What helps?

[Pete]

I know my nova is only a 1litre and alot of people are going to say theres no point in doing anything to it and alot of banter is going to happen, But...
What parts can i get that will give me a little more power?
I hate how it is but im NOT going to do an engine change yet because i wont get insured so im going to wait until i have so NCB for that.

Any ideas?

[AlexW]

Weight loss.

[Welsh Dan]

Realistically, sell the car and buy one with a bigger OHC engine. Any engine mods that would really up the power (read as: forced induction) would affect the premium as much as an engine change.

[scott.parker]

I say change/upgrade plugs/ht leads, clean point on dizzy etc, change air filter,renew oil, all these things will improve power more then you think.

Scott

[mowgli]

buying & fitting bigger brakes.....

if you can stop in a shorter distance, then you can stay at speed for longer, thus you will be faster.

or buy a david vizard tuning the A series bmc engine book and start learning how to port & tune a 5 port sidecam ohv engine

[brainsnova]

weight loss and km/h

[ben doodar]

yes as scott said a real good service would help

[brainsnova]

and 13" rims

[Pete]

thanks for the advice guys :)
Im not up for selling it as i like my nova apart from the power.
the weight loss will be a major increase which i will consider :) but im still keeping the back seats.
i like scott's ideas, i bought some NGK spark plugs and boschh ht leads earlier, things like that make a major diffrence?

[LEWI007]

pumping the tires up very hard also makes the car go faster because it glides along the surface easier and gets less drag.

Spark plugs make a difference, some can improve 0-60 times and stuff.

[AlexW]

pumping the tires up very hard also makes the car go faster because it glides along the surface easier and gets less drag.

Reducing tyre life, reducing grip. Correct tyre presures should be used.

[Pete]

seconded

[Morton]

well serviced car firstly .. air filter exhaust ...
weight loss ..then bigger brakes replace the suspension ..
find some 13"x5.5j and fit some good tyres!!!

[Pete]

what air filter tho? becuase i have the box thing...
http://img514.imageshack.us/img514/4462/dscn3661.jpg

so will an air filter benifit?

like this?
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/K-N-AIR-FILTER-Vauxhall-Nova-1-0_W0QQitemZ400077061410QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_CarsP arts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM?hash=item5d26737d22


sorry about the ebay links.

[scott.parker]

Yeah that link has the right one, it will be a ring type filter, just drops in place of the old on in the box.

Imagine if it's not be replaced ever! lol

http://www.knfilters.com/search/product.aspx?Prod=E-2585

http://www.knfilters.com/search/applications.aspx?Prod=E-2585

[Jon_nova1]

service, weight loss and smaller tyres, i don't think the engines worth doing anything more with

[scott.parker]

Nos lol

[Ben]

Cut the footwells out and by some new daps!

[LEWI007]

Reducing tyre life, reducing grip. Correct tyre presures should be used.

Yes lose grip, but it will achieve a faster top speed.

[Plug]

Nos lol

Would it be possible to nos the 1L as its Carb?

If it is i think i might have a farewell engine NOSing when the time comes for me to upgrade :)

[scott.parker]

Phil Sutton did it to a 1.2, search you tube, it dont last long! lol

[Plug]

the 1.2 was a spi though IIRc

[dannyb]

Yes lose grip, but it will achieve a faster top speed.

I hear all the racing teams in all forms of motorsport do this to get quicker lap times....

You might gain a fraction of second for better in-gear times but imagine how much time you'd lose in the corners as you'd have to drive them so slowly. I hope you never drive anywhere in Manchester if you run over inflated tyres in your own motor mate.

[Nova_Tek]

A good engine oil can help performance albeit in small amounts as the engine has less friction/drag internally. A quick shift may help, quicker gear changes mean getting to a desired speed fraction of a second faster. The basic service is essential and yes like mowgli said, bigger brakes should help you stop quicker in a shorter space so you can brake later at roundabouts lol. Obviously stuff like more efficient uprated exhausts, better airfilter help the car breathe easier. But all this effort won't drop 0-60 down by a huge amount.

[craig green]

Some terrible advice added so far.
It really isnt worth doing anything other than servicing the std engine. The price of a new K&N (assuming they still supply them) will be more than a 2.0 8v engine could be bought for, which has over double the power output of the 1.0. If you are mature enough to understand you can't afford the insurance on an engine conversion, you should be able to wait a couple years & resist the temptation to pour money into the 1.0.

My advice is to upgrade & maintain the spec of the car, keeping it clean, maybe having paint blemishes corrected & adding GTE/SR interior parts so that in 2 or 3 years time, if you still own the car, it will be a fantastic condition base car to add a quicker engine to.

By the way, the best mods you can do to a std slow Nova, is some GTE/GSi/SR fr seats & 14" alloys from an Astra or Cav with 185/60 tyres. The seats will keep you out of the door pockets whilst negotiating roundabouts & the new wheels & tyres will enable you to carry far more speed through corners.

[mowgli]

right, now i've had time to ponder this a bit further...

mowgli mods to make a 1.0 go faster....

1. service the engine & get it set up properly by a garage where they employ men call reg, clive & jack etc, ie. old boys who can work on carb engines
2. get new dampers. you'd be amazed what the difference is.. not cheap ones either
3. if it has the original rims, get some 165/70r13 tyres, they will have tons of grip for the 1.0 & won't scrub off much speed into corners. big wheels will slow you down
4. get the brakes renewed all round.
5. get out there & teach yourself how to keep up momentum when on the open road.

the 5th one is the hardest, but using what you've got to the max is the best way to improve performance. don't sit up someones ar$e when trying to overtake, hold back & accelerate much earlier so that when you reach the back of the car, you are already going faster than it...learn to read the road & try to plan what will happen 400-600 yards up the road, and not just immediately in front of you, try to slow down at roundabouts & junctions to catch gaps instead of stopping. buy a decent road map & plan your journeys in advance. all these things help you to get there faster. they are not very sexy, but they are very effective

[Shaun_O'Donnell]

learn to read the road & try to plan what will happen 400-600 yards up the road, and not just immediately in front of you

Some good tips on here

http://www.youtube.com/user/UltDrivingCraft#p/u/3/dvXbmR1Rjv0

[Nova_Tek]

Great Vid '30 mph speed limit.. I'll be the judge of that' Spot on!

[scott.parker]

Some good tips on here

http://www.youtube.com/user/UltDrivingCraft#p/u/3/dvXbmR1Rjv0

Good tips, teaching common sense to thoughs who have none, but dam his voice is annoying! lol

[Jack]

haven't read the thread, but give it a service then uprate brakes, suspension, wheels & tyres, then loose as much weight as possible.

[let_nova]

WTF is peteg's SIG all about?