Demandred7's Firestorm FR-S

[Demandred7]

Originally Posted by Jeff86

Car looks great man! Firestorm ftw! I went with the JDM tips on mine, but either is going to fill those cutouts in much nicer.

Thanks, Firestorm definitely attracts attention (as does Hot Lava).


Honestly, I would have paid $200 more for the car if they had put the GT86 tips on from the factory, but, somehow paying for them separately is a psychological barrier for me.

[Demandred7]

TIPS!

As I had mentioned, I ordered the DC Sports EX-1013 from Amazon.com and they came in today (2 days earlier than their revised estimate of Oct.26th) - score!

Almost made myself late for work trying to get them just how I wanted.

I had seen someone that twisted the head off of the bolt for their OEM tips, so, I took the added step of giving each of them a squirt of WD-40.

Some people have done it in less time, but, I am by no means a shadetree mechanic. I am embarassed to say how long it took, so, don't ask. Maybe its the OCD kicking in. I actually tried to measure them, but, I found it difficult and ended up just eyeballing them. I guess impatience outweighs OCD. They seem solid, but, I will double check the tightness and alignment in a few days.

I have to say that they are a definite visual improvement. Supposedly, they are resonated, but honestly, if they sound different, I cannot tell. This will tie me over until I have enough money for a better exhaust (and time to research).

[ebhopal]

Def. looks better than the OEM tips.

[Demandred7]

Well, I found out last night that my TPMS works.

I guess with the temperature going up and down like a yo-yo, it isn't too much of a surprise. Yes I should be checking it more often myself, but, it is handy when you forget for a while.

Of course, I will be cursing it next week when I throw my winter tires on. LOL.

I am interested to see the handling difference with them on as well. It actually has been quite fun lately because of the lower temperatures reducing traction on OE tires. Of course, I don't want to tempt fate to drive on them during snow and/or ice. As it is, I will be re-familiarizing myself with RWD handling characteristics during winter conditions (it has been almost 20 years since the last RWD car that I have owned).

I will report back once I drive on them for a bit.

[Demandred7]

Today is day one with winter tires and steel rims. First impressions are:

1) More sidewall flex (somewhat expected this due to minus sizing from 17" to 16").
2) Softer ride. Not horrible, but, not as razor sharp.
3) Quieter - not by a lot, but, noticeable.

I am of course basing this upon temperatures above zero (and for those of you on the Farenheit scale - more than 32 degrees). If I remember correctly from last year, the ride improved as the temperature dropped because the rubber compound is designed to stay flexible at lower temperatures, but, this makes the handling less than ideal when temperatures are warmer.

Unfortunately, I had to pull the trigger on putting the winters on now as it worked best with my schedule and I don't want to be caught with summer tires on snowy roads. I might have pushed the timing further out had they been all seasons.

[Demandred7]

LED's!

Thanks to Kenneth at HID_Powerhouse for hooking me up. The reverse (back up lights) are on back-order, so, those will arrive in a couple weeks.

So far installed are the dome light, license plate lights, and trunk light (you will have to pardon the trunk pic, my phone camera was just not co-operating.

The package I went for was FR-S Ultimate package with the 15 LED's. I hummed and hawed and asked everyone who posted pics on the thread as to which dome light brightness they went for. As it turns out, the saying "go big or go home" was the right choice for me - albeit quite a few PM's later - thanks for the patience Kenneth.

[Demandred7]

Okay, I have heard people saying that TPMS sensors require movement to work and I have heard others say that it senses the tires all of the time. This is plainly not true.

First, it took a few "days" for the warning light to appear.

Second, I store my OE tires and rims in the garage and this results in the light going out on the dash.

Further to this, I have to say that I am definitely not crazy about winter tire handling. They help when really cold or in snow, but, for every other time before full on winter they actually take away from a lot of the handling prowess. I know Tada San is all about not depending on tires for the car's handling, but, there is definitely a bare minimum. Perhaps, what I need is an all season tire that gets me further into winter weather. I am more and more convinced that when I replace the OE tires, I will be going with a high performance all season tire like the Bridgestone Potenza RE970.

[IntotheOcean]

Originally Posted by Demandred7

Came out of the Walmart at Fairview Mall only to find some prick driving a POS Montana parked entirely too close and dented my passenger side door. If there wasn't any witnesses I was sorely tempted to throttle his car with my fist. I am so pissed!!! Took a picture of his plate instead (for all the good it will do me). My perfect door now has a small dent/crease. I will talk to some shops and people that might know what to do, but, right now I just wish I had seen the mother f*#$?er and knocked his lights out.

If that happened to me I would key their car even if someone was around.
Once I had a guy throw a rock at me (I slowed rolled, Paused at a stop sign rather than completely stop-Yeah I know bad) Well he was behind the bushes like 3 feet from the corner, I didnt see him otherwise I would have stop and counted to 2 like I always do-I always look for people but yeah....he threw a rock at my car. Left a dent. I was thinking about fucking up his car but I decided against it.

[Demandred7]

Originally Posted by IntotheOcean

If that happened to me I would key their car even if someone was around.
Once I had a guy throw a rock at me (I slowed rolled, Paused at a stop sign rather than completely stop-Yeah I know bad) Well he was behind the bushes like 3 feet from the corner, I didnt see him otherwise I would have stop and counted to 2 like I always do-I always look for people but yeah....he threw a rock at my car. Left a dent. I was thinking about fucking up his car but I decided against it.

Thankfully cooler heads prevailed and I did not react. A buddy at work has some skills with dent removal and it only cost me the price of a 24 and I cannot even tell that it ever happened.

As a side note, I had 2 delinquent kids throw a stone at my car as well (not the FR-S), except I was driving on a street and they were hiding at a public school. I stopped and was ready to go after them, but, they had already bolted.

[envy_frs]

Just saw the pics for the tips is there any siund difference??

[envy_frs]

Sound*

[Demandred7]

Originally Posted by envy_frs

Just saw the pics for the tips is there any siund difference??

"Resonated tips are to enhance sound output" according to websites like PepBoys, but, any sound change is barely perceptable. I think I detect a slight tone change, but, maybe I am just trying to justify the purchase further. It is definitely more about the look than the sound in any case. The stock ones are just so puny.

[envy_frs]

Very true bro.. It def looks alot better i have a firestorm also looks perfect IMO
U got urs thru amazon u said?

[Demandred7]

Originally Posted by envy_frs

Very true bro.. It def looks alot better i have a firestorm also looks perfect IMO
U got urs thru amazon u said?

Amazon had them for $20.09 each. Unfortunately "Amazon.ca" doesn't sell automotive. Had to do "Amazon.com". Shipping was a little painful due to living in Canada, but, if I lived Stateside, then I would have been eligible for free super saver shipping.