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A Few More Ponies

28K views 92 replies 20 participants last post by  tacamo01 
#1 ·
Hey guys this is my first real post so please be gentle...

I'm looking for ways to increase the speed and throttle response of my Charger (2014 R/T 100th Anniversary Edition). Don't get me wrong, its plenty fun now but I'd like to make it to where it stands out from other R/T Chargers performance wise. I don't need an SRT8 (or I would have bought one) but something with a little more get up and go then the average off the line R/T would be awesome. Say a goal of 400ish HP.

This is first car I've ever owned, everything else has been a truck or Jeep with 35" or bigger tires.

I assume there is some interchangeability, for example a more free flowing exhaust (Dynaflow or Flowmaster?) and intake (I've read good things about the LMI CAI on these forums).

The gearing I think I'll leave alone because it feels pretty tall.

But I'm open to other ideas. Plugs, Hypertech Programmer?

Thanks for the advice and again...
Be gentle, first post :laugh2:
 
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#3 ·
bwahahahaha he said be gentle.


LMI Intake for sure! i have one and would not buy anything else.

browse youtube or if you know anyone else with a charger or challenger with an upgraded exhaust find the one you like. a lot of people i see talk about the same exhaust kits all the time. you have solo performance, SLP (which i have), magnaflow, pypes, etc. i highly recommend long tube headers ( i have KOOKS ). if you plan on building up to nitrous, turbo or supercharger with a cam upgrade.

lastly.... Diablo intune or trinity... Prefer trinity.

Marylandspeed.com is your friend for all upgrades.... cant beat the prices.

cams.... inertia motorsports and highhorse Performance

shop around, take your time and do it right the first time.
 
#4 · (Edited)
Good advice^^ If 400 hp at the crank is your goal, you can get that with a CAI, Catback with High Flow cats, Diablo tuner with a custom tune. Here is my stock dyno and then dyno's with the mods.
( I had K&N CAI, JBA HF's and Dynomax superturbo catback at the time)

Run 2 is Diablo factory 87 tune with mods (No hp gains expected)
Run 5 is Johan (Diablotoona) custom tune with mods
 
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#9 ·
A catch can and upgraded throttle body should theoretically give more hp, although I'm not sure how that translates to actual gains. These are pretty easy installs though.
Ummm...no.

Neither of those provides any HP gain at all and the TB is just a waste of money unless you substantially increase the engine displacement with a stroker build.
 
#6 ·
A catch can doesn't do anything to increase any HP. Just catches oil vs it going into your plenum


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#7 ·
Listen to tacomo01. Those few mods are relatively inexpensive and will net you decent gains. I have a similar set up (although tacomo01's set up is better now) and it's noticeably quicker and torquier than it was stock.
 
#8 ·
#14 ·
I agree with ddaddy.... Catback and Trinity made my car feel completely different. Time and time again it's been proven that these 5.7L HEMI motors are "choked" from the factory. Open them up and let them breathe and they will not disappoint you. They respond well to cams, heads, headers and freer flowing exhaust. My '06 R/T liked exhaust, tuner and CAI upgrades, my '06 Hemi grand cherokee enjoyed its CAI and tuner, and my '11 R/T is the same. You may even notice your mpg's increase if you can behave and stay off the throttle.
 
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#21 ·
Perhaps the off topic discussion was not really helpful to OP. I would just say when selecting performance modifications, be mindful that performance gains are often exaggerated. Dyno results can be affected by many other variables aside from the added components. This is a really nice write up: http://www.dynoperformance.com/article_details.php?article_id=14
 
#22 · (Edited)
Performance gains are exaggerated mainly by the manufactures themselves trying to promote their product. But personal dyno sheets are a great indication of performance. Sure a dyno is designed to test the car in optimal conditions with crazy airflow and temperature control but it still doesn't take away the fact there are gains to be had. You are correct in saying that some claims and expectations should be taken with a grain of salt, but not to the point where you expect nothing.

These cars aren't the best responders to tuning but they definitely wake up with a few simple modifications. Even if performance gains are on the lower end for some mods the drivability of the car increases exponentially and that is a beautiful thing.
 
#23 ·
Basically the thing to remember is that all of the other "performance modifications" that are done in a car are DEPENDENT on the fuel used and the lubricants used. It has been proven that putting ACES IV in the fuel will make a significant difference in how the car burns the fuel, what kind of HP and TQ can be obtained basically building on the other mods mentioned prior to this.

Flame front and pressure wave dynamics change with the speed of the gasses in the combustion chamber. Volume of air in and out help but to a limited factor mechanically. Fuel utilization is tantamount!;)

Regards,
Brian
BND Automotive LLC:driving:
440-821-9040
www.bndautomotive.com
 
#24 ·
No one has mentioned the Scat Packs available from the factory. I know they're not cost efficient, but I love having the factory mods and a full warranty. I also think the car wouldn't be devalued as much (compared to non-factory mods) when it comes time to sell. I have the Scat Pack 1 installed and the Scat Pack 2 on order. The 1 adds 18hp and 18 lb/ft or torque. The 2 is supposed to add 30hp and 30 lb/ft of torque. That would put the car right at 400hp and 425 lb/ft or torque.
 
#38 ·
Good ideas, have fun with the increased power and retain the factory warranty. Longtubes add hp at the top but really shine with a bigger cam and there is no reason to get bigger heads or P/P heads because the eagle heads flow so good. (600 hp rating) After the warranty is up if you keep the ride, look at drop in pistons and a blower or get the motor forged. 80,000 miles is a long way off but you have the safety of the factory warranty and will be running faster than most R/T's and staying real close to the old SRT's.:beerchug:
 
#39 ·
80,000 miles is a long way off but you have the safety of the factory warranty and will be running faster than most R/T's and staying real close to the old SRT's.:beerchug:
Funny you should mention the old SRT's, that's my performance goal. I think the factory stage 3 would make a current R/T as fast as an old SRT, the hp and torque numbers are very similar. Not sure about the weight. But after the Scat Pack 2 I'm gonna have to do something different (and cheaper) to add power. Thanks for the insight.
 
#46 · (Edited)
"When we changed over the NAG1 and the differential, we got a total of 25 hp and 38 ftlbs of torque. We picked up 3 tenths of a second, 2.5 mph and 2.5 mpg more going home. We did this for $ 242.66 initially and then another $193.62 for the trans and differential. Total of $436.28. 25 hp and 38 ftlbs."

It would be very easy to test this like Hot Rod Mag does for different products and it would not cost that much. Get a good dyno and operator, test a 2011-2014 Charger R/T without the additives for a baseline run. 3 runs. Then change the fluids and do 3 more runs in similar conditions. Similar conditions are not hard to get and if you use the same operator/dyno with no computer adjustments you should be able to tell if the products work as advertised.

But for some reason I do not think this will be done and more folks on this site will continue to purchase the product because of word of mouth. I really can feel the 15 hp gain from that CAI I put on! LOL You gotta justify the cost.
 
#48 ·
so more evidence based information as to how BND products work? astonishing! BND WORKS!!!!!
 
#52 ·
Thanks Brian

After further research I found some guys on the Challenger forum also that use the product. I will most likely give you a call after Xmas to test this out. I am very particular as to what fluids I put into this Hemi. Thanks for the additional info. It does appear that to get the most out of the ACES IV, another custom tune will be in order.

R/Jerry
 
#53 ·
Hey man, I know you have heavily worked on your R/T to get more out of it, and from what I can tell by your sig your car is dropped. What did you use for lowering it? I would like to try and stick with Mopar stuff if possible and I'm performance first minded. I would like to drop mine to the SRT level for a more buttoned down look and to decrease the huge wheel gap but I don't want it scraping everywhere either (I want to add the Mopar front lip too), I want it to remain daily driver friendly. Any experience with the Mopar lowering springs or their stage 2 kit? The Mopar site sucks and it's hard to get good info on them other than what people have said on here about the Mopar springs. Looking forward to hearing your impressions if you decide to try the ACES stuff too. Thanks!
 
#69 ·
Great read

Very interesting information, for the most part (I admit that I skipped a couple of the longer, more detailed posts), and I'm always glad to see that there are plenty of Mopar fanatics out there, but I have to wonder about some of you guys. You're trying to squeeze more horsepower out of cars that already have plenty, and I'm not clear to what end. It appears that some of you go to the track and if that is the case the extra horsepower is understandable, but it is a hard life for a car. As for the rest, what is the point of all that extra horsepower? I'm driving a stock 2014 RT Plus, and while I would love an SRT there is no way to use it. Even with the stock hemi I can be on someone's rear in a heartbeat without even using all of the power available, and can fly past the speed limits just breathing hard on the accelerator. I'm not complaining - to each his own - but I would never buy a car from any of you guys.
 
#87 ·
Very interesting information, for the most part (I admit that I skipped a couple of the longer, more detailed posts), and I'm always glad to see that there are plenty of Mopar fanatics out there, but I have to wonder about some of you guys. You're trying to squeeze more horsepower out of cars that already have plenty, and I'm not clear to what end. It appears that some of you go to the track and if that is the case the extra horsepower is understandable, but it is a hard life for a car. As for the rest, what is the point of all that extra horsepower? I'm driving a stock 2014 RT Plus, and while I would love an SRT there is no way to use it. Even with the stock hemi I can be on someone's rear in a heartbeat without even using all of the power available, and can fly past the speed limits just breathing hard on the accelerator. I'm not complaining - to each his own - but I would never buy a car from any of you guys.
For me it is not about racing or HP but rather the increased torque I can get. The old muscle cars of the late 60's and very early 70's did not have that much HP compared to todays rides. What most all did have was a greater amount of torque over the hp rating. Getting thrown back into the seat from a stand still or roll out to me is far better than getting the track times to post for all to see. If you had an extra 100 lb-ft of torque you would be able to feel a huge difference in acceleration. Guess it all depends on what puts a grin on your face when you drive.:beerchug:

FWIW, After the winter blend gas is gone and summer gas is here I plan to run ACES IV and the oil for several months to see how it performs. AJ (Hemituner) is currently increasing my TCM shift points to 6200 rpms, so I figure even without any increase in performance I will get the lubrication that the upper cylinder will need (After searching several forum sites that have written good things about both the oil and gas treatments at high rpm use).
 
#83 ·
Brian, can I get another gallon of ACES IV? IT WORKS! thanks!
 
#89 · (Edited)
My 68 Newport came with a 383 4 bbl, 330 horsepower/425 torque and it indeed could pull stumps out of the ground.

I built a 400 block into a 513 stroker... so much torque it will smoke the wheels in all three gears.

I am considering switching from the 3.23 gears to a set of 2.92's to get a bit more traction and an another mpg or two

since it's getting 7-8 mpg in town and 12-13 mpg on the open road. Your Charger is awesome!
 
#90 ·
Great to hear you have the Newport!! Those old 3 speed autos with a 2.66 to 1 first gear really need help but still pulls stumps etc.

When I did the 69 way back with all our materials, we were getting 11 around town and 16 on the highway with the 383 and the 3.23 open rear end. With the 3.91s 9 and 14.

Thanks, I was fortunate to get the car for $550.00 on March 31, 1980. ;)

Regards,
Brian
BND Automotive LLC:driving:
440-821-9040
www.bndautomotive.com
 
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