Transmission & Drivetrain

It’s that time of the year when you get on the road with your friends and family. But don’t let a laggy ride drag you back, try some performance transmission upgrades that can turn your current car into your dream ride.

There is so much more a high-performance transmission coupled with a torque converter or drivetrain components can do for your vehicle, and for starters, it can improve its horsepower. All you need is DIU upgrades, and where you get stuck, you can employ the services of a professional to give your ride a boost even in the winter cold.

It’s the moment of celebration and as such, even the car you spend a few minutes in should bring you joy. If you agree, then these are the performance transmission upgrades you should try to enjoy the jingle bells season.

Why You Should Optimize Your Transmission for Increased Performance

Here are some reasons why your ride needs a performance transmission upgrade.

1. Engine Produces Torque that Can be Handled

Performance transmission upgrades are important for your car since it ensures that your engine does not produce more torque than what can be handled by the transmission. If that happens, a lot can go wrong which is usually evident in worn synchros, broken shafts, and bent forks.

2. More Power Can be Handled

It is also essential to upgrade your transmission so that it can handle more power, and the same applies to the transmission’s gear ratios to have increased performance. For instance, if you have a GM 4L60/E series transmission which was notably used in performance vehicles, it may not deliver to its best capability due to old-school mods.

Old-school mods are unable to improve the durability of your ride when it comes to extreme racing applications. Modern parts, on the other hand, are able to handle modern horsepower.

3. Improved Acceleration

A performance upgrade to the transmission can enable the engine to spend more time in the power band’s sweet spot. It is, however, worth noting that this might not impact the peak horsepower that is getting to the ground.

Nonetheless, the average horsepower that is put to the ground is increased thereby giving an improved acceleration that makes for a quicker 0-60, quarter mile or lap times.

Performance Transmission Upgrades

Your car’s power and ability to regulate heat all lie in its transmission and as such, this is such a powerful component. You would often need to do the following to get a good performance transmission upgrade:

• Rebuild manual
• Rebuild kit
• Shift kit
• Accumulator pistons
• Separator plate
• Torque converter

1. Rebuild

A great place to start is to replace or rebuild your transmission in a bid to improve its performance. It’ll be one that can handle payload more efficiently, and as such, what you’ll get is a faster and more powerful transmission. When it comes to rebuilding your transmission, you can rely on a car repair shop to do it for you.

In this case, your duty is to ensure that the shop uses the highest-quality OEM transmission parts and has skilled technicians to rebuild your current transmission. The result will be quite rewarding if either of these is in place since it’ll take a good technician to make the most of the quality parts you will be offered.

On the other hand, there are rebuild manuals for automatic transmissions, hence, if you want to do the upgrade yourself, you can be armed with one of these. A good resource manual centers on various aspects of how to work with the transmission in your car including the assembly, dis-assembly, diagnosis, troubleshooting, etc.

2. Rebuild Kits

There are also rebuild kits you can work with and if you choose to do it yourself, this type would prove useful. Let’s say you’re working with a 4L60E transmission, then you can settle for a standard better-than-stock kit with a molded piston kit or a high-performance rebuild kit.

Depending on which you settle for, it will determine the things you can do to your transmission and how well you can optimize your ride. The high-performance kit sometimes features the following: Raybestos Stage 1 clutches, a Kevlar band, a new filter, Kolene steel plates with 8 clutches 3-4 pack and a full bushing kit.

3. Shift Kits

Shift kits are also required in performance transmission upgrades. The 4L60E takes advantage of one of two kits most times, it is better to use one of two shift kits.

Some of these are the TRG-SK4L60E, and the TRG-4L60E-HD2. TRG-SK4L60E helps to prevent, correct, and reduce problems that may be associated with shift performance.

On the same note, it fixes harmonic bounce that may wear out the pump and valves and thereby, cause shuttle shifts.

4. Schedule a Transmission Upgrade

Now’s the time to take action, and schedule a transmission upgrade with a reliable company. In this case, you’ll be getting a high-performance transmission upgrade, and therefore good quality that can give a significant boost in your ride’s speed.

Moreover, such a company is one that has a high level of experience when it comes to high-performance transmission upgrades for vehicles. The same applies to whether it is an automatic or manual you are driving since the transmission in either of these can be upgraded.

5. Accumulator Pistons

There are also accumulator pistons that need to be replaced, and they are usually recommended in the case of a 4L60E rebuild. If they aren’t replaced, these may tend to ruin your transmission. In the 4L60E, a great place to start would be to replace the forward accumulator piston a well as the 1-2 accumulator piston.

The Bottom Line

Now it’s your turn to implement these performance upgrades on your car to improve its horsepower this season. The goal is to have a ride that can handle the impact of the winter given that this season is usually accompanied by snow and ice on roads.

And if you still want to transport easily, these tips can show you where to begin and the transmission in your car that is in dire need of upgrades. Therefore, don’t assume you’ve got the perfect ride, but go out there and do it.

Winter’s here, and that means your ride needs to revamped to handle the ice, snow, and sleet on roads. A vehicle winter-ready list, for instance, will ensure that your car can withstand the harsh weather, thereby enabling you to drive smoothly and seamlessly as if it were summer.

Thus, winter won’t be something to detest since it does not mean you’ll be stuck indoors for hours unending without taking a therapeutic ride. So, how do you begin? Use the vehicle winter-ready and car maintenance checklist outlined below, and try these tips to ensure that your ride is ready for the weather.

Vehicle Winter-Ready and Car Maintenance Checklist

To protect your car, use this vehicle winter-ready list to help ensure a smooth along rough surfaces. Do the following below.

1. Check Your Windshield Wipers and Lights

The ability to see clearly as you drive through the snow is important, which is why you should check your windshield wipers if they are working properly. It’s even better if you replace the windshield wipers with winter blades that can help to wipe off the snow and ice that will be on the windshield.

Much more, a windshield washer tank with deicing fluid will remove the ice build-up and save you the extra time of waiting for it to defreeze. On the other hand, you also need to inspect your headlights and tail lights if they are working properly since it will provide good illumination when you’re out late.

You need to see the snow or ice clearly to maneuver through it, and if the lights are yellow or dim, clean the lenses or replace the bulbs entirely.

2. Protect Your Car’s Exterior

Did you know that you can winterize your vehicle’s exterior? It involves washing and waxing the car’s exterior to prepare it for winter. But here’s what it looks like:

It’s no surprise if you still have last season’s buildup on your car. That may be the case, but taking the step to scrub this build-up away can be useful.

Once that is in place, you can proceed to apply quality wax on the car to give it maximum protection against the impact of snow and road salt.

3. Maintain Your Car’s Battery

If you’re using the same battery from summer, the season’s heat could have affected the quality of the battery thereby causing it to be weak. This weakness is evident in the car’s inability to start on a very cold morning since the battery it totally drained.

On the other hand, you can ascertain the current state of your battery by performing a battery and charging system test. It will enable you to know if you need to purchase and replace the existing battery with a new one as a defense against the cold weather.

Nonetheless, a new battery may not guarantee that your car is safe proof for winter if you live in extremely cold areas. As such, the battery may have to be paired with a maintainer or trickle charger. Another thing you can try is to disconnect the battery from the car in a bid to prevent unnecessary power drainage.

4. Change Your Car’s Oil

Cars can either use synthetic or conventional oil, and synthetic oil has shown to offer several benefits over the latter especially in cold temperatures. For instance, synthetic oil warms up faster in comparison to conventional oil, and it also tends to flow freer at low temperatures.

As a result, the engine’s moving parts are protected immediately once the car is started. Cold weather starts are also easier when the car is running on synthetic oil.

That being the case, a winter vehicle maintenance you should also try is to change your car’s oil. In this case, use a full-synthetic oil that is appropriate for your car instead of relying on conventional oil it may currently have.

5. Examine Your Tires

A new set of snow tires for the winter is one more thing you should consider. But first, inspect your tires and if the treads don’t have enough depth, then you need a new pair.

The aim is to get as much traction as possible to enable the tires to handle the treacherous roadway conditions. Over and above that, it is expected that every 10-degree drop in air pressure could cause a decrease in tire pressure by one pound.

Hence, you also need to check the inflation of your tires, since an under-inflated tire can reduce handling and traction. It could also affect your vehicle’s fuel economy, asides from the obvious fact that the tires will tend to wear down faster.

6. Inspect Your Fuel Injectors

Clean fuel injectors can also make your ride powerful this winter. It all boils down to the fact that cold temperatures can cause performance issues to a vehicle’s fuel system. Some of these problems may be evident in hard starts and rough idling. The same can be said about the presence of water in the fuel system since it can spring up several issues.

This, therefore, brings about the need to maintain clean injectors, by employing a fuel injector cleaner. A cleaner of this nature will help with the restoration of lost power and prevent several performance issues from arising. All you have to do is add the fuel injector cleaner to the gas tank as you fill-up.

7. Check Your Antifreeze

An engine’s cooling system has a liquid that is made up of a blend of water and antifreeze. Antifreeze is an important winter chemical and it could contain ethylene glycol or propylene glycol. These chemical compounds in the antifreeze help to prevent freezing and expansion of water.

That being the case, you need to measure your car’s antifreeze strength using an antifreeze tester or let a mechanic do it on your behalf. The aim of the test is to determine the lowest ambient temperature of protection that is offered to the engine from freezing.

8. Inspect Your Car’s Thermostat and Radiator Cap

The thermostat and radiator cap are useful in the car’s heating and cooling system. The thermostat helps to provide the heat needed to the car, and if it fails, it can be attributed to the fact that the corrosion has occurred or the coolant has not been changed frequently.

On the other hand, the radiator helps to keep the antifreeze in your vehicle in place. It also ensures that the entire cooling system is pressurized, thereby increasing the boiling point of the coolant.

What’s more, it is important to check the radiator cap for any leakage signs or replace the cap with a new one if its been years already since you’ve used it. The reason is, a leaking radiator cap can lead to an overheating of the engine and leakage of antifreeze.

The Bottom Line

The vehicle winter-ready list is for car enthusiasts who want to maintain the full functionality of their ride and ensure that the cold does not impact on it. If that’s what you want, then employ these tips for a good winter-weather driving as if it were summer.

The requirements on this list are quite easy to implement, and you can also employ the services of a professional to ensure you get them all right. Now, you can drive seamlessly without the fear that your vehicle could potentially break down this winter.

As technology advances, most products we are using on a regular basis are becoming more efficient. This enables them to offer us a higher level of performance. Transmissions are no exception to the rule. It is beneficial to understand what transmissions are, what their history is, and what you need to know when purchasing one of your own.

Transmission Talk

“Transmission” is a term that is used to describe the mechanism that channels all of the horsepower that is generated inside of your motor vehicle.

Imagine the way in which the power from your engine gets to your wheels. The motor is capable of making that power, but without the transmission, it would be useless. Add a transmission into the equation and then there is a fully-functional motor vehicle.

Your transmission can also enable you to quickly adjust gears via the clutch. The clutch plays a really important role because it is responsible for separating the engine from the transmission and then re-connecting them both when it is necessary. This is what allows the transmission to change gear ratios so that you do not have to shift gears manually.

A Brief History of Transmissions

You can trace the origins of what we would consider to be modern transmissions all the way back to the year 1904, when the Sturtevant brothers developed what was known as the ‘horseless carriage’ gearbox in Boston, Massachusetts. The unit that they created featured two forward speeds that could be changed by flyweights that were driven by the engine.

Naturally, a higher speed would make the high gear engage, while a lower speed would do the opposite. Unfortunately, the metallurgy in the early 1900s was not as good as it is today. This led to a number of these gearboxes failing without warning. Luckily, improvements have come a long way.

The early part of the 20^th century would lead to a number of important developments in the field of mechanics. In 1906, Henry Ford would release a special two speed plus reverse transmission that could be manually controlled using pedals.

The Turning Point

But, it was not until 1932 that we would see the first transmissions using hydraulic fluid.  The inventors of the first transmission using hydraulic fluid is by two engineers, Araripe and Lemos, who then sold their creation to General Motors. However, in the Wall Street Journal, an article appeared crediting ZF Friedrichshafen for the invention.

By the 1960s, three-speed units that featured torque converters had become incredibly popular. At this point, whale oil is being taken out of transmission fluid, something that shows real ingenuity. Fast forward to the 1980s and the three-speed units were already evolving to overdrive-equipped transmissions. These new developments involved four or more different transmission speeds and a lock-up torque converter that would improve fuel economy.

As amazing as all of these improvements and inventions might sound, the really interesting things have occurred over the course of the past two decades. We have seen everything from the first six-speed transmission to the first nine-speed automatic transmission in this small window of time. We can only imagine that things will keep improving as more time passes.

What Should You Look for When Purchasing a Transmission?

Consider what you want before you begin considering purchasing a new transmission. You can put as much money as you want into your motor vehicle, but all of that money won’t mean a thing if your transmission decides that it is going to fail.

Because mainstream transmissions are so standard, majority of car garages will have them in stock. But, there is an alternative solution.

Question whether or not to invest in custom high-performance transmissions. High-performance transmissions are both designed and built to meet the exact specifications of your own car, ensuring that everything fits together and works in perfect harmony.

Are Transmissions Really THAT Important?

Without a transmission, you would not have the power that the engine generates from your car to the wheels. It would be impossible. Replacing a transmission can cost a lot of money. Because it’s costly to replace a transmission, it’s a good idea to provide it with regular maintenance.

If you want to customize your ride, consider looking into high-performance transmissions. Remember that the quality of transmissions is always improving. With these improvements, it is worth considering whether or not an upgrade would be worthwhile.

What else can you be thankful for? The best performance upgrades that can transform your car into a fast and furious ride just by increasing its horsepower. There’s also the benefit of more torque for quicker passing, improved acceleration, and increased towing capacity.

Thus, your vehicle can be the ride to be on the lookout for, and probably one to emulate among hundreds out there. Now while this idea may sound good to you, the problem of where to begin may set in.

Nonetheless, we have outlined some of the best performance upgrades that will use your car’s functions optimally and, therefore, enable it to reach its full potential. The best part? These performance upgrades don’t require mechanic services; so long as you have a basic knowledge of car parts, you’re all set!

Simple Performance Upgrades for Cars

Below are some super simple performance upgrades that can boost and revamp your ride.

1. New Tires

New tires and good ones to begin with, can give your car more power, and as such, it is where you should begin if you want to improve your car’s performance significantly. Great tires will give your ride a greater grip on the road, and help to move swiftly along it. Hence, you can look forward to a pleasurable and smoother driving experience.

2. Engine Control Unit (ECU) Flash

A car’s ECU controls the air and fuel mixture (air-fuel ratio) in your engine, which helps to maximize the engine’s power and efficiency. However, manufacturer’s usually program this ECU to perform below the engine’s true capability as a precaution.

That being the case, you can improve the programming of the ECU that will help to unleash its full potential. The engine’s performance will be enhanced as well as the return on gas mileage.

3. Cold-Air Intake

The installation of a cold-air intake system helps to circulate the airflow in your car’s engine and also provides cooler and denser outside air into the engine. For this reason, cold-air intake can help to boost your car’s performance significantly. Its impact is evident in its ability to allow your car to breathe better and as such, drive better.

4. Spark Plugs

Spark plugs with great quality can aid in better combustion, and as such, it would mean more power and fuel economy in your ride. Pairing the two side by side can be extremely rewarding since you don’t get a ride with a high level of performance at the expense of low fuel consumption. But what about the old spark plugs you have? You may wonder.

While these may have also been great quality spark plugs, they could’ve become worn out due to wear and tear. As such, it could impact on the results delivered significantly. That being the case, you can try an affordable swap to new spark plugs on your new or old ride.

5. Bolt-In a High Flow Exhaust

A bolt-in a high flow exhaust will enable your car’s waste to be exited conveniently. And that can be compared to the removal of wastes from the human body! But in this case, your car needs to do the same.

When a bolt in a high flow exhaust is used, it reduces the pressure that is built up within the ride, and therefore, helps the driver to move more efficiently. A bolt also increases the removal process of waste.

6. Bushing Replacement

Bushings are rubber suspension components, and they are employed in providing cushioning, isolating vibration, and reducing friction between metal parts in the car. Manufacturers add rubber bushings which could get damaged easily and thereby cost you better performance of your car.

On the contrary, a replacement of these bushings can ensure that they stand the test of time to provide the level of support they should for a long time. You can, therefore, try polyurethane bushings that have been proven to last longer than rubber bushings. They also take it one step further in minimizing weight transfer and ending vibrations.

7. Forced Induction

A turbocharger or supercharger can help to increase your engine’s power output, and all it’ll take is to increase its horsepower. A turbocharger helps to force air at high speed into the engine. It needs the exhaust gases to build up as the RPMs increase.

In this case, you need to increase the efficiency of the existing turbo to have more engine power without affecting the OEM reliability. A supercharger comes with a belt-driven compressor, and they provide a power hit low in the RPM range.

8. Nitrous

Nitrous provides a temporary-boosting, cooling effect that enters the combustion chamber, which makes the air entering the chamber denser as well. As a result, there can be a more powerful burn that will help to push your ride forward. However, if you need 50 horsepower right away and not a couple of minutes of hours later, you can try a nitrous kit.

9. Camshafts

A performance camshaft, also known as a bump stick, can also be useful in increasing your car’s performance. The camshaft bears a resemblance to a metal stick with bumps at its circumference.

Here, the bumps are cam lobes that decide when air enters in and out of the combustion chamber since they open and close the intake and exhaust valves. Therefore, a change of the cam can improve horsepower significantly. The horsepower can be increased between 30 to 100.

10. Fine-Tune and Reprogram Computer-Controlled Systems

A hand-held reprogrammer in a computer-controlled engine can help to improve fuel delivery, advance timing, and the change shift points on automatic transmissions. Nonetheless, you will need to have a good idea of what you’re up to by following instructions strictly.

The Bottom Line

These are some of the best performance upgrades for car, which you’ll be thankful for after implementing them. They are quite easy to work with, and some require inexpensive components that can still turn your car into the ride it needs to.

Your ride can be fast, offer great fuel mileage, and have reliable components that won’t break down. Hence, you can resort to these upgrades when trying to improve the performance of your car.

The importance of adding a fuel stabilizer when storing your vehicle for a long term cannot be over-emphasized. If you’ve just refilled your tank or still have a significant amount of gas in it, and you’ve made plans not to drive your car for weeks or months, then a fuel stabilizer needs to be added to the tank to preserve the fuel’s quality.

Fuel stabilizers ensure that your gas does not go stale so that the fuel stays fresh until the vehicle is started again. Take a look at why gas goes bad in the first place, and the importance of using a quality fuel stabilizer for small and large engines.

What Causes Fuel to Go Bad?

Driving a car often means it will be refilled regularly with fuel, and as such, the fuel system will always use fresh gas. On the other hand, leaving the car for months can cause the fuel to go bad. More so, it takes a while for fuel in a tank to go stale, and this can be attributed to the following:

Oxidation

A car’s fuel system is not airtight. The fuel is exposed to moisture and oxygen while it sits for weeks unending. This causes an oxidation process to occur as well as evaporation of the fuel’s constituents, which could make the fuel to gum in the insides of the carburetor or fuel injection system.

If the fuel goes bad, it loses its potency and can also pose serious problems to the fuel system by breaking it down gradually. The only way to start the engine would be to clean the carburetor before the car is refueled. However, this issue won’t be the case with the addition of a quality fuel stabilizer that preserves the quality of fuel in your car, irrespective of how long the ride will sit without being driven.

Ethanol

There are Ethanol infused fuels that can have an effect on the delicate parts of the car’s carburetors or fuel injection parts. If that’s the case with your vehicle, storing your car in the winter and trying to start it in the spring could pose a problem. The latter could lead to spending more money than necessary on car repairs due to the damage to these components.

What Is Fuel Stabilizer?

A fuel stabilizer is a liquid agent added to fuel, creating a protective layer and preventing the fuel from deteriorating or going bad after a while. Fuel stabilizers also prevent fuel from gumming to the insides of the fuel system, even after the vehicle’s long-term storage.

As a result, you can store your car for the long term (24 months) and the fuel will still be as fresh as when it was bought at the gas station. Alternatively, the deterioration of fuel due to oxidation and the absence of a fuel stabilizer would require that the car’s carburetor be cleaned before it is refueled.

It is worth noting that fuel stabilizers are meant for seasonal types of equipment, classic cars, or boats, and not everyday usage.

Importance of Fuel Stabilizer

Some benefits of adding a fuel stabilizer to the tank include:

1. Helps to Store the Car Long-Term

You can store your car for winter without worrying that the fuel may go bad or break down vital components of the car. Instead of stale fuel in your car, it will be as fresh as it was the day you filled up. It all begins with having the best fuel stabilizer in your tank.

2. Saves Repair Costs

Bad fuel in the car can damage the car’s carburetor or fuel injection system. It could also lead to the engine’s corrosion. A stabilizer helps the fuel maintain its full strength while preventing chemical break down too.

Similarly, the fuel will not stick to important components, which could lead to the car’s failure. This and many more saves you the cost of repairs that would’ve been triggered if these parts were damaged.

3. Saves Refueling Costs

Gas does not come cheap, especially if you had just filled it fully some weeks ago. Hence, you can still make use of it since it has not degraded, without spending to have a new refill.

4. Takes Away the Need to Drain the Tank

A possible solution to preserving the internal parts of the carburetor while the fuel is inside the car would’ve been to drain and dry the whole fuel system. However, you won’t have to do this with a good fuel stabilizer.

How to Use a Fuel Stabilizer

To use a fuel stabilizer in a car that you won’t be driving for the next few weeks or months simply pour it in the fuel tank. First, fill the car with 95 percent of fresh fuel, and then add the recommended amount of fuel stabilizer.

Next, start your car and let it run for at least five minutes, ensuring that the fuel and fuel stabilizer mixes thoroughly. A good practice to ensure that the stabilized fuel reaches all parts of the fuel system is to add it to the tank one or two days before you store the vehicle.

The Bottom Line

The importance of fuel stabilizers range from their ability to keep fuel fresh, to prevent a breakdown of your vehicle, and to ensure that you can drive your car after it has been sitting idle. Now that you’re aware of the benefits of using fuel stabilizers, be sure to purchase a quality stabilizer for the next time your vehicle sits parked. You will save yourself the cost of replacing the fuel, cleaning the carburetor, or even changing a mechanical component.

The hottest new products for muscle car enthusiasts have been designed to amplify every aspect of the car. You can rely on the expertise of numerous car manufacturers and designers to deliver a product that improves the level of performance or aesthetic appeal of your ride. What’s more, they can also serve as unique gifts for car lovers who are always on the lookout for what’s in trend.

New Products for Muscle Car Enthusiasts

Some of the latest products for muscle car enthusiasts are:

1. LS Side Pipe Headers

The new LS side pipe headers from Detroit Speed, Inc. are designed for LS engines, specifically in the 1968-1982 Corvette. Muscle car enthusiasts will love these headers due to their maximum ground clearance, cleaner engine compartment appearance, and high performance.

According to the product’s developer, the headers are durable, attractive, and their installation is quite easy. The LS side pipe headers can be paired with C3 Corvettes, and they were designed to specifically fit Detroit Speed’s SpeedRay front suspension installations. Specifications include:

• • Stainless steel design
  • Hand welded by Pro Fabrication
  • 1 7/8-inch primary tube diameter
  • 4-way merge collectors

Complete your Corvette’s exhaust by pairing the LS side pipe headers with Hooker stainless steel side tubes.

2. T-56 All-in-One Harness

The T-56 transmission all-in-one harness is useful to car enthusiasts owning vehicles equipped with a Tremec T-56 Magnum transmission, a six-speed manual transmission used in cars produced by Ford Motor Company, General Motors, and Dodge. The Tremec T-56 Magnum transmission has 3 electronic connections that are used to control the car’s reverse lockout, reverse lights, and speedometer output.

However, there is no convenient way to connect the reverse lockout. Manipulations carried out by car enthusiasts to create this connection often leads to premature wear on the reverse lockout solenoid. This problem can be avoided with the all-in-one harness, which serves as a beneficial complement to Classic Instruments’ electronic speedometer in the T-56 transmission. This easy to install harness offers proper OE functionality for the reverse lockout, a reverse light connection, and a VSS signal.

3. Emblematic

The 1968 Chevy II and the 1968 -1972 Nova also have something new to work with, and that’s all new trunk lid emblems released by Classic Industries. These trunk emblems are officially licensed GM Restoration parts; meaning they are of high quality and can be used to give your car’s rear a fresh look. The emblems are made of high quality die-cast materials, featuring black satin accents and factory markings that showcase their authentic appearance.

4. Vintage-Style Valve Covers

1958-86 Small Block Chevy engines manufactured with perimeter bolt patterns can have a revamped look with the new vintage Series valve covers released by Holley. These valve covers are 3.3″ tall with pre-installed internal oil baffles, and are made from die-cast aluminum.

Holley’s covers reduce the risk of oil leaks and warping of the valve cover flange while adding detail to the motor’s looks. These valve covers are available in different finishes including:

• • Gloss red
  • Natural cast
  • Polished
  • Satin black with machined fins
  • Factory orange with machined fins

Stock valve covers have unappealing style and offer minimal performance. Holley’s covers are an improvement on factory offerings and are equipped with coil-on-cover ignition technology, improving your Chevy’s performance.

5. Strong S-Series

The Strong S-Series by Strange Engineering is made from a high tensile strength nodular iron that is designed for hard-core street and track applications. The nodular iron case was crafted to offer increased strength, attested by its reinforced tail bearing, nodular iron caps, and radial rib design.

The product can be used in conjunction with Posi units, helical differentials, and also a spool given its level of reinforcement that offers enhanced rigidity. On the same note, the nodular iron case offers a Daytona pinion support and a wide selection of a street gear.

6. Book on COPO History

COPO muscle cars, including the Nova, Camaro, Chevelle, Vega, and Corvair are decades old (the 1960s and early 1970s), however, these are legendary performance vehicles manufactured by GM. COPO stands for “Central Office Production Order,” and the concept was created as a loophole for car manufactures to produce and sell high performance vehicles to the general public.

Many popular GM muscle cars have originated from these American, industry shaping vehicles. Given the immense popularity of these beasts, a book titled “COPO Camaro, Chevelle & Nova” has been written specifically to provide details on COPO muscle cars.

The book includes narratives from GM executives, original owners of these cars, repair technicians, among others. If you’re a die-hard fan of COPO muscle cars like the Camaro, Chevelle, or Nova, or you’re interested to learn about where it all began, then this book is for you.

7. Drop-Down Battery Boxes

Batteries can now be placed in drop-down battery boxes that help to distribute the car’s weight evenly. Another advantage of installing one of these boxes is that the engine compartment is less cluttered and now provides the opportunity for an auxiliary or main battery to be added.

If there is insufficient space in your trunk to support a battery, or you’d rather not have one sitting in it, use a drop-down box to mount your battery under the floor of your vehicle. These boxes provide easier to access the battery, making installations or replacements simple.

Drop-down battery boxes are commonly produced with black powder-coated steel designs, but stainless steel options are available. Most standard-sized battery sizes will fit into the specified internal dimensions of 10.5 by 7 by 9.5 inches (LxWxH).

8. Painless Pro Series Chassis Harnesses

The Painless Pro-Series chassis harness provides you with tools necessary for turning your custom routed wiring into a direct fit for your build. Each Pro-Series harness comes equipped with ample length wiring, giving you the flexibility of routing and hiding wires specific to your needs.

Painless Performance Products offers the chassis harnesses in two size, the smaller 12 fuse block controlling 23 circuits or, the larger 18 fuse block controlling 25 circuits. Each kit includes heat shrink, insulated and non-insulated butt splices, cable ties and cable tie clips.

The Bottom Line

These are some of the newest products for muscle car enthusiasts looking to improve their car’s performance and appearance. These products can make your ride unique and stand out from every other muscle car out there. Hence, you need to be among one of the first to take advantage of these products to ensure that your car is revamped from the traditional muscle car.