Power not as advertised?

[Ass Eyes]

I bought a car advertised here. Flew to get it, drove it home.

From the first time I hit the throttle hard I questioned the stated 633 whp. The last Terminator I had made 570-ish and seemed stronger though time, the Z06 I had and the 650 hp Benz I have now may have dulled the memory.

Anyway, tonight I did a 3rd gear pull to redline and noticed the aftermarket boost guage didn't even make it to 12 psi. I'm pretty sure that's not enough for a 2.2 Kenne Bell to get to the stated power level given the rest of the mods on this car.

I should let y'all know that I'm far from an expert on these cars and/or their tech. I'm at your mercy on this.

What I need to do is take it to a dyno. Problem is I'll have to find one in another town - none around here. What I want to know is if that 3rd gear thing I did is a true indication of anything relevant. Maybe I can't trust the guage. Maybe 3rd gear isn't where I should do this test. Maybe the SCT tuner that came with the car has multiple tunes and the current one loaded is a tamer version - I have no documentation on it so I've stayed away from messing with it.

I'd love any advice on this.

 

[520Terminator]

The aftermarket gauge should be pretty accurate. Have you contacted the previous owner to see if maybe it has a bigger pulley on it and a milder tune to run better on pump gas? What size pulley is on it now? What size lower? Also, you might get a better response in either the Terminator forum, or the Blower forum.

 

[STAMPEDE3]

Also remember that 630RWHP on one dyno may be 600RWHP on another.

That is why I hate and really don't pay attention to numbers.
they are given way too much credit in todays world.

 

[Riptide]

Take it to the track?

 

[itSSlow98]

Belt slip? Check the belt area for excessive dust. That would be my guess.

 

[thomas91169]

Also remember that 630RWHP on one dyno may be 600RWHP on another.

That is why I hate and really don't pay attention to numbers.
they are given way too much credit in todays world.

This is so true.

Though you should be able to get it on a dyno to verify that its at least putting down what it *should* be making with the mod list it has.

Is it just me or does 633whp sound very high for a 2.2L KB? Ive always considered that an entry level twin screw, capable of 500-600whp back in the day before ported blowers+e85 were hitting low 500's. Maybe 633 if its screaming at 20psi on e85 with a badass tune and better cams. I definitely dont see that happening at 91 octane at 12psi unless thats a really free-breathing motor.

 

[10splaya22]

Measure the pulley sizes to see how much boost you should be getting. Have you asked the previous owner?

 

[stangliter04]

The easiest thing to do is see what pulley combo you have. 12lbs should be a pretty large pulley.

 

[coposrv]

Also remember that 630RWHP on one dyno may be 600RWHP on another.

That is why I hate and really don't pay attention to numbers.
they are given way too much credit in todays world.

ET and mph is where it's at. I have seen to many people rely on what a dyno says. A dyno is a great tuning tool.

 

[CobraBob]

ET and mph is where it's at. I have seen to many people rely on what a dyno says. A dyno is a great tuning tool.

Yes, that is what it does best. A dyno helps with evaluating various setups when compared on the same dyno with same conditions. For pure numbers, not so much. Best "dyno" is the track.

 

[Ace5Oh]

Yes, that is what it does best. A dyno helps with evaluating various setups when compared on the same dyno with same conditions. For pure numbers, not so much. Best "dyno" is the track.

I agree with Bob here. More people here go crazy modding cars to get that "high" hp title. Yet they never onced made a pass. Smh.

 

[jfsram]

Maybe the seller knows what car and mods you have but I didn't see it mentioned.

As for boost vs power. All things equal, it can be a bit of reference but 12 psi does not mean 633hp.

For example. You change heads or port them. You boost will lower but you will have more power.

 

[Ass Eyes]

I should note that I don't really care about the numbers, only the experience. My 570 whp car spun drag radials at 60 mph in 3rd. This one can't and doesn't even have drags. It's also geared lower than the first one - maybe it had more than 570...?

Here's the mod list:

Induction
Kenne Bell 2.2L Supercharger
JLT Ram Air Intake
SCT 2400 MAF
Accufab Throttle Body
Snub Idler Bracket & Pulley
PCV Delete

Exhaust
Bassani Mufflers and Tips
Bassani Midpipe (Interchangeable)

Fuel
KB Boost-A-Pump
Wiring Upgrade
Dual Ford GT Supercar Fuel Pumps & Hat
Sieman Decka 63# Injectors

Driveline
8.8" Built Rear end (moser axles, 3.73 gears)
Maximum Motorspoints Coilovers (all 4)
McLeod RXT Twin Disc Clutch
26 Spline Input Shaft + Shim Kit
MGW Short Throw Shifter
Driveshaft Loop
Steeda Clutch Adjuster Kit

Suspension
Maximum Motorsports Rollcage
MM Caster Camber Plates
Subframe Connectors

Cooling
LFP Heat Exchanger
Head Cooling Mod

Appearance
Speed of Sound Pillar Pod
Bumper Inserts
Grill Emblem
Tinted Windows
AeroForce Gauges (2)

Misc
Tune (performed by Cody @ StangHi Performance)
SCT Xcal 2 Tuner

 

[stangliter04]

I should note that I don't really care about the numbers, only the experience. My 570 whp car spun drag radials at 60 mph in 3rd. This one can't and doesn't even have drags. It's also geared lower than the first one - maybe it had more than 570...?

Here's the mod list:

Induction
Kenne Bell 2.2L Supercharger
JLT Ram Air Intake
SCT 2400 MAF
Accufab Throttle Body
Snub Idler Bracket & Pulley
PCV Delete

Exhaust
Bassani Mufflers and Tips
Bassani Midpipe (Interchangeable)

Fuel
KB Boost-A-Pump
Wiring Upgrade
Dual Ford GT Supercar Fuel Pumps & Hat
Sieman Decka 63# Injectors

Driveline
8.8" Built Rear end (moser axles, 3.73 gears)
Maximum Motorspoints Coilovers (all 4)
McLeod RXT Twin Disc Clutch
26 Spline Input Shaft + Shim Kit
MGW Short Throw Shifter
Driveshaft Loop
Steeda Clutch Adjuster Kit

Suspension
Maximum Motorsports Rollcage
MM Caster Camber Plates
Subframe Connectors

Cooling
LFP Heat Exchanger
Head Cooling Mod

Appearance
Speed of Sound Pillar Pod
Bumper Inserts
Grill Emblem
Tinted Windows
AeroForce Gauges (2)

Misc
Tune (performed by Cody @ StangHi Performance)
SCT Xcal 2 Tuner

This is why I said to look at the supercharger pulley... If its only a 12lbs pulley then you're nowhere close to a 630 HP number. You said that was what you were reading on the boost gauge.

 

[CobraBob]

You missed an important part not listed in your "mods" list. What size upper pulley? And is the lower stock or larger?

 

[Zemedici]

This is why I said to look at the supercharger pulley... If its only a 12lbs pulley then you're nowhere close to a 630 HP number. You said that was what you were reading on the boost gauge.

You missed an important part not listed in your "mods" list. What size upper pulley? And is the lower stock or larger?

op:

 

[black92]

I wouldn't be surprised if the previous owner had it setup and it made 633hp. Then detuned it so he could sell it and mentioned in the ad it made 633hp, but didn't disclose that he detuned it. As others said, what size pulley's are you running?

Edit - Taking it to the dyno wouldn't be a bad idea because you could at least know that the tune is right or not. Another factor as to why it's "slow" is you could have gotten used to having a few high HP cars and the "power" isn't as impressive as it once was.

 

[357cstang]

A stock engine Cobra with a 2.2KB on pump gas will not likely make over 600 rwhp SAE on a legit Dynojet reading.

The few that have are not in the 630rwhp range.

Fun blowers, but not power houses. Mine made in the 575 range if I remember correctly and had similar modifications to those you've described.

Numbers are also junk. My 3.4L Whipple setup made 690 SAE, 712 STD, 725 Uncorrected and 731 Uncorrected with smoothing turned off. That's 41 horsepower just by playing with software settings.

 

[Riptide]

While spinning drag radials @ 60 in 3rd is impressive. On some level I have to ask myself what is the point to that. Once you've reached the territory of being unable to hold traction from a roll on the street, especially in 3rd gear ffs, it seems like you essentially have pretty much a pure track car at that point.

 

[CobraBob]

You've got a good point there, Owen. Seems pretty common, though, for high powered cars to have a life both on the street and at the track. A street car that does occasional track duty, or a track car that does occasional street duty. At some point it becomes nearly impossible to balance the two.