Which mods will age well on this platform?

[new2subaru]

Originally Posted by Ultramaroon

No header yet. I should get one to prepare for when I feel confident enough in my understanding of how this engine is tuned. Once I get there, I'll start ruining it.

That dual exhaust is never going to happen. The magic of the noise cancellation depends on that single centered exit. The same basic principle applies with the LG100.

Lol Interesting, I don’t think I’ve ever heard this cat back on it’s own. No matter, a header is in order here too. It could be a year or two yet.

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by new2subaru

Lol Interesting, I don’t think I’ve ever heard this cat back on it’s own. No matter, a header is in order here too. It could be a year or two yet.

It's quieter than stock but it really breathes. Cuts all the Jack Russell Terrier and lets out the St. Bernard.

[adalah]

Indeed, very interesting thread

[Audio]

Originally Posted by PurpleSpaceShip

Hi guys,

as the early production year model cars nearing 8 year mark I wanted to ask you all: what modifications will age well on these cars? (exterior and interior wise)

Things such as giant wings, aftermarket wheels, interior upgrades or extra gauges?

what are your experiences with other cars in similar situations?

Valentine 1 Radar Detector

[FRSBRZGT86FAN]

Originally Posted by Audio

Valentine 1 Radar Detector

My escort passport 9500ix and my rexing dashcam "hardwired" into the cigarette lighter in the glovebox were the best two mods I made. Neatly tucked away and really useful on long highway drives.

[NLSP]

Originally Posted by PurpleSpaceShip

Hi guys,

as the early production year model cars nearing 8 year mark I wanted to ask you all: what modifications will age well on these cars? (exterior and interior wise)

Things such as giant wings, aftermarket wheels, interior upgrades or extra gauges?

what are your experiences with other cars in similar situations?

Without a doubt, a smaller diameter & thicker steering wheel that retains the airbag. I've had the DAMD steering wheel in my FR-S for almost 5 years now, and another one in my 4th-gen Subaru Legacy for 6 years.

I picked the leather and red stitching option for both so they look OEM; they're not an aesthetic mod to me. It's the driving experience they create that has me sold on them. The smaller diameter creates the effect of a quicker steering rack, and the extra girth feels much nicer in the hands (that's what she said).

Easily one of, if not the favorite modification on either car. Friends that have driven my cars say it's their favorite modification as well.

[NLSP]

Originally Posted by Ultramaroon

Thanks. The Ace LG90 is an elegant system for sure. Unfortunately it also cancels out my backup lights and I've been pretty lazy about that. I have two separate solutions on my workbench waiting for me to build.

Assuming you have stock taillights, there's a plug-and-play solution:

http://www.ft86speedfactory.com/tail-as-turn-signal-backup-module-1822.html

I've been using it for almost 5 years now, still works great.

[ZionsWrath]

Not sure if it wasn't noticed or didn't matter but I sold my car with some mods and it didn't affect the value.

I had ARP extended studs, Open end black lug nuts, Jackson racing oil cooler, clear side markers, and I forgot to put the OEM subaru center caps on.

Things that did affect resale value were body damage, engine knock, and accident history.

YMMV

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by ZionsWrath

Not sure if it wasn't noticed or didn't matter but I sold my car with some mods and it didn't affect the value.

I had ARP extended studs, Open end black lug nuts, Jackson racing oil cooler, clear side markers, and I forgot to put the OEM subaru center caps on.

Things that did affect resale value were body damage, engine knock, and accident history.

YMMV

Those are great examples of nonintrusive and easily reversible mods that will indeed not affect the value either up nor down. Now take the same car and paint all the interior trim lime green (I mean paint not plstidip or wrap), cut some holes in the hood and roll all the fenders and see what you get for it.

[why?]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

Those are great examples of nonintrusive and easily reversible mods that will indeed not affect the value either up nor down. Now take the same car and paint all the interior trim lime green (I mean paint not plstidip or wrap), cut some holes in the hood and roll all the fenders and see what you get for it.

oh come on, lime green goes great with blue.

[LimitedSlip]

Originally Posted by ZionsWrath

Not sure if it wasn't noticed or didn't matter but I sold my car with some mods and it didn't affect the value.

I had ARP extended studs, Open end black lug nuts, Jackson racing oil cooler, clear side markers, and I forgot to put the OEM subaru center caps on.

Things that did affect resale value were body damage, engine knock, and accident history.

YMMV

After body damage, engine knock, and accident history the "mods" are increasingly irrelevant.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by LimitedSlip

After body damage, engine knock, and accident history the "mods" are increasingly irrelevant.

Try trading in or selling a 4 year old car with almost 200,000 miles on it. Pretty much any mod means nothing at that point.

[yurikaze]

I'd say you can't go wrong with OEM+, a high-quality suspension at a reasonable height, and a good aftermarket wheel/tire setup from a respected brand. Literally everything on my car minus the Tein coilovers with EDFC Active Pro, Rotiform wheels, and Endless brake pads carries a Subaru, Toyota, STI, or TRD part number. These oem aftermarket parts, especially hard to find ones may actually add value rather than detract many years down the road. Look how much various TRD, oem JDM, and TOM's parts add to AE86's nowadays.
No matter what you add though, a factory tuned car like a TRD, tS, Series.blue, etc. will always age better than aftermarket modifications.
If you're building a car, a good rule of thumb is if you do anything you can't undo, make sure it will look just as good ten years from now as it does now.
I built my S13 thirteen years ago with this in mind, and it's aged very well despite heavy modifications.

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by NLSP

Assuming you have stock taillights, there's a plug-and-play solution:

http://www.ft86speedfactory.com/tail-as-turn-signal-backup-module-1822.html

I've been using it for almost 5 years now, still works great.

It's one of the solutions sitting on my workbench.


edit: ok, confession time. The method of tapping into the existing harness is perfectly acceptable. I just know that I can do better AND I'm lazy.