mykwikcoupe
05-04-2009, 09:53 PM
Im calling on all the experts here. Ive had my coupe about 6 years not to count the total time Ive owned at least1 3gee of 10+ years. In this time Ive seen alot of cool pics, Ideas and thoughts come about. In the last 4 years Ive been more of a grazer. Working too much, being a daddy and husband and trying to complete projects around the house.
What Im basically saying is I dont remember what I wanted to do with my coupe when I started. i know I wanted it turboed, to be original and every aspect to the local crowd. To have a car someone could look at and know something has been changed or altered but unsure as to what it is. I like the stock design but also the exculive look of the JDM market, tuner styles. Id say mugen but thats too rare even for me.
Im not sure who remembers my coupe, its been a while since I posted any pics and about the same time since anything has changed. Its a 89 mongomery green metallic exterior with a swapped in black leather interior from a sei coupe. The interior is very minty (thanks rob) from the headliner to carpet, firewall to taillights. I have 1 tear in the rear seat and you can only see it from the back window which will soon be tinted. The grill cloths need to be redone as they are more greyish than a nice crisp black and I need to finish my dash swap one of these days.
I started with the interior because its for the most part the easiest to complete. Bitesize hooked me up with a complete blue LED dash with UV reactive gauge displays. This sets my interior color as Blue LED on black leather. Bitesize is also SUPPOSED to be working on a complete interior loom with the same blue LEDS that will ighten up the interior from under seats (front and back), under dash and the trunk like the green 3gee a few years ago. i cant remember his name sorry. Im wondering if this approach would be considered rice today or overdone? The dash will work but unsure about the cabin harness. Should I just stick to the stock locations?
Ive also got a EDM ebrake console. This offsets the ebrake to the drivers side giving 3 switch locaions to the USDM 1 and has a 1/4 din pocket with top open door. Originally my HKS EVC 4 was going to be located in this pocket but with the newer tuning software Im probably going with Hiondata S300 and the ecu controlled boost. Will the offset ebrake look forced? Its a very dark grey unlike the rest of my car that is black plastics. I can paint it but everyone knows that not perfect and Im not the type to to live with less than perfect. Ideas or thoughts on this one more of a keep or go and why please.
The only other aspect I can think of is stereo. Ive got a very vast amount of equipment at my disposal anytime from JL Audio 10W7 subs, 1000/1 amps, 12W6 subs, 8w6 subs, Pheonix gold amps XS2500, XS4600 with omni link, compnonents from JL Audio, Boston, Diamond, Infinity almost any line. My deck chioces are the pioneer 2007 top of the line non screen BT unit (forgot model#) or the eclipse CD8445 unit. Whats your thoughts here on the use of subs, sound deadeners, speakers, amps. I want good sound just as everyone but I want tasteful and aestetically pleasing installs. I dont like the trunk enveloping boxes, exposed wiring, amps and such. I was thinking Id use CAE door sheets behind the speakers only (12x12) and wrap the entire interior skin, rear panels, trunk, rear decklid and the floorboards with CAE products. Is this overkill on a 20 year old car thats based as a toy?
The exterior of the car is where Im totally stumped. Pearldrop and I are going to shave the emblems, a-pillar antenna and clean up the body. Im going to remove the trim line in the bumpers so they are smooth like the 90-93 style. This will leave the door trim stopping at the fenders and not wrapping around the car. How would this look. B20Aturbo did this on his car and I really liked it personally. What do you guys think?
Ive been holding off on a CF hood because Im too greedy to have a single piece done in CF. Id like to have the fiberglass M3 style fenders wrapped in CF to match. The bumper and somehow the eyebrows giving the look the entire front clip is CF. Id have it painted still but not completely. id have some sort of a detail on each panel revealing the CF below. The hood would only be painted on the low parts leaving the top bump exposed CF WITH NO HOOD SQUIRTERS thanks messy!!! The Fenders would be painted minus the M3 inserts or whatever they would be called. Not sure on the bumper.
The bumper, Ive got a kaminari kit new in box and havent decided if I want it on my car or not. If it did go on the car Id want it grafted into the rest of the car so it looks as stock as possible. Id put the JDM folding fogs in front with modified brackets so they dont sit so low and stick out so far but were recessed flush or just revealed into the top lip of the bumper. Ive got a JDM bumper pole that Id put on the which side? Is biult to go on the left side as the JDM cars are RHD. Do I put it there as well since the bracket is made for this or do I follow the design cue and put it on the corner opposite the driver?
Sideskirts, Dont they always looked forced. Nothing blends with the doors. The rear portion stocks up and doesnt flow with anything else? Thoughts. I have no clue on the rear bumper other than a simple question. Im sure Military Mase is the only one rocking dual exhaust. Whats the work, yeah or no? Itll be a 4 banger with a 2.5in exhaust, 3in when the turbos installed. the neon turbo sounds gay.
Ive got 5 sets of rims so not sure which ill chose. Ive got a big brake kit for the front, need a fastbrakes set for the rear still. How low should the car sit. Ive got it now so I can fit a solid finger between the rubber and the fenders. I dont like camber issues so I dont think Ill tuck but should I drop it down to i run out of adjustment or so the rubber is level with the fender lips? As it sits now about 3/4in above the rubber? Ive got Jims pinchfork mod, Konis with GC coilovers, ingals kits front and Im going to get the SPC front and rear arms. Only thing I can think of for more adjustment is camber plates?
This is mostly an appearance question i can ask about setup and what I should display or try to show off. Ive got addco front and rear bars, DC strut tower brace, poly bushings everywhere I can. Thanks for the thoughts and if you respond try to be specific as there are alot of questions in this article and it can easily be lost to what you are refering to. Thanks again for the help and inspiration.
What Im basically saying is I dont remember what I wanted to do with my coupe when I started. i know I wanted it turboed, to be original and every aspect to the local crowd. To have a car someone could look at and know something has been changed or altered but unsure as to what it is. I like the stock design but also the exculive look of the JDM market, tuner styles. Id say mugen but thats too rare even for me.
Im not sure who remembers my coupe, its been a while since I posted any pics and about the same time since anything has changed. Its a 89 mongomery green metallic exterior with a swapped in black leather interior from a sei coupe. The interior is very minty (thanks rob) from the headliner to carpet, firewall to taillights. I have 1 tear in the rear seat and you can only see it from the back window which will soon be tinted. The grill cloths need to be redone as they are more greyish than a nice crisp black and I need to finish my dash swap one of these days.
I started with the interior because its for the most part the easiest to complete. Bitesize hooked me up with a complete blue LED dash with UV reactive gauge displays. This sets my interior color as Blue LED on black leather. Bitesize is also SUPPOSED to be working on a complete interior loom with the same blue LEDS that will ighten up the interior from under seats (front and back), under dash and the trunk like the green 3gee a few years ago. i cant remember his name sorry. Im wondering if this approach would be considered rice today or overdone? The dash will work but unsure about the cabin harness. Should I just stick to the stock locations?
Ive also got a EDM ebrake console. This offsets the ebrake to the drivers side giving 3 switch locaions to the USDM 1 and has a 1/4 din pocket with top open door. Originally my HKS EVC 4 was going to be located in this pocket but with the newer tuning software Im probably going with Hiondata S300 and the ecu controlled boost. Will the offset ebrake look forced? Its a very dark grey unlike the rest of my car that is black plastics. I can paint it but everyone knows that not perfect and Im not the type to to live with less than perfect. Ideas or thoughts on this one more of a keep or go and why please.
The only other aspect I can think of is stereo. Ive got a very vast amount of equipment at my disposal anytime from JL Audio 10W7 subs, 1000/1 amps, 12W6 subs, 8w6 subs, Pheonix gold amps XS2500, XS4600 with omni link, compnonents from JL Audio, Boston, Diamond, Infinity almost any line. My deck chioces are the pioneer 2007 top of the line non screen BT unit (forgot model#) or the eclipse CD8445 unit. Whats your thoughts here on the use of subs, sound deadeners, speakers, amps. I want good sound just as everyone but I want tasteful and aestetically pleasing installs. I dont like the trunk enveloping boxes, exposed wiring, amps and such. I was thinking Id use CAE door sheets behind the speakers only (12x12) and wrap the entire interior skin, rear panels, trunk, rear decklid and the floorboards with CAE products. Is this overkill on a 20 year old car thats based as a toy?
The exterior of the car is where Im totally stumped. Pearldrop and I are going to shave the emblems, a-pillar antenna and clean up the body. Im going to remove the trim line in the bumpers so they are smooth like the 90-93 style. This will leave the door trim stopping at the fenders and not wrapping around the car. How would this look. B20Aturbo did this on his car and I really liked it personally. What do you guys think?
Ive been holding off on a CF hood because Im too greedy to have a single piece done in CF. Id like to have the fiberglass M3 style fenders wrapped in CF to match. The bumper and somehow the eyebrows giving the look the entire front clip is CF. Id have it painted still but not completely. id have some sort of a detail on each panel revealing the CF below. The hood would only be painted on the low parts leaving the top bump exposed CF WITH NO HOOD SQUIRTERS thanks messy!!! The Fenders would be painted minus the M3 inserts or whatever they would be called. Not sure on the bumper.
The bumper, Ive got a kaminari kit new in box and havent decided if I want it on my car or not. If it did go on the car Id want it grafted into the rest of the car so it looks as stock as possible. Id put the JDM folding fogs in front with modified brackets so they dont sit so low and stick out so far but were recessed flush or just revealed into the top lip of the bumper. Ive got a JDM bumper pole that Id put on the which side? Is biult to go on the left side as the JDM cars are RHD. Do I put it there as well since the bracket is made for this or do I follow the design cue and put it on the corner opposite the driver?
Sideskirts, Dont they always looked forced. Nothing blends with the doors. The rear portion stocks up and doesnt flow with anything else? Thoughts. I have no clue on the rear bumper other than a simple question. Im sure Military Mase is the only one rocking dual exhaust. Whats the work, yeah or no? Itll be a 4 banger with a 2.5in exhaust, 3in when the turbos installed. the neon turbo sounds gay.
Ive got 5 sets of rims so not sure which ill chose. Ive got a big brake kit for the front, need a fastbrakes set for the rear still. How low should the car sit. Ive got it now so I can fit a solid finger between the rubber and the fenders. I dont like camber issues so I dont think Ill tuck but should I drop it down to i run out of adjustment or so the rubber is level with the fender lips? As it sits now about 3/4in above the rubber? Ive got Jims pinchfork mod, Konis with GC coilovers, ingals kits front and Im going to get the SPC front and rear arms. Only thing I can think of for more adjustment is camber plates?
This is mostly an appearance question i can ask about setup and what I should display or try to show off. Ive got addco front and rear bars, DC strut tower brace, poly bushings everywhere I can. Thanks for the thoughts and if you respond try to be specific as there are alot of questions in this article and it can easily be lost to what you are refering to. Thanks again for the help and inspiration.