We’ve updated the Dyno/Tuning section of the National Speed website to now include dynocharts from some of the cars we’ve tuned. This is just a small selection of the dyno charts that we have available. There’s plenty more to come.
We just wanted to give you a preview of the upcoming feast…kind of like how you when you go to Sam’s or CostCo and sample all of their food without actually buying anything. God bless the wholesale discount warehouses.
Hope you enjoy, and if you have any questions about our Dyno/tuning services leave us a comment below or contact National Speed at 910.332.5906.
In case you’ve been living under a rock, or missed the 30 second teaser that aired during the Superbowl, Transformers 2 is going to own you. Judging by the latest trailer, the sequel doesn’t look to disappoint — it’s bigger, louder, and will eat your babies if you don’t watch it.
Pay careful attention during the trailer for glimpses of the Corvette Stingray Concept, the return of the new Chevy Camaro, and the Chevy Volt — rumor has it that Chevy paid a pretty penny to have the Volt make an appearance.
While the first Transformers was definitely a blast, this one looks to have upped the ante in every way possible, and even if the incredibly stupid Volt is in the flick, maybe there’s more to it than meets the eye…
The new 2010 SHO is finally revealed. With 365 force-fed ponies, paddle shifters and the aid of All-wheel-drive, the new Ford Taurus SHO is sure to excite…Ford guys with families need to have their fun too, right?
Using the 3.5 Ecoboost motor, the SHO delivers V6 fuel economy with V8 performance. While the car is pretty heavy, 365 Horsepower is no joke. All of that power is routed through a 6 speed automatic with selectshift.
That means that the usual slushbox won’t be too much of a tragedy, as up and downshifting can be controlled via paddle shifters. The selectshift tranny automatically revmatches on downshifts and will hold whichever gear you select even if you’re bouncing off the rev limiter.
Moving on to the Interior, it’s been updated quite a bit. The seats are leather trimmed and two-tone with Suede inserts. The dash and door panels are made out of bits of brushed aluminum, and SHO badges adorn the floormats and dash panel. No longer a bland and unappealing interior, inside the Taurus SHO is a nice place to be.
Base price for the Taurus SHO will be $37,995 when it goes up for sale during this summer. Even with a big price tag, you have to consider what you’re getting with that. High performance luxury doesn’t come cheap nowadays, and the SHO is a performance bargain when compared to it’s competitors. Ford is making a good choice reintroducing the SHO to the market, so let’s see how this plays out.
Ever thought about placing a Motor in the middle of your living room? How about putting YOUR rear end in the rear end of a car?...in your kitchen. In order to get as much automotive paraphernalia as you can in your life, you need to bring some of these unorthodox contraptions into your home.
First up is an awesome way to give new life to an old clapped out motor. Forget putting it into scrap, use it as a ‘friggen coffee table! If you intend on doing this yourself, do yourself a favor and use a V arranged motor, as opposed to an inline…that probably wouldn’t do very well, stability-wise.
Price for something like this? Well, grab an old busted block, clean it up real nice and get a glass slab. There you go. Grab an old Jag V12 and go for broke.
Alright, so you got the table…now what? Take a seat and kick back your feet on your Aston Martin Couch. This replica Aston Martin DB6 is offered in multiple color combinations and is brought to you by the Master Craftsmen over at Aston Martin Heritage Designs. Price for this ultimate living-room accompaniment? Only $7,300.
Last is something really Special. Eccentric, perhaps, but still very cool. Designer Dale Mathis crafted a glass tabletop showcase intertwined with interlocking kinetic gears that all work. While they don’t necessarily do anything but spin, I can’t think of many furniture that function (or rather, don’t function) like this one. This deskart piececonglomeration Thingamajigger can be yours for the low price of $21,000. You can take out your spleen a loan and be the talk of the town!
On February 10th, National Speed was happy to have the East Coast Cobalts here for a Cruise-in and Dyno Day. Lots of ECOTEC powered goodness was here in various flavors, whether it be Naturally Aspirated, Supercharged or Turbocharged — We had it all. Seriously, you haven’t seen this much Cobalt since the last time you looked at the Periodic Table.
Around 8-9 Cobalts were in attendance, as well as 1 HHR SS provided byMarine Chevrolet of Jacksonville, NC. The free food started rolling around 11:00 and so did the rollers on the dyno. We served around 75-80 SpeedBurgers throughout the day and kept everyone happy in the rather warm weather.
Austin Daniels won the dyno competition with 279HP and walked away with a T-shirt, Trophy, and the satisfaction of having the quickest Cobalt in the parking lot. Although…I think that guy in the wheelchair with a Nitrous bottle on the back could’ve taken him. Power/Weight ratio FTW!
The East Coast Cobalt organization are a great group of folks that show a real enthusiasm for the car culture. We hope to host more events from them soon, and for those in the club that are currently in the Marine Corps, we salute your service!
You may have noticed a few staff changes the past few months at National Speed, and with that comes a new sheriff in town…and his name’s Jack Harris. Actually, Jack’s not really affiliated with the long arm of the law, but he does have really long arms so that probably counts for something.
Formerly the owner and operator of P1 Automotive in Charlotte, NC, Jack is National Speed’s new General Manager.
Coming to us with a BS in Electrical Engineering and APEXi Power Excel Tuner and AEM EMS Tuner certifications, Jack is a force to be reckoned with. Seriously, the legal name on his driver’s license is force to be reckoned with. Look it up.
No stranger behind the wheel, Jack was the 2002 NASA Honda Challenge Champion, as well as a high speed driving instructor for 12 years. He also worked as an event coordinator for Car Guys and has 15 years of autocross experience.
In his spare time, Jack is an amateur radio operator and licensed NC steam engineer, which basically means if you have a locomotive he can fix it. He also enjoys long walks on the beach and juggling. Just kidding about those last two…
I spent the first eight years of my driving life behind the wheel of a 1988 Dodge Caravan with baby poop brown interior, no air conditioning, and wood paneling duct taped along the side to hold it all together. I looked like the serial killer from Silence of the Lambs out for a Sunday drive in search of burly females to wear as a suit. In other words, chicks weren’t digging my ride.
Unfortunately, this was the only vehicle that I had to work with, and surprisingly I still managed to get dates (it’s amazing what five dollars can buy you in Tijuana). Some of you out there might not be so lucky, however, which is why I present to you the Top 5 Worst Cars To Pick Up Girls With. Take my advice and avoid these suckers like the plague.
5) El Camino The automotive equivalent of a mullet: business up front, party in back. That being said, the ladies are not a fan of the El Camino. From my experience, women don’t like it when you show up at their doorstep in a vehicle missing back seats. It sends the wrong message…or so I’ve been told.
4) The KIA Sportage You might as well wrap up your genitals and stick them in the freezer. You won’t be needing them. Possibly the least masculine car since the VW Bug. Speaking of which…
3) The Redesigned VW Bug Odds are, if you see a man driving one of these, he’s either borrowing his wife’s car because his is in the shop, or he’s on the way to the doctor’s office for the next step in his sex change operation.
2) Vespa Better known in these parts as the DWI bike, or if you’re a video game fan, the Faggio. Ten points and a pat on the back to whomever can tell me what game that’s from.
1) The Segway It takes a lot to make something as silly and female as the Vespa look badass in comparison, but the Segway does it rather easily. All the rage in corporate America, the Segway is the ultimate toy for people too lazy to, you know…walk. Bring one of these on a date and begin your lonely ride of shame in style.
There are some sounds that just hit people the right way. Whether it be the sharp, raucous bark of a Porsche flat 6, the whine of a ported Eaton, or the low thrum of an STi, there’s a sound for everyone. Here’s a list of my favorites, but please note I didn’t do this just for fun. We want to hear back from our readers with their choices as well. Note: yes, I know that some of these cars may or may not be modded.
A personal favorite of mine is the exhaust note of a Terminator Cobra. The 4.6 liter DOHC topped with an Eaton sounds mighty fine in my book. With enough bite to back up the bark, termie Cobras always give me aural pleasure (get your mind out of the gutter, sickos — I said AURAL, not oral).
Next up is one of the only cars that you can throw a cat-back on and actually have it sound good — the Subaru Impreza. The unique exhaust note is considered to be caused by the unequal length header design. Either way, no matter how it’s created, it always sounds damn good to me. You’ve gotta love the way they rumble. Videos never seem to do the sound justice, but give this one a shot.
Coming up next is something off the wall for most people. The Mazda 26B 4-rotor. I’ve always been impressed by the way that the 26B sounds. Think of a cammed, big block loping at idle, and then think of that same big block revving to 10k in a second, sounding like a streetbike or F1 car. Mazda essentially put two 13B’s together and came up with this 700hp monstrosity. The 26B was used in Mazda’s legendary 787B racecar.
Rounding out the list is an Italian V12 that can turn to 8500RPM! Regardless of what you just muttered behind your screen, I say the Lamborghini Murcielago LP640 sounds good enough to be on this list. The original Italian bull was quick enough with 571 Horsepower, but Lamborghini decided to step it up a notch and increase displacement from 6.2 to 6.5 liters, raising power to a stout 640. Emitting pure emotion out of the center tailpipes like only an Italian machine can, the LP640 is good enough to be here.
I could probably list 20 more cars that I want to be on this list, but alas, I have no more room. Instead I’d rather hear what makes all of our readers tingle, so be sure to respond with what engine sounds give you aural pleasure (keep it clean folks, my mom reads these blogs).
What’s in a name? Plenty. Take for example the fictional British spies James Bond and Harry Palmer. There’s a reason why everyone remembers James Bond and nobody has a clue who Harry Palmer is (I’m sure it doesn’t help that Harry Palmer sounds like someone addicted to self-pleasure).
Bad analogies and juvenile sex jokes aside, the same rule that applies to naming British super spies goes double for the automotive industry. If the name sucks, people probably won’t buy your car. Hence the fact that four out of five of the autos on this list are no longer manufactured.
5) Dodge Neon What the hell is a Neon? It’s defined as a chemically inert gaseous element occurring in small amounts in the earth’s atmosphere. Congratulations, Dodge. You named a car after a slow-moving, hard-to-find gas.
4) Ford Probe The last image I want in my head when buying a car is a flashback to my last physical exam… “Using the whole fist there, doc?” Tied with the Suzuki Intruder as the most likely vehicle to be sold at a sex shop.
3) Ford Fiesta When I think of a fiesta I conjure images of: tequila, beans, donkey shows, hangovers, and a PAINFUL trip to the bathroom. But maybe that’s just me…
2) Ford Escort Completing the Ford trifecta ofbad naming, the Ford Escort was the transportation of choice for Hookers adult entertainers everywhere. Sales were huge in certain parts of Nevada, but your better off sticking with a Cadillac for your pimping needs.
1) Dodge Scamp Yes, I’d love to drive around in a car that if used as correctly as a verb would mean: “to perform hastily and carelessly.” Good job, Dodge.
So you may have noticed we’ve given the National Speed website a face lift. A little nip here, a tuck there. But not to worry, we didn’t go all Kenny Rogers on you. We’re still the same National Speed you’ve come to know and love.
“OMG! They Killed Kenny!”
But this isn’t just a new coat of paint. We wanted this updated version of the site to be easier to navigate, provide a tighter focus on news and upcoming events (in all areas), show you the media you frequently come for such as event photos and videos, and easier access to fresh performance articles written daily. We’re still working on bringing over a few of the old site’s features (the customer cars/featured rides section will return!), so please hang in there while we work out the kinks.
Please feel free to let us know what you think of the new and improved National Speed website by using the comment section below. Many of the changes we put into place came out of the comments that we’ve heard from you all, so keep them coming! We crave your feedback and want your opinions. Enjoy the site!
Formerly the owner and operator of P1 Automotive in Charlotte, NC, Jack is National Speed’s new General Manager.
No stranger behind the wheel, Jack was the 2002 NASA Honda Challenge Champion, as well as a high speed driving instructor for 12 years. He also worked as an event coordinator for 
