JPsTc

*Can't change the title but this is more personal advice than a guide.
Decided since I'm back on the forums after about a year and have some time to kill I would post something useful (hopefully) .

So now that I have been a tC owner for just over 4 years, and it being my first car and all, I thought I would share some of my wisdom about modding and what a crazy rollercoaster it has been.
Just like most “soon to be tC owners” I had a list of mods I already wanted to do, and squandered a lot of cash on learning things the hard way. I’m going to share some of my recommendations based on my experiences. Being that we are ***** deep in a recession, hopefully this list will help someone save some dough. I’m just going to go over Exterior mods and Performance. Keep in mind, this is totally based on my experiences and opinions.


Exterior Mods

Everyone likes things that others don’t and vice versa. What you do to the exterior of your car is totally up to you. Having said that, I consider myself to be some what conservative. I don’t like stickers, and I don’t like ridiculous, extravagant body kits.

My list of popular mods that I consider to be worth the cash:

a) HIDs – They’re awesome, easy to install and not too pricey. Cheap bulbs can melt your wiring harness and you don’t want that.

b) Lip kit – The scion lip kit is the nicest IMO but unless you are getting it at the time of purchase, paying for it out of pocket is way too expensive. I settled for the RS1 carbon fiber lip kit (front). Nice, modest and more affordable.


c) Grill – VRD is well worth the cash. Easy to install and looks great. A bit more expensive that eBay grills and the sort but second to none in quality.

d) Spoiler – Lip spoiler is the only I can recommend. Inexpensive, subtle and cake to install.


e) Overlays – Color-matched eyelids are great and easy to install. Bluebatmobile sells quality overlays which are affordable. As far as tail-light overlays go, they are a pain in the ___ to install. Painting them is much easier and costs about the same.

f) Wheels – Okay since this is probably the most popular mod, my suggestion for wheels is go no bigger than 18’s and spend the extra cash to get a quality, relatively light wheel. We all have seen what can happen to cheap rims and if speed is important to you, you are going to want to fork over the extra cash for lighter rims because you really will feel the difference rolling around with 25 lb+ wheels.


Performance Mods

Now, this is where I dumped most of my cash. Trying out all different types of performance set ups and so forth. The first warning I would give to anyone thinking about boost is to be ready for the extra responsibility, down time, and cash it is going to take to do it properly. If you think all you need is the cash for the equipment and install think again. My second warning for boost, prepare to be addicted. Your going to want more and going back to a stock car is going to suck lol.

a) Exhaust – Doesn’t really add any noticeable power. My first exhaust was the Injen SES which was great. Not too loud and had a really deep growl. Currently I have a custom borla exhaust with two resonators and love it. If you want a cat back go custom or just look around. There are a ton of cat-backs available for the tC and a whole lot of threads on it.
I know many tC owners who have first purchased an axle-back and then wanted to run a cat-back. Mix and matching exhaust often doesn’t work out well and ends up costing you more money. Getting right whether you want an axle-back or cat-back the first time will save you a pretty penny.
If your supercharged you will notice some gain on the top end. If you’re running a turbo, then I don’t need to tell you an exhaust is a must have.

b) Header – Ok so I’ve been through the MMW header & DME header. Both sounded like crap which led me to waste more money on resonators and exhaust combinations. Out of the two I much preferred the MMW even though it was tougher to install. I now have the stock header and will never purchase an aftermarket one. The power gains didn’t really tickle me and I hated the noise. Just wasn’t for me.

c) Intake – Fun, easy mod that’ll net you about as much hp as your exhaust . Injen is my particular favorite.


d) Suspension – Something most people do. My advice is, your choice of spring and aftermarket shocks if you don’t plan on racing your tC. If you want to stay on stock struts (which I can’t recommend considering I had TRD springs for about 20k miles and had blown struts up front.) I would suggest TRD springs. If our planning on racing your car, or just want an adjustable set up your going to want to get yourself a set of coilovers. H&R build comftorable (but remember your still purchasing coilovers, your ride will NOT be anything like stock) and great handling coilovers. Ive had them for almost a year and am pretty happy.
Rear sway bar is also a great mod to do. TRD sway bar is my personal fav.

e) Turbo/ Supercharger – If your tC is your DD, I would keep it boost free. If money isn’t a big factor or have alternative methods of transportation, or if your just dead set on doing it..Go for it. Boost is FUN.
IMO Dezod sells the best kits and has the best customer service hands down.

f) Clutch/Flywheel – If you have the extra cash, I say go for it. It really changes the way your tC feels. For me the ACT street clutch and Fidanza flywheel combo was perfect.

The tC was my first car and over the past few years I have definitely learned a lot lol. Considering everything I’ve put it through though I’ve got to say the tC is one hell of a trooper. 

If I’ve left anything out feel free to chime in! And if you’ve made it this far thanks for reading lol.

eatthecrayon

Thanks for the info. Lol coming from a noob

Domo

iTrader: (3)

You forgot:

1. VRD fogs or APT fogs: I must say, the APT fogs has great fitment and I have been running them over a year now. Still works like a champ.

2. Strut brace: Cheap and easy to install. Pretty much a cosmetic mod but its main ability is to stiffen the front towers. I had experience with DME and TRD. TRD is crap, I feel like I can bend it just by staring at it. DME bar is sturdy but less appealing in the looks department compared to TRD.

3. Well already went over HIDs but you havent said which company is good. I can vouch for Pilot HIDs. My girl and I both have tCs running this product and the product has been very reliable. Almost 3 years and still running great.

4. As for the suspension. H-techs give you a moderate drop and your ride will still feel like stock. However you will probably be a little disappointed with the way the rear sits. So with that being said, they have the S-techs that will make you smile after you install them. However, everything comes with pros and cons. S-techs are less reliable and will feel less comfy. I am running Tein SSP Coilovers with EDFC controller. Oh...just thinking about it makes me tingle. This is a great product, I love it.

5. Intake Manifold...let you know about this in a few weeks.

JPsTc

^SSP I drove a buddy's tC who had that same set up w/19 in wheels and the car drove amazing.

Domo

iTrader: (3)

yea it is amazing...I just wish I actually torqued my bolts instead of being lazy

CurlyGurl

thanks for this information I was always curious about the best place to buy HID's I'm nervous to mess something up. Also, this may be something obvious to most people but once you add rims which weigh more than stocks your gas mileage will decrease as well.....my rims aren't even that heavy and my gas mileage has decreased wish someone told me that before I bought them but being new at this I was bound to make some mistakes lol

Domo

iTrader: (3)

sell them and pick up some RPF1s..you wont regret it

ack154

iTrader: (7)

Eh... can appreciate the effort... but you're missing a LOT of options. This is essentially an opinion post on what YOU would buy. Not so much informing the people of what choices they have.

JPsTc

Yea, its just some personal advice

Domo

iTrader: (3)

Yea nothings perfect but I like this thread. I think its useful. If you read even half the comments, you will be set. Our opinions are what this thread helpful. We tell you what you should and should not get, through experience. But if you wish for a list of things to get, here are some:

Strut Bars: TRD, DME, Hotchkin, Greddy
Sways bars to get: Hotchkin, Progress, TRD
Intakes: Injen, AEM, TRD
LSD: OS Giken, TRD, Qualife
Short Shifters: TWM, B&G, Perrin, Doc
HIDs: PILOT, Xenon, Mobil
Radiator Diversion Panel: DME, Greddy, Doc
Springs: Tein, Hotchkin, TRD, H&R
Exhaust: Greddy, TRD, Dezod, Ptuning, Ark, HKS
Coilovers: Tein, B&G, K&W, Ksport, H&R
Turbo Kits: Dezod, Ptuning, Descendant, TurboToyota, Turbonetics, Greddy

engifineer

As always needs to be said, people need to realize that htech, stech and similar springs are designed to drop the car way down and be a show queen. They destroy the handling aspect of the car. There are plenty of descriptions of why on the suspension stickies over on ystc. If a spring drops the car, yet "rides like stock" it is in effect junk as far as handling goes. Keeping the ride soft but running a shorter spring is exactly the problem with cutting stock springs ;)

The ss-ps are great. I have had them on all this year and they have done well for me in autox. Still working out some of the setup, but the fact that I CAN set it up multiple ways and that the springs are super stiff (As they should be when you lower) is what is so great about them. I still feel the dampers could be a bit better, but a lot of japanese suspension companies have this issue. A set of Koni dampers would be worlds better and more consistent in their adjustment. But as a package the SS-Ps are pretty good IMO. TRD springs are also a great choice and will handle much better than any tein setup for the tC short of the ss-ps. Suspension is a great place to start on the tC, but is also where most people tend to go the opposite way of good handling.. so do the research on the cars geometry, optimal drop, spring rates, dampers, alignment settings, etc before doing anything if you care about making it handle well.

Domo

iTrader: (3)

Lowering a ride changes the geometry and center gravity. I would not necessary say the H-techs do nothing for the handling. My girl has it and it feels find to me. In fact it feels a bit stiffer but still comfortable enough to daily drive. Im sure Tein spent a good amount of time to develop the springs for durability and performance. Stiffer does not always equal better. Also im sure if you get your suspension alligned and center balanced, then your ride will handle well. I do understand that center balancing your ride is useless if you carry extra weight on and off but its good to be done. In the end, im not saying springs should be used for circuit racing or autox but they are a nice upgrade in both look and performance department, if done right.

jroc

^^^^ i agree

JStuss

i'm running S-techs on stock struts...i drive an automatic, Daily driven, and i dont plan on racing/hittin the tracks....did YOU race/track yours thats why your struts blew out? so far i have less than 500mi on my stechs and stock struts...