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Define: huge increase in power
Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2025 9:14 pm
by .....
I was reading some blurb from a tuner about what they'd done to a bike (akra, air filter and ecu flash)
So after spunking the best part of a grand on bits, anyone care to guess what % or hp gain they received, described by tuner as a 'huge increase in power'
I know that my bike, with the older version of the same engine actually dyno'd slightly higher with pipe, filter, airbox mod and flash, and allegedly, has a lower initial output, so a bigger gain (i only paid for the flash and air filter)
Re: Define: huge increase in power
Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2025 9:17 pm
by Yorick
What bike?
Re: Define: huge increase in power
Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2025 9:19 pm
by KungFooBob
I've got a bike that had the loud pipe, K&N filter, Power Commander V and O2 sensor delete, treatment. Gave it an estimated 10% increase in power.
25bhp to 27.5bhp!
Re: Define: huge increase in power
Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2025 9:46 pm
by .....
KungFooBob wrote: Wed Oct 01, 2025 9:19 pm
I've got a bike that had the loud pipe, K&N filter, Power Commander V and O2 sensor delete, treatment. Gave it an estimated
10% increase in power.
25bhp to 27.5bhp!
No dyno to back it up, just barstool bull
Re: Define: huge increase in power
Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2025 9:48 pm
by .....
Yorick wrote: Wed Oct 01, 2025 9:17 pmWhat bike?
Full on sports bike >800, <1000
Re: Define: huge increase in power
Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2025 9:50 pm
by KungFooBob
It's all subjective tho init.
10% is a huge 20bhp if you start with 200bhp.
If you start with 10bhp it's only 1bhp.
Re: Define: huge increase in power
Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2025 9:57 pm
by .....
Thats why I gave the option of % increase or actual hp.
When we had Bob Farnham tune our GT50, He claimed ,and I have no reason to dispute this, to have doubled the power of the beast from 3 to a solid 6 or so. So I understand that 3hp can be a 100% increase
Re: Define: huge increase in power
Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2025 9:59 pm
by KungFooBob
But... is 1bhp noticeable if you only start with 10bhp?
You've got to notice 10% more power, right?
Would you notice 1bhp if you had 100bhp to start with?
Re: Define: huge increase in power
Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2025 10:02 pm
by Mike1976
"akra, air filter and ecu flash" that's going to do a lot more than just add numbers. It will make the engine more responsive, better throttle response, shift the peak torque (hence more power aka more speed). Never worried much about fuel consumption myself but that should also be better since the engine is effectively more efficient.
Now I think about it, I'm not so sure about the last one. You could easily trade in mpg for mph I suppose. Anyone know?
Re: Define: huge increase in power
Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2025 10:04 pm
by ChrisW
..... wrote: Wed Oct 01, 2025 9:14 pm
I was reading some blurb from a tuner about what they'd done to a bike (akra, air filter and ecu flash)
So after spunking the best part of a grand on bits, anyone care to guess what % or hp gain they received, described by tuner as a 'huge increase in power'
I know that my bike, with the older version of the same engine actually dyno'd slightly higher with pipe, filter, airbox mod and flash, and allegedly, has a lower initial output, so a bigger gain (i only paid for the flash and air filter)
None of this makes any sense.
Re: Define: huge increase in power
Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2025 10:13 pm
by Horse
As an aside, are those Treetop / Hilltop people still working their magic?
Re: Define: huge increase in power
Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2025 10:44 pm
by .....
KungFooBob wrote: Wed Oct 01, 2025 9:59 pm
But... is 1bhp noticeable if you only start with 10bhp?
You've got to notice 10% more power, right?
Would you notice 1bhp if you had 100bhp to start with?
Do you deliberately try and be obtuse, or is it a default setting?
Re: Define: huge increase in power
Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2025 10:55 pm
by Le_Fromage_Grande
A huge increase in power has to be at least 50%, I've only ever seen these sort of increases on road going 1980s bikes converted to race bikes and with engines that last as long as race engines, for example you can get 140bhp from a 1985 GSXR750 that originally put out about 90bhp, but you can't get 300bhp from a 200bhp R1. 350LCs weren't particularly difficult to get a 50% increase from, but the pistons didn't last long.
Re: Define: huge increase in power
Posted: Thu Oct 02, 2025 6:34 am
by A_morti
..... wrote: Wed Oct 01, 2025 10:44 pm
Do you deliberately try and be obtuse, or is it a default setting?
Says the OP of this thread.
Anyway. Is it an fz1 gaining 8 horsepower?
And are you screwd?
Re: Define: huge increase in power
Posted: Thu Oct 02, 2025 8:27 am
by McNab
So what is it then?
Re: Define: huge increase in power
Posted: Thu Oct 02, 2025 9:09 am
by Tricky
It's definitely not an FZ1, as they had carbs, and the OP isn't Screwd.
My money is on it being a current CP3 based bike , and if I had to guess, I'd say the OP has an XSR ( think he did also used to have a (horrid shonky looking but sorted) 1000 Fazer too?
Re: Define: huge increase in power
Posted: Thu Oct 02, 2025 10:45 am
by MingtheMerciless
According to a couple of videos I've watched ZH2's with a flash, air filter and exhaust can make between 230-240BHP from 198, however there are also stories of burning out No.3 spark plug and worse damage. So apart from the AR end can and noisy dump valve (sorry, not sorry
@weeksy) I've left mine standard.
ohh look is that the ban hammer looming?
Re: Define: huge increase in power
Posted: Thu Oct 02, 2025 10:58 am
by Count Steer
Back to the original question, my guess is they're claiming between 5 and 8% as a 'huge' increase.
Re: Define: huge increase in power
Posted: Thu Oct 02, 2025 11:40 am
by Skub
When I had my Z1000 de-catted,pipercross air filter and the ecu flashed,I told the guy I wasn't interested in massive gains in bhp,all I wanted was a bike with a sweet throttle and no big flat spots. Kawasaki give stock power at 140ish at the crank,the finished article punted out that figure at the rear wheel.
What's the power loss from crank to rear wheel,about 5%?
Re: Define: huge increase in power
Posted: Thu Oct 02, 2025 11:50 am
by Mr Moofo
The odd thing about all these power gains, is that most of us never, ever use anything like the full potential BHP of the bikes we have.
And for the real world I would have thought concentration on low down torque would be the only thing most people could "feel"
