gcthree

I am sure that there are a select, but growing, group on the forum that have seen and read TPR magazine (Tuner Performance Reports). If not, you absolutely need to visit their site @ www.tprmag.com and get aboard. The magazine is founded by the same individual who gave birth to Sport Compact Car back when, and TPR is now his own personal effort for those of us who feel that cars, in particular FD's, were meant to be modified.

Now, as we all know, the extent of much of our knowledge about aftermarket products is as a result of others trying it first. Then, maybe you read about it on this forum; and opinions on the forum are as diverse as the people who participate.

So TPR jumps into the fray, and assists tuners by impartially testing (yes, testing) aftermarket products and proving (or sometimes, disproving) their claims. As noble an approach that is to editorial content in a magazine, it is a gutsy approach, as we all know how testy advertisers can get when you pan their product (drop the publisher an email an ask him about AEM!). But, the magazine serves a real, and unique need in the market, unless you are absolutely insistent that ladies and tasteless/gratuitous comments must accompany photos and stories of cars. Those of you who are amongst that bunch will be disappointed, I'm afraid. But for the rest who know there are other places to source that stuff, and feel they need a truly technically oriented magazine....well, you should send those guys a check and get this mag delivered to your door. It's that good.

With that intro, I did want to share a few photos of my FD that is slated to appear in a future issue of TPR. I met the TPR gang down in Atlantic City, and once we got to talking about RX7's, I offered a chance to check out my car as they made their way back to the airport and sunny California. I learned yesterday that it's slated to appear, and they were kind enough to provide me with some advance shots from the shoot. Hope you like the car!

JConn2299

Your car looks great. Outstanding. Does it look and run as good in person as it does in these photos?

marix1521

holy hell your interior is clean!!!! i want mine to be like that!!!! what all is done to the center console? or is it just that nice stock above 93?

RX-187

Congratulations! You're car looks superb. I'll make sure to pick up the mag when it gets featured.

Garoad

not a fan of those sideskirts but man ur FD is hot.

AnthonyNYC

iTrader: (3)

Isn't it strange how some FDs just look great and others just look ok? I gotta say, your fd really looks good. I've seen the same wing and skirts on some fds but sometimes it does not look right but on yours it looks greatl

Yours definitely has the 'look'

Anthony

purerx7

iTrader: (61)

Also interested how your interior is soooo clean, it does not appear to be painted....Not even the best parts of my 93's interior look that good and mine barely has 50k miles

gcthree

Let's get this out of the way, and it will explain a lot. I'm completely **** about my cars.

My car is a 36,000 mile car that I bought from a middle aged guy 4 years ago. I'm fastidious about cleaning it, and use very mild cleaners on the interior surfaces. But, that's a very stock appearance. I suppose you could try different matt-finish sprays to try to duplicate it, and I would take a look at Eastwood (www.eastwoodcompany.com) for a possible source of the correct patina. They're a restoration supply house that has made a science out of this stuff. Having restored a couple of Corvettes (a '63 fuelie, and a '71 LT-1), the drive for originality amongst that bunch is obsessive, and I found Eastwood to be a great source. BTW, restoring Corvettes will screw-up your priorities for the rest of your life- steer clear!

But the rest of the interior is just carefully used and maintained. Like making sure you don't crap into the car from under your shoes when you get in?

I absolutely love the way the car looks/sits. I've considered doing a '99 spec front bumper, but honestly, the stock bumper integrates better with the lines of the car. The skirts really integrate well with the body- same for the '99 spec wing. And the diffuser is exactly what is needed to finish the back of the car and balance-off the '99 spec front splitter.

How does it run? It's a streetported motor by Chris Rogers, running sequentially with Turbo Engineering Corp modified stock turbos, plus all the usual upgrades. Right now, I'm trying to diagnose an extreme rich condition that I believe is a result of a faulty secondary injector- which happen to be 1300cc units modified by RC Engineering. I should have them back from cleaning/flow testing on Tuesday, and I'll know more when I put it all back together. While trying to figure-out this problem, I've had the top of the motor/rat's nest off the car no less than 3 times in the past month. After you've done it that many times, it's not nearly as intimidating! Maybe I should do vac hose jobs for a living?

Thanks for the comments- happy to answer any questions.

onefast3gen

iTrader: (1)

When did u go down to A/C and meet those guys? I went to sema and had my FD there but i parked in the casino parking lot. I went on satuday and never got to go on sunday cause of my grandpas birthday party. When i went there i was getting alot of attention also but mostly on the parkway. These asian guys in a wrx took out a video camra and started filming me drive and these other dudes took pictures. lol i felt famous lol. My fd is a bb base model with a 99 bumper lip apexi side skirts and c-west head lights. and some boot leg fog lights i but hid's in and made them look like 99 spec fogs cause they are the same size and in the same spot. By the way anybody know where to get real 99 spec fogs how much they cost and what kind of bulb they take?

onefast3gen

iTrader: (1)

By the way i got a few other mods also but not much. Just dp greddy cat back, petit short shifter greddy ****. feed fender braces. eclipse head unit fozgate front speakers. ast cusco strut tower bar. stock blow off valve vented into the air, and i should be getting my volk rims gtc's 18x10 in the rear 18x8.5 front gunmetal with a machined lip

potatochobit

iTrader: (1)

hmmm

red silicon couplers might look better with the PF IC... just an opinion...

MR_Rick

iTrader: (7)

Are those BBS rims on the car? If so what size? They look nice

FDeez

That rear diffuser is so pimp.

particleeffect

nice car. the magazine doesn't do much for me though. and yes, i just read several technical articles on their website to give them a chance.

gcthree

The wheels are Mim/Speedline. MiM was a private label brand out of Italy; Speedline made the wheels, and MiM marketed them- they do look like BBS rims, though. I believe I bought them through Discount Tire a few years ago. They're 17" X 9.5" all around wrapped with Nitto 235-45 ZR17's. I'd love to go 18", but the roads here in NY really don't permit them.

gcthree

Word: Pimp
pronunciation: 'pimp
Function: noun
Etymology: origin unknow
: a man who solicits clients for a prostitute

I clearly have the wrong dictionary- please explain 'pimp'.

prrex4ever

iTrader: (3)

Your FD is really tight. Great look. Congrats!

gcthree

I agree. I just put the Greddy elbow on the car, and I need to have a hard pipe made to connect the elbow to the IC, so the local hose/fitting store supplied the blue stuff, and there was no choosing.

gcthree

It's a solid step forward from the rest of the rags out there. Honestly, I'm tired of the other books that are written for guys who breathe through their mouth. I had a chance to spend some time with these guys, and the magazine is a personal effort, so funding is tight, but they're fueled with great intentions. I've spent over 20 years in the magazine biz, and I know very well how much it costs to do it right; to do it on your own is nuts- give them credit and some support, or we'll be left with the other crap to read....

Drop them a line and tell 'em what you would like to see. They'll respond

gcthree

Mine is a 36,000 mile car that is parked in our new heated and A/C'd garage. I imagine that exposure to the sun probably fades the finish.

iron4jones

Great looking car man. Looks like you are pretty meticulous. Did your y-pipe and crossover pipe just bolt right up to the PFS IC.

alberto_mg

Congrats Bob! They made a good choice on your car. It is easily the cleanest FD I've ever laid eyes on and has all the right mods.

Good luck getting your rich running condition sorted. Modified cars (especially FDs) can be a pita sometimes...

particleeffect

well, incase you really don't know, it means nice/cool/awsome. just like it would be to have a stable of fine bitches.


any major retail outlets i might find the mag in florida? i'm willing to pick up a copy.


my advise?

• copy grassrootsmotorsports.
  
• change the name so something without "tuner". that word is dead to me. and i don't want to be seen in public with anything with it in its name. way too many negative associations with the "tuner lifestyle yo" for me.
  
• for the same reasons as the last one, no body-kitted "sport compacts" on the cover, ever. the same goes for drifting. i know it's a pain to come up with a wild cover each month, and that covers are important for hooking a casual buyer... how about more technical/application based covers, like bare engines and cars on tracks.
  
• no testing useless crap. one of the articles i read on the site tested an intake, CB, AVCR... and a grounding kit. they actually noted that the grounding kit "made" ~.7hp IIRC. wow, that's for the info guys! and then they ended the article by saying it was important to test several grounding kit hook-up points to get the most power... meh.

that's all i can think of atm.

gcthree

I figured as much, but you never know. I bought a Haase/Honda CR125 shifter kart about 5 years ago, and had it shipped to NY via a trucking company. I went to the depot to pick it up, and when I'm escorted to the warehouse where the kart is stored, the guy helping me tells me it's 'stupid'. At first blush, I'm about to on the defensive, but realize what the guy really meant was that it was so neat, it was 'stupid'. Go figure.....

TPR can be found in select Barnes & Noble stores.

Drop these guys a line with those suggestions- I believe they will really value your opinion. I happen to agree with most everything you've said!

gcthree

Yep, straight bolt up operation. Now I need an aluminum pipe to get me from the IC to the Greddy elbow. That silicone hose is a temporary fix. Any suggestions anyone??