First Modifications?
 

Hi everyone, I'm new to the forum as am I new with my FRS. This is going to be the first vehicle I've owned that I have the ability to modify outside of cosmetics and doing self maintenance.
I am interested in what some good starter mods would be for my 13 FRS. Nothing too crazy or pricey from the start, just things that make the overall drive more enjoyable. If its things I can do at home/on my weekends that's a huge plus. :thanks:

Sound tube delete
Remove trunk junk
Drop in filter
Open flash tablet
Punch out your cats, or try to get a cheap 2017+ header and decat it.
Rce yellow springs
Tires
Enjoy

Thank you kindly, would you happen to have any recommendations on those?

Welcome to the forum, DabbinTooHard!

The best starter mods for this or any other vehicle is to refrain from changing anything until you have driven the vehicle for a while and learned:

1. What annoys you about the vehicle enough to want to change it.
2. What your purpose or expectations are for the vehicle.

Once you have decided on one or both of the above the mods present themselves.
:thumbsup:

take it slow, enjoy the car for what it is first. it will start to tell you which parts don't work for you.

I have had the car for about 6 months now. I know things like tires and suspension are important as well as building power. Right now I'm looking for things that I can do myself that would get it ready for those larger gain parts in the future(turbo or supercharger). I do realize I probably sound like a little dreamer but I've worked a long time to get to be able to actually modify a car and I am more than excited to do it.
Thank you again for the assistance everyone.

then start spending time in the forced induction area learning and understanding others builds, both the successes and failures.

If your plan is to go FI then start building for that. Or do mods you wont replace a 2nd time once FI.
Catch can
Oil cooler
Suspension / Custom alignment
Brakes
New lightweight Wheels with 245+ sticky tires
Clutch
Catless front pipe or just knock FP cat out
Full catback
Engine mounts
Trans mounts
Rear diff collars
Weight reduction
Aero

None of those are necessarily required with FI catch can and oil cooler will help reliability, tires to actually put the power down. Catless FP make a tiny bit more power, catback for noises. Depending on power level and sticky tires stock clutch won’t hold up long. Mounts provide a more solid and responsive drivetrain feel, suspension improves handling, brakes to handle the extra heat from stopping from higher speed with more frequency, weight reduction helps handling and power to weight, aero for drag reduction and down force.

All will essentially help support FI or even NA really and make the driving experience overall more enjoyable. And then you’ll be that much more prepared for FI. Really I’d probably do wheels / tires, catch can, and oil cooler then FI, and slowly add the rest.

Hi ya DabbinTooHard , congratulations on your purchase and welcome to ye ol forum - :clap:

As far as "making the overall drive more enjoyable", just about anything you do to that car isn't going to make the drive more enjoyable, for average driving.

FI will make it less dependable.

Flex fuel will make it more expensive to drive.

Changing the suspension will usually make for a rougher ride.

Changing the exhaust will make the car noisier in the cabin.

Before you change the tune to reduce the torque dip, ask yourself "does that really bother me?"

Changing the tires (except for getting winter tires) will have drawbacks, for average driving.

Change the wheels? Why? Do you think they are ugly?

:sigh: I know, pa-pa humfrz ain't no fun - :(

Think hard about what you want the car to do.

Think about resale.

Think hard about your budget.

People go out and spend a ton of money for little gain over "modified" OEM parts.

Don't be a sheep.

Research for at least 3 months prior to buying a thing.

What looks like a good thing today, may be a "dooh" later.

The first things to buy are good cleaning products, a floor jack, 4 car stands and a set of "usefull" metric tools.

Then get a oil pan and fumoto valve, and service your car.

Only use quality fluids and lubricants.

50% of things people recommend are not required.

Don't be fooled by marketing.

Let the car get to temp before thrashing it.

Shop smart

Buy a house

Ring your mother

Be nice to animals

Treat everyone equally

Don't be a self centered ****.

Don't eat yellow snow.

Get a phone mount and an arm rest.

The middle console is perfect for dabs :)

Your 13 FR-S has the original tires? If so, start there.


Poly bushings and alignment. Tighten up the chassis. You'd learn a lot by installing them and they make a world of difference. They're also on the cheaper side.

Go one modification at a time and enjoy the process. Re-assess your level of enjoyment at every level. I would not go straight FI, I would rather build it over a longer period. Make sure you have all the supporting mods, research and then research again and finally make sure you have a reputable tuner readily available.

I put in morimoto headlights and 2017+oem taillights. Made a great difference in looks and a very appreciable difference in light output at night. The stock halogens are awful.

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

Thank you all!
 

Jeeze that's a lot of info to take in. I understand basics and know that it's not some crazy thing to dump money into. I've waited on this and been patient for a while for a reason. I want the car to last. I don't rag it out every chance I get, that's where you get problems. I absolutely love this car and it would hurt me internally to see it go bad because of me.
I don't know how going catless and using winter tires work in Nevada but if anyone here knows let me know. I'm also new to the state.

What part of Nevada are you in? When I lived in Reno I used a set of performance snow tires. They kept the car fun to drive, but when there was snow and ice on the ground it was controllable. Now that I am in Vegas I just have a set of 200TW summer tires!

I suggest you google that and try to sort it out for yourself - :confused0068:

I’d drive it stock for at least 6 months, in that way you know the car and can at least feel the difference once you put the mods on. Use good quality parts and do your research as others have said.

I’d start off with coil overs or lowering springs and a set of light weight (forged if possible) 18 inch alloy wheels and some high performance tyres. I think it’s the best bang for your buck, the car will perform better and look better too, with the 18 inch wheels filling out the wheel wells and getting rid of the wheel gap.

At this point you then have wider gripper tyres as a starting point for adding more power if you want.

Good luck.:thumbsup:

My first mod was a set of full plastic/fiberglass underpanels that the American cars didn't get. Reduces road noise and drag a bit, and makes you take a look at the bottom of the car front to back.

If you do your own maintenance, I tell everyone who will listen about the wonders of the fumoto oil drain valve.

I would start with 3 things in mind. Budget, what you want to change, what direction you want to change it and by how much. Folks can probably give you more direct answers if you can post any of the above information.

If your mods are going to be more performance focused than aesthetic focused, I suggest you make driving skills a priority. It will be the most effective performance mod you make and it is also the most fun mod to install (HPDE/track days, autocross). When you attend these events you will also see what cars are really fast and the kind of mods those people are using. (Especially autocross since you are required to reveal your mods for classing purposes)

Q. Bumpy roads?

A. 16 or 17 rims with some sidewall.(brake size dependant)

18" and up will start to lose some of the added suspension compliance characteristics that more side wall will give you.

Unless all your roads are smooth.

Then go 17".....

Your not driving a racecar.

I have STI lowering springs and 18 inch wheels on mine and it really isn’t that bad. I didn’t notice much difference compliance wise, but personal preference/subjective of course. Sits flatter with STI springs around corners, love it!

Mix of good and shit roads where I live too.

tires
 

The most underrated and overlooked modifications is a quality set of tires. Cornering grip and braking improvements will shave more time off your lap times than any bolt on power or suspension mod will do.

First mod I did was the MTEC clutch spring. Big help at least on my 2020.

Honestly, this is one of the best mods. I did it about a month after I bought mine and honestly, should have been the first or second thing I did.

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

For this car,whether it be for performance or looks,you should always start with new wheels and tires. The Prius tires are garbage and while kicking the back out at will on a set of 210's can be fun at times,this car should've come with no narrower than 225s,imo. Ever since I went with a wider wheel and tire,the car feels more like a scalpel on the road.Much more precise than the stock wheels and tires.

No matter what you do to your car,the tires are the only points of contact the road(unless you are one of those stance boys scraping the oil pan on the ground),so you might as well make sure they are the best that suits what you are going for.

Get better tires first. An 2013 car will have shocks pretty much at the end of life; replace shocks with Bilstein B6 or B8 (and bushings if you want to go all the way) and get a good alignment. If you have not had a brake service yet, also replace rotors and brake fluid and get ceramic pads. If you still have the budget, I would get lighter wheels. These will completely change your driving experience.

Regarding power mods ... no comments.

@DabbinTooHard I've had the car for 130,000 miles and only have a few mods which improve driveability, quality of life, or durability.

- K&N panel air filter - more vroom

- Fumoto oil drain valve - makes oil changes easier, and I change my oil a lot.

- Whiteline / Perrin positive shift kit - fixes shift quality and makes the driveline nice and tight

- Sticky tires in size 215 or 225

- adjust clutch pedal actuation point so it engages closer to the floor

- revised clutch throw-out bearing # SU003-07349 or 30502AA150

- ARP wheel studs - better durability for when you're taking wheels on and off a bunch.

I have a couple more whiteline parts for the rear end and also planning on putting on a 2018-2020 suspension, and have a feeling these will go on the list of "must haves" as well.

Are Bilstein shocks softer? I would say if you like a ride that's just a little stiffer than normal,there's no need to change the shocks. I'm still riding on original shocks on my 2013 and they are just fine,and that's even daily driving through Chicago winters. Now of course,if they are leaking,absolutely replace them,but more than likely,they should be fine.

Shocks degrade very slowly. I don't remember how they were when new.

I've owned my fair share of vehicles,Every single one has been daily driven through multiple Chicago winters. I've never had to replace OEM shocks on any of them.

Well, good for you.

I forgot the sound tube is there, after a few months you will too.

After several years i forgot i removed it lol...

Added “fake” Engine noise in the cabin.
Might as well tape a playing card to your wheels while your at it.
Maybe download an “engine noises” phone app and play that on your speakers when you really want to get wild and crazy.

The real world doesn't have lap times. The right tires are important for a persons use case.




this is good.




So is this. Removing stuff is a free mod that will make everything the car does better. Who needs rear seats or crap in the trunk or useless panels or a headliner, etc?

plus a good 4 wheel alignment by someone who understands performance alignments. Not just someone who will put it all "in the green"

and, you might not need camber bolts. I loosened mine and let the camber fall as far as it would and I got a some more. Car was slightly positive and I got about half a degree of negative with stock parts, no modifying.