Quarterly Newsletter

 As some of you may, or may not have noticed, we decided to change our Newsletter segment from a monthly publication, to a quarterly one. This will allow us to not only create more content for the newsletter, but to better refine the content as well. NWKT would like to publish a Newsletter full of vital information, than one that's full of fluff. And, since NWKT is member driven, we are empowering our members to make their own submitions to the Newsletter, and this move will allow us to better facilitate that as well. We hope you enjoy the new look of our Newsletter.

-Site Admin

Recap of Recent Events

 As some of you may recall from the March Newsletter, NWKT was sponsoring another dyno event we affectionately named, "NWKT Dyno Day 2". And just like the one we had in October of last year, this one was another success.

 It was held at Fairlady Z Motors (6902 27th St. W., University Place, WA, 98466, click HERE to go to their website) on Saturday, March 22nd, and the event started at around 9am. We had another great turn-out for this event, and saw some really great vehicles, besides just our hot Kia's. There was a group of "Z" cars that were not only agreat to look at, but provided some great performance numbers too. There was also a few really nice 240's at this event, and they performed very well too. Especially that insane V8 powered 240... a monster torque machine. We were also joined by our good friends, and fellow KDM enthusiasts, X Culture Club, who, by the way, have recently launched their brand new website (click HERE to check it out).

 All in all, this was another great event. We would especially like to thank Doug, and the rest of the staff at Fairlady Z, for their professionalism, sharing their knowledge with us, and just being some really cool people to hang out with. We would strongly recommend going there for all your Dyno runs, and if you do, let them know that Northwest Kia Tuners sent you.

 For more sights and sounds of this event, one of our Team members has posted several videos on YouTube. Click HERE to go check them out.

 Another interesting thing that happened for NWKT in March was the securing of a "group buy" deal from Lamin-X.com. Click HERE to check out their website, and to take a look at what products they have to offer. Now, we're not going to go into the details of the "group buy" here in our Newsletter, so if you want to get in on it, you're going to have to read about it on our Forum. Click HERE to find out more about our Forum.

Latest NWKT News

 NWKT has chosen an organization to support, and this couldn’t have come at a more appropriate time, as one our Teammates has long been affected by this organizations support. NWKT will now be supporting the efforts of the National Fragile X Foundation, otherwise known as NFXF, click HERE to go to their website.

Mission Statement of the National Fragile X Foundation

The National Fragile X Foundation unites the Fragile X community to nrich lives through educational and emotional support, promote public and professional awareness, and advance research toward improved treatments and a cure for Fragile X.

 The National Fragile X Foundation (NFXF) has been helping individuals with Fragile X, their families, and the professionals who work with them, since 1984. As research into Fragile X continues, their understanding of who it affects and how it affects them will grow. The NFXF is committed to keeping the Fragile X community well informed.

What is Fragile X? - Fragile X is a family of genetic conditions, which can impact individuals and families in various ways. These genetic conditions are related in that they are all caused by gene changes in the same gene, called the FMR1 gene.

Fragile X includes:

• fragile X syndrome (FXS), the most common cause of inherited mental impairment. This impairment can range from learning disabilities to more severe cognitive or intellectual disabilities. (Sometimes referred to as mental retardation.) FXS is the most common known cause of autism or "autistic-like" behaviors. Symptoms also can include characteristic physical and behavioral features and delays in speech and language development.
• fragile X-associated tremor/ataxia syndrome (FXTAS), a condition which affects balance, tremor and memory in some older male gene carriers.
• fragile X-associated premature ovarian failure (POF), a problem with ovarian function which can lead to infertility and early menopause in some female gene carriers. Some gene carriers do not exhibit any of these features.

 Fragile X can be passed on in a family by individuals who have no apparent signs of this genetic condition. In some families a number of family members appear to be affected, whereas in other families a newly diagnosed individual may be the first family member to exhibit symptoms.

 We will create a section on our website dedicated strictly to the NFXF. Stay tuned for more information about our partnership with them, and what we will be doing to support them and their efforts.

 We will also be having a car show benefitting the NFXF on July 27th, 2008. Read more about this great event in our "Event Listings" section.

Article Of The Month

Horsepower: Gross vs. Real-World

 If you've spent any time around cars or car people, you're familiar with the term horsepower. And while you may have a general idea of what horsepower refers to, its exact definition and how that definition plays out in the real world can be a bit confusing. Specifically, the terms "net horsepower" and "wheel driven horsepower" are commonly seen in magazine road tests or vehicle spec boxes. But what exactly do they mean and what, if any, difference is there between the two?

 Let’s get its basic definition out of the way first and then move on to the difference between net horsepower and wheel-driven horsepower.

 Horsepower is officially defined as "the amount of energy required to lift 550 pounds, one foot, in one second." This definition dates back to when cars didn't even exist and, despite the worldwide acceptance of the metric system (America not withstanding) in which feet have been replaced by meters, the definition remains in use today.

 Generally speaking, horsepower is an indication of how capable a vehicle is at moving itself around and, consequently, the more horsepower a vehicle possesses, the quicker it can move between two points. In addition to determining how quickly a car or truck can move, horsepower has a direct relationship to top speed. As a vehicle's speed rises, additional horsepower must be expended to push it through the atmosphere. Of course, aerodynamics play a major role in top speed as well and most of today's performance cars owe as much to aerodynamics as they do to horsepower for their ability to go 150+ mph.

 So if the definition of horsepower is so straightforward (550 pounds moved one foot in one second), how can the same vehicle have different horsepower ratings? For instance, Chevrolet rated the 1998 Corvette's 5.7-liter V8 at 345 horsepower. Yet, a test in HOT ROD magazine found the car to have 285 horsepower. So what gives?

 The disparity between these two figures comes from the fact that one is a gross horsepower rating and the other is a wheel-driven horsepower rating. Gross horsepower is a measurement of engine output, taken at the flywheel, without the engine installed in a vehicle. Since the engine has no load on it, all of its energy can be used for making horsepower.

 Wheel-driven horsepower, by comparison, is a measurement taken at the driven wheels of a vehicle on what's called a dynamometer. This is done by placing the vehicle's driven wheels on a large roller and accelerating the wheels up to redline in first or second gear. The vehicle's ability to turn this roller is measured and calculated to come up with a figure that represents how much horsepower is actually available to move the vehicle around -- or real-world horsepower. Because a frictional loss between the engine and the driven wheels is unavoidable, wheel-driven horsepower will always be less than gross horsepower.

 How much less wheel-driven horsepower will depend on how many mechanical parts exist between a vehicle's engine and its driven wheels. Since we already mentioned a late-model Corvette, we'll use it as our example. The 345 horsepower that initiate in the Corvette's engine compartment have to travel through a transmission, driveshaft, rear-differential, and two axle shafts (one for each rear wheel). That's four separate mechanical components taking a bite out of the `Vette's horsepower before the rear wheels even begin to turn. Suddenly, the 285 wheel-driven horsepower rating doesn't seem so hard to believe.

 On front-wheel drive cars with transverse-mounted engines, the frictional loss is often less severe because horsepower only has to travel from the engine, through the transmission and down two short driveshafts before reaching the wheels. It should be noted, however, that in that same HOT ROD article, a front-wheel drive Dodge Neon R/T, rated at 150 net horsepower, could only muster 117.1 wheel-driven horsepower when placed on a dynamometer.

 Obviously, another factor to consider in this discussion is how accurately the manufacturers rate their own engines. It's hard to believe that the Corvette and Neon could lose 17 and 22 percent of their engine's horsepower in just frictional losses. Most experts agree that a 10 to 15 percent loss is normal. This does not necessarily mean that the manufacturers are lying. The additional drop could come from a number of causes including variations in engine performance and dynamometer readings. It could also be that the manufacturers are dealing with an expertly tuned engine's running under controlled conditions in a laboratory rather than a mass-produced engine that was put together on an assembly line and sold at a dealer's lot.

 Whatever the cause, it's important to remember that there will be a loss of horsepower between the engine and the rear wheels. If you really want to know how powerful a vehicle is, test drive it. If you're looking for an accurate horsepower figure, a dynamometer run is the only way to know for sure, and locally, we recommend Fairlady Z (see the “Recap of Recent Events” section above for their contact information).

Website Spotlight

 Ok, every once in a while, you come accross something on the internet that you just didn't expect. Ok... truth be told... that can actually happen on a daily basis, but when it comes to your hobby, that may not happen on a daily basis. Take the sport of car tuning for instance. Honda's, Subaru's, Scion's, Acura's, and so on, are all a dime-a-dozen in this sport. Very rarely do you see one of those common vehicles that just blows your mind. But a Kia... now that's different. How about taking a look at a different side of car tuning? Or better yet, SUV tuning. You see the Yukon's, the Hummer's, the Range Rover's, and the like... but, what about a Kia? They make SUV's. Well, you might want to take a seat for what you're about to see. Enter the world of the "Dusty Kia Sorrento".

 Here we have this Australian guy named, Clint, and his Kia Sorento. This is guy making full use of his Kia SUV, and created a blog to talk about his 4x4 travels in the UAE Oman areas of the Middle East. He lives in Dubai after moving there from Australia three years ago. Not wanting to waste money on a 4x4, and not quite sure if he really needed one, he opted for a second hand Kia Sorento which was offered at a “ridiculously low price” (his words).

 His first trip to the desert was where he quickly learned that his mild mannered, urban 4x4 was more than capable of going off road, even in its stock trim, and it gave the other larger 4x4's a run for their money. Most of his trips are one or two day’ers, but nonetheless, he is giving his Kia quite a workout. And, you gotta see the pics he included. You just might gain a new respect for the Kia Sorento after you see what this guy’s done with his

 Cheers Clint!

Wrap-Up