For comparison, Intel and AMD have been doing this with their processors for decades. Hence, why lots of people overclock them (adding a few hundred mhz to 1ghz+ depending on setup.)

 

Yep.
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I work in aerospace and that % cushion is called the margin of safety - maybe they call it that in automotive as well. In any case, I find it interesting that there is a large margin for the engine/drive train but when people talk about the payload capacity it's like there is zero margin of safety.

Not meaning to hi-jack the thread but any thoughts on this aspect?

 

Spring capacity as well as wheels/tires/hubs. You can only put so much load on them and you can upgrade that as well with LT heavier load rated tires and helper springs.
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