Nitrous and Your Vehicle: Part 2

Exactly how does injecting nitrous oxide into the engine help? Combustion is basically igniting a mixture of oxygen and fuel in a chamber with a sparkplug. The explosion that results from this produces powder. Essentially, a nitrous oxide injection system pumps N2O into your engine’s intake system. At 296 degrees Celsius, the N2O breaks down into nitrogen and oxygen. The loose oxygen atom is burned together with the combustion. More oxygen means more power in your engine. It’s really that simple.

Nitrous oxide also cools the intake temperature down by 60 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit—and every 10 degree drop in temperature gives you about a 1% gain in horsepower. On top of the extra power you get from extra oxygen, you get another 6-7% increase in horsepower, too.

With the increased power being created, how do you control the process so that you don’t blow out your engine? Balancing the air-fuel mixture with the extra oxygen provided by nitrous oxide is a tricky thing to do. If you’re too lean, you’ll get detonation problems. If you’re too rich, you’ll lose power. It’s all a matter of learning. Before you start, make sure that your transmission can handle it. As you develop a better understanding of nitrous oxide, you’ll see better results in your vehicle.