wesurroundthem

here's some pictures of what i accomplished Friday. figured i'd post as a return for those who offered advice, and anyone looking to do same...

anyway, pics aren't so great, especially of my rims, can't really see the red stripe. they were taken with my phone. also, i kind of forgot to take some "before" pictures, and pictures of the process. pretty easy job though, even for the mechanically declined like me, but had Dad's help.

pic 1: old exhaust manifold with nice big crack in it


pic 2: same thing


pic 3: again, the crack + previous owner's attempt at a weld job or something


pic 4: ebay headers! $70 shipped! immediately after install


pics 5, 6, 7: more angles of the luxurious headers from ebay




pics 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13: valve cover $65 shipped (looks a little orangey in the sun, but it's a nice red) - also shows headers turning bronze after i ran the car for a little bit







the rest of the pics are of the lip and my rims and some exterior shots:
















Comments:

-headers
were well worth it, $70 shipped on ebay - probably cheaper than new exhaust manifold from junkyard. exhaust sounds better. and as someone else said before, they did temporarily emit an odor as they were burning off whatever kind of residue is on the metal, i suppose - but it didn't last long. as far as fitment, they might have come up a little short to my cat, but we got them to reach with a good squeeze and without having to tweak anything else around. word of advice, don't think the job is going to take a half hour - try a few hours. when you're working with your exhaust system, it's likely a lot of your nuts and bolts aren't what they used to be and won't cooperate - that means stripping a few, so be ready to replace.

-valve cover
say what you want about DYI, but there is no way i could paint one like that in days and days of time. i saved money by paying for it. besides, things never turn out as planned. i wanted the red to go with some other red details in my car. i like it.

-mugen "style" lip
at first i was very disappointed when i received the package, which was a box approx. 1/3 the size of the lip, and it was folded in 3 and stuffed in size. i thought, how the hell is this thing going to go on my car now? they ruined it. everyone said leave it in the sun, hit it with some heat, etc, and that's what i was thinking. well, it worked out fine. i left it in the sun the entire day while i was doing the other work. come time to put it on, it was an easy fit. not perfect, but damn good enough. and i'll be damned, the 4 **** screws they supplied were all that i needed for the install. btw, just in case you're wondering, lip was $4.99 + ~$40 shipping on ebay

wesurroundthem

i need some help with my next projects guys - details, links and pics very much appreciated:

1. fog lights (yellow) for 96-98: how much? and where is best to buy them?

2. should i get projector headlights? if so, how much and where is best to buy them?

3. cheapest/best/easy install HID kit: how much? where?

4. coilovers: anyone recommend something for under $500 shipped - i was looking at ground control coilovers by eibach for about $350ish shipped (and they are red!). thoughts on these?

5. i was also going to pick up a bronze NRG front strut bar from ebay for like $70 shipped



i had my rear wheel wells rolled, but i'm still getting some rubbing. car is ok with me in it, but with passengers, i can still get some rub. most of it seems to come from the front though, especially around hard turns - figured the strut bar might help?

thanks guys

wesurroundthem

oh yeah, should i paint the lip? how much do you think that would cost?

ej1love

strut bar wont help rubbing, and projectors are better for hid's...

wesurroundthem

well, i think i like the bronze color nonetheless, whether it helps or not, but i plan to get coilovers too, just need to find the right ones in my budget... if anyone knows about eibach ground control?

my mechanic friend said he'd install for $200.

ej1love

it WILL help body roll. and a spring/strut swap is easy u could do it, if u did ur header urself...

wesurroundthem

yeah, and i think the body roll is why i'm getting most of my rub in the front, when i'm leaning on curves...

don't i need a tool to compress the springs or something? besides, it'll probably take me 150 hrs of labor vs my mechanic for $200.

ej1love

a spring compressor, rent one at a local parts store 50 bucks. u get the $ back when u bring the tool back...

Matt93eg

I have the following HID setup. As well as Jimster and some of his friends on here. I have the 6000Ks and bought from seller Autoluminate on EBAY. You can buy certain stuff on EBAY thats good if you research it first.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Xenon...Q5fAccessories

I also would like to know a good projector headlight assembly to get to see if I get even better light from the HIDs.

Jimmy

iTrader: (5)

nice review

wesurroundthem

cool, thanks for the idea. maybe i'll give it a shot after all.

wesurroundthem

thanks a lot man. i'm not too picky these days and willing to try just about anything just as long as it doesn't cost too much. i used to have all the best stuff on my acura rsx type-s and it became just too much upkeep for what i was willing to put in (at the time). then, someone stole it = all that money down the drain.

i did have HID's on that though, not sure but gut is telling me 8000k, huge difference compared to the lighting on my honda, so i definitely want HID's.

again, thanks for being precise!!!!!!!!

alphalanos

strut bar wont really do anything for body roll. It reduces flex between shock towers. Unless youre doing serious driving (which shouldnt be on the street) its not worth getting.

96-98 fogs Ive had Depos and they leaked. Light out put is weak and unless you actually have fog its also a waste of money.

Projector headlights will probably reduce your light output. Combined with plug and play HIDS will result in horrible glare to oncoming drivers.

Ground Controls on stock shocks will be bouncy. You need some better shocks such as Koni yellows or other sport shock that can be used with low ride height.

Going cheap gets you cheap results.

Matt93eg

No problem man, Glad to help. One other thing about that HID kit. If you clicked on the ebay link I put in the reply which I am sure you did, you will see that the Ballast boxes are basically silver and seem to have no mounting brackets. They send you zip ties which is fine and also this sticky tape stuff. When you get that kit..you might as well immediatly throw that tape in the trash..its 110% GARBAGE. A damn paperclip wouldn't stick to it..much less the ballast box.

However when my kit came..the ballast looked different than what is pictured and had a mounting tab on one end perfect for a screw. So I was able to find a place on the frame on both sides and drill a self tapping screw in..they are mounted very nice with no movement. Just a FYI.

BigSorn

www.sharphid.com
very good site to buy hid's from, bought them for all my vehicals, no problems.

wesurroundthem

how much for koni yellows?