IchibanXI

Hi CL! I just inherited a Lexus IS300 for my 16th birthday and I wanted to know why and what the mods in my car do. The only mods that I noticed were a Fujita Competition Air Intake and a Skunk 2 Exhaust. First thing I wanted to know is, do these mods boost my performance, and if they do by how much? If the exhaust does increase performance, why? What goes on in the engine that changing the exhaust would increase performance?

Also, i'm not planning on racing it or going to a track day (well not any time soon at least), but if in the future I wanted to increase performance, what are some things I could do besides turbo?

+ What are some tires you guy's recommend that won't break the bank? The previous owner had Sumitomo's on it and that's what are on it at the moment.

ajh1717

The air intake and exhaust improve airflow. Since the car is a combustion engine (i.e gas "explodes") the easier/more air and airflow you get, the smoother/better the engine can run, thus increasing the performance. Also the intake can get colder air (implying you have a CAI). When air is colder, it is more concentrated (think back to chemistry, or ahead possibly in your case). The more concentrated the air, the better the car responds as the right amount of air can quickly be pushed/sucked into the engine. An intake to close to the engine, that isn't properly shielded, will suck in hot air, thus decreasing the amount of air actually being pulled in.

As for increasing it in the future, keep on reading. There are plenty of things to do to increase performance (weight reduction, headers, cams, suspension, breaks ect). Most people only think about power, however, that is only part of the equation. Without the proper supporting parts, horsepower is absolutely useless.