Modifications for the Smart roadster
roadster tuning tips from the car tuning guide, we take a look at the best power mods for the roadster in our latest guide.
Available in standard form with power of upto 103bhp (depending on the year), so this goes to show the tuning potential of the roadster. From this you can increase the power from anywhere between 113.3bhp to 175.1bhp which seems almost too good to be true but is possible if you have deep pockets.
To go over the 100bhp per 1000cc limit you would need to be running a pretty serious forced induction setup. If you head for a maximum power figure you need to expect a lot of unreliability. See this link for more details on Engine Tuning
An engine swap with that from the 103bhp roadster Coupe will give a massive power gain and provide a better base to work from. Car Tuning Guide think it is a shame that the roadsters were not offered with more powerful engine options, but this is where customisation comes in. Car Tuning Guide have been impressed with the addition of stainless steel exhaust systems on the roadsters , if you want to improve your top end go with an panel air filter made from cotton or sponge. You should also get a better fuel pressure regulator such as those supplied by FSE
The modification that gives the best power gain on your car would be a fast road cam. Turn your attention next to the roadsters engine head. With a good gas flowed ported engine you will see much better mid and peak range power and some owners have reported more economy.
The roadsters come in various power levels right up to 103bhp. If you apply a few tuning mods to this model of roadster you will see power gains from anywhere between 113.3bhp to 144.2bhp. But this sort of power requires some pretty heavy investment and a hell of a lot of engine work. .
The largest power gains for NASP engines usually involve the addition of forced induction. Turbos are harder to add to a car than a supercharger. With a turbo the boost curve is related to the engine speed making it hard to map. Superchargers however will give a boost which is proportional to engine speed so is easier to map. The roadsters handling can be dramatically improved with some choice suspension modifications. Although lowering improves handling you should stick to a drop of 35mm.
Check back frequently for updates as we will be adding more detailed tuning guides to this site.
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