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What modifications have you done to your FD that you regret?

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Old 06-23-13, 12:01 PM
  #26  
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Buying those groupbuy 99 spec LED tailights that I had to wait for almost a year.

I'm reminded of this poor decision Everytime I get honked at cause the person behind me cannot see my turn signals. sigh
Old 06-23-13, 12:43 PM
  #27  
half ass 2 or whole ass 1

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but those led tails look so good.... at night...

this is a great thread. my biggest regret with my first fd is that i didnt take my time with the build which ended up in my part out. i rushed into a single turbo set up before i really knew what i was doing and why i was doing it.

i have second fd now and i realize the full non-seq twins arent that bad. the fd is my first ever turbo car with my background being hondas so to me that car is fast and the twins put out more power than i really can use. i have the boost set at .55 and it tugs up and down the track. im happy with the way my car is set up now.

my best advice is to take it slow and really think about the mod you want to do before you do it. ask yourself whats wrong with the stock (insert part) that i need to upgrade it....
Old 06-23-13, 06:24 PM
  #28  
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Probably the Tein lowering springs on Tokico Ilumina struts. They handle great but I bottom out on basically everything.
Old 06-23-13, 08:43 PM
  #29  
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My biggest regret is purchasing wheels, a smic and a few other things based on their price versus what I would ideally have chosen. With plans to go single in the future, I learned that having a set list of the exact setup I would like and not deviating from it will make me happiest, even if it means extra (agonizing) wait time to make it happen.
Old 06-23-13, 09:59 PM
  #30  
Final Form

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Originally Posted by Jason94R2
You picked the wrong wheel, not the wrong tire...

Jason
I would respectfully disagree. I wanted to try a more meaty look, but I also enjoy a lowered car, and with the wheels I chose, they only look "right" to me if the offset is rather low. I am going to try again when I install wide fenders and revisit the setup soon. In the meantime, I'm 100% satisfied with the current setup and wouldn't change a thing. In either case, different strokes for different folks. It's what makes the world go round, just my preference.

Old 06-25-13, 07:18 AM
  #31  
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The pettit flares. Not because of how they made the car look, but because the 335s needed to fill them out are really expensive.
Old 06-25-13, 10:50 AM
  #32  
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I should have gone with a OEM '99 bumper instead of the plateless replica. I shouldn't have crashed my car by taking it to the track with old tires. I wasn't a huge fan of the de-powered steering rack.
Old 06-25-13, 11:08 AM
  #33  
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I regret none of the things I deleted except for the IAC makes controlling idle a pain in the ***, actually considering rewiring one in again.
Old 06-25-13, 12:02 PM
  #34  
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No regrets! Maybe wasting my time+money on modifying DSM, nissans and Subarus before wising up and purchasing the FD.
Old 06-25-13, 07:42 PM
  #35  
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Well, my old car is gone but was heavily modified, a few regrets. Removing the A/C probably tops the list. I'd also say the single turbo route was a pointless effort. The car was awesome on non sequential stock twins. It was fun to cut the tires loose but for a street driven car it just wasn't necessary. Tons of time and money sank into three different single turbo set ups when I probably would have been more happy with a good set of BNR's.
Old 06-25-13, 08:16 PM
  #36  
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I'm about ready to throw in the towel on the liquid to air intercooler. It runs about 10C above ambient when cruising. Spirited driving (12 psi ) will cause the temps to climb. Today the ambient air temp was 22C and I saw 56C after a long fourth gear pull. Measured with a fast reacting IAT sensor mounted in the pipe between the intercooler and the TB elbow. What temps are you guys seeing with what setup?
Old 06-25-13, 10:47 PM
  #37  
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I regret trying out the silly "engine torque brace" that goes from the body to the UIM. Shook the car stupid with vibrations, and then proceeded to strip out the threaded aluminum hole in the UIM from all the vibrating. And it vibrated against the stock hood. Took it out and threw it in the trash.

I regret that the previous owner put 16kg/mm Tein RA coilovers in the car. They are too harsh for the street and only cause damage to the unibody chassis over time.

Other than those, only regrets are some component paint color choices in the beginning of owning the car, but those were reversed easily enough.

BIGGEST regret of all: Spending insanely stupid amounts of money on my old BMW E39 M5 trying to modify it to run hard and handle well, when I should have just got rid of it and spent the money on the RX7 in the first place. Why was I so stupid to think that BMW was the way to go...??

Last edited by SA3R; 06-25-13 at 10:50 PM.
Old 06-26-13, 12:27 AM
  #38  
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Removing AC
Old 06-26-13, 10:46 AM
  #39  
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Originally Posted by Bullet13b
Can I ask were these the hotwater lab replicas? I'm interested in them but if lighting is poor then...
Knight sport is the dual round headlights in the pop up setup
Hotwater labs is the "sleepy eye sleek headight" style, I have em, they a good quality and customer service is good


Best mods
-Quiet coat in the door skins- gets rid of the tin can sound when you shut the door
-super pro bushings (most will fine this bad as it adds noise and u notice EVERY rock and bump you drive over)
-love the manual steering rack conversion
-aftermarket steering wheel - feels much tighter now

Worst mods
-every other mod i did to my car.... but i wouldnt change it. maybe just downgrade the turbo... the bw s366 is a bit too big i for my granny style of driving.. id prefer a s362
Old 06-26-13, 11:32 AM
  #40  
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Originally Posted by Natey
EVO-R. I don't think they offer them anymore. In their defense, I DID get my money back.
Being a long time Z owner, I always had a nightmarish time dealing with them. The parts I bought for my Z33 fit well, but their response time from order to shipping and any questions I had always took forever.


I think I'm having issues with the lightweight flywheel the previous owner had installed - she likes to stall with the A/C on when the brakes are applied - can't maintain idle. This is just my theory of course, but something to consider.
Old 06-27-13, 09:52 AM
  #41  
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1. Buying a "chopped up" roller that i was going to fix.

Guy got it from was going to put an LS1 in it (go figure) and basically cut all the wires and ripped everything rotary out.

I thought i was going to just be able to buy wiring harness and put it back... that car never ran.. pulled the motor i built, bought another roller from DJseven and fired right up and has ran for 4 years.

2. was taking the twins off to put on the APexi Rx6 Single. Ran out of time and car is still in pieces, and it ran fine before i tore it down. if it ain't broke don't fix it.
Old 06-27-13, 10:19 AM
  #42  
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I regret getting my SMIC instead of a vmount. At the time it was fine but since going for a decent motor build and some decent power, it's going to get hot. Just running in the motor at the moment (large Extend Port, gt35r)

Nothing else really that I regret. I regret leaving my job of 13 years to do study... all my wanted mods have had to be put on hold for a while
Old 06-27-13, 03:34 PM
  #43  
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Selling my stock wheels
Old 06-28-13, 12:41 AM
  #44  
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I reupholstered the interior with fake alcantara a few years back just to have something to do.. Molded in a cheap *** dvd screen in the passenger side...
Should not have gone with the screen, and now the interior has been faded by the sun.. also, some of the glue has worn off or something, so I'm always annoyed by the "bubbles".

this is from when it was just finished:


Will change back to original black (already purchased) or try some flocking...

Also regret buying the low Shine Auto rear light spoiler in fiberglass instead of carbon fiber.. Now everything else is in carbon(front lip, front undertray/diffuser, canards, sidesteps, rear diffuser, roofspoiler), so I'll either buy a new one or cover it with carbon film or something..
Old 06-28-13, 01:41 PM
  #45  
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Originally Posted by GoodfellaFD3S
Spec sprung 6 puck clutch...... RE-A 'short' shifter...... Hurley Apex Seals (too many times)...... looped P/S rack.
That clutch holds good as F*****8 whats not to like about the 6 puck.... unless you got an unsprung one
Old 06-28-13, 02:24 PM
  #46  
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Originally Posted by darkphantom
That clutch holds good as F*****8 whats not to like about the 6 puck.... unless you got an unsprung one
I've got the 6 puck unsprung and drive it fine.. Only thing that sucks about it is if you are in the drive way pulling forward and backing up pulling forward backing up trying to maneuver around other cars.. it slipsa little for about the first couple engagements but then after that, its ON...
Old 06-28-13, 02:56 PM
  #47  
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Haven't really regretted anything. My only regret is buying the damn car in the first place. I've been a rotary zombie ever since. Whatever life I had prior to my 7 has been sucked up by the rotary BORG.
Old 06-28-13, 04:58 PM
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4 Regrets.

1. Tein Basic coilover...love them going around corners and back country driving, annoyed with them the rest of the time. Just to stiff. I now have Apex N1 coilovers, with the adjustable dampers I get the best of both worlds

2. Sprung 6 puck....Its not that much harder to drive untill the 10 minute of traffic and every min. after or until you hit every light signal between point A and point B.

3. All my non carb legal mods...As a Cali owner I'm tired of playing the smog game.

4. Getting a commuter car...If I took the monthly payment of the other car and put it in savings, I'd be able to rebuild the 7 (drivetrain and suspension) every 5-6 years.
Old 06-28-13, 05:05 PM
  #49  
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Originally Posted by darkphantom
That clutch holds good as F*****8 whats not to like about the 6 puck.... unless you got an unsprung one
Personally I don't like the light pedal feel and harsh engagement, it just doesn't feel "right" like the pedal effort and engagement characteristics don't match each other. Never had any issues with it holding power, it just feels strange to drive.
Old 06-28-13, 05:16 PM
  #50  
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Yup, hated the light pedal effort. Couple that with lack of pedal feel and the on/off engagement nature, and IMO the Spec sprung 6 puck clutch killed my driving experience and basically blew *****. The ACT is a different story, I'm speaking specifically about the Spec. Sorry if I hurt anyone's feelings, notice the 'IMO'


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