transforms’ your car into racer with £20 horsepower boosting item – DIY job will help your motor last longer
Including a step-by-step guide on how to do it
YOU can transform your car into a racer using a £20 horsepower boosting hack, experts have revealed.
Using only a screwdriver and some basic maintenance know-how, you can improve your motor's performance in less than 10 minutes.
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While it may seem insignificant, the quality of your car's air filter can actually make a difference in terms of power output.
Jason Fenske, who runs the Engineering Explained YouTube channel, made a video testing different air filters against one another - with stark results.
He explained: "There's really two things here.
"If the filter is actually less restrictive, that means the engine doesn't have to work as hard to pull that air into it.
"If the engine doesn't have to work as hard, it's going to make more power because it's operating more efficiently.
"The second one is that if you can actually bring in more air...the sensors of the engine will see that air going in [and] inject more fuel".
Jason then compared a stock air filter on an example car against an after-market high-performance version.
The hatchback was placed on a rolling road, a device which measures peak horsepower, with different filters installed to see what difference it made.
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His testing found that the stock air filter put out 160 horsepower, compared to 164 horsepower with the premium version.
Not only that, but the top-notch filter also increased the car's peak torque by about 5 ft-lb, meaning that the extra power would be combined with sharper acceleration.
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That may not seem like much but, considering cheap aftermarket filters start from around £20, it may well be worth it to add that extra few mph to your top speed or shave a few points of a second of your 0-60 time.
Fortunately, changing the filter is really easy and something you should do roughly every 15,000 miles.
Simply pop your bonnet and locate the air filter housing, a plastic casing usually just off to the side of your engine and fed by a large hose.
Then remove the cover to access the filter itself.
This is often held on only by some plastic clips, but may sometimes be secured in place with screws so make sure to bring your screwdriver.
Remove the old filter and discard it - there are services available to recycle old air filters too.
Once you've pried it loose, wipe down the casing with a rag or give it a quick vacuum to remove any leftover dust before inserting the new filter and replacing the assembly.
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Not only could you see an improvement in performance, but it can save you money long-term by extending the life of your engine and can even slightly reduce harmful emissions.
It comes after Brits were left squeezed by the first petrol price rise in five months - check how much you will pay.
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