Q: Can an inexperienced technician damage my car on your dynamometer by putting on too much load?

A: This is a common question.
Suppose a car is being driven on a level road at say 65 MPH. in fourth gear.  The car comes to a hill (more load), the driver does not move the accelerator.  What happens?  The car simply slows down.  If the hill becomes steeper (even more load) and accelerator remains constant, the car slows down more.  The situation on the dynamometer is the same.  If your car is driving on a Dyno Dynamics dynamometer and load is increased, the car will simply slow down.  Apply more load, and it will slow down more.
The load the Dynamometer applies cannot stress the engine any more, (or any less) than a hill.

Q: How much extra time does it take, to use the dynamometer on my vehicle?

A: A lot of time is saved by using our dynamometer.  Because our Dyno Dynamics dynamometer is very advanced, it assists us to diagnose your vehicle quickly, and saves a lot of time.  It is far quicker to diagnose on our Dyno Dynamics dynamometer than by other methods, including on the road.

Q: What about cost?  I understand that dynamometers are expensive and so the hourly labor rate is high?

A: It generally works out less cost.  The hourly rate may be a bit higher. This is more than offset by the time saved, and the results achieved, so it ends up costing you less.

Q: What about tyres, do they wear out on the Dyno?

A: Tyres wear out when ever they are being driven on the road or on a dynamometer.  Our Dyno Dynamics dynamometer has advanced design.  In particular the roller surface is knurled with a square cut knurl.  This knurl combined with specially designed Dyno Dynamics Traction Control System provides excellent grip and no excessive tire wear common on other dynamometers.

Q: Can you dyno test my automatic transmission vehicle?

A: Certainly, the transmission simply up‑shifts, down‑shifts, kicks down as normal, just as it would on the "real" road.

Q: I know that dynos are great for performance vehicles.  I own an ordinary car, can a dyno help you to get the best out of my ordinary car?

A  Many people have the misconception that dyno's are only used for "flat out horsepower,” and “big heaps of grunt" type vehicles.  Nothing could be further from the truth. Just as most vehicles on the road are driven at less than full throttle most of the time; so most running on a Dynamometer is done at less than full throttle.

Q: My engine’s performance, economy, smoothness etc are fine.  I have non-engine problems.  Can the dyno help?

A: Another misconception is that dynos are only used to test the engine of a vehicle.  Here is a list of very common applications for dynos that do not necessarily involve "flat out power".

Engine and driveline vibrations:
Vibrations in a vehicle can be very difficult and time consuming to track down.  Our Dyno Dynamics dynamometer assists us greatly in curing vibrations.  The Dyno Dynamics dynamometer produces no vibrations of its own, so all vibes felt while on the dynamometer must be produced by the vehicle. Our technicians can vary road speed, change gears, and alter engine power, at will.  Vibrations can be pinpointed very quickly.

Wheel and tire vibrations:
How many times have you driven a vehicle on the road after a wheel balance job, and found that it still had a bad wheel or tire type vibration? How often were you unable to easily determine WHICH wheel or tire was causing the trouble? Even if you could be sure which wheel or tire it was, how can you pick if the RIM or TIRE is faulty? When running on a Dynamometer it easy to pick all of these.

Q:  I suspect that my auto transmission is not quite right.  I don’t want “not quite right” to grow into “expensive”. Can the your dyno help? 

A:  Transmission slip can be extremely difficult to discern on the road.  Unfortunately transmission slip can kill your transmission very quickly (and expensively).  Because our Dyno Dynamics dynamometer can keep the road speed constant, regardless of engine power, "slip" is easily detected.  Automatic transmission shift speed and quality can also be checked and adjusted while on the Dynamometer. "Kick-down" can be adjusted also.  All this can be done without having to worry about traffic etc.  Transmission test pressures can be monitored, voltages checked, performance measured far more easily and quickly than on the road.

Q: I have an annoying exhaust resonance.  No one has been able to fix it, because you can only hear it on the road at particular speeds and throttle position.

A:  Resonances can easily be checked under actual running conditions.  Power and economy exhaust restrictions (an increasingly common problem these days it seems) can quickly be tracked down.  Some exhaust leaks only show up under power, this makes diagnosis of the offending component very difficult on the road, but very quick and easy on our Dyno Dynamics dynamometer.

Q: Can the dyno help fix overheating problems:

A: Cooling systems seem simple.  The reality is, they can be very difficult to test, diagnose and repair.  Often physical disassembly is required for accurate diagnosis.  Overheating, blown head gaskets, temperature sensitive fan clutches, temperature gauges, etc., can be checked very quickly and efficiently on our Dyno Dynamics dynamometer.  Not only can blown head gaskets or cracked heads be easily detected, but also WHICH cylinder is the problem, is also easily tracked down.

Q:  Speedometer Accuracy.  I have been booked for speeding.  Can the dyno check my speedometer?

A:  Yes. Our Dyno Dynamics dynamometer can check speedometers.  We can also check your odometer accuracy as well if you like.  Many police vehicles speedometer accuracy are checked on a Dyno Dynamics dynamometer also.

Q: My car always has more power, smoothness and economy after a long run.  I have been told that this is because the “cobwebs” have been blown out.  Long runs also cure my pinging problem.  Can the dyno do this without the speeding fines?

A: Yes.  A good run on the dynamometer can “clear out the cobwebs.”  Ask us to check your speedometer accuracy while it’s on the dyno.  This will reduce the speeding fines that you may get because your car has more part throttle power after the “dyno decoke”.  This is at a much lower cost to you than removing cylinder heads.

Q:  Mechanical noise.  In the past I have found that diagnosing mechanical noises in my car is harder than the actual repair in a lot of cases.  Rear wheel bearings, differentials, tires, gearboxes, universal joints, center bearings etc., can all make noises when they are approaching the end of their useful lives.

A: Our Dyno Dynamics dynamometer can greatly assist in determining the offending component(s) causing the noise.

Q: I run a small fleet of delivery trucks.  One truck has poor fuel economy.  My mechanics have done a thorough check with the engine analyser, adjusted tappets etc.  It has had three different carbs on it, (no better).  We overload it, and the driver is a young guy, (who drives like a maniac!).  Can a dyno be used to find out if it is thirsty and if the carburetor is causing the excessive fuel consumption?

A: Yes.    The procedure is simple:  We put the truck on the dynamometer with an air:fuel ratio analyser fitted up the exhaust tailpipe.

We then drive at a range of conditions including: idle, cruse around town, freeway driving, to flat out up hills.  We check what’s happening and know for sure (a) If there is a problem, and (b) what the offending components are.

Q: I have problems with a small Japanese car that lacks power up hills.  I suspect that the turbo waste-gate is not fully closing.  How can the Dyno help me to find if the waste-gate sticking or needs adjusting?

A: Simple.  We drive your car up a hill on the dynamometer.  One technician drives, while another gets under the hood and inspects the waste-gate linkage.  He can even operate the linkage by hand and note the increase in power achieved by this.  Because we can work on your engine while it is under load we can find what is causing the lack of power, very quickly and accurately.

Q: If my engine is running "lean", how can you tell if the fuel pump, blocked fuel filter, dirty injectors, or something else causing the problem?  I don’t want to pay for unnecessary parts or labor.

A: We first put you car on the dyno.  We connect an exhaust gas analyser to the exhaust system tailpipe. We then drive down a simulated freeway, up and down a few hills, and if necessary tow a simulated trailer.  (This will confirm that lean running is the problem). If it is indeed lean, we connect a fuel pressure gauge to the fuel system, and run your vehicle on the dynamometer under the road conditions where it runs lean.  This will usually diagnose the problem accurately. Sometimes we may need to test fuel pressure at several points.  This procedure will track down the most difficult fuel supply problems very quickly.  This ensures that parts and labor costs are kept to a minimum, and you receive the best possible repair.

Q: I have noticed that a vehicle runs much better after a long run on the interstate.  This is presumably because the long run "blows out the cobwebs".  Can these "cobwebs" be blown out on a dynamometer?

A: Fuel economy, engine power, smoothness, pinging etc., all benefit greatly from "a good cleanout".  What is really needed to achieve this is: continuous full throttle for at least five minutes (or more, depending on amount of carbon build‑up) at about 3000 R.P.M.  This procedure will even clean out carbon from a vehicle that has just finished a long run.  The secret is: continuous full throttle. This is almost impossible on the real road.  The result of this "dyno de-coke" is usually quite spectacular.  Performance and economy are improved by an average of 10‑15 percent, and "pinging" is generally totally cured.  The engine runs smoother, and part throttle response is improved.  The cost is only a fraction the cost of an engine disassembly to clean out the carbon.  An added bonus is increased engine life.  Because the oil temperature rises above normal road going temperature, unburnt fuel and water contaminating the engine oil boils of, and detergent action in engine oil really gets going and eats up varnish and carbon deposits in the engine. An oil and filter change is a great way to finish up a dyno de-coke service!

Q: Can I test to see if my new high performance part actually made more power?

A: Yes, absolutely you can make a baseline pull in the stock configuration and then return at a later time with you new part installed and see what kind of gain you actually made. Every car that we upgrade in the shop gets a before and after dyno.

Q: My car already runs very good, why would I want to have you dyno tune my car?

A: There are a lot of power in small things like timing and jetting. Sometimes we have customers who would like a baseline dyno test and we find that their combination is actually right on and no further testing is needed. Sometimes small things like timing can net 30 horsepower.

Q: Can you tune fuel milage on the dyno?

A: Yes, we can lean out the part throttle and cruise areas to net better milage and actually save you money.