Five
Important Lessons
That Will Save You Time & Money
By following these suggestions, you should be able to transform
your car into a vehicle that will give you so much pleasure and
pride, you wouldn’t trade it for anything (not even for a
night out with a supermodel). Seriously, creating a hot sports
car (for the street or track) is a rather simple process, as long
as you proceed with a specific, logical, step-by-step plan. And
often, the end result is so rewarding, the bond you end up
forming with your finished project will rival that blind
dedication that exists in British Car owners. However, there will
be two big differences: your car will be able to blow the doors
off of those British cars, and it will also start faithfully when
you turn the key.
Even some of supercars (as nice as they are to look at)
can’t make that claim. Some of them seem to spend more time
in the shop than they do on the road. Their parts cost a fortune,
and so does auto insurance (not to mention the initial purchase
price). But with a slightly modified custom compact car, that is
not the case. You can enhance the performance of your car to the
point where it will rival those supercars, while still getting
remarkable reliability and great performance, all at an
affordable price.
Lesson 1: Throw
Those Books and Magazines Away & Buy An Car Someone Else Has
Built
There are few things in life as rewarding as turning the key and
driving down the road in your newly completed project car. After
all, it was your sweat, blood, time, and money. The only thing we
have found to be more rewarding is to buy someone else’s
completed project!
No, you didn’t build it yourself. Yes, it’s probably
not in perfect shape and may need some minor work, but you
couldn’t build one for less money. So what about that
wonderful feeling of accomplishment you won’t get to
experience by having done it yourself? I don’t know about
you, but I’ve been able to get over that. Add a few
customizing touches, and you will soon forget that someone else
did all of the work (and spent all the money). After you own the
car for a few months, it will feel like it’s part of the
family. And the best part is that if you get tired of it in the
future, you can always sell it without taking a big loss.
You’ve seen the ads: 1979 RX-7. Custom paint, no rust.
Excellent condition. Lowered, header, rebuilt limited slip,
Centerforce clutch, custom exhaust, Carbeau seats, Petit built
13B with Haltech fuel injection dynoed at 240hp, Revolutions plus
racing wheels and tires, Over $15,000 worth of parts and labor.
Sacrifice for $6,000. This actual car was purchased by the author
from a friend, raced and driven on the street for 2 years, then
sold for that same price to another friend. If you take the time
to read the classified ads from enthusiast magazines, you could
end us saving yourself a lot of money in the long run.
On the other hand, another friend recently purchased an older
Porsche 911 for under $9,000, and soon regretted this decision.
If his goal was to turn it into a pure race car, then there would
have been no problem. However, in trying to fix it up for the
street, he ran into so many little (and not so little) problems
that, by the time the project was finished, he had spent an
additional $6,000. Still a bargain? Not if you consider the great
deal of time he committed to the restoration. He would have been
wiser to spend a little more money up front to get a car in
better condition.
However, you can easily find a very reliable and well sorted,
custom compact car which the previous owner has spent thousands
to make performance upgrades. With a car like this, the price you
pay will always be less than what the current owner paid for
those upgrades, saving you a significant amount of money.
Lesson 2: Be
Prepared To Spend Money On Your Car That You’ll Never Get
Back
That brings us to Lesson #2. If you insist on hopping-up your own
car, then you must be willing to accept that you will spend money
you’ll never recoup. Now don’t get us wrong, the
process is often worth the price you pay. Even with all of the
free parts myself and my fellow journalist friends manage to scam
as part of being “authors”, some of us have still put
lots of our own money (not to mention time) into these projects
that end up being worth only about half of what we invested. At
least that’s the excuse we give our wives for never selling
any of our project cars.
But most of you know what we’re talking about. That’s
why we choose to take a financial loss and put money in that we
can never get back out. This process forms a union between the
car and owner that non-enthusiasts can’t understand (it also
forms a bond between you and your Mastercard). So if you choose
to take this path, then hold onto this book, and we can help you
get the most for the money you spend on performance improvements.
Lesson 3: Start
With The Right Car
Try not to this next statement too personally, but the car you
own right now (as much as you love it) may not be the best choice
to meet the performance goals you have in mind. You may be better
off selling it and obtaining a different model (same make) that
will be easier to transform into the car of your dreams.
Otherwise, you may end up putting way more money into the car
than you need in order to get the performance you seek.
The first step is to decide what you want your car to do, and how
you want to use it (street, dual duty, autocross, road racing,
drag). Only then should you decide on which model would be best.
Maybe it’s the one in your garage, but if it isn’t, you
may be able to save money by switching to a model that has
certain options or characteristics to better meet your needs.
The biggest mistake most people make is to start with the wrong
car. Whether intended for the street or the strip, modifying the
wrong car will often add many unnecessary hours of labor to your
project, not to mention the wasted money. Certain Hondas, for
example, are good candidates for upgraded engine transplants or
turbo kits, while others aren’t. The lighter models are best
(such as Civics), and even once you narrow down the model, there
are often lighter weight variations within a certain model year.
For example, if you want to go road racing on a budget and
already own a 1995 RX-7, you will likely exceed your budget very
quickly. So if road racing is you priority, then it makes more
sense to start with a cheaper car (first or second generation
non-turbo RX-7). Even if your goal is to transform your car into
either a weekend or a serious racer, then additional mistakes
could be encountered if your project involves the use of certain
late model, more expensive cars
Unfortunately, many entry-level racers tend make modifications on
their car before they read the rules of the class in which they
wish to compete.
One of the most common mistakes is to buy bigger and wider wheels
before you go racing. Many stock classes restrict wheel size to
the factory diameter and width. Wider wheels will often bump you
out of a “stock” class, which is where most beginners
will find the best chance of winning. And adding a turbo where
once there was none could for you to compete in the Modified
classes. This mistake is a little more difficult to reverse than
choosing the wrong wheel size, as it would be a shame to have to
rip out your new aftermarket turbo unit just to be allowed to
compete. Boost is also restricted in many autocross classes, and
turbos in general are often not permitted at all in IT or Road
Racing.
If you want to do some autocrossing and your 1984 RX-7 (for
example) isn’t a GSL-SE, then you will be at a disadvantage
every time you come face to face with a GSL-SE since they came
standard with a limited slip differential (LSD). The same goes
for a Nissan SE-R vs. an SE. The LSD unit helps keep the inside
wheel from spinning as you exit a turn, providing much better
traction than the other models. The bottom line is: first set
your goals, then see if the car you presently own will be
adequate. The compromise is to keep your current car, but scale
down your performance expectations.
Lesson 4: Establish
a budget for your money and time
When starting out to build the project car of your dreams,
everyone should set a budget. Even if money is no object, a
budget can be extremely helpful. The reason for this is that
budgets set limits, and limits will help you to prioritize how
your money is be spent based on what aspects of the project are
most important to you. That’s why even large, multi-billion
dollar corporations have budgets. Those budgets serve to help
keep the companies focused on their goals.
For the project car builder, there are two types of budgets to
consider. Clearly, a financial budget is important, even for
those people who feel that money is no object. Just as for the
billion dollar company, a financial budget is good way to help
you prioritize how your money will be spent. And in order to do
that, you will be forced to decide exactly what phases of the
project are the most important to help you meet your goals. All
of us are dealing with a limited amount of time and money,
therefore building a project car often involves compromise.
Money
Many auto enthusiasts make the mistake to buying their car, then
immediately purchasing a cool set of rims, a slick-looking rear
wing, or installing a killer stereo. A few months later, however,
their project car starts to come together, and they decide to do
some amateur racing. That cool wing may then become a wasted
expense, and will likely result in exclusion from the stock or
entry level classes. Then there are those wheels, which could
offer the same restrictions as the wing, plus pose some
additional problems. For instance, did those aftermarket wheels
change your final drive ratio so that you are not as quick off
the line as your competitors? Do the best racing tires come in
sizes that will fit on your new wheels? How often do you see
nearly brand new parts being sacrificed by people who did not
take the time to plan out their project? The parts that they
initially purchased no longer meet their needs because their
goals have changed, so they are sold for a fraction of the
original purchase price. If you plan your project well, then
their loss can be your gain. Remember, even the top racing teams
have budgets. It’s important to have the overall picture in
place before you go out and buy film.
Time
Besides finances, the other thing that needs to be budgeted is
your time. In a perfect world, you could wake up in the morning,
go out the garage, and work on your car all day. But,
unfortunately, most people have to go to work. Then there are
friend and family responsibilities, and all of the other time
constraints that come with life in the 21st Century.
Doesn’t it seem like we have less free time than our parents
did when they were our age? How can that be, given all of the
modern time-saving devices that have been perfected over the past
generation? Computers, fax machines, digital phones, and all the
inventions help us do our jobs more efficiently. But what happens
to the time that these products are supposed to be saving us? The
fact is, surveys indicate that 30 years ago our parents reported
having more free time than we do now. It seems that the more
efficient we become, the more work we are expected to do. So our
time is valuable, and it also needs to be prioritized, or
budgeted.
Don’t underestimate the importance of setting a time budget.
Relationships are often put into some degree of jeopardy when
taking on a automotive project. Often, your spouse may view that
spending time with your car is more important than spending time
with them. But there are ways to avoid these potential problems.
First, limit the time you work on your car when your spouse is
home. If you have children, try to involve them in your project
so that there is a family element to what you are doing. And most
important, empower your significant other. Give them the power to
decide, for instance, how long you will work on your car for a
given day.
Let your significant other know that they are more important to
you than your car. Tell them what aspect of the project you will
be working on today, and give them an estimate of the time you
think this will take. But tell them that if they begin to feel
neglected, all they need to do is to come to the garage and tell
you. Usually you will be able to come to an appropriate stopping
point and get cleaned up in about 30 minutes from the time they
ask you to come back into the house. If this seems
“unmanly”, then you may want to reexamine your
priorities in life. Machines should never be given more
importance than people. If you compromise your relationships for
the sake of building your car, then in the end there will be no
one around to help you enjoy it.
From a completely different point of view, time management is
important when it comes to deciding on amount of time that you
want to spend on specific phases of your project. Spending five
hours wrestling with the installation of an exhaust system, for
example, may not be worth the $100 you could spend to have it
installed at a muffler shop in 45 minutes. We recently completed
an aftermarket fuel injection project that took over two years,
and the car is still not functioning at its potential. Did it
save money to do it ourselves? Possibly, but shops like Petit or
Peter Farrell Supercars could have done it in a few days, and we
could have been racing the car these past two years. Heck, we
could have blown two engines in that time.
Some people actually tow their vehicles a thousand miles to
expert performance shops just to get them tuned properly. Much of
the time, it appears that this is money well spent. That’s
because hours and hours on a dyno will do no good unless you know
what to do with the information you are receiving. That’s
the mistake we made with two of our project cars, and if we could
do it over again, those puppies would be on the doorstep of
Pettit Racing (RX-7) and JG Engine Dynamics (Honda) tomorrow. But
wouldn’t you be sacrificing all of the valuable knowledge
you will gain by doing a project by yourself? Absolutely, and if
this is one of your priorities, then go for it. If not, you need
to decide which aspects of your project you want to do yourself,
and which you should let up to a expert. We gained some valuable
knowledge by doing the fuel injection project by ourselves. We
learned that next time, we’ll leave it up to the
professionals.
A sample budget
Budgets can be a very personalized thing, but they should all
take every basic system of your car into consideration. To get
started you should first take a look at the chapters in this book
and decide your car needs. All this, of course, should be based
on what exactly it is you want to do with your car. Suspension,
engine, intake, exhaust, ignition, and appearance should all be
listed as categories. Even if you are not anal retentive, making
a list can be very helpful, especially if you have a computer.
Start by listing these categories, then add sub sections based on
the book chapter. For example, under “suspension”, you
should have springs, shocks, sway bars, wheels, tires, etc. Even
if you already have a nice set of wheels, put a “$0” on
the line next to “wheels”. Under “shocks and
struts”, however, you may want to upgrade to an adjustable
Koni system, therefore about $600 should be budgeted.
This itemization will also serve another purpose. If you are
using a computer program that can calculate your expenditures,
then you will have a running total of what you’ve spent on
your car. This will help keep your head out of the clouds and
your feet on the ground, protecting you from spending more money
on the car than what it’s worth. It will also help you to
keep track of exactly what you have done, essentially giving you
a readout of your car’s modifications.
Finally, the budget could help with your insurance claim in the
event that your car is stolen. Receipts for both aftermarket
parts and labor should be kept in a folder accompanying the hard
copy of your budget. You may as well put a “before”
photo of your car in the folder. Those who take the time to
compile this information will be glad they did when their project
is completed, as it will serve as a tribute to the time, effort
and money that went into your car. And if the day ever comes that
you decide to sell your baby, prospective buyers will recognize
that you are a detail oriented person who likely took good care
of their car. It will prove, for example, that there actually is
a rebuilt limited slip installed in the transaxle, or that the
engine really was rebuilt a year ago.
Lesson 5: Read
Before You Spend
One more thing to keep in mind. Although the performance parts
and modifications outlined in most performance handbooks have
been proven to work, your results may vary. Your particular car,
depending on its age, condition, engine size and efficiency,
gearbox, other variables may respond differently to
modifications. Often, the addition of a single performance
component may not yield the targeted horsepower improvement.
There can be many reasons for this, but often it’s that all
the components in a system (intake, exhaust, combustion) need to
be properly matched. In other words, horsepower gains often only
take place when the individual performance parts in a system
compliment each other.
Many of the new models (Honda S2000, Toyota Celica, BMW Z3,
Integra Type R) are such great sports cars, sometimes you can do
more harm than good. Especially when dealing with one of these
cars listed,. Automotive engineers have already designed the
engine components to be both efficient and powerful. But many
think that by adding some off the shelf performance parts you
will see even more power. When it comes to some of the older (5+
years) cars, this may be the case, but you need to be more
careful when it comes to one of these newer models.
Another good example can be found when making modifications to
the intake system. It is a sound decision to add an air velocity
intake system to a fuel injected engine, however if a monster
throttle body is added to this equation (without upgrading to
bigger injectors), then a decrease in horsepower may result.
And a final thought. If a particular type of performance part is
not mentioned in this book, it’s probably because it
doesn’t work. Don’t listen to the claims made by some
companies who boast of horsepower increases that seem too good to
be true. They probably aren’t. Even “dyno tested”
claims can’t always be trusted. Under the right conditions,
using an engine dyno, someone could probably show that adding
dirt to your engine will increase power. The real test involves
putting the engine in the a car, and driving it over a period
time. Then a chassis dyno plus some serious track time will tell
you if a product passes muster. So the best advice we can offer
is to read a good performance handbook before you get on the
phone to start ordering parts. You could save yourself a lot of
time and money.
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