I was suggested here from V6Z24.com, a very helpful forum might i add for 2nd gens, and some 3rd gens. They told me theres alot more 3rd gens here, so here i am
Really happy to find a specific forums for my car
Heres my situation:
I am 17, live in north New Jersey. I own a 2001 Cavalier Z24, with the 2.4L twin cam, and looking to really put money into it. Im currently in highschool, and dont have the money I need, until i start working in the spring season and over the summer. I will be working to save some cash up, and Ill probably hit the $3500 mark give or take, minus 800 for fun/gas money. That leaves me say $2700...
My Ideas for Mods to my Cav:
-Cold-Air Intake (AEM or K&N possibly)
-Coilover
-Rims
-Black spoiler (too ricey?)
-Exhaust system
-Some custom interior work (dash, racing seats, floormat, shift knob, etc.)
Problems - If i wanted to go for some exterior work, like a body kit i might run into the cracking problems since the roads around here are horrible (potholes, bumps, etc.)
Another problem is im only 17 and my parents pay for my insurance right now, so if i do too much to the engine and get a speeding ticket I have to start paying for the insurance.
So I am looking for a happy medium, a clean looking car with relatively decent pickup.
Sorry for such a long post, just really excited to be here. I am looking to either borrow/buy a digital camera soon so you can expect some pictures. The paint job is immaculate, and you can eat off the engine to put it bluntly.
Current Ideas:
I spoke with a good friend of mine who lives down the street, and is much more knowledgeable about trucks/cars in general and heres the suggestions he made and that i might go with.
Within a few weeks Ill be ordering -
http://www.sfxperformance.com/parts/ARD2005531.htm
http://www.sfxperformance.com/parts/AEM22445p.htm
Then in the spring/summer I'll be adding:
http://www.sfxperformance.com/parts/PAC701278.htm
http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/perfor...amp;brandid=132 (Top one)
http://www.gotwheelsandtires.com/catalog/images/icw%20jet.jpg
http://www.sfxperformance.com/parts/SK2517021730.htm
Possibly window tints if i have the money left over.
Lemme know what you guys think, thanks~
Once again, happy to be here and looking foward to getting to know everyone
Welcome to the addiction known as
!
For the body kit problem, if you can find one in urethane (same stuff as the stock bumper covers) that should solve the cracking/breaking. The side skirts can be glass.
Sounds like you have a lot of plans for your car. Pics
One more thing, although not really major, your profile should have your car in there at least, in case of future posts. Some people will reference to it if you don't mention in the post what year/model/engine.
i won't tell you what to and not to buy since it is your car and it seems like you are on the right track, especially with trying to save up and do things right the first time. just suggestions that you shop around a little bit, don't know if your buddy has anything to do with that sfx site or not but there are a few j-friendly sites around here that have great customer service like Gravana and CarCustoms (i have experience with) and A-Plus Performance and Modified Motorsports;
like here with the intake,+free shipping
or for $68 shipped
same header save aboot 7 bucks before shipping
only 74 cents here but look closedon't know why but it says in the notes "Does not fit Z24 Models", don't know check the suspension forum FAQ and do a search for the skunk2s and find out for sure before you order.
few things you may hear is that the TB spacer is a waste, I don't personnaly know but I would be worried aboot my intake hitting the hood with it on there, just food for thought.
well whatever you do just take a little time to research it out, you will find people that know their ish in every category of mod you can think of. good luck and most importantly have fun. oh yeah lay off the gas to keep premiums down.
Thanks for the replies, and links
Most of the feedback about the TB Spacer has been that it is a waste, are more people thinking along these same lines?? My friend who I spoke to is curious as well, that was going to be one of his next mods.
I am going to order my intake relatively soon, do you guys have any personal preferences cold-air over short ram? I see im better off gettng it from ebay so thats what ill do, any other mods that are better to get off ebay? The only reason im hesitant is because sometimes those pictures look sketchy / deceiving
Yesterday I was reading the forums for about 5 hours, all the interior/exterior/performance. I seriously just can't get enough of this stuff, the SERIOUS problem im running into now, and im sure u are all gonna laugh at this because uve been here to is....... $$$$$$
I have sports 6days a week, and am active with my Church on Sunday....might have to start mowing lawns so i can get this stuff before spring, not sure I can wait that long
Annnyywayys, now that I got that out...once again thanks for the feedback, take care
~Dave
I ain't gonna laugh, cause not only have I been there, but still am. Every so often I have to sit back and think: Do I really need that now, or can it wait? At your age, that decision is going to come up quite a bit.
As for the ebay pics, some of the sellers to save time will use a "stock photo" or a pic for an item for another car in all of their auctions as a general example of what it may look like, hense the deception and sketchyness. In those cases, if you are not sure, fire the seller an e-mail and see if they have an actual item pic.
a TB spacer is junk. but if you want nitrous, you can drill that instead of your intake.
a "cold air" intake is a marketing gimmick realyl is no difference between that and a short ram.
if you want coilovers, get something of good quality like Ground Control coilovers. none of that cheap Ebay garbage. and of course youd want some some after market shocks too. Koni yellows is good with coilovers
Im a Xbox 360 fanboy...and damn proud of it!!
Ok, people from V6Z24.com also suggested Koni/Ground control
Guess that makes it easy for me, as far as intake ill grab a short ram from ebay, and a good filter to replace the one they give me like someone suggested to me. Keep the good info comin everyone, thanks so much~
~Dave
Well got 2 crappy pics really, was at night stopped at a friends and made him take them for me, so i had something to show you guys.
Theres my Z
<3 it so much
Also!!! Ordered my first mod tonight- was told quality isnt necessary for intakes so i went with:
My first mod (short ram intake)
Was really rainy today, was gonna have my friend take some more pictures, and also planned on taking off the badging, will do it tomorrow hopefully.
Also saw the Gravana coil overs, should I hop on that GP or save for Ground Control / Koni setup? All day during school i set up Excel spreadsheets with my future plans for interior / exterior / performance.
Dont know what to mod next
Looking for something efficient for roughly 100-250$. Any ideas? Or should I just save till spring/summer when I can buy it all - (headers, exhaust, etc.) P.S - One of the local car/audio performance shops recommended buying alot of my mods that I want in the off season ( winter ) when they are on clearance for the new styles / products to come in. Any truth to this, and what sites would be doing this?
Thanks for everything,
4L!
~Dave
You're doing the right thing by researching the stuff before you buy. That's definitely a good start!
As mentioned, the TB spacer is a waste of money unless you're using it to add nitrous.
Go read through the Suspension FAQ (1st post in the Suspension forum) and you'll learn more than you ever wanted to about suspension components.
Then you'll see why you definitely don't want those Skunk2 sleeves and why you're going to have to spend a fair amount if you want a coilover setup.
Alright, also I am thinking of possibly going with a eurethan bodykit next summer (06 when I get the money). Will this cause ground clearance issues? Just trying to think ahead for future mods after this year. So far almost anyone whos anyone has suggested the Ground Control / Koni Yellows setup for me, guess Ill go with that one, a bit pricey but in this case it seems dont want to cut myself short.
Thanks
~Dave
Koni yellows seem pretty good, I've been looking into them myself. I have a 2000 Z, nice find for the intake! I'm gonna have to get a red one
Welcome to the ORG Dave.
By the way, I'm from New Jersey as well and we have a big Jbody oriented car club called the "Jersey Js". We meet once a month and try to keep it centralized in New Jersey. If you want to find out more info on our meets, go to this thread:
http://www.j-body.org/forums/read.php?f=25&i=57389&t=57389. At our last meet we had about 20 cars that showed up and we are anticipating more cars to show up this next meet.
www.kronosperformance.com / 732-742-8837
Well, finally got a digital camera. Believe it or not, i sweet talked a girl (who happens to be rich) and she gave me one of her old ones she wasnt using. Its not the best but will sure as hell get the job done for helping me take pics of my car. Heres some recent ones, this weekend when i spray my dash ill take more pictures on how it goes
There's a few more but just minor stuff, when i get my cardomain up and worth looking at ll throw that in my signature which im also working on. I finished taking off my badges today
Decided to leave the Z24's on the side, like the look so much.
Like i said, this weekend im going to spray my dash, i read the faq quite a few times. Anyone who has personally sprayed their dash (krylon fusion / duplicolor) who can tell me the amount of coats/overall time it took? Thanks guys~
Hope my intake shows up soon!
~Dave
^^^ that's a nice clean car
www.kronosperformance.com / 732-742-8837
Keep it clean..
--------------------------
NCR-SCCA
That is super... super clean... wow.
i just started this summer working on my car, ive maxed out two credit cards lol, but happy as can be. this site rocks! i especially like learning about the easy mods like having clear corner lights or clear ac knobs.
Definitely, i have my intake put in now so ill be posting some pics. Thanks for all the comments =) Gonna do my interior soon ill post pics. You'll notice shane, if anyone hasnt said it yet, i guess i can say it this time its a fun quote and too true.
"Welcome to the Addiction"
Most expensive hobby, and at the same time most rewarding. Let the installation begin and the debt get bigger
It looks like it just rolled out of the factory! Very nice work in keeping it new!
Thanks again for all the good comments guys!!
welcome man.
nice clean car....but before you start spraying the dash, read the faq on interior forum before you make a mistake.
i'm baaaaack!!
Actually, talked to a few people, and going to fiberglass my interior =) Gonna practice with trying to make some sub boxes for my trunk, and just get better and better before i decide to do my interior. Like everyone said and i truly agree with this, when you do something make sure you do it right the first time because cheaper now = more expensive later.
Yaay learning so much from u guys
....welcome to the org. you seem like a good kid, smart guy...you remind me of a good friend of mine.
btw, listen to njhondakilla, nice guy,l real knowledgeble and helpful.
the aem intake is nice, but there are a whoooole buncha diff. ones, better prices as well. be thorough, and keep doing your research. i might suggest a catback exhaust before the header, or even better, save up and get the whole exhaust done at the same time (get a local shop to custom bend your pipes, and pick a muffler style you like., youll save over 100.00 bucks.). dont forget your front and rear tower braces when you get your konis/ground controls, youll corner on a dime.
just my quick thoughts. good luck!
...don't hate!.. respect people that have talent, even if it is in something you don't like or understand.
