Low End Torque?

[B4snake]

Hey Guys,What is the best way to improve the amount of torque in an '03 Base Vibe?I don't have a giant bank account so I'm not looking to spend an insane amount of cash..I also don't have like... a car lift, so something relatively simple would be nice..~Snake

[02csnow]

the only way to really improve torque is change out the transmission and put in new gears. but i dont think anyone makes anything like that for the vibe

[B4snake]

And I think replacing the Gears in the transmission falls into that category of Too Complicated...

[02csnow]

Very complicated unless you take it to a shop and it is also very expensive

[kevera]

Good luck doing that on a small budget.To keep most of your low end torque,you will have to leave the stock air box and not get a CAI.Once you get a CAI,you loose a little bottom end.The best way to increase the torque is a set of pulleys,they are relatively cheap.Go with the crank and alternator set.

[BlueCrush]

To get your torque back + more:1) Stock airbox with a S/C intake tube that goes from the stock airbox to down behind the fog light. ($25-50 from someone running a Supercharger with a CAI or SRI)2) Helix Power Tower Plus Throttle Body Spacer ($75)3) OBX Crank & Alt Pulleys w/Gatorback belt ($150 + install)4) Crower Stage I Cams ($450 + install)

[B4snake]

Great... Thanks for the amazing Ideas!And whats even better is I just got a new job so I can invest even more money into my Vibe...

[Whelan]

One thing about 4 bangers is we don't excel in the torque department. Maybe if you had a 2.3 Mazda or 2.4 Honda 4cyl. in there it would help a wee bit. But if you want torque, grab a 3.5L V6 or 4+ L V8.

[drunkenmaxx]

hell, get the new GM 3.6! (look it up)

[GrayFox]

Short Ram Intakes don't hurt your low end, right?

[Daox]

A properly designed cold air intake will not reduce low end torque. Most are designed to loose a bit of low end to increase high end (like almost every other breathing modification out there). Short rams are just never a good idea IMO. Sucking warm air just isn't a great thing to do, especially when your looking for more power.Also, cams with longer duration will not give you more low end torque. You gotta compare specifications to be sure.

[BlueCrush]

[Daox]

Yeah, that will not increase low end torque. That cam will shift the powerband roughly 500 rpm higher. The general rule (forgot where I read it) is for every 10° increase in duration you shift the powerband about 500 rpm higher.You chould go with a custom ground cam with a shorter duration. This will shift your powerband lower. However, you loose high end. Its a trade off as is almost everything in engine building.

[BlueCrush]

Even with the Stage 1 where they say it's for low and midrange power?

[Daox]

Yeah. Notice it says emphasis on low and midrange. They still retain some low, but they give up a bit so they can give you more midrange.

[BlueCrush]

Sounds like were better off staying with stock cams and just using a Camcon for more low end power.

[Daox]

I would agree.

[goodvibe]

Yep. camcon or Unichip. Stock box or there's less below 3k.

[Ninja_Logan]

Don't CAI help with horse power due to the cold air, and SRI help with the torque due to how close it is to the engine? so wouldnt it be better to get a short ram instead of sticking with stock? or will you lose some high end power out of it?

[Daox]

There are really three aspects to new intake plumbing.1) Intake air temperature. This should always be near ambient (outside temperature). This means sucking air from outside the engine bay. At high speeds it doesn't matter nearly as much as there is air flowing through the engine bay and the temperature shouldn't be much more than the outside. However, at a stop light that engine bay just heats up like a good ol oven. So, when you really want that burst of power off the line your sucking air that is much hotter than what you could be sucking. For every 5°F cooler air you gain 1% horsepower. So, if its a 70 degree day out and you stop at a stop sign for 30 seconds and it heats up even 50°F (not unlikely) you have lost 10% of your horsepower until that engine bay cools down. Sucks eh? Intake tubing material also comes into play here. Avoid aluminum (yeah, I know most are made of aluminum) due to its high thermal conductivity (means it conducts heat fast thus absorbing more engine bay heat). I personally like stainless steel as its a pretty good insulator. Plastic also works great if it can withstand engine bay temperatures.2) Tubing diameter. This largely effects at what rpm the intake plumbing will be most effecient. As the tubing gets larger the effecient rpm range of the intake plumbing increases.3) Tubing length. This again effects at what rpm the intake plumbing will be most effecient. The shorter the tube is the less effecient it'll be. This is why the TRD CAI is a long tube. However, making it too long will create unnecessary drag.