Kerlin Performance
Performance Ownership 101
Buying the horsepower is the fun part. Knowing how to properly own, maintain and protect your performance vehicle matters too.
More Than Just Selling Performance Vehicles
Shelby, Hennessey, Roush and other high-performance vehicles aren’t ordinary cars and trucks. More horsepower, specialized components and performance calibrations can mean different ownership requirements.
Performance Ownership 101 is our growing collection of information designed to help owners understand their vehicles, protect their investment and enjoy the horsepower the way it was intended.
Lesson 01
Feed the Horsepower
High-performance engines are designed around specific fuel requirements. Always follow the requirements for your particular vehicle and performance package. Using the correct octane and quality fuel helps the engine and its calibration perform as intended.
Lesson 02
Cold Engine. Easy Right Foot.
Starting the engine doesn’t mean every component is immediately ready for maximum load. Give the vehicle time to reach proper operating conditions before asking for everything the engine has.
Lesson 03
Break It In Before You Send It
A new performance vehicle may have a manufacturer-recommended break-in period. Follow the guidance provided for your specific vehicle before repeated hard acceleration, high RPM operation or other maximum-performance driving.
Lesson 04
Before You Modify It
More horsepower is tempting. But changing software, calibrations or hardware on an already modified performance vehicle can create unintended consequences and may affect warranty coverage.
When in doubt, ask before you modify.
Lesson 05
Maintenance Matters
Horsepower doesn’t eliminate maintenance — it makes proper maintenance even more important. Follow the schedules, specifications and fluid requirements applicable to both the base vehicle and its performance package.
Lesson 06
Know Your Warranty
Performance vehicles can include coverage from more than one manufacturer or provider. Understand what is covered, who provides that coverage and how modifications or improper use could affect it. If you aren’t sure, contact us before making changes.
Performance Ownership 101
Before Someone Plugs a Laptop Into Your Vehicle…
Modern performance vehicles rely heavily on specialized software and calibrations. A tune, reflash or software update isn’t necessarily the same thing as adding a cosmetic accessory.
Unauthorized changes to the vehicle’s software, calibration or performance hardware can cause problems and may have warranty implications depending on the vehicle and manufacturer.
700 or 800 horsepower apparently has a strange way of making people ask, “But what if it had more?”
We understand. Just know what you’re changing before you change it.
Your Vehicle Comes First
Performance Ownership 101 is intended as general educational information. Your exact Shelby, Hennessey, Roush, Ford Performance or other specialty vehicle may have different requirements.
Always follow the owner’s manuals, supplements, warranty information and instructions supplied with your specific vehicle and performance package. When those instructions differ from general information, the instructions for your vehicle should control.
Why Kerlin Performance?
The Relationship Shouldn’t End at Delivery
Our job isn’t simply to put another performance vehicle on the road. We want our customers to understand what they’re buying and have a resource after they take it home.
That’s why we’re building Performance Ownership 101. As we add more vehicles, videos and ownership information, we’ll continue adding those resources here.
Questions?
Ask Before You Guess.
Have a question about your performance vehicle, maintenance, modifications or ownership? Reach out to the Kerlin Performance team.