Thinking of getting into modding

[Xela]

So, I have been thinking of doing modding on a car. I dont know how to explain it though. As in having the car be modded, either by me (if its not difficult or requires major tools) or by a shop. Question is, i dont know where to turn to get advice, about if my car is worth modding, should i get another car instead, pros and cons of which and suggestions and stories of cars, brand and normal discussion about what I should do. Ive seen so many nice cars around and id like to do the same for myself. Not sure if this is place to do it or maybe somewhere else. Any help? Thanks!

 

[obi_waynne]

Hi there, sorry for my slow reply it's been really busy here.

Any car can be modded but with some cars you get much more power for much less effort and money.

Some mods are very easy to do like air filter swaps and mounting a new exhaust, but others I would recommend you get help from someone who knows what they are doing, especially on things like brakes or suspension.

Anything with a turbo is good for around 20-30% more power with just a remap.

Adding a fast road cam will usually give another 15% power hike.

I prefer to talk in terms of percentage, if you have an 80bhp car you won't see much extra power but if you had a 200bhp you will certainly notice the improvement.

We all pretty much started out with a small car, did the suspension mods and gradually started uprating the engine.

Your first project will always contain errors and issues, so don't burn up too much money on your first car.

 

[akus]

The old americans from 72 to 85 can be taken from ab 180 to 450hp for ab 2000.

 

[TCJBOLDIE]

When it comes to modding a road car it is advisable to check with your states transport authority BEFORE buying parts.

Secondly one should research the cost of all the parts needed plus an estimated labour cost IF you are unable to carry them out yourself.

IF a workshop will be doing the work get a WRITTEN quote that outlines exactly what is to be done.
No shop should carry out any additional work without your WRITTEN approval BEFORE it has been done.

An ESTIMATE or guesstimate is not binding at law.

 

[obi_waynne]

You like your classic American cars then @akus, they certainly came with some lovely engines. The noise of the engines are in my opinion one of the best things about cars. A nice lazy v8 burble and as you say plenty of potential for modding and tuning.

@Xela please feel free to ask any questions and we will do our best to point you in the right direction.

Have you seen any suitable cars for your project yet? What sort of budget are you looking at?

 

[EmojiCarMods]

The old americans from 72 to 85 can be taken from ab 180 to 450hp for ab 2000.

Crazy how much potential them cars have with a few tweaks

 

[obi_waynne]

There is no replacement for displacement.

Thankfully those large block engines weren't all that efficient so that leave a lot of scope for tuning them up.

 

[EmojiCarMods]

yeah I've done a few visual mods on my S3....Once the warranty is done il be looking to do performance mods.

 

[JohnHubinger]

Generally, it would be best for the shop to do the modding, but if you want to do it yourself, enjoying the process, be careful with picking the right parts. Sometimes even the same model's different trims can matter for specific parts. What you would do is search parts by your car's exact trim. How do you know the trim? Check either your owner's manual, or get the vehicle history report by VIN search. VIN can be found in the vehicle title. Alternatively, you can get the report with a license plate lookup here - https://www.autodetective.com/license-plate-lookup/

 

[planestrainsandcars]

Before you get into modding, Get REALLY good at repair. Regular repair. IMO that is a step you cannot skip.

If you don't know how to repair really well, you aren't going to be very good at making modifications.

Because unlike repair (to OEM specs), when it comes to modding, there isn't always a manual, instructions, torque specs, or guidance!!