modding a clean stock gsx

[DSMMIKE413]

how do i go about modding this here minty gsx without ####ing it up, i wanna build it up with patience and get the 16g turbo, i wanna do a 6 bolt swap eventually when i get my evo but what are some easy/cheap/responsive mods i can start off with?

 

[my dreamt dsm]

What's the mileage? I would do a maintenance check first.
Then basic intake, exhaust.
Goals would be better to start your build off. Begin with the end in mind.
Do it right or do it twice mentality.
Im not sure why you would want a 6 bolt swap. The 98 motor should be just fine. The motor goes a long way.
Seems like you will need to do more research.
Car looks very clean.

 

[Murci]

"my dreamt dsm" has it right. get your maintenance done first. make sure everything functions properly. however, you did mention its in mint condition. so just check on the oils and make sure everything is up to date. after that, replace the intake. some people either replace the entire intake or just replaces the filter head with K&N. your choice.

follow this, you should be solid with this upgrade path.

Tech Guide: 2G 4G63t Upgrades - DSMtuners

have fun, stay safe. you picked a great car.

 

[my dreamt dsm]

Oh and don't forget the 1gen bov. I've personally been through hks ssqv, greddy type s and 1gen came out on top. That's just me though.

 

[DSMnOOb00]

Forget the 6bolt swap, start with the basics... Maintenance!

How many miles on the car?
Depending on miles, I would change out everything,

Belts (OEM!!)
Oil (10/30 synthetic)
Oil filter (k&n)
Radiator flush (add water wetter)
Spark plugs (NGK)
Spark plug wires (NGK)

As far as your air intake, I would get the dejon tool or eBay knock off. Avoid the ingen intake, the fitment is abit off with those. Keep your oem air box, for smog and legal stuff

eBay short shifter and shifter cable inserts, this will make shifting feel solid!

NGR bov with adapter pipe, it's got the greddy flange but works great! At 150$ it's a steal! Plus you'll get that sweet "Swoosh!" sound everyone loves so much, just remember to recirculate the air back into the intake!! Don't be a limp chimp and try to vent the bov! It will make your car run like poop!

That should get you started with some of the common basics.

Before you start to even think of a turbo, think about the Front mount intercooler, your going to have to consider price and preference, but they make a few kits out there that are routed abit diffrent from each other, trust me a fmic kit might cost 300-600$$ but it's worth it, I custom made my pipes and spent over 600 not including the intercooler. BIG REGRET!!

As far as what kit to get, someone else I'm sure will chime in.

For exhaust manifolds,I personally like the evo3 manifold from slow boy racing, it flows great with its bigger ports, just make sure to port match the head abit using the gasket provided...

And if your getting a 16g (which I have) keep in mind your going to have to switch to slim radiator fans, which don't flow half as good as the oem fans..

The reason you'll have to switch fans is to make room for the turbo piping...

I would hold off in the turbo, intercooler, manifold upgrade until you do a few of the basics first, turbo upgrade is a Hugh expanse and you don't want to half ass it, I would eaither start saving the cash now or start buying it in parts now but only installing everything together..

 

[Bud92gsx]

This is what you should need. Tech Guide - DSMtuners

 

[DSMReviver]

For the goodness sake please just keep up the maintenance on it. Its just too clean, don't do too much or you will regret it.

 

[upgrading_86]

Yea I'd say triple check your maintenance is up to par no sense in upgrades if its not running tip top, as far as up grades first ones I did were intake, front mount, a full exhaust, a exhaust manifold and a tune.

 

[Chrispy0530]

For the goodness sake please just keep up the maintenance on it. Its just too clean, don't do too much or you will regret it.

This.

You'd be surprised how hard they are going to be to find in this condition in the future. And it's already pretty hard now.

If it was me and some mods HAD to be done, drop in a K&N Filter, T28, 1st gen BoV and Link. That's it.

Personally, I'd keep it in the garage and use it only on the weekends.

Grats on the find though! Super clean.

 

[xxNocturnalxx]

How do you guys even know this is "too clean" is there more pictures I am not seeing?

Anyways, I'd start with exhaust and intake, by the time you get that done you'll know what you want to do next

 

[honda_burner]

How do you guys even know this is "too clean" is there more pictures I am not seeing?

Anyways, I'd start with exhaust and intake, by the time you get that done you'll know what you want to do next

The strut towers are still intact. That says enough right there! Lol!

 

[96pos dsm]

Nice find it took me almost 5 years to find a low milage clean 2g I got a 99 gsx with 50k miles that is near showroom still I just have link, pump,injectors, afpr, 16g , fmic, exhust, bov and head studs and I'm happy good find let's see some more pics

 

[spyderdrifter]

I'd say just leave it the way it is, keep it well maintained like it appears to have been. It's already in very rare condition. Garage that beauty.

 

[Boosted DSM 32]

If its your daily driver just make sure all the basic maintenence is done then just do a few simple things.. they 2gb has the improved thrust bearing im pretty sure and crankwalk is extremely rare so you should be fine with your 7 bolt! If i were you i would just go with an intake..exhaust..boost controller..255 pump and regulator..fmic..650 injectors and use evo scan to tune it using a evo III 16g turbo and you could have a very fun 12 second daily driver with no problem at all.. and lets be honestly you really dont need to have more than a 12 second dd in my area 12 seconds is competing with almost everything around and beating most theres very few cars that are faster than 12 seconds

 

[EclipseOwner95]

How do you guys even know this is "too clean" is there more pictures I am not seeing?

:

This...Looks like a run of the mill 2g to me?

Either way, like most have said, the more you do the more you may regret it, just depends on your goals. 16g, 550's, fuel pump, turbo-back, FMIC, and Link and you should be able to maintain near stock drive-ability and have a fun & reliable car.

 

[burkgonzo]

I'd say just leave it the way it is, keep it well maintained like it appears to have been. It's already in very rare condition. Garage that beauty.

Agreed 200%!

 

[deflator]

Ha...these cars are NOT collectible. Garage it and watch the value continue to plummet anyway. Then you only get to enjoy looking at it. I say mod it any way you want, it's a great learning experience.

 

[Calan]

Ha...these cars are NOT collectible.

I wish I had a dollar for every time we said that about our muscle cars back in the day.

Come to think of it...I wish I had of garaged some of the muscle cars I had back in the day.

 

[xxNocturnalxx]

Ha...these cars are NOT collectible. Garage it and watch the value continue to plummet anyway. Then you only get to enjoy looking at it. I say mod it any way you want, it's a great learning experience.

Agreed!

 

[importracr317]

I wish I had a dollar for every time we said that about our muscle cars back in the day.

Come to think of it...I wish I had of garaged some of the muscle cars I had back in the day.

Last time I was welding and cutting on my Talon, my Dad looked at me and shook his head and said "some day some one is going to attempt to restore that car back to factory". Imagine how many fathers said the same thing to their sons in the 40's, 50's & 60's.

 

[spyderdrifter]

I wish I had a dollar for every time we said that about our muscle cars back in the day.

Come to think of it...I wish I had of garaged some of the muscle cars I had back in the day.

Agreed, despite almost 20 years younger (not to make you feel old or anything). Wish I had an old nova or chevelle.

 

[Calan]

Imagine how many fathers said the same thing to their sons in the 40's, 50's & 60's.

Yep.

The very first car I ever owned was an early 60's Olds Cutlass that my dad bought for me when I was 15-1/2 years old. It was mint, with maybe 30k miles on it. Before I turned 16 and got my license, I talked him into selling it and letting me get something else (with the agreement that it was gonna cost me), because the Olds just wasn't cool enough.

This was in 1980...the Olds wasn't considered a collector car yet, and I think he snagged it for around $3k or so. He sold it, and I found a '69 Camaro with new everything (built 350, 4-spd, 4:11 gears, new interior, new paint)....for $2500. This was after passing up a '67 big-block 'vette for $5k that needed some glass work on the rear (and besides, my dad didn't really trust me in a 'vette. ).

Long story short, I found a fairly new '77 Camaro that I liked better than the '69; it wasn't fast by any stretch, but was a much better chic magnet. So away went the '69, and I picked up the '77 for right around $4k IIRC, and proceeded down the road of blowing/building motors, swapping rear end gears, etc etc.

So in that first year or so, I had about $4k invested after going through about $10k worth of cars (not counting the $5k 'vette), none of which were "worth" anything at the time, and were never expected to be worth anything in the future by most people.

Stop and think for a minute what those 3 cars would bring today, even in completely trashed condition.

 

[deflator]

Different cars, different era. People pay stupid prices for classics because you can't get one like that new. Who is going to want an out-of-date hatchback? Only A FEW cars become classics that increase in value, and that is usually because they have racing pedigree and heritage. No le mans winners on this forum AFAIK.

Those cars also were made to last. Ours, not so much. And the sheer production numbers for our cars make them less likely to be rare in the future. But hell, save anything and you can probably find some nostalgic idiot with money to part with. Look at Coke memorabilia.

 

[FLASH1970]

To the OP, what are your power goals? Your car should have the split thrust bearing like the EVOs have so if you plan to go nuts, just build the engine in your car. I'm sure you're freaked out about crankwalk, so if you have the split thrust bearing 7 bolt your engine is about as likely to crankwalk as a 6 bolt. For tuning, your 98 should have the flashable ECU so if you get a Tactrix cable, it'll plug into your factory OBD2 port. That along with the program called EVOScan and ECUFlash and a good wideband and you have your tuning setup. No splicing or cutting wires or changing out your ECU. But before you do anything, make sure the maintenance is up to par. Car looks really nice btw...

 

[Calan]

Who is going to want an out-of-date hatchback? Only A FEW cars become classics that increase in value, and that is usually because they have racing pedigree and heritage. No le mans winners on this forum AFAIK.

Depends on what type of hatchback it is.

The 1g AWD DSMs were ground-breaking and ahead of their time (Car and Driver top 10 for 5 years straight I believe). One of these days, when everything has been beat/rusted to hell and parted out and everyone is buzzing around at 50 mph in their electric cubes, you're gonna see a select few of these cars going for those stupid prices you mentioned. I'd put good money on it.