Can cars have good days and bad days?

Sir Clarkson · September 5th, 2006, 01:53 PM

My question is can a car such a a corvette c6 z06 for example have less than 500 bhp on one day and then more on a second day? I know that after many years the amount of horsepower gets smaller. But can says weather affect the car? Will a change in temprature change the cars performance? Can cars have better days than others?

MXM · September 5th, 2006, 01:57 PM

Altitude certainly can affect normal aspirated cars. Higher you go - less oxygen it gets (in fully opened throttle).

the Interceptor · September 5th, 2006, 02:18 PM

Yes, cars can have good days and bad days. I've noticed this especially with turboed cars. They can gain or lose a noticeable amount of power, depending on the weather. The reason are differences in pressure, temperature, humidity and so on. As turbo engines heavily depend on the air they feed themselves with, its quality has an impact on their efficiency.

Regards
the Interceptor

Lilleput · September 5th, 2006, 02:22 PM

The transmission on my Evo can have alot of moods, it shows in how well the clutch grips and how precise the changes are..

bone · September 5th, 2006, 03:24 PM

temperature
himidity
atmospheric pressure
% of oxygen in the air

^they all determine how much hp the engine will give that certain day

(i've always wondered what settings they use to test an intercooled turbo car on the dyno, even windspeed is a factor there)

Mischief007 · September 5th, 2006, 08:04 PM

Both my cars had attitude. Treat it like crap and it drives like crap. Treat it nice and I swear they purred perfectly. My cars have always had attitude towards me images/smilies/lol.gif

.

jayjaya29 · September 7th, 2006, 01:14 AM

Same with my car. If I beat it for a little bit, it will seem like its going to die, but if I keep it nice and calm it'll stay smooth and purr like a kitten.

ESPNSTI · September 7th, 2006, 01:19 AM

Yup, it seems to me that my STI is happiest in the 60-70 degree fahrenheit range (15-21C).

epp_b · September 7th, 2006, 05:27 AM

In theory, the colder the temperature, the more dense the oxygen, the more potent the combustion is, the more power the engine produces.

bone · September 7th, 2006, 04:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by epp_b

In theory, the colder the temperature, the more dense the oxygen, the more potent the combustion is, the more power the engine produces.

almost

the colder the temperature, the more dense the AIR is, so for the same volume of air, more oxygen is available

epp_b · September 7th, 2006, 05:30 PM

Quote:

the colder the temperature, the more dense the AIR is, so for the same volume of air, more oxygen is available

I meant that...really images/smilies/wink.gif

WheatKing · September 7th, 2006, 08:06 PM

My car loves -30F (-30 C or so)

well.. except in the morning before it warms up.. the hydraulic lash adjusters sound like i've replaced the engine with a diesel..

once it's warmed up.. its night and day compared to the warm (80+ F) (20ish? C) weather..

Joys of living in Canada.. LOL land of extreme weather.. 30+C in the summer.. -30C in the winter..

one of my old eagle talon turbos would get fuel cut on the real cold days, engine controller detected too dense of air and thought it couldn't compensate.. and WHAM.. your accellerating like a bat outta hell and then your teeth are firmly implanted in the steering wheel.. images/smilies/lol.gif

weather plays a huge part in how your engine performs.

mautzel · September 7th, 2006, 09:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by the Interceptor

Yes, cars can have good days and bad days. I've noticed this especially with turboed cars. They can gain or lose a noticeable amount of power, depending on the weather. The reason are differences in pressure, temperature, humidity and so on. As turbo engines heavily depend on the air they feed themselves with, its quality has an impact on their efficiency.

I always wondered about that question as well as I sometimes have the feeling that my car feels tired and weak whereas on other days it seems to burst of power. (Golf TDI) With all the explanations and factors named above it suddenly makes sense, and somehow I've got the feeling that humidity plays a much bigger role than most people think - or is that just me?

epp_b · September 7th, 2006, 09:50 PM

Quote:

My car loves -30F (-30 C or so)

well.. except in the morning before it warms up.. the hydraulic lash adjusters sound like i've replaced the engine with a diesel..

once it's warmed up.. its night and day compared to the warm (80+ F) (20ish? C) weather..

Joys of living in Canada.. LOL land of extreme weather.. 30+C in the summer.. -30C in the winter..

Ah, yes, I know what you mean! What kind of car do you have?

C53A_4G63T · September 8th, 2006, 01:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bone

(i've always wondered what settings they use to test an intercooled turbo car on the dyno, even windspeed is a factor there)

Usually a large fan will be placed infront of the car and will only do one or two pulls at a time before letting it cool down, that is if you ahve a front mounted intercooler. But cars with top mounted intercoolers (like when my friend had his stock Bluebird motor in his NX2000) we put a bag of ice on top of it and the fan for the radiator.

bone · September 8th, 2006, 04:43 PM

^that's for a normal dyno run, i was more talking about factory claimed output numbers, what settings they use. if they test them on the northpole in a windtunnel at 200mph, it's easy to make a lot of power images/smilies/lol.gif

Quote:

Originally Posted by mautzel

Quote:

Originally Posted by the Interceptor

Yes, cars can have good days and bad days. I've noticed this especially with turboed cars. They can gain or lose a noticeable amount of power, depending on the weather. The reason are differences in pressure, temperature, humidity and so on. As turbo engines heavily depend on the air they feed themselves with, its quality has an impact on their efficiency.

I always wondered about that question as well as I sometimes have the feeling that my car feels tired and weak whereas on other days it seems to burst of power. (Golf TDI) With all the explanations and factors named above it suddenly makes sense, and somehow I've got the feeling that humidity plays a much bigger role than most people think - or is that just me?

where there is moist, there can't be oxygen images/smilies/wink.gif

mautzel · September 8th, 2006, 07:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bone

Quote:

Originally Posted by mautzel

Quote:

Originally Posted by the Interceptor

Yes, cars can have good days and bad days. I've noticed this especially with turboed cars. They can gain or lose a noticeable amount of power, depending on the weather. The reason are differences in pressure, temperature, humidity and so on. As turbo engines heavily depend on the air they feed themselves with, its quality has an impact on their efficiency.

I always wondered about that question as well as I sometimes have the feeling that my car feels tired and weak whereas on other days it seems to burst of power. (Golf TDI) With all the explanations and factors named above it suddenly makes sense, and somehow I've got the feeling that humidity plays a much bigger role than most people think - or is that just me?

where there is moist, there can't be oxygen images/smilies/wink.gif

True!

WheatKing · September 8th, 2006, 09:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by epp_b

Quote:

My car loves -30F (-30 C or so)

well.. except in the morning before it warms up.. the hydraulic lash adjusters sound like i've replaced the engine with a diesel..

once it's warmed up.. its night and day compared to the warm (80+ F) (20ish? C) weather..

Joys of living in Canada.. LOL land of extreme weather.. 30+C in the summer.. -30C in the winter..

Ah, yes, I know what you mean! What kind of car do you have?

Kind? Lots.. LOL

right now.. i have a 95 sebring coupe.. 4cyl 5sp.. and a 2001 sebring coupe.. v6 5sp.. and an 01 Yukon.

but i've had more talons than you can count on both hands.. along with jeeps, trucks, etc etc..

an eagle talon AWD with tall narrow snowtires is pretty much unstoppable in winter.. if ya've never been drift busting in a car before.. find a used one to beat and give it a shot.. images/smilies/lol.gif

BlaRo · September 9th, 2006, 12:07 AM

It also depends on whether it's that time of the month again... images/smilies/tongue.gif

targa_997 · September 14th, 2006, 04:41 AM

It strongly depends on the weight of your girlfriend's purse/handbag too images/smilies/biggrin.gif

September 5th, 2006, 01:53 PM	#1
Sir Clarkson Joined: Aug 1st, 2006 Last Online: October 8th, 2006 Posts: 29 Rep Power: 0	Can cars have good days and bad days? My question is can a car such a a corvette c6 z06 for example have less than 500 bhp on one day and then more on a second day? I know that after many years the amount of horsepower gets smaller. But can says weather affect the car? Will a change in temprature change the cars performance? Can cars have better days than others?

September 5th, 2006, 02:18 PM	#3
the Interceptor Joined: Feb 22nd, 2005 Last Online: Yesterday Location: Germany Posts: 1,975 Car: BMW E36 323i superleggera (-85 kg to date) Rep Power: 48	Yes, cars can have good days and bad days. I've noticed this especially with turboed cars. They can gain or lose a noticeable amount of power, depending on the weather. The reason are differences in pressure, temperature, humidity and so on. As turbo engines heavily depend on the air they feed themselves with, its quality has an impact on their efficiency. Regards the Interceptor __________________ "We have to laugh at the Germans, because they're so riddled with guilt about their history, they can't laugh at themselves." - Jeremy Clarkson

September 5th, 2006, 02:22 PM	#4
Lilleput Evo-less Joined: Jun 10th, 2005 Last Online: Yesterday Location: United Kingdom of Denmark Age: 25 Posts: 2,901 Car: Ford S-Max Titanium - 268hp Rep Power: 70	The transmission on my Evo can have alot of moods, it shows in how well the clutch grips and how precise the changes are.. __________________

September 5th, 2006, 03:24 PM	#5
bone "bangle for president" Joined: Jan 14th, 2004 Last Online: November 27th, 2008 Location: belgium!! Age: 24 Posts: 6,069 Car: yamaha banshee (and an opel astra from work) Rep Power: 28	temperature himidity atmospheric pressure % of oxygen in the air ^they all determine how much hp the engine will give that certain day (i've always wondered what settings they use to test an intercooled turbo car on the dyno, even windspeed is a factor there) __________________ groups/artists i've seen live: coldplay, the cure, cypress hill, damian marley, deftones, depeche mode, dEUS, franz ferdinand, grandaddy, guns n' roses, interpol, jamiroquai, korn, lenny kravits, marilyn manson, massive attack, metallica, moby, muse, the pixies, placebo, prodigy, queens of the stone age, the raconteurs, radiohead, red hot chili peppers, REM, skin, tool, the who, Wu-Tang and so many more...

September 5th, 2006, 08:04 PM	#6
Mischief007 Joined: Dec 3rd, 2004 Last Online: Yesterday Location: London, Ontario, Canada Age: 27 Posts: 4,378 Car: 2004 GP GTP CompG LFS Status: Rep Power: 24	Both my cars had attitude. Treat it like crap and it drives like crap. Treat it nice and I swear they purred perfectly. My cars have always had attitude towards me . __________________ 2004 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP CompG 66,750 km - 41,477 miles

September 5th, 2006, 01:57 PM	#2
MXM old porsches do run! Joined: Jun 9th, 2004 Last Online: Yesterday Location: Finland Age: 26 Posts: 2,664 Car: Porsche 944 LFS Status: Rep Power: 32	Altitude certainly can affect normal aspirated cars. Higher you go - less oxygen it gets (in fully opened throttle).

September 7th, 2006, 01:14 AM	#7
jayjaya29 Joined: Mar 18th, 2005 Last Online: Yesterday Location: Lindenhurst, NY Age: 20 Posts: 4,823 Car: 2000 Nissan Altima Rep Power: 20	Same with my car. If I beat it for a little bit, it will seem like its going to die, but if I keep it nice and calm it'll stay smooth and purr like a kitten. __________________ Check out my Gallery. Check out my Car.

September 7th, 2006, 01:19 AM	#8
ESPNSTI Your Guide to TG/FG Joined: Dec 9th, 2003 Last Online: December 1st, 2008 Location: Decorah, IA Age: 36 Posts: 4,297 Car: 2004 Subaru Impreza WRX STI (USDM) LFS Status: Rep Power: 35	Yup, it seems to me that my STI is happiest in the 60-70 degree fahrenheit range (15-21C). __________________ Top Gear Episode Guide (Excel) \| Top Gear Episode Guide (HTML) \| Top Gear Classic Episode Guide (HTML) Other Top Gear Guides \| Fifth Gear Guides \| Clarkson's TV/Video List \| Tiff Needell's TV/Video List

September 7th, 2006, 05:27 AM	#9
epp_b n00b of the year Joined: Jun 23rd, 2006 Last Online: Yesterday Location: Canadaland :) Posts: 4,720 Car: 1995 Nissan 240SX Rep Power: 41	In theory, the colder the temperature, the more dense the oxygen, the more potent the combustion is, the more power the engine produces. __________________ My Photo Site:

September 7th, 2006, 08:06 PM	#12
WheatKing Joined: Nov 11th, 2004 Last Online: November 24th, 2008 Location: Ontario Canada Posts: 215 Car: '01 Sebring Coupe Rep Power: 0	My car loves -30F (-30 C or so) well.. except in the morning before it warms up.. the hydraulic lash adjusters sound like i've replaced the engine with a diesel.. once it's warmed up.. its night and day compared to the warm (80+ F) (20ish? C) weather.. Joys of living in Canada.. LOL land of extreme weather.. 30+C in the summer.. -30C in the winter.. one of my old eagle talon turbos would get fuel cut on the real cold days, engine controller detected too dense of air and thought it couldn't compensate.. and WHAM.. your accellerating like a bat outta hell and then your teeth are firmly implanted in the steering wheel.. weather plays a huge part in how your engine performs.

September 14th, 2006, 04:41 AM	#20
targa_997 Joined: Aug 16th, 2006 Last Online: February 7th, 2007 Location: USA Posts: 343 Car: Z3 Roadster 2.8i Rep Power: 0	It strongly depends on the weight of your girlfriend's purse/handbag too

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