is it really that bad?
 

ok, say that i was to find a really clean super low mile 3rd gen. If I was to emidiatly do a tune-up, an intake and exhaust, front mount, upgraded radiator and a boost and fuel tuning, could I drive the car with resonable relyability? Or is it gonna take a shit every couple of months or more? If I was to get an exhaust is it good to get down pipes aswell? and what kind of fuel upgrade do i have to do? and what to do about the radiator? Im a newbie with lots of questions. Is there an established list of reliability mods. that should be done?

if you are going to do exhaust and intake you definetaly want to upgrade your ecu. The APEX Power FC is one of the best stand alone ecu upgrades you can do. Have it mapped by a shop and you should be fine. Also changing the radiator helps a lot.

dont the pre-cats a problem point also how would i go about knocking them out without having to get a down pipe? and does just a cat-back and intake require tuning? any suggestions on radiator size or brand?

I would recomend getting a downpipe for better airflow. For a radiator the ultimate radiator from srmotorsports is a pretty good one with a decent price too. If you are going for reliability with performance get an intake, downpipe, exhaust, radiator, ugraded intercooler, and ESPECIALLY a tuned power fc. This should make you run in the lower 12's easy with reliabiliy.