$400 - reccomendations

[destruction]

Hey guys I have $400 that i can freely spend.

stock 240sx:

:) what can i do to make it go a lil faste.
OR ? am I dreaming ?


i you have any other suggestions on what should i spend these money feel free to post :)

[Flybert]

For straight line acceleration, you aren't going to be able to do much. You can probably get an intake and header used for that much or you can buy a used strut and spring setup which will be more worth it in my book.

[nokeone]

VLSD and Springs..:D

[sykikchimp]

fix stuff.. old worn out bushings, do a tune up, cahnge out your fluids (brake, trans, diff, etc).

If you have some money left over.. sway bars.

If you don't have anything broken at all, good tires (by good tires, I mean Falken Azenis)

[MyFirst240SX]

i would get a intake, strut bars, and exhaust. or ground control coilovers, maybe save up a lil bit more for that.
OR....
for 100 dollars buy a 300CM gas powered leafbower from homedepot and spend the rest attaching to you intake.:)

[Bill Roberts]

for 100 dollars buy a 300CM gas powered leafbower from homedepot and spend the rest attaching to you intake.



:bash:

:eek2:

:barf:

:sadwavey:

[tsunami0ne]

dont bother with intake,headers, or exhaust on your KA. The only benefit of those would be for sound and looks.

[the240sxer95]

i agree, azenis

[gilwankel]

Originally posted by tsunami0ne
dont bother with intake,headers, or exhaust on your KA. The only benefit of those would be for sound and looks.
Oh and more power too, dont forget that.

[97DubTruck]

a penny saved is a penny earned but $400 dollars saved means you're $400 dollars closer to going turbo.

[240Stilo]

Replacing stuff that's old on your car is a good way to go. As soon as everything you can think of is replaced then come back and ask what you can do with your moeny. Or else, you might find something is broken and won't have any money to replace it.

So far I've replaced:

Starter
Alternator
Battery
Clutch
Spark Plugs
Struts
Tie Rod ends
Boots hooked up to tie rods
Fuel filter
Front oil seal

Other than that I've spoiled myself a little with some wider wheels,tint, stereo, and springs.;)

[tsunami0ne]

Originally posted by gilwankel
Oh and more power too, dont forget that.

oh yes of course. power. you'll be able to beat some honda accords but your car will sound like you tried really hard to beat them.

[nokeone]

Originally posted by tsunami0ne
oh yes of course. power. you'll be able to beat some honda accords but your car will sound like you tried really hard to beat them.

actually the KA responds remarkably well to better breathing modifications...the stock airbox is extremely restrictive...

u will notice a small loss of torque with a cat-back on the stock n/a KA but the extra jump in HP up top more then makes up for it in the otherwise rev-unhappy engine...

but if you really wanna make (read: free up) some more horsepower..swap your belt driven fan for an electric one..this was one of the single most noticable mods i've done to my car thus far in regards to acceleration..

[MisfitFlesh]

i have a 240 you can spend that 400 dollars on. buy some me s13 lights and fenders? :wiggle:

[Bliss]

Originally posted by MyFirst240SX
i would get a intake, strut bars, and exhaust. or ground control coilovers, maybe save up a lil bit more for that.


with 400 bucks? he can get an intake, strut bars, and exhaust? happy ebay hunting...or GC coilovers? which run like 800 bucks? How do you figure?

I would say, like some of the other guys, do the stuff that needs to be taken care of. A fast car with a sweet suspension isn't much fun sitting in a shop or in your garage on jack stands.

[Zemus]

Mod the KA man.

Get a K&n intake filter, take the stock air box, drill out the old inner gold thingy and it will fit right over your K&n. Which is about 70 bucks, if that. Then Get an electric fan, which you can get really cheap or really expensive, it depends on what kind of quality you want, look up how to wire it on 240sx.org. That shouldent run you that much maybe 150 im guessing. What now your at like 170 left or somthing. Get aftermarket pullys thay should be about that much. You should get a decent gain from these mods. Also if you have any money left get a 300zx Fuel Filter their like 25$s, good upgrade. Well good luck

[nokeone]

Originally posted by Bliss
or GC coilovers? which run like 800 bucks? How do you figure?
.

i don't know where you shop..but if you think GC coilovers cost $800 then you are welcome to come to my shop ANY time..;)..lol..

try $399...

now, if you are thinking that the $800 is with a set of KYB or Tokico struts...then you are closer to the mark...but those are not a necessity until you want to lower the car more than 1.5-1.8 or so inches..

[Bliss]

Originally posted by nokeone
i don't know where you shop..but if you think GC coilovers cost $800 then you are welcome to come to my shop ANY time..;)..lol..

try $399...

now, if you are thinking that the $800 is with a set of KYB or Tokico struts...then you are closer to the mark...but those are not a necessity until you want to lower the car more than 1.5-1.8 or so inches..

yeah, twas what i meant...ok, still assuming hes got 400 bucks, 399+shipping>400, so either way, I still kinda make sense. kind of. :D thanks for the correction

[240Dave]

If I only had $400 to spend I'd buy koni shocks before groundcontrol coilovers.

"but those [shocks] are not a necessity until you want to lower the car more than 1.5-1.8 or so inches.. "
Where did you get that from? It's not just about travel, it's spring rates also. If you double the spring rate of your car and drop it an inch and keep the stock shocks you know nothing about handling. Ever driven an underdampened car...it feels like shit, I'd rather run stock. Somethign wimpy like eibach are the only springs I would even consider ever running on stock shocks, and even then I wouldn't want to do it.

[nokeone]

Originally posted by 240Dave
If I only had $400 to spend I'd buy koni shocks before groundcontrol coilovers.

"but those [shocks] are not a necessity until you want to lower the car more than 1.5-1.8 or so inches.. "
Where did you get that from? It's not just about travel, it's spring rates also. If you double the spring rate of your car and drop it an inch and keep the stock shocks you know nothing about handling. Ever driven an underdampened car...it feels like shit, I'd rather run stock. Somethign wimpy like eibach are the only springs I would even consider ever running on stock shocks, and even then I wouldn't want to do it.

Eibach is what Ground Controls come with by the way...you don't HAVE to get 550lb springs or anything (only used as an example of an extreme which one of my friends has on his 86)..

and when did spring rates come into play anyway?..who said anything about going with custom spring rates for the Eibach ERS on the ground controls as opposed to the standard "wimpy" (as you put it) springs?...

don't assume anything about my knowledge please...we were simply discussing the possibilities and pricing when given $400 to spend...

no one asked what would be the best for autoX or SOLO2 or what the characteristic of each suggestion would be or whatever...

so while i agree with you, and yes i have driven friend's cars who have undampened suspension, that it sucks for handling and performance..i don't appreciate your assumptions about me..:)..

thanks...

oh, and go with Drop Zone..lol..only $100 and the spring rates should be soft enough to run stock struts..lol..:p

[Red]

Originally posted by 240Stilo
Replacing stuff that's old on your car is a good way to go. As soon as everything you can think of is replaced then come back and ask what you can do with your moeny. Or else, you might find something is broken and won't have any money to replace it.

So far I've replaced:

Starter
Alternator
Battery
Clutch
Spark Plugs
Struts
Tie Rod ends
Boots hooked up to tie rods
Fuel filter
Front oil seal

Other than that I've spoiled myself a little with some wider wheels,tint, stereo, and springs.;)

This is a good idea... If you only have 400$ then do these things... Or keep it for when they break... I have replaced.

Starter
Alternator
Battery
Clutch
Spark Plugs
Struts & Shocks
Fuel filter
Front oil seal and inner seal
All 02's

all told I think my mod list is up to 4500 now... Thats with my 1700$ sound system tho...

(nothing to do with this but neat stuff) My bro got a db meeter... So I took it out to my car to see how loud I normaly listen to my music... Yeah...... My normal listening volume is 14-20 out of 30... Well at 14 the system is at 110db.. and at 20 its at 130db... I dont think thats good for my ears... :boink:

[stealthj]

save that money for engine swap...

[OptionZero]

mmm...first things first.

I agree with what everyone else said, ask your self what condition your car is in: is anything broken? about to break? worn out?

I have stupid stuff broken on my car, such as the A/C not working, would cost me $35 to fix it, but i decided i could live with out it. Strut boots were shot, do you mind a bumpy ride until you get around to fix it?

Also, how much labor can you do? do not forget to factor in that cost, not everyone is mechanically inclined. You might need to buy your friend lunch to help you (depending on the job)

Even for spring shock, if you don't have a jack or air tools, hey..gonna cost you money to rent 'em. No time? $100 at a shop to do it for ya.

As for actual parts...a k&n produces what i like to call ...'growl on demand', adds a nice aggresive sound when you accelerate hard, plus you feel a bit of added pick up (i have an auto, it would undoubtedly feel stronger if you have a 5spd). Shouldn't run you more than $40 for intake, maybe $15 for MAF adapter plate.

A short ram intake...how much improvement does it give over a cone filter? its like twice as expensive...but is it twice as good?

Other mods:
ASP p ulleys are $100 but will get you more power than anything else for the same money.

'91 cams into an S14...even less than $100 shipped, pop up all the time on the boards

grab some white line sways, and u're good to go.

[Muzzy]

buy my freshly rebuilt T3 its .60/48
c'mon u know u want it...u need it

[ge0man]

Wait wait, so an electric fan will help with acceleration? Like how much HP to the wheels would you see?

[nokeone]

Originally posted by ge0man
Wait wait, so an electric fan will help with acceleration? Like how much HP to the wheels would you see?

i've heard anywhere from 5-12..as per different dynos and such..on my personal cal, which i have yet to dyno, it made a VERY significant, seat-of-the-pants-dyno, increase in acceleration..

[Ricer240sx]

Originally posted by destruction
Hey guys I have $400 that i can freely spend.

stock 240sx:

:) what can i do to make it go a lil faste.
OR ? am I dreaming ?


i you have any other suggestions on what should i spend these money feel free to post :)

:aw: Give it to me so i can start gathering parts for myt swap, that will take care of my gauges and radiator :D then all i need is teh Turbo Timer and the Clutch :D

[thelinja]

I'd get a limited slip. There's a VLSD from a 98 SE on ebay right now. I just spent $300 on an S15 Torsen, and I CAN'T wait for it to arrive.

[apzak]

Originally posted by thelinja
I'd get a limited slip. There's a VLSD from a 98 SE on ebay right now. I just spent $300 on an S15 Torsen, and I CAN'T wait for it to arrive.

where did you get a torsen lsd for that much? what is required to make it fit on the s14? i have money for one so let me know, i'd really like to buy one.

[andrave]

if your car and suspension are in good shape you won't get a better bang for the buck than nitrous. A lot of my friends run it and I can vouch that you get a lot of speed per dollar.

If you would rather be able to carve corners than go in a straight line, 400 dollars would get you some nice aftermarket shocks and tein lowering springs, especially if you went with slightly used ones.
Someone on for sale has some just like that for sale for like 350 bucks right now.

anyway, you have your pick.
straight line, nitrous and maybe an exhasut can welded on for a little sound and show (nitrous is around 300 for zex kit, can would be 50 plus a couple bucks for welding). If you want you can get a no name filter with mafs adaptor off ebay for around 20 bucks on top of that, thats what I did.
Corners, the whole package I just said was 350 bucks, which leaves you with 50 to replace anything that you might find broken while you are down there.
Gee if only you had 800 you could transform the car!
;)

[OptionZero]

Well... lets find out. Is the $400 intended to be ALL you spend on your car? After this 400, then thats it?

or

Is this 400 merely the first installment, in which you can use it to prepare for bigger and better things.

You can always be like me and...start pieceing together projects and have dozens of unused parts lying around....half of a 3z swap...a few clutch parts....some piping here...a fan there...hahah