106: Intercoolers and Methanol — Pointless or the Key to BIG Power Gains?

Six-second Supras, monster GT-Rs, dyno tuning discussions, finding good customers, and much more — this episode with Varun Sharma of 101 Motorsport has it all.

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Use “101MOTORSPORT200” to get $200 OFF our HPA VIP package: https://hpcdmy.co/vipb

Varun Sharma and his business, 101 Motorsport, first came to our attention eight years ago when we first laid eyes on the impressive “Mighty Mouse” Honda CRX build at World Time Attack Challenge. Since those days, we’ve been keeping tabs on Varun and his various builds and now we’ve finally managed to pry him away from the workshop for a couple of hours to jump on the podcast.

Varun started young, gaining a fascination with anything mechanical through tagging along with his father to strip cars at scrap yards in search of replacement parts. Then, a few years later, when Nissan dropped its dominant R32 Skyline GT-R right on top of the Fords and Holdens at Bathurst, Varun was sold on all things JDM.

This pushed him towards the automotive trades, starting as an apprentice mechanic at 101 Motorsport and absorbing as much information as he possibly could. A few years later, Varun had the opportunity to buy the business and he’s been pushing the boundaries of what’s possible on the strip, the street, and the race circuit ever since.

101 Motorsport offers a huge range of services, so this conversation is a wide-ranging one that discusses topics like dyno tuning, engine building, methanol tuning considerations, drag racing strategies, tuning for driveability, the business side of the equation, and a whole lot more.

This episode is a great listen that has a little bit of something for everyone.

As discussed, you can watch our interview with Varun discussing the Oceania Supra here: https://youtu.be/WqVo2KsT7os?si=UpSHJzM6HWvwTgt6

Follow 101 Motorsport here:
IG: @101.motorsport
FB: 101 Motorsport
WWW: 101motorsport.com.au

Don’t forget, you can use “101MOTORSPORT200” to get $200 OFF our HPA VIP package: https://hpcdmy.co/vipb

TIME STAMPS:
4:12 How did you get into cars?
6:22 What was it about Japanese cars?
11:22 Once you decided cars were your thing, where did you go from there?
18:14 How did you get an apprenticeship in a performance workshop?
25:51 How did you buy 101 Motorsport?
30:46 Does having other dyno tuners around hurt business?
37:22 Overview of 101 Motorsport
41:36 What services does 101 Motorsport offer?
54:18 Dyno discussions
1:04:14 Confirming tunes out on the road
1:10:14 What is your ECU of choice?
1:13:41 What drew you to drag racing?
1:17:44 Overview X275 radial drag class
1:20:19 MPH and ET of the Oceania Supra?
1:28:18 Finalising a tune at the drag strip?
1:36:42 The importance of air temps out of the intercooler