New Owner: Anything I should know? What should I mod first? [merged]

[airboss]

Hello to everbody in this forum. I'm new to all of this so from time to time I may ask a foolish question or two so bear with me. I just recently purchased a 1991 Talon TSi Turbo FWD for $7,600.00 Canadian and the Car was in MINT condition, never winter driven, always stored indoors, 100,000 kms., one owner (A Doctor) who always did the regular maintenance and anything else that needed to be done, and always a couple of good coats of Mother's Wax on her. She is in Pristine condition on the inside as well as under the hood, Pictures will follow soon so you can see for youself. What do you think? Also, I plan on doing some modifications, nothing outrageous but enough to put her around 250 HP. I'm thinking a mechanical boost gauge mounted on a single A Pillar Pod, a K & N High FLow Air Filter System to replace the whole stock can filter that is there now, and a new blow-off valve...Does this sound reasonable? That would do it for mods under the hood for now. The rest would be looks items like 17" Sniper Rims, and a neon purple ground effect kit.

Let's here those comments...I'm new to this stuff so all advise and help would be appreciated.

 

[doesitonall4rs]

btw here are some pics of my car i love it sooo much!

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

the day right before i bought it

 

[Evil1gDsm]

Clean 1g, Congrads on the find!! Now it's time to start moddin that beast!

 

[jaredgsx]

just make sure you do your mods, but more importanly tunning, right

 

[grpracing]

One thing to pick up is a data logger to start logging your dsm while it is still stock and then you can show your progress as you go. Simple mods from there are adding an a/f Gauge and a boost Gauge. From there you can safely add a manual boost controller and start tweaking up the boost a little to get a taste of the "Power Of BOOST". The car looks awesome. Welcome to the ranks of the DSMers.

 

[doesitonall4rs]

my bf installed a boost gauge for me already
he says he'll move it once i get a gauge pod

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

 

[matt87]

Very clean 1g, CONGRATS!

If you interested about learning the best first mods/supporting mods look up at the top for tech guide link on this side and follow it to the staged upgrade part and then it will tell the mods and explain them slightly. If you want more info search this site, there's an insane amount of info. I'm still trying to get all the info I can from here.

 

[grpracing]

Now that is pretty sweet!! If you have any problems locating a logger package let me know. I think I have an extra one laying around. I use the MMCD software and it works really good. Very easy to use.

 

[doesitonall4rs]

I was just wondering, why my car grinds into first sometimes. My bf told me that when I am reversing if I am still moving and put it into first it will probably grind, but on some occasions it has just grinded for no reason. Is this a big problem. Thanks for the help

 

[wpg96tsi]

hey i have a very similar prob with my car too (95 tsi fwd) i dont have the $$ to tear into the tranny so what i find works is just put it into second then first and for some reason it wont grind so u can try that for the time being

 

[grpracing]

I was just wondering, why my car grinds into first sometimes. My bf told me that when I am reversing if I am still moving and put it into first it will probably grind, but on some occasions it has just grinded for no reason. Is this a big problem. Thanks for the help

You might want to try changing the trans/diff fluid. Put in a nice fluid like the pennzoil syncromesh and then see if you still have the problem.Its also not a bad idea to hit second then first like the last post stated to get the trans into first.

 

[doesitonall4rs]

yea, my boyfriend suggested to change the tranny fluid, so i will probably give that a shot. I have tried going from second to first when it doesnt go into first gear, that works pretty well, so maybe i will just do that more often to make for less grinding. thanks

 

[missionx96x]

Ive got a 97 gst with a 1g motor. is there a website that show and explains how to tune these cars?

 

[MCDGexx]

www.vfaq.com

 

[kidwiththelaser]

http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/showthread.php?t=103469

 

[kidwiththelaser]

Ive got a 97 gst with a 1g motor. is there a website that show and explains how to tune these cars?

What to you mean by "tune"?

Modify? Or actually tune the fuel and timing?

 

[SkyLineGtR-R34]

^^^^
What he asked
And also what are you trying to gain/accomplish?

 

[prelude89]

Well I don't have a DSM yet, but my friend needs a truck and he wants to trade his 91 Laser RS Turbo for my 91 Ford Ranger. I beleive the Laser has 190k mile on the body, 130k on the engine, and I'm not sure about the tranny. He said the Laser needs the shift linkage adjusted because it goes into 1st and 2nd gear hard, the radiator has a small leak, and it needs a motor mount. As far as I know this is all thats wrong with it. Anything I should look for or check?? The guy that had it before him did some work to it. I'm not 100% sure, but I think he had the tranny replaced. I've always heard DSM are nothing but trouble, mainly the transmissions. Is there any cure for the bad tranny sydrome?? I'm reading on MSN Autos.com and it has a good reliabilty rating, it says the 4 speed auto has problems, but mentions nothing about the 5 speed tranny. It lists the PCM, Idle Speed Controler, and Timing Belt as problems for the engine. My Ranger has 138k miles, do you guys think I should go for this trade?? Thank you very much for any input and info.

 

[phillabaum03]

You will have more fun with the laser and be able to make it a fast little car. Depends how bad you need it running everyday of the year.

 

[prelude89]

I also have a 1989 Honda Prelude Si that I can drive in the winter or if something happens to the Laser. Are the 1st gen DSM's really as bad as people say they are?? After reading on MSN Autos, they don't seem that bad to me. They listed the timing belt, PCM, and Idle Speed Controller as engine problems like I already said, the 4 speed auto tranny has problems, and the Heating and A/C because it has to have an R-134 update, but I don't even care about that. They also gave the Laser a 4 out of 5 star reliabilty rating. I went and looked at it some more tonight and I checked the timing belt, it looks good. It has some rust on the front fenders, the middle part of the tail lights is cracked, the battery has to be unhooked when you park it because something drains the battery, and it needs new shocks for the hatch. I think I am going to go for this deal, I'm new to turbocharged engine's, I've always been an N/A guy. It'll give me something new to learn.

 

[ReNxWar]

I'm a new owner of a '99 GS-T Spyder (pics coming soon) after a stupid girl without a drivers license pulled out infront of me and totaled my 300rwhp Z28 convertible. So far I'm liking the car, but I'm wondering if there's any cheap/free things that can be done to it to make it alittle better. Here's the deal: I have a modification addiction. Once I get started, I don't stop. So, I've told myself (atleast for now) that I am NOT going to modify this car extensively. Maybe a tasteful CAI and a shifter. Exhaust will NOT be modified (listened to the exhaust clips, and I'm not a big fan of the sound a 4cyl makes with upgraded exhaust, not to mention I got in too much trouble for my mac shortie/!cat/!plate borla Camaro.. quiet is good)

Basically I'm asking what would the worthwhile mods be, something that isn't extreme enough to require supporting mods, but enough to make it worth the price tag. Would getting an aftermarket shifter make that big of a difference, etc. I'd also like to know if theres any cheap/free mods that can be done. Thanks in advance.

 

[pinder91]

http://dsmtuners.com/tuning-guide/2gturbo/stage0power.php

 

[fourreGsixty3]

Use the tech guide on here, and for any problems you may have use www.vfaq.com to research it first before you post it, also do a search on here because most likely it has been awnsered hundreds of times before. Also so free moding that you could do is port the o2 housing, and cast exhaust mani. There is also a free mods list in the tech article.

 

[spoolup]

also being FWD make motor mounts one of your first upgrades. Nothing like a little wheel op to take out your diff and tranny. Prothane makes some nice ones but they are on the stiff side and you will have a little more vibration in the car after doing it, but it is a GOOD mod. Like others have stated the tuning guide is a good place to start. and alot of parts can be bought 2nd hand to bring down cost (exhaust, intake, IC pipes, fuel management) since most people are always upgrading its easy to find some good deals. May want to suscribe to a local board if possible and then a few surrounding areas borads as well to help in the search, the local UTDSM board just had a SAFC go for $100.

As for the shifter, B&M makes about the only nice good quality one, there are numerous reviews on this piece. Some people swear it makes the car fun to drive.

Oh and welcome to the DSM world, sorry to hear about your other loss, but better the machine than the operator.

 

[kottyking]

Tuning guide is where its at bro.

 

[fredom dsm]

Welcome to the forums!! read the hole vfaq.com webb site, I have learned a lot from there.It tells you almost everthing you need to know about dsms. You may Also want to try machv.com there are quite a few helpful things on their website. welcome to the forums once again and at the end you will love your spyder.

rigo