To those who keep comparing the FRS to another car on specs...

[Moto-P]

Originally Posted by ayau

if you know someone who's willing to do the same thing, please let me know. i'm really not liking the amber turn signals lol.

Yeah, I'll let you all now if there are more people among my contacts in Japan.

[Calidrifter]

I remember my evo8 that thing was beast. But the turning was just too unresponsive/understeer for me (upgraded from a 240). So I returned it to the dealer and got my S14 back.

Unfortunately the S14 was only good for another couple of months before it started having major issues. Which is when I traded it in for my truck. But still miss both of those cars very much.

[Moto-P]

Originally Posted by Exhaust

Well they are very attractive, congratulations. Would you recommend a 5mm space all around or simply just the back? You think you need to go any higher than 5? with that being said, how do those wheels handle? Of course its hard to say considering you haven't tracked them yet(?), but a little curios as far as your day-to-day

The wheels are slightly lighter than stock ones, and the tires are slightly heavier. However, the overall ride qualities in town and highway, despite the 18" size and thinner walls, and the stiffer ST racing construction and compound RT615K, the ride is fairly unchanged. The reason I have 5mm spacers is the fact that the temporary set of wheels I have are actually for a Prius, at 18x7.5 +42 and wanted a bit more track widths pushing them out by 5mm on both sides.

Much of improvement in ride qualities despite the drop is much more attributed to the RS*R Sports-i coil-overs however, which has a wide adjustment to make street use more compliant than stock, while having the ability to set aggressively for the track, and more importantly, the mono-tube patented long-stroke valve and piston design they use on these Super-i series dampers. In spirited drives, through casual under-limit exercises of the tires, the whole car with this setup, exhibited superb handling and predictability as afforded originally, yet has capacities to take larger loads with higher spring rates without ever becoming harsh on ride.

With the new-found grip levels, I can wish for more torque at about 4000-6000 range to reduce uphill gear changes, and fight the increased load on the LSD in tighter turns, overall that is wishful thinking and something I can try to take care of over the next few years, right? Whenever 3rd party guys figure out how to raise the power of this sophisticated engine with 4D-S.

So far, if you have the means, I recommend any of the choices I made thus far, if you have the same intent with the car. It is a pricey set of options, but a car like this doesn't improve on cheap diet of parts. However, try to put it this way, and plan to keep the car for many more years than your usual 4-5 year swap. And partake in many events, local sanctioned races, and other motorsports activities. Keep developing as a driver, over long ownership and with the long-term goals, your investments might just become more justifiable than buying inferior stuff over and over.

I do note that the wheel size and offset is temporary for me, as I think more ideally it should be on the 18x8.0 +46 as TRD specs its cars for N1 and VLN. But for visual appeal, I see no reason to not go a bit wider track with +30 or so offsets to flush out the tire to fender.

The 225/40-18's did heat up nicely, and I suppose you can go for 235 as well if you like wider, taller sizes. But keep in mind too, that this car is mere 2700+ lbs, and excessively wide tires will reduce the available power with larger contact patch, and also may prevent proper heating of the tires with lack of contact pressure on such large patch. Such will shave fractions of seconds on tighter auto-crosses, but also sort of take away from the inherent balance of power and fun factor, in exchange for the increased grip and resulting overall speed. If you simply enjoy tossing it around, and occasionally feeling for counter-steering fun, stay with a mild width tire of milder compounds.

[nix]

You've driven M3s, blacktop ae86, you know the feel of a drivers engine and you talk about a desire for more torque. With my GT4 or Supra, Toyota gave me a real canvas to paint on with bolt ons to deliver my own experience. The FA20 has a much lower ceiling. I hope a reflash, supercharger and intake/exhaust will be enough but I'm kind of worried.

[Slartibartfast]

Originally Posted by Moto-P

Yeah, I'll let you all now if there are more people among my contacts in Japan.

This should be a whole new thread. Hell, should be a whole new website.
jdm-usdmSwap.com? lol
I hate the orange lenses for the corner marker. Going to swap them for clear as soon as my car gets here.

ok, back on topic.
Moto-P you are a fantastic representation of what this forum is all about. Thank you for your OP.