Testing 0-60 Times Before and After Programming

Depending on the desired power curve, your engine will be set up in one of two ways: by burning acceleration at the expense of maximum speed or the opposite. Of course, there are many levels of adjustment in between, but those are the two "bookends." In addition, the simple way to achieve those two goals is either to maximize torque with a large gear ratio or to maximize horsepower with a smaller gear ratio at the top end. The concept is similar to pedaling a bicycle at multiple speeds. In first gear, you can rocket forward extremely quickly but not go nearly as fast as you eventually can in the bicycle's maximum gear.

With a power programmer like the Hypertech Max Energy Spectrum, you can achieve significant boosts to both horsepower and pound-feet of torque. Depending on your engine and the type of fuel it uses, you can achieve many improvements. In one particular case, those improvements are 13 horsepower and 19 pound feet of torque, achieved when the programmer minutely and automatically controls the fuel-air mixture to maximize performance. The programmer is completely electronic and requires no extensive installation. The ease of both installation and use is one of the biggest advantages of the newest Hypertech programmers.

The best way to test the programmer's effect on 0–60 speed is to take your car to the track and have at it. You can see which combination of torque and horsepower works best for your particular car by adjusting the programmer's settings. If you're not able to do test runs at a track, then the next best solution would be late-night runs on a local highway, measuring from a stop at the beginning of the nearest on-ramp that happens to be straight. This is, of course, inexact, but you can get a pretty good idea. In either case, never do the testing alone.

It's useful if you actually do a test run yourself to set the base line for your car's 0–60 time. Don't go by what Car and Driver or similar publications tell you. Sure, they're accurate, but they're also professionals who do 0–60 runs in their sleep. In all likelihood, you won't match their performance, so you might not see as much of an improvement as you'd expect. 

How does this work in the real world? Let's say that your car did 0-60 in 8 seconds (hypothetically). Assuming no change in torque other than the incidental amount that accompanies the programmer's increase of horsepower, after programming, your car will reach 60 mph in 7.5-7.75 seconds. Also, because the programmer will also adjust the fuel air mixture not only to optimal levels for acceleration but also for periods of cruising and/or slowing down, fuel economy is actually slightly boosted as well.