Adding Horsepower to My Bravo

Ok, i have a Bravo SX 100 16v, which offcourse has 103bhp.
I have been thinking on adding more horsepower for a faster car, not that i am saying that the car is slow, but i want it a bit more faster than it is right now.
I recently taked to my mechanic about adding an induction kit, and he didnt advise it, he prefered adding a chip.
So, what do you think guys? i want something that will boost up the HP by at least 20 bhp or more, without ruining the engine.

Thank you for your time

a chip won't add 20 bhp you could check at having the car remapped.

check on angel tuning for remapping the engine which is basically putting a new code on the ecu to make it run faster and not at a detuned state. however the 1.6 bravo is not listed in their price list so you would have to check with them.



A filter should not harm the engine all it is doing is adding more oxygen to the fuel/air combination making for better combustion.



(this is not super accurate info and you are best off waiting for a more mechanically minded person to make sure that the info that i have provided is correct and accurate)

Bar a turbo conversion, change of engine or some nos. You wont be able to do a great deal with it.. There is no point unless you do the above or pay real money n keep with the engine you have

how much HP will a performance air filter add??

It would be dependant on the car.. on some aplicatons it wont add any. some where from - to 8 hp maybe more on some cars. But not on urs..

i have heard people say things like between 1 and 5 bhp.

depends on the filter and things. obviously the wider the filter and the larger the filter the more air you can get into the engine. also some people have wide hoses connecting from the filter to the engine to get even more air in to the car. the more air you can get in to the engine the better the fuel combustion. which means the faster the car. K and N do a flat panel filter for most models and an induction kit for most models. If it can be done see if you can connect both that may help speed up the car (if this can be done, again check with a more mechanically minded person if the info i have provdided is correct)

thats why k and n make the filters round as they have more of a surface area to take in more air than that of a flat filter.




really there is no fast way to a faster car other than buying a faster car.


disclaimer: again check with a more mechanically minded person if the info i have provided is correct

i have seen cars with more than one air filter on them.

how this works i don't know.


to really up the power on your car your looking at getting the car remapped, or chiped, sports type or race type exhaust, decat, induction kit, lowering (to aid handling). Allsorts can be done.


The biggest and probably most expensive way off upping the power is going down the turbo route. though you would definatly have to speak to some one with far greater knowledge than i have on that one. I don't even know if it can be done in theory let alone in reality.



disclaimer: any thing i have mentioned here needs to be checked out with mechanically minded people. or researched into depth to see if the information is correct and accurate

Any car can have a turbo conversion in principal. the cars you have seen with 2 air filters are twin turbo'd cars. It maybe expensive to go for TURBO CONVERSION but it will get the most power, easy er

you cant remap the 1.6 bravo ecu, or the 1.4, or the 1.8. only the later 2.0 and 1.2 ecu's can be remapped, as well as the diesels, but that is all. there's no eprom on the other ecu's so it cant be done.

adding an airfilter doesnt make much difference. the gains are made from reducing the intake restrictions, but modern cars have very little restriction to remove. manufacturers know that making it easy to take in air will increase the efficiency of the engine, saving fuel, so they all aim for very little restriction. adding a filter is more important with other mods (such as high lift cam). thats where the gains can be made, complimentary mods. a full exhaust, airfilter & cam kit could give you 10-15bhp. it would be cheaper (and better) to buy a 1.8hlx. then you also enjoy the extra spec as well as performance. thats why i bought one. i recommend everyone should do the same, the insurance is only 2 groups higher but its a much better car all round.

maybe i should trade in and get a 1.8. however being only 20 and insurance being through the roof already i think i will stick with my plans for getting my car remapped and adding a k&n to the car.....stick with the 1.2 for now.

Jug just another thing can you not put a 1.2 or 2.0 litre ecu on to the 1.4 or 1.6 to enable them to be remapped or are they completely different

The MK1 Bravo 1.4, 1.6 and 2.0 can be rechipped (not 100% sure on the 1.8 as we have never tried!)

The MK2 Bravo 1.2 can be remapped the rest cannot, nor can they be rechipped. There was belief that the 2.0 "155" could be remapped but alas the UK cars have a hybrid ECU and cannot be done. We tried some 30+ HGT 155's and even had one of the very last of them and beleive me - we tried!

so you can do my 1.2

no, the engine management for different engines uses different algorithms, and different sensors are used with different return voltages (and feedback circuits), so its not possible.

by rechipped do you mean opening the ecu and soldering some eprom onto the circuit board in place of the rom?