Just Startin' out...

[97LunarEclipse]

Hey everybody,
I just bought my first !!! It's a '97 Eclipse RS N/T. The former owners replaced the motor, and added cold air intake and 3" exhaust. I like the car as is, but I love to work on cars. I'm pretty new to the whole tuner scene and need a little guidance. Does anyone have any tips for a newbie whose just got his feet wet, but want to dive in? I'll appreciate any info.

 

[xXeclipstasyXx]

just start looking in people's profiles and see what theyve done, decide if you want n/a or to go turbo...

 

[97LunarEclipse]

I think that I want to stay with N/T. The reason is that I am not going to be racing my car, but I want it more for show and comfort. I can still get great performance out of a N/T without adding turbo can't I? I think my next step is to work on the audio visual system. I want to put in a JL sound system.

 

[BCESI]

change out the 3" exhaust piping for 2.5" piping, 3" is a bit too big for a NA car and by going to a smaller diameter piping you should get some torque back

 

[GSGoinFast]

I think that I want to stay with N/T. The reason is that I am not going to be racing my car, but I want it more for show and comfort.

you might have come to the wrong place guys dont look to fondly upon show cars.

I can still get great performance out of a N/T without adding turbo can't I?

nope not really(...waits for brian to come and tell me that you can ) great might be pushing it. you can get decent performance N/T.

 

[truECLIPSE]

if your staying n/a you should definitely consider the bottle unless you are happy with 15s

 

[BCESI]

you might have come to the wrong place guys dont look to fondly upon show cars.

nope not really(...waits for brian to come and tell me that you can ) great might be pushing it. you can get decent performance N/T.

Bah nothing wrong with show cars,the ladies love 'em and as long as they are driven and acctually enjoyed I have no problem with them...it's those damn trailer queens that piss me off; why it God's name would you dump a buttload of cash into a car then never drive it???? As for performance, be prepared to dish out a ton of cash if you want it to be fast and N/A...Going on the bottle or slapping on a hairdryer are by far the best/easiest ways of gaining some good horsepower, not to mention making it a hell of alot more fun to drive

 

[esi-slowboy]

Thought this might be something youd wanna check out cool ass spot for a sub. YOur probably draggin balz with that 3" exhaust WTF swap out 2.25 piping http://dsmtuners.com/forums/showthread.php?t=66527

 

[BigRand]

If your planning on crusing in your car for show and ride quality, definatly start with your rims/tire combanation, then move into the suspension area. Stock ride is nice, but if you want that show drop do not skimp on the suspension. Because otherwise you won't have ride that the ladies can enjoy. (too much bumping around).

Also note, that bigger rims do not fill the wheel gap like you think it would.
Definatly SEARCH then ask about this in the handling forum.

As for throwing in your JL's, great for sound, heavy on the car. I know from experience, when u do put em in, think about saving some room for a nitrous bottle or even two for show purposes too. It would be nice if you hooked em up too.

If your serious about staying N/A, and are really intrested in your motor. Spend some money on a bigger TB, port/polished intake mani, and some light head work, and then when you list your mods it won't just be show, and believe me when I say car shows like cars that can go as well

 

[97LunarEclipse]

I appreciate all the help you guys are dishing out. That custom sub box looks pretty sweet. I need all the help I can get when it comes to learning all I can about this...I guess that's why I am here. I think the first thing I am going to do is get wheels and tires. Check out this site for some good buys. www.wheelguyz.com A friend of mine where I work has the middle set at the top of the page and they look and ride very nice.

 

[dr1665]

(...waits for brian to come and tell me that you can )

YES YOU CAN! (hehe) You just need to be reasonable in your goals. You're never going to be over 200whp all motor no matter what some benchracing choad on this board tells you you would have to do in order to accomplish this feat. Especially if you want to focus on adding heavy body kit and stereo equipment to your ride. Build the hell out of the engine and you will be reasonably quick for what you are, but still not fast, by any means, in the grand scheme of things.

The bottle is an excellent idea for your build up. A 75 shot will do on a stock block from what I've read, and Chris has a great deal of experience tuning the juice on a 420A, so you have access to some quality info in this thread.

For the guy who suggested installing NO2 bottles for looks, I ought to go buy one and a plane ticket, just so I can fly to wherever you live and smack you with it. Yeah, yeah. You caught yourself and said it would be cool to hook them up, but to even suggest someone install a performance part that is non-functional is absolutely retarded and should be punished.

I'm not into show cars in the slightest. Form follows function. If you want a heavy, chromed out home theatre, build it in your living room. NOT IN YOUR GARAGE.

/returns to lurking...

 

[DSM-ZERO]

turbo turbo turbo turbo turbo turbo turbo turbo turbo turbo turbo turbo turbo turbo turbo turbo turbo turbo



I don't like show cars either yes there preatty BUT so is having a massive turbo under your hood
I go with performance you will send just as much on buying a body kit installing it then pait it.......THEN you hit something and your fiberglass front bumper is in a thousand pices then you get another one and the process repeats itself..
even real show cars are not driven everyday

 

[BigRand]

YES YOU CAN! (hehe) You just need to be reasonable in your goals. You're never going to be over 200whp all motor no matter what some benchracing choad on this board tells you you would have to do in order to accomplish this feat. Especially if you want to focus on adding heavy body kit and stereo equipment to your ride. Build the hell out of the engine and you will be reasonably quick for what you are, but still not fast, by any means, in the grand scheme of things.

The bottle is an excellent idea for your build up. A 75 shot will do on a stock block from what I've read, and Chris has a great deal of experience tuning the juice on a 420A, so you have access to some quality info in this thread.

For the guy who suggested installing NO2 bottles for looks, I ought to go buy one and a plane ticket, just so I can fly to wherever you live and smack you with it. Yeah, yeah. You caught yourself and said it would be cool to hook them up, but to even suggest someone install a performance part that is non-functional is absolutely retarded and should be punished.

I'm not into show cars in the slightest. Form follows function. If you want a heavy, chromed out home theatre, build it in your living room. NOT IN YOUR GARAGE.

/returns to lurking...

Okay my bad, I guess I didn't do a good job of showing my sarcasim when it came to the no2 bottles. What I meant is that if he is going to toss two jL's in his car he should save space for some nitrous because he is gonig to want it if he's staying all motor.
Please like I would be caught with a nitrous bottle in my car that doesn't work.
Or those Kicker subs that look like nos bottles
or a front mount intercooler that is really just a cold air intake.

Okay so dude who is just starting out......if u get nitrous SERIOUSLY make sure its hooked up and good to go.
I apoloigize for any intonation that you should buy bottles just for show and not for use.
I'm doing this as we speak


Word of advice to all people going for show.....you better have some go to back it up.
Sleepers keep on doing what your doing.

 

[97LunarEclipse]

I get the idea that most of you are into performance...(sarcasm) See, I pointed it out Anyways, I appreciate all the help you guys are giving. I think I'll work on the smaller performance things that I can do without adding a turbo. At least for now. I don't have a lot of money to put into that right now (heh, heh).
I do however work at an electronics store which allows me to order almost anything in. I'll check it out and see what's available. As far as smaller performance upgrades, what do you think would be the best to start out with?

It's kinda hard to start out hardly knowing anything about this. It's good to have a pool of people to help you out. THANX

 

[baxsom]

I get the idea that most of you are into performance...(sarcasm) See, I pointed it out Anyways, I appreciate all the help you guys are giving. I think I'll work on the smaller performance things that I can do without adding a turbo. At least for now. I don't have a lot of money to put into that right now (heh, heh).
I do however work at an electronics store which allows me to order almost anything in. I'll check it out and see what's available. As far as smaller performance upgrades, what do you think would be the best to start out with?

It's kinda hard to start out hardly knowing anything about this. It's good to have a pool of people to help you out. THANX

http://www.dsmtuners.com/tuning-guide/2gnt/

 

[DSM-ZERO]

AFX udp
intake
cat back
msd coil & wires

 

[dr1665]

Sleepers keep on doing what your doing.

Roger that. I concur.

 

[97LunarEclipse]

On my 1997 Eclipse the factory fog lights were removed by one of the former owners. Does anyone know what size housing will fit in the factory holes. I searched the forums and saw a few posts with the same question, but there were no answers.

 

[dr1665]

On my 1997 Eclipse the factory fog lights were removed by one of the former owners. Does anyone know what size housing will fit in the factory holes. I searched the forums and saw a few posts with the same question, but there were no answers.

You are to be commended for using the search utility, however...

1. Do you really think it's beneficial to future users to have the end-all answer to what size fogs are a direct replacement in a thread titled "Just startin' out?" Yeah, I know you used a new title on your post, but still. A thread jack is still a thread jack, even if the original poster jacks the thread imo.

2. Ever think to try taking a ruler out of the desk or junk drawer in the kitchen and measuring the size of the hole? LxWxD, man. Then go to the store and compare dimensions. That's the way I would do it.

Anyways...

 

[97LunarEclipse]

Sorry about the "thread jack" ...I'm kinda new to this whole forum thing. Next time I'll just post it separately.

Man, it is way too early in the morning

 

[esi-slowboy]

Had to do it ! Just messing around ....
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y9/esi-slowboy/bump.bmp" alt="Image hosted by Photobucket.com">

 

[LeJeune123]

First things to do and they won't hurt your turbo chances:
2.5" Exhaust
Underdrive Pulley
MSD Coil Pack and Wires
Extrued Honed Intake Manifold
55-57mm TB
Head Work


All this can be done right now and will give you good power while your still N/A. They can all also be used if going turbo so you aren't wasting your money.