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This phenomenon known as brake fade can be quite unexpected and lethal and I would hazard a guess that 1 in 4 cars are likely to experience brake fade to some degree. Brake fade manifests itself by a spongy feel on the pedal and little or no braking force. Do not confuse brake fade with bad brakes or a mechanical fault as it applies to brake systems in relatively good condition.
Vents – adding performance with Bonnet vents.
Performance gains are possible with the addition of bonnet vents.
Warm air really does kill performance. This is due to the air intake temperatures being hot and air at high temperatures carries less oxygen.
When driving an engine hard the under bonnet temperatures quickly build up and the engine has no choice but to suck this air in reducing your power.
Principles of porting an engine and big valve conversions
The inlet and outlet ports on the engine block are usually larger than those of the manifolds that connect to them.
This allows for scope in the manufacturing process to allow for mismatched alignment.
Generally the engine ports are larger in the upstream flow direction avoiding turbulance but power gains can be made by matching these up.
Ceramic exhaust coatings and exhaust wraps
Under bonnet temperatures are one of the biggest performance killers around.
Quite simply, you want your engine to be sucking in cold air as this carries more oxygen and will allow you to burn more fuel.
The exhaust system is one of the contributors to under bonnet temperatures. You can therefore lag the exhaust to help prevent this heat soak into the engine bay.
