Sleepyjack

There seems to be a large increase in people modding their cars up. They have body kits, spoilers, larger exhaust etc
My quesiton is do these features actually effect performance of the car that much? or is it so it looks nice and pretty?
Some of the spoilers and things i've seen seem to be anything but beneficial for any kind of performance, so i always question myself as to why thye do it.
I am not trying to start a flame war, just your opinon on why you may want to do it and what some of the mods actually do???

sakvee

Each person is different i spose but I've spent approx 15k on my car modding it. Most the mods i've done though, have been performance mods, eg, new turbo, exhaust. It's an addiction!

lt1s10

It's what they like. Some go for performance. Many for appearance. A few a balance of both.

Why do people mod their computers, collect baseball cards, etc. They like it.

I gotta admit that some of the stuff I see I think is ridiculous but in the end I didn't pay for it. And some of the work they put into it is incredible. I'd probably give them more respect for the time and money invested then the end result.

acpower

Some of it is all about appearances. It's just like the way we choose to dress.

FastShark85

Some of my mods are for looks (new steering wheel and shifter) and some are for performance (cat bypass and aftermarket chips).

I agree it's an addiction. I'm now thinking about upgrading the tired speakers and amp in my car.

Mill

I put alot of money in a MR2 I once had. It was all engine/ performance stuff. It got to be as fast as stock 5.0L Mustang of the time.

Problem was it was my everyday driver. After a few years it sucked watching that car get old an worn out. When a $500 custom exhaust rusts out it really makes you sick.

With my current car, I wanted to put Eibach springs, cai, exhaust and stuff on it. Would end up being money down the drain on a daily driver.

I was temped by the new SRT-4 thats out. Power and decent aftermarket support to compensate it being a Neon. There is no employee discount so I passed.

I think puting performance mod on a car is cool, but a wast on a car you plan on putting a ton of miles on.

Moonduck

I don't get doing a lot of modding to what you drive everyday. Buddy of mine has a nice 1st gen DSM, and he hits the local drag strip near him every weekend. During the week, it's his back and forth daily driver. He was musing out loud to me one day and wondered if pulling his entire AC system would more than a tenth off his quarter mile. I was stunned. I proceeded to run down to him how miserable he'd be in the frikken heat during the 99.8% of the rest of the time he drove the car, how expensive it would be to put back in, and how much resale value he'd lose if he just left it off. All for a tenth or two?!? He took what I said to heart and still has an AC.

In my case, I'm currently restoring and modding a old motorcycle. In my eyes, I can do whatever wierdness I want to this bike as it is not my daily driver by a long shot. It's currently a non-moving chunk of aluminum and steel in my garage. Thus, anything I do to it has no negative impact on my life.

As to the question of why do it in the first place? Well, I think it is best explained as not wanting what the factory tells you to want. Honda may make the Prelude, but it doesn't necessarily make YOUR Prelude. You have to do that.

Coucher

I have the Corvette and the Turbo Trans Am modded to go fast.

The BMW and Lexus to be pimp-daddy rides.

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Scorps

I think they do all that shit to there cars just to get the hot girls attention.

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DEI37

This has been my dilemma. I intend to do some performance upgrades to my Olds, but am leary of the miles I put on. I drive a lot. I would have to have another car (I do own a 2nd car already) in great running order, and drive it mostly. But, then the modified car seems a waste. Seems goofy, don't it?

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lt1s10

If you put the time and money into a project car I think it should be driven. I'm not one for art pieces or trailer queens. Same thing with surfing for me too. I see people buying replicas of classic boards and hanging them on the wall. If I spent $2800 on a surfboard I'd sure as hell want to ride it.

I used to have a '66 nova and my truck. I would switch between the two pretty regularly. The nova was also my weekend drag car. Drove it to the track, raced it, drove it home. Sold the nova because the guy made me an offer I couldn't refuse. Now I have a motorcycle and the truck. Still switch between the two depending on where I'm going and what I need to take.

IC3

Any guy that spends thousands of dollars trickin out thier ride just to get some girls attention has issues.

FastShark85

I agree with lt1s10.....I've put about 28,000 miles on my car in the last two years. Letting cars sit too long allows rubber seals to dry out and leak. You've got to get out and flog a car good on a regular basis to keep everything running well.

MSD

It gives a car a personal touch. Two people can buy the same parts, put them on identical cars, and end up with the cars looking the same, but it's still personal because they have a car that looks and performs the way that they want it to.

Think of it as the automotive equivalent of getting your house a new furnace, new A/C system, and some new furniture, and rearranging what you have, then painting the outside or replacing the siding and doing some landscaping.

It's all about your posessions reflecting your personaltiy. Some people want something to be proud of and happy with, not just something that rolled off the assembly line nad had custom plates slapped on.

impreza56

i agree. Its about being different. I couldn't stand driving a bog stock car- theres so many new cars out there that are basically the same shape, size, colour and sound that they all look the same. At least with older cars you could stand more than 3 feet away from them and tell them apart.

etla

Differentiation is surely one of the driving forces. My Brother drives a late model green F-150 4X4. Not unusual to see two or three of them parked together in a parking lot. Without the big ass winch bumper on the front you wouldn't know what truck was yours.

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Moonduck

There is a difference bewteen not modding your daily driver and producing a trailer queen. I think it is silly to spin up your primary transportation because too many people don't have back-up rides. No vehicle of mine will ever be a trailer queen. That's nothing but an expensive sculpture. But it also makes no sense to wreck the drivability of your everyday ride for performance gains you might use a few minutes out of a given month.

sakvee

Plus it's a lot of fun modding your own car, makes it stand out from stock.

WarWagon

I don't like it when people go faster than me, and I hate losing even more.

Stare At The Sun

Why not mod cars? even better question

johnyto

i've spent almost two thousand dollars on my 97 prelude and all performance and just one appearance mod = rims.

The way i see it is like so:

if you own a car that can smoke another cars on the drag do it, if you can't well, just do it for the love of the game...a.k.a. looking funny but at the same time, it is your money and investment.

later.

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Asshole Lover

modding is art. i respect it although i dont participate.

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lakefire

why "mod" your house by adding things to it.

Because you enjoy spending your time working on things that make it look nice.

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trwasmer

I personally mod my car for performance and apperance (ok that was a lame statement).

I tend to agree some go overboard, but whos to say that is what THEY like. I am a BMW nut (have had 15 of them) and have tweeked each one to some extent. There are 3 basic BMW enthusiasts. One leaves the car as is because BMW knows all, Second is one like me that ads personal stying ques for enjoyment, Third is the guys that go radiclly into the changing ot here cars.

Personally I say do what YOU want with YOUR car.

Tim

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