Mods to avoid
 

Lots of people spend a lot of time researching things to do to their cars. I was wondering what people have done to their car that they would not recommend to others or that they reversed.

So what mods have you guys done that you would avoid?

hmm well, if you have a new car. I probably would avoid any mods that would void your warranty. I think that's a safe assumption,besides that I'm not saying avoid forced induction but it's best to be educated and know a lot about the installation process and know your installer. A lot of things can go wrong and it's best if both you and the professional know exactly what they are doing!

I'm sure a lot of people will jump in on this, but this is what comes to my minds on this topic.

Avoid vinyl graphics and underlighting. Lightweight pulleys are questionable; read all the reviews and make an informed decision. Avoid @Dave-ROR if he's been drinking; you'll get banned.

don't remove the rear floor mats for weight reduction...keep them there otherwise the car drives like it's on ice

trd gas cap...waste of money and no one can see it unless you drive around with your gas lid open

jdm tow hooks

stickers on the body panels

automatic shift knobs

replica rocket bunny kits

blue led tag lights

police siren and police lights

@ichitaka05 <-- that mod is a douche.

Well ichi can be cranky if you piss him off and Guff is a bit sketchy but it is pretty hard to avoid them.


To answer the real question on mods is almost impossible. For every "don't do it" you will probably get an equal number of "this is how the car should have come from the factory".


All you can really do is mod how YOU want. Don't let people tell you that the car "needs" anything unless you thought of it on your own. Even then step back and ask yourself "do I REALLY want that" and "WHY do I want it" before doing anything at all. If you can not answer those two simple questions to yourself then stay away from the mod. People get way too wrapped up in what others think they should do or not do that they lose any form of plan for the car. I wish I had a dollar for ever guy that showed up here and said "It needs 300HP just to function" and when we dig deeper we find they have never even driven one much less own it.

I bought an IKON lip. It needed sooo much sanding and shaping to fit. It was warped too. I only had it on my car for about two weeks. You get what you pay for.

Bought a $20 "armrest" LOL! It is a tiny pillow that is black and red. I have taken almost all the red out of my car now, so it had to go. Steering wheel is about all that I have left is red... The floor mats have red stitch that is hard to see.

This add/pic has it correctly labeled as a cushion. Again, you get what you pay for. Was late night shopping, IDK what I was thinking...
https://i.imgflip.com/1fgk3y.jpgvia Imgflip Meme Generator

Your warranty cannot be voided.
Claims can be denied based on cause, but your warranty is never void.

Ferrari badges and fender shield...

I try to stay away from all mods as some like ichi taco like to ban me

There are a few mods I've regretted:

1) Pulleys. I don't wanna get into it.

2) Ebay lip. Fit like crap. Waste of money.

3) OFT. Nothing really wrong with it, but I should've just accepted the fact that I'd want ECUtek eventually.

4) LED fogs. They look good, but piss people off and I never use them anymore.

5) Master cylinder brace. I honestly can't tell a difference, even on track.

6) SS brake lines. Couldn't tell a difference. Only get these if you need to replace your lines anyway.

7) Raceseng 2" rear shock mounts. I should've gotten the 1". I don't need to be super low.

Heavy wheel... They destroyed the handling of my car :bonk:

TRD short shifter kit/extension - the USDM bolt-on version. It fits poorly and comes loose.

If you're into that sort of thing there are a few nice short throw shift levers available. Go with one of those.

parts that you cannot afford and need to finance for it. -> worse financial decision ever

To build on that.
Knockoff offshore parts that seem like the ones you can't afford but really aren't. Hold off for quality instead of jumping on junk just so you can do it sooner.

But, But, the widebody kit sitting on the floor of some Chinese warehouse looks totally legit! They claim "perfect fit" right in the add! And only $400 shipped!

What could go wrong!

https://i.imgflip.com/1fgy9h.jpgvia Imgflip Meme Generator

Yep that Racket Bummy kit is a bargain. I have had great luck with the Crust toothpaste from the dollar store as well.


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- Avoid cheap bolt-on spacers. The lug nuts on them can be soft and round out easily. Also, on cheap spacers, the studs can be pressed in not securely enough. If you're going to get bolt-on spacers, make sure to get ones from a reputable mfg or vendor.

- Avoid plasti-dip if you're going to do a shit-job. Use it if you're going to learn, prep, and apply properly. Also avoid it if you have poor taste cause it can look cheap if not part of a cohesive design.

- Avoid external wet carbon fiber parts if you're not going to wax them monthly (for U.V. protection). It needs care to keep from oxidizing.

- Avoid cheap coil-overs (less than $600), they'll fuck up both your ride and handling and will probably wear or break prematurely.

- Avoid rod-ends in suspension parts if you don't plan on servicing them as wear items.

- Avoid the TRD quickshifter kit if you're not ok with using loctite to secure it.

- Avoid hood vents that unintentionally reinforce collision crumple points under the hood. You might regret this (dearly) in a collision.

- Avoid titanium exhaust piping unless you don't mind rasp and noise. They're light, expensive and beautiful, but man are they loud.

- Avoid lowering your car more than 1.6" - 2" in the rear without considering axle/diff geometry. Easiest way to have axle issues (even with aftermarket axles) is to run low without correcting this issue (diff risers work.)

- Avoid custom intakes on N/A cars as they generally don't add any power that a drop-in filter won't also add. Many mfgs that produce intakes compare the stock intake vs. their custom intake + a tune. "Secret" is, most of the 0-10 WHP power gains are coming from the tune not the intake. A Drop-in filter + tune nets roughly the same gains over the stock CAI give or take a 1-3 WHP "margin of error" as an aftermarket intake + tune.

- Avoid the 1st gen Innovate S/C kit (according to some. Personally, idk)

- Anything from vendors that rip on other vendors or try to outsmart customers by spreading FUD about competitors. It's painful to watch them do this. Pet peeve to no end.

- Avoid vendors that don't have a communication process that they stick to. This is tough to find in this industry, but there are vendors that do communicate well and regularly on things like drop-ship, back-orders, and order status.

- OFT is fine if you're not really going aggressive F.I. If you want ECUTek later, OFT's resale reliably for $400.

bc coilovers......

"Leaves your mouth with that crusty feeling" Mmmmm!

Did you just get replacement LED bulbs or the proper housings with proper optics?

You like the dull but tried and functional OEM Prius tires? Or the terrible OEM base pioneer stereo? How about the OEM speakers? And the OEM hood "wire" to keep it open?

Cause I love my upgrades: MPSS tires, New stereo, Speakers, and hood struts.

Is this answer to just increase your post count?

Was expecting some sort of backup argument for your statement: "all of them".

But OK, uh, Thanks! You da man too!

Why don't you answer his question first?

1) Yep, terrible investment (and potentially damaging).

2) There's a lot of cheap lips available on the forums that fit great. Just buy from someone reputable.

3) Can be resold for nearly as much as you bought it for. Totally worth it for that alone.

4) Depends. Factory fogs aren't even visible on the BRZ, so an LED assembly gives you functional fogs. Dunno what you have though...


Depends on the quality. If they used a proper UV stabilized gel coat it should be fine. Most don't though, so getting it properly cleared would alleviate that issue.

Hell, I'd bump that up to $1600. Factory stuff was heavily tuned from the factory and anything less is only going to hurt handling...

YES. The only exception would be ones with dust boots, but those are rare. If you're not inspecting these, you're risking your safety.

Likely wouldn't matter because of the way the hood works. You're more likely to have issues with CF hoods...

Some actually LOST power from what I remember. Long gone are the days of the K&N intake that adds tons of power, the OEM's actually put time into making good intakes because the engine will be more efficient.

Ok, who let the troll out?


Anyway, my additions:

- One piece driveshaft.

- LED's in the door lights as it could blow the body control module (exception would be the version that replaces the entire assembly).

- Metal shift knobs (unless you live somewhere that never gets hot...).

- Most CF hoods. Unless you need some kind of ventilation, the factory hood is lighter.

- Nitrogen in your tires.

Speaking of tires....

I installed mismatched tires front and rear. Michelin front and Nitto rears. The TCS and VSC would activate around every corner. Took the Nittos off the next day, installed Michelin tires, fixed the problem.

So, I would avoid having grossly mismatched UTQG's. I now have had 30 tires on my car.

Or cold. (if you ever got your moist hand stuck on a steel shift knob you know what I mean)

That is an odd number!

I'll add headers from overseas that won't have good support. There's people who've had their aftermarket headers crack, but they had support / rep in their country so we're able to get warranty / replacement.

On the lightweight crank pully, it's always interesting opening a thread for someone who spun a bearing and the lightweight pully is the first thing mentioned.

Late night fit of stupid: buying an 80 dollar gauge off ebay. Ad said Pivot oil pressure gauge. When it came, opened the box, held up the gauge, needle fell off.

OH god "light weight pulley" has been said three times now!
Stu should show up any time.

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Canadian math, eh.

Peculiar number?

Didn't mean odd number I meant odd number.
Damn foreigners can't understand basic English.

To add to the LED thing: if your car has HIDs, their temperature is 4300K. All OEM HIDs are. Replacing your fogs with 6000K LEDs makes your HIDs look dingy and yellow.

To add to the intake thing: most aftermarket intakes "make" power by leaning out your air:fuel ratio. This is bad. To my knowledge the only ones that don't are GrimmSpeed and possibly TRD.

Just replacement bulbs. They blind people. I just wanted the color to more closely match the headlights.

That's why, then. You might want to clarify your post. If you replace the entire assembly with an LED assembly (which is the proper way to do it), then it's fine. Just throwing an LED bulb into a multi-reflector housing not designed for one will screw with the beam pattern and blind everyone!

Did I see lightweight pullies? Time to take mine off..

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you're not my supervisor!

i bought the same one too from ebay..it's really flimsy

Don't understand armrests.. you're driving a car not sitting at home in your favourite armchair watching TV or in the case of some of our fellow member(s) watching 8mm cine film..

When you're on the interstate for a bit that is essentially the case. My previous car had one and I miss it. I've taken to resting my wrist on top of the ebrake, but if that wasn't there I'd add the armrest (and I might do that anyway).