Originally Posted by migueralliart (Post 2575720)

I have a 2013 mt with 23k miles. While I love the car as a commuter for half hr drives I am now facing the possibility of driving 1 hr each way on the i95 for a contract job.


I've been thinking about things I could change/swap to the car to help with the 80mph 1hr commute each way.


First thing that came to my mind was swapping the rear diff to lower the rpms overall so that the engine doesn't stay past 3.5krpm all the time. This will help a lot with gas too I suppose. I really only care about the long distance cruising and I realize my stand still acceleration will get worse with such a diff but it is not a problem as I really don't race on the streets with this car. That might make it boring to drive and too slow



Second thing was a good set of coilovers that can be adjusted for a softer ride during the week. most coilover will not ride better then stock unless your spending big $$ but if its only for comfort your wasting your money


Third would be wheels/tires , probably 18's with a good thread wear tire and low road noise? any suggestions here Stick with 17's if you are worried about comfort. 18's will make it ride harsher due to less sidewall. Nitto Invos are amazing DD tires. I ran them for half of last summer and I must say they are the quietest tire I have ever witnessed in my life. They are also great in the rain


I think the stock brakes are good for now since I don't really track the car.
yup they are more then enough

Was thinking about sound deadening but haven't seen many threads about it.
yeah it will make a noticeable difference if you do it right but will make your car heavier

The sound system on my car has been upgraded to an android radio with wifi hotspot so I can use kodi, Pandora etc etc so this is not an issue.
:thumbup:



Would like to hear your thoughts. Especially the people here that commute long distances at such speeds.
my thoughts are I have a full catless exhaust and drive the piss out of my car work every day and enjoy listening to the exhaust note although on long trips I end up half def when I get there lol. My work commute is only 20 minutes so its okay for me.

Originally Posted by 3nl (Post 2575838)

If you have two hours of commuting at 80mph daily and you are talking about modding your car to make the commute easier, you bought the wrong car - plain and simple. Your best bet will be to get a second car like a Camry or something that is meant for doing that.

If you want a softer ride, put 16 inch rims on with some high sidewall tires. The bigger the sidewall, the softer the ride will be. Sound deadening is nice if you do it right and can be very expensive (dynamat is expensive, even if you DIY). Dynamat is always nice and rims can be swapped out in 15 minutes so you can have fun on the weekends.

Originally Posted by c4lvinnn (Post 2575843)

I think you bought the wrong car if you can't even stand it for 1 hour trips.

Originally Posted by migueralliart (Post 2575850)

I never said I couldn't stand 1 hr trips. I only want to spare the engine a LOT of damage from driving at high rpms while cruising 80mph. It is in the 1st post man.

Originally Posted by migueralliart (Post 2575849)

I'm considering a contract job (1yr) and atm my car is almost paid so I don't wanna buy another car. My normal commute is 25-30 mins each way and the car has very low mileage for being a 13' model.


My warranty is actually 7yrs/100k so I would like to put some more miles into the car and not fall victim to the system of trading in getting ripped off and buying a sedan.


With a couple of changes here and there I think I can make it work with this car, after all I'm getting 2.5x the salary so it is something worth considering.

Originally Posted by c4lvinnn (Post 2575859)

What are you driving at 115mph for hours on end? the car runs at like 3.5k at 80ish. that's normal for a car lol

Originally Posted by migueralliart (Post 2575868)

You obviously never commuted on i95 in FL :P


Min Speed here is like 80mph

Originally Posted by 3nl (Post 2575867)

I never said to get rid of the FR-S, I said to buy a second car for your long commute. If your FR-S is almost paid off, get a used sedan that is meant for long trips at highway speeds. You are not looking at small changes "here and there", you are looking at at spending $4-5k on mods plus install to make your commute easier - you can buy a second car for that price.

BTW cruising at 80mph for an hour each way isn't going to hurt your car at all.

Originally Posted by migueralliart (Post 2575874)

Well.. I'm in need of new tires so the Invos are in order and sound deadening as well. These things help and are not that expensive.


The coilovers are the most expensive. If I can find a rear diff and swap it for a lower ratio for say less than 500$ It'll pay for itself, lower the rpms and also I can go FI after the contract is done and have better traction.


Thanks for the constructive suggestions.

Originally Posted by go_a_way1 (Post 2575885)

You will not be disappointed with the invos as far as daily drive-ability goes. If you were local I would sell you my set cheap cuz I am going with race tires this year lol. I wouldnt do the diff man. Invest in a oil cooler so you can drive harder and not worry about your engine. Heat is what kills engines not RPM's however RPM's do = heat. The stock rad is fine but the lack of an oil cooler is what should concern you.