How to Increase Horsepower on Your Chevrolet Silverado 1500

in Automobiles

If you are like a lot of Chevrolet Silverado 1500 owners, you love your truck. Working on it can be a true pleasure. Of course, a lot of people also wonder how they can increase the horsepower from their vehicles. To squeeze more power from a Chevrolet Silverado 1500, you can apply a few simple modifications. Even changes as simple as straight through mufflers can make a difference.

New Air Intake

There is a reason most guides for performance boosting start at the air filter. It is a simple change that can have a noticeable effect. A cold air intake, which the engine uses to draw in cool air from outside the truck rather than hot air from the engine bay, will net you five to 10 extra horsepower. Even a novice can perform this upgrade with a few basic tools and a little patience.

This change works because all internal combustion engines need oxygen to create power. Hot air being sucked in from the engine bay is less dense in oxygen than cold air from outside. Additionally, clogged up or low-flow air filters will inhibit how much air can get into the engine. A small upgrade means more oxygen and more power.

Performance Exhaust

Chevy Silverado 1500 performance exhaust systems can also boost horsepower for similar reasons that a new air intake will. If you want to bring oxygen into the engine, you need to push the exhaust gases out first. The faster you can vent exhaust gases, the more fresh air you can suck into the engine. A lot of techniques for making more power are about getting more oxygen into the engine faster.

A cat-back performance exhaust is a relatively easy upgrade to install. It gets its name because it is a replacement between the catalytic converter and the exhaust tips at the back of the truck. Better yet, with a high-end exhaust, you can customize the sound of your truck to be as aggressive as you want.

Upgraded Intercooler

If you have a turbocharger on your truck, which you should if it is diesel, you also likely have an intercooler. This device cools air compressed by the turbo. Colder air is denser; and, denser air has more oxygen in it per cubic inch. Turbos tend to make air very hot, so an intercooler helps adjust for this.

While your Chevy Silverado’s OEM turbodiesel intercooler is acceptable for basic use, you are looking for more power. Upgrading this item should net several extra horsepower as your engine breathes in cooler, compressed air. This upgrade is a little more challenging than the other two but still something that anyone can learn to do.

Upgrade Today

Getting more power from your vehicle can be a fun and rewarding adventure. It is easier than you may think. Anyone can learn to perform these upgrades and they are great starting points. Before long you’ll be looking at high-flow, carb compliant catalytic converters to get even more power out of your Chevy. Of course, the hard work quickly pays off when you rip down the road in your truck.

Image Credits: mortal_jealousy

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