Before the days of The Fast And The Furious and modded imports being labeled "rice", I had a passion for cars and truly admired their beauty. Growing up in northern California, I witnessed the import scene spread like wildfire in the mid 90's and into the 2000's. I didn't have my license at the time, but I hung out with my best friend's older brother who was in one of the first "crews" established in the area. Needless to say, this sparked a curiosity in modding cars and making the car you own really "your own".
I've owned four other cars previous to this one and each one had its own personality and style. My favorite of the bunch was a B5 Audi A4. Loved the lines and performance and took care of her better than a normal person would their car. Well, down the line I got into a relationship, fell in love (at the time), got married and had to put my passion of cars on the sidelines. After 11 years of compromise, settling, and almost going crazy over it all, we decided it wasn't meant to be and that was that.
Nine months had passed since we split up and the Mazda 3 I was driving at the time was getting to the point of needing some costly repairs. On October 22, 2013 I decided to start my car shopping and set up an appointment to drive the FR-S. The moment I sat down in the driver's seat, this feeling of euphoria came over me and everything just felt
right. I had absolutely no intention of driving home with her that night, but after looking at the numbers that I worked out with their financing, I couldn't say no. Complete and total impulse buy, and I have never been happier. Sure, I had to give up one love in life to get to the point where I am now, but in exchange I now have two; Shad0ez (its what I named her) and my son Elijah. Yes, I obviously never stopped loving my son from the day he was born, but we have gotten so much closer since his mother and I split. Not to mention he loves my car as much as I do and gets totally stoked whenever I get a new mod!
TLDR; I've loved cars and the idea of modding before I could even drive. Got married and had to forget about cars. Split up and got the FR-S.
So now time for some pictures. Here are a couple of pictures taken the weekend I got her. Dealer had installed some swirls from a wash, but Zaino and a good 8 hour detail got rid of most of it.
Being in AZ, roads are notorious for chipping paint so I decided an Expel clear bra was a worthwhile investment.
A few weeks later, I just had to get rid of that wheel gap and decided to go with some new shoes while I was at it. Got them on just in time for a big meet in AZ; Arizona 86 Bash!
After a couple more weeks, I got the urge for some power mods. Decided to go with a Takeda cat back exhaust, Injen intake, Perrin LCP, an Open Flash Tablet and load an E85 tune. They really gave the car some much needed
oomph and has a much more aggressive sound.
A little over a month after picking her up from the dealership, my plates finally arrived!
So far I'm really liking where this car is going and this is by far the most money I have spent on my car in such a short time span. Even though it's barely been three months since I've had her, it feels like she's always been there (yes, a little weird I know). Lately I've picked up a Porter Cable and some Pinnacle products to keep her nice and swirl free (this is my first black car and she looks amazing clean, but damn, its like a 2nd job to keep her looking that good) a rear diffuser and some Rally Armor mud flaps.
Finally here's a shot of me and my son on his 7th birthday at Disneyland. Yes, it's definitely a fitting picture
A big thanks to my cousin Alan who took some time to put together this video even though he's had the flu the past few days. Enjoy!
[ame]http://youtu.be/7sKe3J23-Cw[/ame]
Mod List:
Lighting:
5k DDM Tuning HID Kit
Stage 3 Interior LED Dome Light
LED Trunk Lights
LED License Plate Light
LED Reverse Lights
LED Switchbkacks w/flasher
Interior:
Carsmo Arm Rest
Lathe Werks Blue/Bronze Fade Titanium Sphere FR-S Engraved Shift Knob
86 Bash Console Plaque
Pioneer 4600BT Head Unit
Anarchy Motive Asphalt Shift Knob
10 inch JL Audio W6v2
Alpine MRX-M55
Morel Tempo 6 Components
Infinity Reference Series Coaxials
Rockford R400
Exterior:
Rear Diffuser
Rally Armor Mud Flaps
Clear Side Markers
Red Spyder Taillights
Powder Coated Red Lug Nuts (to match mud flaps lol)
Expel Clear Bra
Wheels/Suspension:
Eibach Sportline Springs
SPC Rear Lower Control Arms
Whiteline Camber Bolts
ESM 004's 18x8 et35 front 18x9 rear et38
Hancook V12's in 225/40/18 and 245/40/18
Engine/Exhaust
OFH UEL Header
Ceramic Coated Takeda Cat Back
Injen Intake
Open Flash Tablet
Perrin LCP
This is still a work in progress and am not 100% sure on which direction I'll be going, but it's been a blast so far and can't wait to see where this leads.
