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Excerpt from PRI Interview
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PRI recently interviewed Steve Matthiesen, VP of Sales of Colorado-based SuperFlow, manufacturer of dynamometers.
Below are some of the topics he discussed:
"It was once true that if you could find 8 to 10 horsepower by running on a dyno, you were considered to be a dynamometer guru. Today, users are looking for less than 1-horsepower improvements. This has led to better software and a better means to collect the data. For example, we know that on a chassis dynamometer, the higher the resolution of data collection, the easier it is to see small change-much like looking at the data with a magnifying glass. The closer you look, the more you find. We now sample data at over 2,000 times per second, where 10 years ago it was the norm to sample at 100 times per second."
Learn more about SuperFlow's Data Acquisition and Control System>>
"OBDII is now required to be integrated in the software. To ensure accuracy, we supply a weather station to compare data from one day to the next due to variances in atmospheric conditions. We measure tire slip to present operators with information they may never have considered. We now offer AC motoring in our chassis dynamometers since more and more users want to see how a car reacts using full-inertia simulation. What this means is that it is not sufficient just to perform a drag race test on the chassis dyno. Now we need to replicate an emissions cycle or be able to reproduce how a car coasts when under part or no throttle, or we want to know what the losses of the driveline are. The NASCAR teams are really beginning to see the value of AC motoring, and this allows them to completely and accurately replicate any race track and track condition as well as understand the vehicle dynamics."
"Oftentimes, the reason for an updated system or upgrade to an existing system are dictated by a shop's customer base. It might be a machine shop owner who has only had an engine dyno for years, and now he wants to get into the import tuner market because that is where he sees a lot of performance sales taking place. Of course, it is harder to pull an engine out of a Subaru WRX and test it on the engine dyno, but running the entire vehicle on the chassis dyno is very quick and easy. We now have many customers who have both an engine dyno and a chassis dyno. Also, a new phenomenon for us is that we find many of our new customers are buying both dynamometers [engine and chassis] right from the beginning."
"In the case of SuperFlow, all of our products (engine dynamometers, chassis dynamometers, and flowbenches) operate with our WinDyn™ software. If you own a SuperFlow SF-902 engine dyno, then you already know how to use the WinDyn software for the chassis dynamometer. One of the unique attributes of SuperFlow is that we can upgrade any chassis dynamometer to WinDyn and our data acquisition systems. We offer a complete data acquisition and control package that will upgrade the dyno to all-new electronics and include a new computer with WinDyn software. This is a very economical means to extend the life of a perfectly good dynamometer."
"Our best experience has been to hold a 'Dyno Day' and invite the various car clubs to come and participate. Offer a specially reduced price for a dyno pull just for that day or for that car club. If you are lucky enough to have a local individual who stands out in the performance market, invite that person to conduct an evening or Saturday seminar. We have had engineers from well-known companies welcome an opportunity to speak before a group."
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Steve Matthiesen, VP of Sales of Colorado-based SuperFlow
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