Hi! Can you help?

blinky

Newbie
Points
11
Location
uk
Car
tts
hi all!

I signed up to the forum to ask a few questions, a question of which I lack an answer.

First of all, my intentions are not to offend anyone, so at any point you feel you maybe offended please just ignore this post and carry on! :D

My question is:

Why is it common for you guys to buy a car e.g. a rusty civic with a B16 in it, from say... the 90s or yee many years ago for not very much money, and then spend XXX amount of the car however much, to "improve" it's performance rather then to start with a modern car German italian or Japanese, put the same amount of effort in maybe a little bit more money and have an uber car?

My other question is:

Why bother with plastic bodykits? I'm rather confused by this as let's face it, they are very rarely functional, weight saving or aerodynamic and everyone and their dog knows within a millisecond, underneath the plastic it's just "XXX" car, which leads one to believe the owner of the car is attempting to mislead others? because as far as i'm concerned much of the cars wearing skirts and a massive wing in the back actually has the sporting potential, (pointing finger at front drive civics again... >.>) so what's bodykits about?
 
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buying an older car and spending money on it makes it your car and no1 else will have it the same, we all no how good old jap cars are

as for body kits im not a fan but some do look quite good as long as there not over done
 
Bodykits....that's beyond me....

As for buying a cheaper car and spending money on it, some people like to have a project, others can only afford to buy cheap and improve gradually but for most it's about making a car they like into their own car and improving on an existing base imo. Not everyone wants to just go out and buy a car everyone else has.

It doesn't make any sense to me why anybody would buy a TTS when a TTRS is available but then each to their own and all that.
 
First would just like to say im no expert on cars and modding but i know a little been researching it for a few years :). A cheap old car is much more cheaper to start off with than a newer car, i picked my 306 up Wednsday for 200 pound thats cheap compared to 5-15k + for a new car. The mods can be done over a number of months so the cost can be stretched out and tbh i like modding cheap cars and making them look and perform better than they did.

Bodykits well they look good i like styling as much as upping the bhp and performance of the car. So for me a bodykit would be a good purchase.

Everyone has there own views on this sort of thing thats just my opinion :bigsmile:.
 
okay, so far i've got:

uniqueness and low cost and that some people may think bodykits look "good".

so then the question is, instead of modifying an existing car, why not build one from scratch? and make use of things you can't make yourself, engine etc, but surely if uniqueness and having something to work on and make your own, and have it perform as well as you want it to then surely jigging a chassis out, watching fibreglass or CF dry, wiring all the electrics and choosing every single little part from the start would be a far more attractive option?

oh and i brought the TTS at announcement and so not a wisper of a TTRS, and because it's getting so incredible less exclusive I am due to switch to different cars in the coming months >.> whenever the factory decide to send them.
 
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Mucking about with cars is just one of those things & blokes have been doing it since god was a lad, swapping engines & making cars in to things they were never intended is no new thing either, Just look at Q cars.
I suppose tuning cars is one of those black & white things you either get it or you don't there's no grey area! :D

I imagine people were asking the same questions as you when GI's were coming home from the war & doing unspeakable things to their model T fords & what about the famous Cafe Racers running around on Tritons & such is that so different from today? :amuse:

The thing is, these days it seems more prolific because a whole commercial industry has grown up around it & it's easy to buy lots of bolt on bits & there are tuning companies everywhere. The fact is we're all petrol heads & we're all trying to put our own stamp on or cars, it's just some of us have done it with more success than others.

As far as body kits go, that's a fad that looks to be slowly going away (thank god), I used to like the Dimma kits found on Pugs back in the day but that was just about my limit. :bigsmile:
But at the end of the day it's just another fashion that will come & go, the same as the mad psychedelic paint schemes of the 70's & the Vinyl hoods & leopard skin seat covers of the 80's.

I can't wait for people to start putting V8's into electric cars! :lol:
 
okay, so really it is just silly and fun and relatively cheap to do, and your aims are not really academic.

I came with the question today because as I walked around Goodwood, I did not see one single Max powerish car with 6 massive cans and a wing sticking out the back even thou under the HKS and Mugen stickers hides a 900cc motor. Every car there are genuine racers or a beauty.

So is it my mistake that I have assumed tuners are out to prove academically that they have quantifiable "improved" a car, when one is simply having a giggle?
And therefore should not be judge with the common why is that car sounding like it's trying hard to accelerate but isn't really moving or guessing the aerodynamic efficiency of a rear wing mounted pointing towards the space station or why someone might put a carbon fibre engine cover on a car that currently weight about 1500kg?
 
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I would like to build a car from scratch but i wouldn't be confident at doing it. Basically not going to happen with my knowledge i can do certain mods and stuff! but wouldn't put my skills to the test at making a car from scratch.

Nearly forgot Welcome To The Forum from another noob :lol:.

so then the question is, instead of modifying an existing car, why not build one from scratch? and make use of things you can't make yourself, engine etc, but surely if uniqueness and having something to work on and make your own, and have it perform as well as you want it to then surely jigging a chassis out, watching fibreglass or CF dry, wiring all the electrics and choosing every single little part from the start would be a far more attractive option?
 
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So whats wrong with this as a bodykit then !!???

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Mod your own car to your own taste.
Marmite really... it will either be loved or loathed !! :blink1:
 
Hello and welcome.

Modding cars is like the others say, personal preference. And most projects are like marmite, you either love em or loathe em. As the saying goes 'one man's crap is another man's gold'

There is a guy who is building his own car from scratch on here. Making his own panels and so on.
 
We're not tacky boy racers, which you seemed to be under the impression of. We do things properly. We have a connection with our cars that you can never get from a showroom model. Im not a huge modder (although i would be if i could afford to) but i love looking at other peoples projects on here.
Welcome to the forum buddy
Stick around
 
I'be got a 17 year old BMW with a humble 1.8 engine in it. Then I added a BBK and a supercharger. It's a learning experience and it's a bit more individual for it.

Why buy an old BMW? Because they are still better built than a new Vauxhall and more fun to drive.
 
Well speaking for myself, my car started of life as a standard old man's family saloon from Saab; over the last 4 years I have steadily created in my opinion, a car worthy of my efforts and those of the specialist garages that I used to make a car that's an absolute true delight to own.

There is nothing like it anywhere, and that's the thing - uniqueness!

Looks wise the car differs slightly from the original by having special bespoke carbon fiber panels made to replace OEM panels.

The engine power has gone from 210 BHP factory to 602 BHP plus NOS.

Its not that I cannot afford to buy another powerful car, but the thrill and the buzz I got from building this one with the help and advice from some of the guys here on TC gives me a wry smile every time I look out of the window at it. :)
 
Ever driven a brand new Vauxhall?

I'be got a 17 year old BMW with a humble 1.8 engine in it. Then I added a BBK and a supercharger. It's a learning experience and it's a bit more individual for it.

Why buy an old BMW? Because they are still better built than a new Vauxhall and more fun to drive.
 
Have a go in a new shape Vaux and you will be surprised.
I was because with 19's I thought my Astra would handling like crap but it sticks to the road very very well.
And there's absolutely sod all wrong with the build quality. ;)
 
And there's absolutely sod all wrong with the build quality. ;)

I beg to differ. Corsa VXR is the prime example. Slap a turbo on to an engine without any precautions then wonder why they all blow up. Shocks that fail after 40,000 miles as well.

Sorry mate, but there's a reason why Vauxhalls don't cost so much brand new. My bogo E36 was more in 1995 than a top spec Astra is now. It's not just the badge that makes them more expensive.
 
All Corsa's are rubbish. Period.
Their is absolutely nothing wrong with the new shape Vaux's.
Go and test drive any 2012 Vaux and you''ll see what I mean.
 

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