So here is something that I always found interesting....
When you build a car, where do you start? What do you do after that? Basically, what order do you put all the pieces in the puzzle? Start with some lowering springs then move to the engine? Nice sound system followed by rims? Body kits then interior bits?
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Mike wrote:The auto to manual swap is not as involved as you would think.
Get all the parts you need in a pile, and drive the car into it.
They will find their way into the correct places.
Depends. For me, I've always been about performance more than anything. It started with an intake and ended up with a fully built drivetrain and modified suspension. And I've still got more work to do before my car is finally "done".
Currently #4 in Ecotec Forced Induction horsepower ratings. 505.8 WHP 414WTQ!!!
Currently 3rd quickest Ecotec on the .org - 10.949 @ 131.50 MPH!!!
I started in the car show scene years ago. That faded for me because with my car being all show, punks ALWAYS wanted to race me. So, I got fed up with that and got into performance. Started with suspension then started doing work to the motor. The rest is history.
~2014 New Z under the knife, same heart different body~
______________________
WHITECAVY no more
2012 numbers - 4SPD AUTOMATIC!!
328 HP
306 TQ
I used to be about performance but you will eventually come to the conclusion that no matter how stupid fast you can make your car someone else will always make one faster. Then you have the I'm top of my type of car but to say an f-body your nothing. That kind of made me just do my own thing and the way I want it.
I'd love a turbo or supercharger but I don't want to deal with all the little annoyances that come with it for the little I drive my car. Hence bottle, I have it when I want it otherwise I'm N/A with no issues.
I've always liked making a cavalier look "cool" to the point where people are like "that's a cavalier?" So that is how i ended up where I'm at a few cars later. I'm pretty sure that was a ramble response.
Suspension first because power is worthless if you cant keep it under control and slow it down. Id do suspension then interior because I care about my comfort then exterior then performance.
id say suspension first as well, as far as driving fun for your buck, you cant beat it, and like Sundown said, its just dangerous to build power if you cant keep it on the road
id say :suspension -> air management mods (exhaust intake) -> valvetrain mods (cams, springs, etc) -> bottom end and/or boost
if your'e referring to how do you build a cavalier..........it's simple really.
1.)don't waste your money
2.)don't waste your money
3.)don't waste your money
4.)?
5.)profit
btw, step number 4 is don't waste your money
^ yeah. That's useful to the thread. If you don't like J's, then get lost. So tired of people on this board that just talk crap about Cavalier's/Sunfire's and how they are a waste. Go join a Civic or Mustang board then and hang on their nuts.
honestly... i cared more about going 'fast' in the beginning with my first z24, didnt really care much about the way the engine bay looked, it was BAD lol.
then i found a nicer one in my second z24, after that i learned all about the show scene as well as how to keep a car spotless.. but, this made me become more of a panzy than anything.
now, im back to the 'fast' part but really want it to look good doing it so i guess best of both worlds?
If it takes forever.... I will die trying. Underdog Racing
Exodus 259 wrote:^ yeah. That's useful to the thread. If you don't like J's, then get lost. So tired of people on this board that just talk crap about Cavalier's/Sunfire's and how they are a waste. Go join a Civic or Mustang board then and hang on their nuts.
lol, chill out man, everyone here knows i love my pos j-body. just trying to give him good advice. the funny part about it is, it's 100% true.
however, i suppose i'll contribute my take on it all to "contribute" to the thread.
it doesn't really matter where you start. or what your next step is. i've been all over the board constantly upgrading with whatever i could find good deals on. the nice thing about it is, it's your car. do what YOU want, when YOU want to. the only thing i would truly recommend is like what brian already stated, there's no point in trying to go really fast if your car can't handle/put the power to the ground, and if your car can't stop when it's moving faster than it should.
interior mods are fun cuz they can be relatively cheap, a couple cans of black fabric paint can change the whole look on the inside of your car by painting the headliner/sunvisors and it's a dirt cheap mod. recovering the @!#$ty carpeted door panel inserts with a different fabric is another cheap easy mod.
as for everything else, like i said, whenever you can afford a part, buy it. if you can't afford something, save save save. i always had the goal of just making my car a little bit better than what gm made them. a little bit faster, a little bit more comfortable, a little bit better looking, a little bit better sounding. so that's what i went for, and i'm pretty happy with the "end" result, even though it's not done. like i said, that's the joy of being able to mod a car that's paid off. no one can tell you what to do with it, it's completely up to you.
Thanks for the replies, guys. I wasn't actually ASKING how I should build a car, rather how YOU prefer to build a car. It's interesting to see how high an emphasis so many put on show (not that that is a bad thing, gotta look good, too
) since not many of my friends care about what a car looks like.
Personally, I start with the suspension > Brakes > engine/transmission stuff > interior > the rest. This is all from the "plan" in my head, of course. I don't follow it perfectly, If I come across a deal or something.
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Mike wrote:The auto to manual swap is not as involved as you would think.
Get all the parts you need in a pile, and drive the car into it.
They will find their way into the correct places.
z yaaaa wrote:honestly... i cared more about going 'fast' in the beginning with my first z24, didnt really care much about the way the engine bay looked, it was BAD lol.
then i found a nicer one in my second z24, after that i learned all about the show scene as well as how to keep a car spotless.. but, this made me become more of a panzy than anything.
now, im back to the 'fast' part but really want it to look good doing it so i guess best of both worlds?
Same for me. Right now, I'm about making my car mine. Faster yes, but not trying to be the fastest anywhere. Needs to sound good, but stay relatively stock, Look good, be quick, stop well, but most of all, It has to handle well. Order isn't really a big deal to me. I pretty go by what deals I find when. If I find a good deal on a part, I'll take it. Somes, I'll wait a little bit until a sale happens. I'm kinda over the instant gratification in favor saving as much money as possible, and I also buy a lot of good used parts too. But order doesn't really matter to me.
If I were to get another J, I would start with tinted windows, lowering, wheels and an intake. The tinted windows, lowering and wheels will make a huge difference in the look of a car and the intake will provide a better sound, a little more performance and a slight increase in gas mileage. After those four things were done I would probably just kind of jump around depending on what I could get good deals on, etc.
If I were to do it all over again, I would lower it, boost it and enjoy it.
"Straight roads are for fast cars, turns are for fast drivers"-Colin McRae
Started with an Intake getting suspension rims and exhaust next. Then see where i feel like going from there.
J TO ENVY wrote:If I were to get another J, I would start with tinted windows, lowering, wheels and an intake. The tinted windows, lowering and wheels will make a huge difference in the look of a car and the intake will provide a better sound, a little more performance and a slight increase in gas mileage. After those four things were done I would probably just kind of jump around depending on what I could get good deals on, etc.
Bingo. Those things for me are so first nature, I completely forget about them.
With my 03 i did wheels, intake, trunk swap, airride, supercharger, exhaust, coil-overs/sway bars, and now im messing with my S/C system and exterior.(in that order)
My next car i'll probably do wheels and/or exhaust first and then move onto the suspension. If i built another cav i would strip it, mock all the parts up, send it to the body shop, and then lastly i would install everything.
its an old concept. time for something new to take the reigns. - Z yaaaa
