Tuned In

Is modifying a rare and desirable vehicle a really stupid idea? What's the secret to building a great street car? What makes a good engine swap? Can you actually make a career as an automotive 'YouTuber'? On this week's episode of the High Performance Academy 'Tuned In' podcast, Andre is joined by Dave Pratte and Peter Tarach from Speed Academy to help answer all thes...

Even when budget is not a limiting factor, why might a team choose to use a factory block over an aftermarket billet one in a Time Attack build? With a 2.2L stroker 4G63 MIVEC build featuring a custom billet crank, rod and pistons, Benjamin Perry of Benchmark Solutions explains why a billet block was not a consideration for this build along with covering some of the upgrades the Global Aircraft Se...

On this week's episode of the High Performance Academy Tuned In podcast, Andre is joined by Time Attack and Pikes Peak veteran Cole Powelson of Lyfe Motorsport. Cole has a lot of experience when it comes to making all sorts of vehicles go as fast as possible through chassis, suspension, engine, and aerodynamic development and as such, has plenty to say on what makes a quick car and how to ach...

2000-3000HP GT-Rs are not uncommon in today's performance car world, and Tony Palo of T1 Race Development runs us through some of the nuances that go into tuning these highly strung, modern beasts and ensuring that power goes to the ground. Discussed is how the MoTeC M150 ECU controls the torque via a variety of parameters such as speed, boost, knock throttle etc. Also discussed is how the ge...

Is there something in the water? Is it a cultural thing? Maybe it's the 9 months of cold and dark per year that forces enthusiasts into their garages and workshops that results in some of the world's most extreme race car builds.  Whatever the answer, there's no denying that Scandinavia is rich with incredible DIY engineers, fabricators, and engine builders, and Sweden's Karel...

Are piston coatings going to save you from a bad tune, and if not, what’s the point? MAHLE Motorsports engineer Eric Grilliot answers these questions and more during a Performance Racing Industry Trade Show visit. Discussed are how different coatings can look identical to the naked eye but will often have different purposes and intents between manufacturers and also locations on the piston. Top Fu...

How much power is hiding behind a factory diesel tune? What are the traps a gasoline tuner can fall into when dipping their toes into the diesel world? And what's a sure-fire way to create a nifty inspection hole in your diesel block on the dyno? If you want the answers to any of these questions, as well as many more, check out this week's episode of the High Performance Academy Tuned In...

Want your GT86 to rev out to 9,000 RPM? Here’s one way to do it. The 570HP 4.5L Ferrari V8 powered ‘GT4586’ of Ryan Tuerck was at the Goodwood Festival of Speed and we caught up with Brian Hartsock of Unicorn Garage to get a few more details of one of the more unusual GT86 engine swaps you’re ever likely to see. The engine hails from the F136 V8 family and originally was housed in a Ferrari 458. O...

We've got an absolute banger for this week's episode of the High Performance Academy Tuned In podcast, as the legendary Ben Collins sits down for some quality chats with Andre about all things driving and, of course, being the Stig. You may not know the name, but you'll definitely recognise the white overalls and helmet. Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https:...

Running 80 PSI of boost and in excess of 2500HP Croyden Racing Developments 'JUN II' is one of the quickest GT-R Skylines in the world with a 6.86 1/4 mile pass at 204mph at the time of recording, most impressively with a street-legal chassis and the weight that comes with that! This interview with Con from CRD was filmed at Sydney Jamboree where unfortunately race day was rained off but...

On this week's episode of High Performance Academy's Tuned In podcast, Andre is joined by a legend of the Australian tuning scene, Micks Motorsport's Michael Baghdadi. Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in Mick has been a long time friend of Andre and of HPA, and comes into the conversation ready to lay down a wealth of knowledge when...

More and more late-model vehicles are using CAN bus to help control almost every function in a car from engine-related functions to touch-sensitive door handles. While on the surface this technology is great, when we want to start modifying a vehicle for track use it can cause complications. Want to develop your own skills further? Start with a free live lesson! Claim your spot now: https://www.hp...

In this week's episode of High Performance Academy's Tuned In podcast, Andre reaches out to Finland to talk billet, big horsepower, and engine building with Elmer Racing's Oskar Elmgren. Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in Elmer Racing is best known for its incredible bespoke billet engines and its success with the PR Tech Racing Po...

Jett Racing recently reset the world record with a 6.20 at 229 mph with their 2200HP, 110 PSI compound turbocharged 4g63 monster. Want to develop your own skills further? Start with a free live lesson! Claim your spot now: https://www.hpacademy.com/free  

After a week off for the new year's break, we're back and starting off 2022 strong with an interesting and very informative chat with HPA's wiring and motorsport electronics tutor, Zac Perston.  Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in Although Zac currently spends most of his time working for a prestigious university here in New Zealand...

Ever wondered what it would take to build a 10,500RPM, 500HP V8 motorcycle-based engine? Wonder no more as the RPE RP-V8 is just that. Want to develop your own skills further? Start with a free live lesson! Claim your spot now: https://www.hpacademy.com/free  

The 2.3L 4G63 in this EVO 6 can produce up to 590HP, but why is that not necessarily a good thing? Benjamin Perry of Benchmark Solutions runs us through the Evolution Racing Spares EVO 6 which took out first place honours in the Clubsprint Class at the last World Time Attack Challenge. Running up to 590HP from 37 PSI (440KW at 2.5 Bar) the team actually turned down the boost from the Garrett GTX35...

On this week's episode of High Performance Academy's Tuned In podcast, Andre is joined by race car fabricator extraordinaire Cody Loveland. Cody's name is probably best known for its association with the famous Pikes Peak hill climb race, held annually in Colorado, where he has campaigned various extremely quick vehicles over the last decade. Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first H...

Solder Vs Crimping, PDM feasibility, documentation, and Mil-Spec vs Autosport connectors, this interview has it all. Cody Philips spared a bit of time for Andre and the team at TX2K to run through a large range of topics relating to his career, best practices when it comes to professional level motorsport wiring, materials and a few details on what he has done to his own 2000 odd horsepower, 7 sec...

On this week's episode of High Performance Academy's Tuned In podcast, we've managed to pin down John from John Reed Racing. John isn't big on attention and prefers to let his work do the talking, so we're very thankful he's taken the time to speak with us. Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in These days, its getting h...

In this Field Report direct from the pits at Pike's Peak, Andre sits down with David Rowe from EPS, also known as Electronic Performance Systems, to discuss the path to become a professional aftermarket tuner. Considering that there are currently no university qualifications or industry-recognised standards to follow, this is a very important subject for a lot of people.  Use ‘PODCAST75’ for...

On this week's episode of High Performance Academy's 'Tuned In' podcast, we chase down the ever-busy Joel Vincze of Race Spec in New York to talk all things motorsport wiring. Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in Joel spends his days building wiring harnesses for some of the fastest vehicles in the world, and is a long-time frie...

4G63 vs 4B11, best turbo back pressure ratio, and is the biggest turbo you can fit the best? Let's find out! Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA course here: https://hpcdmy.co/hpa-tuned-in Running 1170HP, 680 ft-lbs of torque and in excess of 53 PSI of boost, the English Racing Mitsubishi EVO X is pushing the boundaries and leading the pack to be the fastest Mitsubishi Evolution X in t...

Although we like to think of ourselves as a fairly capable bunch, we're certainly not above fanboying over some of the incredible builds and the people behind them that can be found out there on the internet. One example is Josh Valman and his incredible Alfa Romeo unlimited hillclimb build, which can be found on Instagram at @motorsport_engineering. Use ‘PODCAST75’ for $75 off your first HPA...

With teams now pushing 100PSI of boost to hit power levels of 3200HP and more from existing setups, we’re excited to see what Bullet Race Engineerings new RB hybrid block can do. Darren Palumbo is no stranger to Nissan RB26’s, RB30’s or Toyota 2JZ engines with Bullet Race Engineering having produced billet blocks for each many times over the years and using this knowledge the team has gone one ste...