i have some powerful amps and other electrical equipment in my car and am wondering if all of that is pulling so much that it is affecting performance
If you have it wired right and an isolator and extra battery you should be able to rock the world and rob very little power from the engine
Yes, heavy electrical load will force your alternator to draw more power from the engine. There are approximately 746 Watts per horsepower so if you've got 750 Watts of power draw through your sound system, it'll use 1 additional Horsepower, which will decrease both fuel economy and performance (speed acceleration).
Performance in the sense of miles per gallon? Yes. Performance in the sense of speed? Yes. Powerful amps tend to weigh a lot - and that increases the mass of your car. Is it significant? Depends on your power to weight ratio.
