iQ Tuning

"Do you have an above average iQ?"

Toyota have released their smallest car yet in the form of the iQ.

The IQ platform is shared with other makers from Aston Martins Cygnet to Peugeots 107.

This allows each maker to add their own style but work on a stable tried and tested platform.

The cars also share engines primarily an economical 1.0 unit.

Improving the handling should be your first priority in your iQ tuning project. We suggest that you fit uprated suspension and lower the car by 30-35mm. Larger drops require arch work - especially on models already equipped with sports suspension.

Turning our attention to the iQs engine we need to get a bit more power out of the top end.

Toyota iQ Tuning modifications.

Your aim when tuning should be a nice flat torque curve and a wide power band. The car was tuned and built for economy so there is room for a bit of tweaking. A fast road cam will be one of the best power mods you can do mechanically to your engine but in the case of the iQ you can't expect any single modification to make much of a difference to the power.

Ideally you should add some breathing mods, fast road cams and a supercharger for a really fun car.

Uprating the injectors is another beneficial modification and will deliver sufficient fuel. A fuel pump will only deliver a finite amount of fuel, so you may need to uprate this if your injectors are demanding more fuel.

Getting a professionally flowed head with larger valves can fully release the engines power. Your clutch can seriously let you down if it starts to slip and the standard clutches are only ever good for power gains of upto 50%. Fit an uprated clutch to avoid power losses through the transmission. 

Adding forced induction will see big power gains but this is usually too expensive to be cost effective. It is easier to bolt on a supercharger than it is to get a turbo working. With a turbo the boost curve is related exponentially to the engine speed making it hard to map. The nice steady boost to rpm characteristics of the supercharger make them easier to map. To cope with forced induction you will usually need to decrease the compression ratio of the engine.

Toyota iQ Intake and Exhaust Tuning.

The next area for modification is the intake and exhaust. A panel filter should suffice for most applications but if you have done some extensive mods you may need to revise the air box. On small engines you will actually lose low down power so TorqueCars suggest you use a panel air filter instead. Sports exhausts will certainly help air flow through the engine but do not go too large or you will reduce the flow rate. Stick to 1.5 to 2.5 inches for best results.

Toyota iQ Wheel modifications.

Because alloy wheels are lighter they improve performance and they help to cool the brake disks. The downside to large alloy wheels on your iQ is that you alter your effective final drive ratio and this will have a detrimental effect on acceleration and performance. For this reason we would advise sticking to a maximum wheel size of 15 inches, although we know some of our members have gone larger than this with no problems.

For more information on Tuning your car please join us in our friendly forum where you can discuss iQ options in more detail with our iQ owners. It would also be worth reading our unbiased Toyota tuning articles to get a full grasp of the benefits and drawbacks of each modification.