car runs better/faster after new water pump and accessory belt???

[23109VC]

just picked up my boxster today after having a new water pump installed. the shop also replaced my main belt - which they showed me...it was all cracked and in really bad shape. my water pump looked okay internall, but had sprung a leak where it connects to the belt itself..

on my way home, I had a change to get into the powerband and "enjoy" my car. I swear the car feels slightly faster, and seems to rev more smoothly.

is there some way that due to my water pump being bad or leaky or maybe just really worn, or having a new belt on that the car would run noticeably better? could the pump have been so bad it created too much drag on the car, or the bad belt being cracked/worn/stif that it was creating drag and sucking up power?

i wasn't expecting it to be faster...i assumed i'd get it back and it would drive exactly the same..minus the water leak.. but i have to say I think it runs better. stronger. not a lot...just enough that I can feel it.

maye it's just that I hadn't driven the car in a few weeks...it was out of commision for almost a month before I got it fixed....so it could all be subjective...but I had to wonder if maybe the water pump or belt, or combination, being bad coul have been putting even a small amount of excess drag on teh motor and by replacing them, some small amount of previosly "robbed" horsepower was free'd up and that's what I'm feeling..

or maybe i'm just crazy..

whatever it is, it sure is nice to have my car back. that sound, of the motor wailing in the upper rpms is pure music.

[Topless]

You are experiencing a fine example of the placebo effect. I feel the same way after every oil change but I know it is just my mind toying with me a little.

[highsmith]

ha. i swear the same thing after every oil change too. part of me just thinks it's because the loaner car I drive never has any power.

if you really want to make your car feel fast, go to europe for a month and drive one of those tiny peugeots around. i've been in golf carts with more torque. as soon as you get home you'll feel like you're driving a rocketship.

[ChrisZang]

Every time I do the slightest amount of work on the car (and even if I just tighten a lug nut) the car feels like it has at least 10 hp more than before

[jhandy]

you may not be crazy, If the pump bearings where bad, causing drag thereby robbing horse power. it be faster now.

who knows.

[Kim-M]

Hehe ye I've also experienced the placebo effect

This summer I had mine waxed and polishied, and it got nano all over the place.
The loaner car was a smart

So if the was/nano gives the car so much aerodynamic that I can feel it, everybody should do it

Or it was just the slow smart I borrowed

[jmatta]

I can see it now on eBay..."New, Improved Water Pump Adds 25 HP to Boxster"

...and they'll sell them!

[Kim-M]

I would buy one haha

[Lil bastard]

The waterpump is about a 3hp parasitic draw when operating properly. If the shaft is turning at all, while it may draw more, it's not much more.

Hp differences of less than 10hp cannot be felt.

So while academically speaking you may have restored some power, in the real world, it's most probably all in your head.

Cheers!

[23109VC]

it probably was all in my head.... the car was "out of commission" for a while and I've found the longer I"m away from my car, the more fun / faster / better handling it seems once I get back in it...

my daily driver is a nice car...but it's no sports car.... the best way to appreciate your boxster is to just drive something else....