When you're on the hunt for speed, it's not always best to focus on your car's engine with power-adder modifications. In fact, you may wind up making your car harder to accelerate consistently due to the traction issues that come along with increased horsepower.

In many cases, the most effective modifications to improve your car's acceleration are components that give you more traction off the line. They allow your car to get up and go without stumbling over wheelspin, taking full advantage of your engine's stock horsepower output.

Performance Tires for Extra Grip

Compared to versatile all-season tires, performance tires offer substantially higher levels of grip when you accelerate. While performance tires generally don't perform quite as well as all-season models in colder temperatures or inclement weather, their tread patterns, and rubber compounds are tuned to provide maximum traction in warm, dry conditions.

Race tires take that concept even further with tread patterns and rubber compounds that are tuned for all-out grip on the race track. Racing tires offer subpar performance on the road and are often even illegal to use on public roadways. However, they deliver unparalleled grip when you're driving your car at the limit on race circuits or drag strips.

Grippier tires can massively improve your car's 0 to 60 mph times, especially if you drive a car that generates a lot of low-end torque. Performance or race tires will allow your engine to transfer all of its power to the pavement to get your car accelerating as quickly as possible. Contact Pirelli race tire suppliers to learn more. 

Suspension Upgrades to Maximize Traction

Suspension modifications can also transform the way your tires hook up under heavy acceleration. Your stock springs and shocks are designed to be as forgiving and comfortable as possible to satisfy the average commuter's sensibilities. As a side effect of the suspension plushness, your car tends to rock back and forth under heavy acceleration. That can cause your tires to lose traction and drastically reduce your acceleration times.

Another side effect is known as wheel hop. Wheel hop occurs when your tires lose traction intermittently under heavy acceleration, creating a jackhammer-like effect as your car struggles for grip. Wheel hop not only reduces your car's ability to accelerate, but it also puts a substantial amount of stress on your axle and transmission system.

Luckily, you can minimize wheelspin and wheel hop with some careful suspension modifications. Tighten up your car's lateral stiffness with performance anti-sway bars, control arms, and other suspension links. While you're at it, upgrade all of your stock suspension bushings with aftermarket polyurethane units. Those mods will all work in conjunction to stiffen up your chassis and reduce weight transfer for maximum traction off the line.