Tuning Feature: Nissan HR10DDT Modified

"Comprehensive guide to tuning the Nissan HR10DDT engine!"

We are regularly getting posts about the things we recommend when it comes to HR10DDT mods that work. So let us look into Nissan HR10DDT parts and outline the best upgrades on this great engine and point out some problems along the way.

The Nissan HR10DDT are awesome to work on and with carefully chosen tuning mods like ECU maps, turbo upgrades and camshafts you will greatly increase your driving experience.

Here we examine the options for your HR10DDT tuning and highlight the premier mods that work.

When talking about the top parts for your HR10DDT engine, we are going to focus on the upgrades that give the best power gain for you spend.

Altering your HR10DDT camshaft should make a dramatic difference to your engines bhp. Choosing a higher performance camshaft profile raises the bhp .

NB: Fast road camshafts tend to bump the performance throughout the rpm range, you may lose a little low down torque but the high end rpm power will improve.

Motorsport camshafts, bump the high end rpm power band but as a result the car will not idle smoothly and low end power nearly always suffers.

On a car driven daily one, ideally, should ideally to optimize your bhp range to your driving style.

I'd be gobsmaked if you have found a HR10DDT Competition cam is a pleasure to live with when on the daily commute.

Different HR10DDT engines respond better to extreme camshaft durations than others.

The map and fuelling also have a large bearing on the bhp gains you'll make.

Extending exhaust or intake durations can alter the bhp band and on most engines the exhaust and intake durations do not need to match, although most cams and tuners use matched pairs there are some advantages to extending the intake or exhaust durations.

Best HR10DDT Tuning Modifications & Upgrades

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HR10DDT Tuning Stages

Stage 1 HR10DDT modifications: Remaps/piggy back ECU, Sports exhaust manifold, Fast road camshaft, Intake headers, Panel air filters, Drilled & smoothed airbox.

Stage 2 HR10DDT modifications: induction kit, Sports catalyst & performance exhaust, Fast road cam, high flow fuel injectors, Ported and polished head, fuel pump upgrades.

Stage 3 HR10DDT modifications: Engine balancing & blueprinting, Crank and Piston upgrades to alter compression, Internal engine upgrades (head flowing porting/bigger valves), Competition cam, Adding or Upgrading forced induction (turbo/supercharger), Twin charging conversions.

Mapping will help fully realize the full potential of all the parts you've done to your HR10DDT.

It will usually give around 30% more power on turbocharged vehicles and you can expect to see around 15% on NASP engines, but figures achieved often rely on the parts you've carried out and the condition of your engine.

It is vital to any performance tuning project to shove more fuel and air into each cylinder

The intake plenum flow the air during the suck phase from the intake filter and allow it to be pulled into the engine and mixed with fuel.

The shape and flow characteristics of the Intake can make a large effect on to fuel atomisation on the HR10DDT.

We often see headers are needing performance upgrades, although a few OEM provide decently flowing headers.

Larger HR10DDT valves, getting HR10DDT port enlargement and head flowing will also boost torque, and more importantly will allow you to get a better torque increase on other upgrades.

Turbo upgrades for the HR10DDT

NASP engines need quite a lot of work when you add a turbo, so we have a separate guide to help you take into account the pros and cons of going this route on your HR10DDT

The more air you can get into an engine, the more fuel it can burn and uprating the induction with a turbocharger upgrade makes major power gains.

If your motor is turbo charged parts are giving better power gains and turbo engines are made using many forged and stronger components.

However most engines have weakspots

Discover these limits and install better quality crank and pistons to survive the power.

We see many mechanics spending a lots of money on turbo charger upgrades on the HR10DDT only to suffer the humiliation of seeing the HR10DDT literally blow up just after it's been enthusiastically driven.

Bigger capacity turbo chargers will usually suffer a bottom end lag, and little turbo chargers spool up quickly but don't have the peak end torque gains.

Thanks to new tech the selection of turbo chargers is always developing and we now see variable vane turbo chargers, allowing the vane angle is altered according to speed to lower lag and increase top end bhp.

Twin scroll turbo chargers divert the exhaust flow into 2 channels and flow these at differently designed vanes in the turbo. They also improve the scavenging effect of the engine.

You'll commonly see there's a limitation in the air flow sensor AFM/MAP on the HR10DDT when considerably more air is being fed into the engine.

Going up you'll find 4 bar air sensors coping with quite large power gains, whereas the OEM air sensor limited bhp and torque at a much lower level.

Adding a supercharger or additional turbo will make large power gains, although more complex to get working. We have this feature on twinchargers if you want to read more.

Uprating HR10DDT fuel injectors

When you raise the torque you will need to look at to the fuelling.

More torque needs more fuel. It is important to be generous with your flow rate on the injectors.

The accepted safe increase is to add another 20% when fitting an injector, this allows for injector deterioration and allows a bit of spare capacity should the engine require more fuel.

We think this one is common sense, but you'll need to match your fuel injector to the type of fuel your car uses as well.

Best HR10DDT performance exhausts

You may need to upgrade your exhaust if your exhaust is actually creating a restriction.

On most factory exhausts you should find that the exhaust flow rate is still good even on modest power gains, but when you start pushing up the power levels you will need to get a better flowing exhaust.

Sports exhausts equal out the flow of gases through the engine.

But if the exhaust is too large, ie: over 2.5 inches bore, you will lose a lot of your flow rate and end up sapping power and torque.

Common exhaust restrictions are in the catalysts installed, so adding a higher flowing race alternative will help avoid this restriction.

Problems and issues to look out for on the HR10DDT

The HR10DDT engines, if regularly serviced and maintained, are generally very reliable and have few issues. {But if neglected they can cost a small fortune|When neglected they get very expensive to run|They can however be quite expensive if neglected| }

Regular oil changes are vital on the HR10DDT, particularly when the engine has been modified and is putting down more power than the manufacturer intended.

For more information on Tuning your HR10DDT engine please join us in our friendly forum where you can discuss tuning options in more detail with our HR10DDT owners. It would also be worth reading our unbiased tuning articles to get a full grasp of the benefits and drawbacks of each modification.

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We really like hearing from our readers, and hearing about which tuning mods were the most effective for them, it helps us improve our recommendations and articles to reflect current trends in modifications and ensures that our HR10DDT guides and tips are kept up to date.

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This article is flagged for an update, so please pass on specific tips below that I can include. All articles, and content was written by me, Waynne Smith TorqueCars founder. Some outlines are just too general so I appreciate your feedback and suggestions. This entry was filed under Nissan. You can leave a response below or join our forum to discuss this article and car modification in detail with our members.

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