HSTuners - as per request.. nitrous write up..

people always ask me basic nitrous questions.. so i tried to outline a little of what i know about it.. HIH..

Brief post about nitrous....

Glossary:

For this discussion there are some terms that may or may not be common to the basic automotive enthusiasts, they are:

1. WOT: wide open throttle, this is used in this post to describe the point at which you are "flooring the car" the point at which the throttle is FULLY open during acceleration.

2. Solenoid: a mechanical device that under current will open or close. In a nitrous kit these act as a gate to let in or hold back gasoline or nitrous.

3: Micro switch: a switch mounted normally on the throttle body that only engages at WOT. it is used to control when nitrous is sprayed into the motor.

What is the right kit for me? How does it work? is it safe. Etc.

The way that nitrous works is it sprays a gas (nitrous oxide) into the motor, as the gas is introduced into the combustion process it breaks down and releases oxygen, this added oxygen allows you to add more gas. More gas plus more oxygen equates to more power.

How do the different kits function?

There are really only two main types of nitrous kits. They are wet and dry. The kits work as follows.

Dry kit
(Sprays ONLY nitrous into the intake path of the car)

The most basic kit
(ex. http://www.racerwheel.com/nos-05122.html )
(and the one I use personally) is a dry kit. A dry kit ONLY sprays nitrous into the motor. the extra fuel is injected through the STOCK fueling system. The way that they work is as the nitrous solenoid opens to spray the nitrous into the motor, the working fuel pressure of the car is increased greatly. This increase is done through mechanical means (ex. nitrous regulator) or through electronics that are integrated into the ECU. These kits are good for relatively low nitrous injection levels (35-70/75) the reason these kits are not used in higher applications is normally due to poor nitrous distribution thus causing one or more cylinders to lean out. the reason this occurs is the fuel is increased pretty evenly through all four cylinders, and on a small shot this is fine, but when you reach the 100 type level the nitrous is forced into the furthest cylinder and since the nitrous is distributed unevenly and the fuel is distributed evenly some cylinders will run rich and some will lean out and detonate, thus causing premature engine failure. Most dry kits are set up to work with STOCK motors ... meaning you could literally buy the car and put it in.. things to make a dry kit more safe are colder plugs, STOCK ignition OR slightly retarded ADVANCING THE IGNITION ON NITROUS IS A BAD IDEA ... after-market chips unless SPECIFICALLY designed for your car with nitrous application are bad.

Wet kits
(Spray nitrous AND gas into motor through the kit)

a standard wet kit (like this basic NX kit http://shop.store.yahoo.com/southwes...rcomallef.html ) has a nozzle that is mounted into the intake pipe with two inlet ports in the back. One gets a line mounted to the nitrous solenoid and the other to a fuel solenoid at WOT nitrous AND gas is sprayed into the motor.

Another version of the wet kit (although there are rare applications of it being dry) is a plate system. a plate system is just like your standard wet kit except for there is a plate mounted in the intake path that has metal lines in it.. these metal lines have fine holes in them. At WOT nitrous and gasoline is injected into the plate and comes out the holes. good for higher shots. Slightly more efficient than the standard wet kits.(ex. http://www.edelbrock.com/automotive/...rous/70021.jpg )

The big one is direct port. Direct port is also a wet kit. It is VERY similar to the standard wet kit only it has at least one nozzle per cylinder and is tapped DIRECTLY into the intake manifold. this kit offers near perfect distribution, and is used in very high horsepower applications. (ex. http://www.holley.com/HiOctn/ProdLin.../NOSNS/SC.html )

There is also something new on the market, called a "noszle" it is almost like direct port and clips directly onto the injector here is information on that. I have no personal experience with this product at all (ex. http://www.holley.com/HiOctn/ProdLin...NS/NOSzle.html )

Accessories.

1. Bottle heater: almost a MUST if you live anywhere that it is not at least 80 degrees year round. They all work a little differently bit they basically all do the same thing. increase bottle temp. the increase in temp increases pressure, increased pressure equates to a more study consistent nitrous flow.

2. Nitrous pressure gauge: another must. I have a nice one mounted in my dash BUT even if you want to cheap out. at least get a bottle mounted one. Running down the track at 600 psi nitrous pressure is almost pointless. this gauge will tell you if the bottles hot enough and the pressure is high enough to make a solid run.

3. Remote opener: nice for trunk mounted bottles eliminates going to the bottle physically to open it. There are some that are like big solenoids on the bottle, and others that physically open the bottle.

4. Blow down tube: a cheap safety measure, it is a tube that is attached inline to a rupture disk in the valve of the bottle, the tube is then directed out of the vehicle, in the event that bottle pressure rises too high. the disk will rupture, and the nitrous will leak OUT of the car.

5.Purge: a purge is an aditional solonoid that is open prior to running too bleed of any air in the line so that when you spray its pure nitrous in (ex: http://members.aol.com/xoccivicx/images/new3.jpg )

feel free to ad anything i forgot or ask ANY questions