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Project Garage IX: More Garage Tools
By Sarah Forst
Equip your garage with all the tools that will help you perform a number of jobs. Project Garage gets fitted with specialty tools from soldering irons to pulley pullers to oil filter wrenches that will make completing many jobs a breeze and get you back on the road more quickly.
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By Sarah Forst
It's just another day in a gearhead's paradise as MotoIQ propels down the Autobahn in Germany, Salzburg, and the Czech Republic, then tours the immaculate BMW Museum outside Munich. Find out what driving is like behind the former Iron Curtain.
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SEMA 2012 Wrapup
by Sarah Forst
SEMA 2012 invaded the Las Vegas Convention Center this past week. Every year, SEMA unveils the top cars, products, and trends to salivating auto enthusiasts. Follow MotoIQ around as we try to survive the hypermiler foot race during the day and the liver challenging networking at night. Get out your dirty sock - I'm about to recap SEMA for our MIQ readers.
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By Sarah Forst
20 miles west of Salzburg, Austria is the Red Bull Museum. Red Bull co-founder Dietrich Mateschitz has amassed a huge collection of F1 race cars and Flying Bulls aircraft. They are on display in a hangar that looks more like artwork, nestled at the bed of the Austrian Alps. This isn't just a car collection. It also houses an art gallery, lounges and bars, and even a Michelin starred restaurant. And the best part of it? It's open to the public- and free!
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Ask Sarah - Dimples on Cars
By Sarah Forst
Why does an "illegal" golf ball travel further than a regulation golf ball? Can this effect be applied to cars, for instance to increase down-force on a wing?
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by Sarah Forst
It's almost 11pm Friday night in Hole-in-the-Wall, New Jersey; my bad, near Wall Speedway... I'm sitting in a hotel room with Dai Yoshihara and Darren "D-Mac" Mcnamara and their crew from SPD Metal Works. I'd refer to them as "Team Git-R' Dun", though Crew Chief Scott Dodgion and I threw around the name "Team Fuck Nuts" in jest. I tend to avoid NJ like a car accident, but I have been entrenched with the Falken Motorsports drift team to relate what it's like to be on the crew of one of the top teams in drifting.
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By Sarah Forst
We'll give you the low down on upgrading to an MSD ignition and external coil on a 200SX, converting to metric units on DashCommand software, and what's up with a coolant surge tank/swirl pot system?
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By Sarah Forst
Find out what happens when we make our own exhaust out of coffee cans, an intake from dryer hose, a roll cage from PVC pipe, inject whipped cream in our engine instead of nitrous oxide, and more!
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Project Garage, Part VII: Garage Tools
By Sarah Forst
A good garage space is useless without an effective collection of tools. From sockets to ratchets, screwdrivers to wrenches, check out what keeps Project Garage stocked with everything it needs for all kinds of car projects.
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By Sarah Forst
Find out what it's like to get around in the South Pacific. There are a number of small islands in the South Pacific that you can leap frog across the Pacific and fulfill your wanderlust for "Transportation off the Beaten Path." Rarotonga is no transportation paradise but does have its fair share of fun behind the wheel.
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I've heard of spraying a head gasket with copper spray. Is there a greater benefit to using a solid copper head gasket?
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Say I would like to accelerate to a specific speed while going up a hill with a moderately steep grade. Which gear is better for fuel economy and which is better for the longevity of the engine?
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By Sarah Forst
Sarah, please help me! There is tar or something gooey and black all over the front and bottom half of my car. How can I get this off my paint?
Got a difficult tech question? Email Sarah at asksarah@motoiq.com
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By Sarah Forst
I just recently completed Eibach lowering springs and anti-sway bars upgrade on my 08 Infiniti G37S Coupe. My question is when and where should I use threadlocker (red/blue) or Loctite? Different sources say different things, but is there a rule of thumb for applying these adhesives?
Thanks,
Kelvin
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By Sarah Forst
Driving Down Under! MotoIQ checks out cars and culture in New Zealand and hopes for a chance to shift with our stranger hand.
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by Sarah Forst
Lately I have been searching for information about "water to air intercoolers." I have seen these in some of your articles but not much information is mentioned.
Got a difficult tech question? Email Sarah at asksarah@motoiq.com
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Ask Sarah: Hi-po Eclectic Pistons
By Sarah Forst
I was at a car meet and overheard someone talking about hi-po eclectic pistons or something like that. I didn't want to ask him about them because everyone else seemed to understand what he meant. Are these high performance pistons? How are they different from regular pistons?
- Jassen
Got a difficult tech question? Email Sarah at asksarah@motoiq.com
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By Sarah Forst
One girl's story being Mike Kojima's love slave
This story was originally published a few years ago (pre-digital SLR camera for most of us obviously…), but is a wonderful tale of the kind of guy Mike Kojima is so I wanted to share the story with our MotoIQ readers. This is not a joke, but it was pretty funny!
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What are the pro's and con's of using gapless piston rings in a street motor?
Got a difficult tech question? Email Sarah at asksarah@motoiq.com
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By Sarah Forst
Hi Sarah,
I'm debating going carbs or ITB's with EFI. What is the advantage to using carbs over EFI? How do ITB's perform over a single TB?
J.T.
Got a difficult tech question? Email Sarah at asksarah@motoiq.com
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Hi Sarah,
I saw your EVO project at SEMA 2010 this year- the white car with the KW suspension and carbon Seibon parts. I was just wondering who makes those fenders and also those sideskirts. I would appreciate your help on this as we would like to purchase them for our time attack car in Holland.
Got a difficult tech question? Email Sarah at asksarah@motoiq.com
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By Sarah Forst
I am wondering about gauges and their importance; specifically, oil temperature versus oil pressure. If you had to choose between the two, which one would you pick? And does it matter for a street car versus track car?
Ben
Got a difficult tech question? Email Sarah at asksarah@motoiq.com
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By Sarah Forst
I have a 1996 Mazda Miata with a Jackson Racing MP45 supercharger and an ECU controlled Aquamist water/methanol injection system. The water tank I use is about 3/4 gallon in size, so when I fill it up with straight windshield washer fluid (no additives, just water and methanol) I'm running the tank dry well before my 30 min. track session is complete.
Got a difficult tech question? Email Sarah at asksarah@motoiq.com
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By Sarah Forst
Hi Sarah,
I got 8 quarts of Royal Purple 5w-30 and it’s been sitting for at least a year and a half. Is it still good?
Thanks -Will C.
Got a difficult tech question? Email Sarah at asksarah@motoiq.com
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By Annie Sam
If you have been a fan of MotoIQ, you have probably been reading The Queen of Questions, Sarah Forst's tech column from day one. Our statistical tracking software has shown that Sarah's works are the most highly trafficked of all of our features. So some of you are probably wondering, how did she get to know all of this stuff. Well if you know Sarah, you understand that she is very thorough and loves to research things. She has a financial background and complicated analysis and number crunching are natural for her. She learned much about extreme tech from building up her own car many years ago, meeting some of the countries top Nissan tuners and becoming a master of tuning herself in the process. Now Sarah has several cars in her arsenal ranging from a G20 winter beater to a G35 daily driver and a NX2000 track car but none are as interesting as her super Sentra.
Read Sarah's Column Here!
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By Sarah Forst
Hi there,
I have a problem with my car and I'm too embarrassed to ask my friends. My problem is that I usually over-torque bolts/nuts on my car and I need your help. One of my strut tower nuts is over-torqued and when I tried to remove that nut, it started to round pretty bad. I even went to Sears to buy a socket set that removes rounded bolts/nuts but with no success. The nut looks pretty bad. What can I do? Thank you for any help.
“Y.T.”
Got a difficult tech question? Email Sarah at asksarah@motoiq.com
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By Sarah Forst
Hey Sarah,
I have a turbocharged 1995 Integra GS-R with a T3/T4. I usually set the boost around 8-10psi but sometimes I get up to 14psi. I still have a stock ignition. Is this boost too high for 91 octane? One of my friends said I should install a water injection system, but doesn’t that just kill power? Can you recommend any water injection systems?
P.F.
Got a Tech Question? Email Sarah at asksarah@motoiq.com
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By Sarah Forst
Dear Sarah
I read your last article about using a properly sized fuel system and wondered if my fuel system is adequate enough for when I finish my engine build. I have a 1995 Eclipse GS-T that I’m upgrading to the 16G turbo. Is there an easy way to determine how big of injectors or fuel pump I need so I don’t run out of fuel at full boost? Any other helpful hints?
David H.
Got a Tech Question? Email Sarah at asksarah@motoiq.com
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By Sarah Forst
First, repeat after me- you can’t go reliably fast if your wallet is on a diet! Although you haven’t given me enough information to properly answer your question as I don't know what other parts are on your car, I will give it a guess assuming you are not spending much money on your 4G63 to begin with. Your current setup includes too small a turbo and probably too undersized a fuel system for those boost levels. Let’s start with the stock turbo on the Evo VII.
Got a Tech Question? Email Sarah at asksarah@motoiq.com
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By Sarah Forst
I know back pressure is bad. Everything I remember about high school physics and everything I read over the years from SCC and Honda Tuning tells me back pressure is bad. I made that statement the other night at the pub to a friend. I found myself trying to make the argument without any scientific facts. He drives a 5 year old Mustang GT and claims he needs back pressure for his engine to work. He claims to have dynoed it with open headers and it lost power.
Got a Tech Question? Email Sarah at asksarah@motoiq.com
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By Sarah Forst
If bling isn’t your thing, you can skip some of the pretty stuff and save about $600 but to get to the 50mph, open your wallet. READ ON...
Got a Tech Question? Email Sarah at asksarah@motoiq.com
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By Sarah Forst
From the scope of the question, I think you might need to do a little more research and learn the basics of engine management and how modern fuel injection systems work. READ ON...
Got a Tech Question? Email Sarah at asksarah@motoiq.com
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By Sarah Forst
Since I get so many questions about brake issues, I’m dedicating this column to Brake-mania! But first I must address a common forum pet peeve of mine, the "brakes" versus "breaks" issue. The "breaks" are the highs and lows of life; your "brakes" are those things that stop your car! You "break" the "brakes", got it? Good, so now let’s answer these brake questions. Hopefully it’ll keep somebody’s car from becoming acquainted with my rear bumper! Got a Tech Question? Email Sarah at asksarah@motoiq.com |
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Email asksarah@motoiq.com
By Sarah Forst
I have a 1996 200sx Se-R and I had a GTI-R Pulsar motor put in it. I want to upgrade the brakes. In your book, “How to Build Performance Nissan Sport Compacts,” you mention some upgrades. One in particular is the Fastbrakes upgrade kit for the front brakes that uses NX2000 (AD22VF) calipers, rotors, and pads. And for the back brakes upgrade kit, using the 1995-1999 Maxima rear calipers, rotors, and pads. Are these all the parts that I would need if I were to buy them from an auto parts place?
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