What Makes a Car Perform? Key Components That Matter Most

Business, Cars, Lifestyle
June 4, 2025

What Makes a Car Perform? Key Components That Matter Most

By Kristian

When it comes to upgrading your car or working on your performance vehicles, there are many options and parts on the market, from carbon fibre hoods, digital dashboards, aftermarket ECU chips labelled as performance-enhancing, and other features. But there are only a few things that matter at the end of the day, and if you truly want the biggest bang for your buck, then you should focus on these components. So, whether you’re looking to decrease lap times or want a better handling ride, here are some of the components that you should focus on when it’s time to upgrade your vehicle.

Engine and Powertrain

The engine and powertrain are responsible for providing the force to propel the vehicle forward, with the engine generating the force and the powertrain transferring the force to the suspension and wheels connecting to the ground. These are the first things to consider when increasing the performance of your vehicle.

Horsepower

Horsepower is the total speed and capacity that a vehicle can reach; it is essentially what the engine can do over time, or how hard and fast you can push it over a long straight. If you want to upgrade horsepower, the most important thing you need to focus on is forced induction systems like turbochargers or supercharger upgrades. These work by increasing the density of air going into the engine by using a compressor. You can also use ECU chips that take over the system’s computational controls, pushing for more output of up to 10-20% and even up to 50% for some models.

Torque

Unlike horsepower, torque is the power you get straight off the mark and pushing hard from the get-go. Engines with high torque also have strong towing capacity and are able to carry heavy loads or handle uphill drives easily. The best and most effective upgrades for torque include making a longer stroke camshaft; this modification increases torque significantly, but your engine might suffer when you start to get to the higher rev range at the cost of horsepower. You can also tune the headers and exhaust, which will improve exhaust scavenging at lower RPMS.

Transmission

Transmission plays an even more important role in performance because this is where the engine connects to the rest of the vehicle, and power hits the ground. The most important upgrades to affect the power include getting an upgraded clutch or torque converter, which makes handling your increased power more effectively. Also, another popular upgrade is an upgraded LSD (Limited Slip Differential), which helps improve traction and power delivery to the wheels during hard cornering.

Suspension and Handling

While having the increased power and speed is great, it is nothing without appropriate suspension and handling. What use is all that power if you can’t control it? I would say that the second most important thing is the suspension and handling when it comes to performance. These are some of the most effective upgrades that you can make to this system.

Coilovers

Coilovers combine two vital parts of the suspension and handling system, the coils and the dampers. This is usually the first stop enthusiasts make when it comes to suspension upgrades and is the most effective. These give the ability to adjust the right height, making it higher or lower depending on your requirements. After installation, you can expect better handling, less body roll and a more responsive ride.

Sway Bars

The next thing to look at after coilovers should be sway bars. These are also known as anti-roll bars and help with stability and handling around corners. While the stock sway bars do a good enough job for normal driving, you should invest in one that is more sturdy and stiffer when you start to increase the performance of your vehicle. They work by connecting to opposing sides of the suspension system and counteracting the excessive force that might be generated on only one side, ensuring the car is less likely to flip when handling corners.

Bushing

Another one that is usually overlooked is the bushings, stock bushings tend to flex and wear very easily when taken to their limits. Bushing are the small, usually rubber components that sit between parts of the suspension system. You can replace them with a polyurethane bushing for an easy increase in handling and tighter response. While it’s not the most involved upgrade and is rather simple, it can provide a pretty big benefit if you want decent increases in handling.

Brakes and Tires

When it comes to performance, power and speed are great fun, but what’s the point of all that power if you’re unable to stop effectively? If you’re adding power and driving harder, the stock system might not be enough; this is where performance brake upgrades come into the picture.

Big Brake Kits

As the name suggests, big brake kits typically include larger rotors and callipers, which not only help you stop with more response and power, but they also heat less than typical stock pads when under pressure. This is because the bigger the rotor, the more surface area that allows heat to escape, making less brake fade under hard use. While these can be quite pricey,y I would say they’re worth it in the long run since they’re so sturdy, especially if you plan on taking your car to the track,

Performance Pads and Rotors

If you don’t want to go all out on the big brake kit, then you can simply upgrade to better quality pads and rotors that won’t break the bank. These will essentially be the same size as your usual braking system, but will be better equipped to handle heat and cool faster. It’s a good stepping stone to the bigger brake kit and will provide modest improvements.

Tire Upgrades

It can be easy to overlook tires, with all the other expensive modifications that are available on the market. But they are rather important, after all, it’s the only thing connecting your car to the road. So what I would recommend is not only replacing tires when they start to get worn out, but also investing in a good pair of high-performance tires so your handling and acceleration can get up to par with the rest of your setup.

Final Thoughts

Performance isn’t about getting the most expensive or flashiest upgrades, the most effective improvements usually come to the bread and butter of your machine. These general power upgrades will get you the best bang for your buck, and ensuring that your other components, such as suspension and brake system, are up to standard will do the most. So don’t fall for the hype and keep it simple and smart when upgrading your vehicle.