[KMPrenger]

I've seen others on here make similar arguments...overall I think its just silly talk. Some people make this way too complicated and confusing in my opinion.

Some mods are power adders, and some are parasitic loss reducers.

You can bet your butt that intakes, and headers (and other similar bolt ons) add power...which is the same as "freeing it up". Stock it will test at 426 crank, but we all know if the stock configuration came with a cold air intake and headers it would have been rated higher.

Installing a one piece, lighter drive shaft, and installing lighter rims are what help to reduce that parasitic loss at the wheels which is the other side of the equation. So maybe instead of having 16% loss, you could install a few new driveline components and only have 15 or 14% loss, thus increasing your power at the wheels.