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I had the extreme turbo systems intercooler with my aspec gt35 kit. Worked great! made 500rwhp on c16 with it...

 

ive gotten alot of things off ebay before, even the trailing and toe arms like u mentioned... you just have to be careful on what you buy. Most non moving parts are usually safe to buy...

 

They sell the knock off Greddy 2 row FMIC kits on ebay that dont require you to cut the radiator support. Just like the real Greddy kit they require you to trim the rebar and bumper. Ran one on my last FD for 7k miles with no issue what so ever, my intake temps were just as low as any of my customers cars with authentic Greddy 2 and 3 Rows. For $350.00 shipped it is a hard setup to beat for those wanting a FMIC.

The Godspeed radiator is also a decent unit for the price. It is a little oversized and you definitely wouldnt want to run it with a SMIC as I am sure fitment issues would arise. I ran it with the Greddy 2 row with no problems.

Ive also had decent luck with the ebay 3" downpipes and midpipes over the years. Ive probably used 4-5 of them. Only issue I have had is the placement for the O2 Sensor on the downpipe makes it a PITA to remove/install the y-pipe.

All the cheezy SMIC kits without ducts are worse for your engine than the factory SMIC and duct. Also, the ebay manifolds are a roll of the dice, some people have good luck with them others constantly crack or have flanges warp. With the prices of used kits dropping so low you are better off just buying a quality used kit on the forum.

 

my "ebay" parts:

- intercooler core that i used in a custom smic setup (i have a thread, or check my cardomain page)
- intercooler piping that i hacked & welded as part of the above kit
- billet steel B&M replica short shifter (15k miles on it, still nice!)
- replica greddy catch can (literally identical to the real deal. lacks only the logo)
- replica front '99-spec combo lamps
- led bulbs for the front combo lamps

that's all i can think of right now...

 

I have been running Powerslot rotors for several years, love em, no issues at all and have had a few track sessions with them as well.

did not get them off ebay.

 

Yeah I saw them on another site for 98 bucks each. Looks very high quality. Like someone said brakes is not something to skimp on for your car.

 

yah.. having quality brakes helps with the track performance allot (especially if you can add ducting). more so than hp upgrades. and they last a long time, so $400 bucks is money well invested I think.

oh, and I dont have the crossholes (but they are slotted), maybe that gives better cooling, certainly some like the styling... but I have seen some rotors (even name brand) with crossholes that get cracks around the edges. maybe thats just from hard tracking.

 

I have a goodspeed SMIC and it runs about 10 deg cooler than my old authentic +1K PFS SMIC. Albeit the godspeed IC is larger and I went single so i would expect the tems to be lower right off the bat. But the true test is during WOT runs as the intake temps only go up a few deg under constant beating. Therefore that cheap IC does it's job good enough for my applications. Why shouldn't it? it's just an air radiator with no moving parts...

Edit- My rule of thumb with ebay/non name brand is as long as it they are not in a high stress enviroment they should be ok to at least consider.

 

I've seen drilled rotors with cracking in them. I think it may be, in part, due to how they are drilled. I think that if it's just a straight hole pressed through with a sharp edge it may have a greater chance to crack than if the hole is sloped on the surface.

 

Contrary to popular belief, i think it is possible to own a well maintained FD on a budget. I've owned my FD since i was 15 (almost 18 now)

I have a few "ebay" parts including
XSpower Intercooler
NGR Type-s BOV (identical to the greddy BOV, without the notorious leaking problems)
series 8 turn signals

I also believe if you can fabricate your own parts or improve on the design and function of a stock part, its a much better option than simply buying a new one. it also gives you a chance to build on your own skill set and knowledge.


I think eBay is a crucial resource to the car enthusiast community as well as the average person. underneath all of the potential scams and other BS are people trying to make a living selling their creations.

Taking careful considerations to the obvious cautions to buying from ebay, you can dig up gold

 

If you are really 18 I want to take a moment and give you credit for your post. Well stated and quite frankly with better language and grammar than many posters.

It drives me nuts when I see people post, "yo wat wit dat?" and expect others to treat them like they have a brain.

You represent yourself and young car owners in general well with your post.

 

I have ebay hood dampers, it has been a year and they are still working fine.

 

Everything is mare in china now.
No one is going to make things in the USA and sell it for made in china price,
Think about it.
Monthly labor for an employee here 3000 Usd
Monthly labor for one in china 300 Usd

 

I have the ebay manifold, that thing is solid T61 and 14 psi boost nocracks nothing.

- have also seen the rx7store manifold they are identical to the ebay mani and I have also seen the greddy manifold and it's a much better quality piece that I can say just by looking at it.

hmm the intercooler I have friends that have it on their fd and it works just fine, I belive if your not going to boost more than 20 psi these parts should work just fine.

oh 44mm vband wastegate ebay working just fine on my fd, I'm a valve tech. and I dissassemble the unit and everything looked to be in good condition so I don't see why it would malfunction anytime soon.

I have a friend that is going to put one of those godspeed gt45 turbo on his fd, will let you guys now how it works out.

have a few friends with this same turbo on their mk4 supra and after 3 years the turbos are still good. so it's basicly a gamble it's up to you

 

I stay away from BOV, Wategates and Turbines. Manifolds are ok, they are so cheap that if they crack you can just get a new one. You can help the manifold by making a support bracket to take some weight off and prevent cracking.

 

I deal with the cheap chinese issue a lot at work. They are able to completely manufacture parts for cheaper than we can even buy raw materials due to their low material and labor costs, and (relative) lack of rich greedy ********. I have not seen many parts that are actually designed in China. Mostly it is a US based company that either designs something or rips off someone else's design and then has it contracted to China for manufacture.

The main issue is the quality control of the importer. The Chinese are capable of producing very high quality parts, but in my experience it requires a heavy hand on the part of the US importer to provide a high quality standard and inspect enough parts to enforce it.

Basically the upshot is that the notion of "Don't buy cheap ebay crap, it's all junk" is a safe way to go if you can afford it, but for those of us who are cheap, it is entirely possible to buy high quality goods for very low prices. You just need to take the effort and have the capability to research the part a little before you buy and to inspect it once you receive it.

I personally buy 'simple' parts like intercoolers, manifolds, clutches, etc on ebay with no qualms. I try to avoid more complex things like turbos or electronics just because they are harder to copy and manufacture, and because they are harder to inspect once you get them.

I will admit that a couple of times I have paid for crap, but most of the time it is just fine, and considering the $$$ I have saved over the years, I'm satisfied. China is going to own the world in a few years anyway, might as well get buddy up with them now.

 

Anybody own or have any issues with the aluminum greddy style compression tube sold on ebay for FDs?

 

want to know this aswell,

 

I agree, brakes I wouldn't skimp on, you don't just pay for the name, the BIG
companies have put mucho R&D into them, Brembo and AP Racing for me at
all times. (There are other good ones but these I've used and rate highly)

Dave