$4000 for mods?

Hey guys I have a question. When I bought my CS in November it was with the intention of modifying it. My budget is $4000. I am not really sure what to do first. I've kind of broken it up in parts. These are some of my possibilities. Wheels - go to 19" rims Stereo - Add Sub in glove box and amplify system Performance - exhaust , evo intake Cosmetic - Bumperplugs matching colored rear console, OEM aluminum trim and shift knob $4k will probably get me where I want in one of these categories but obviously not all. My other option is of course save my money and wait until I can afford more but what kind of fun is that? So my question to you is What would you do( or what have you done) if you were spending 4G on the croc. Thank you for any input. BK

Well, which do you see as the "priority" on your list? Personally, I'd go with the performance mods first.... YMMV

Here's what I would do with 4K: AWE Catback 1700 H& R Springs 500 H&R Sways 500 EvoMS 300 B&M SS 300 Tint 200 Casino 500

Can you rank your interests. Looks, performance, sound? Might help.

I'm Definitely leaning towards performance mods first. I've already got the short shifter which on the advice of the forum I installed myself. Took me a while but it's made a HUGE difference. The CS is such a great performance car out of the box though. That is why I am considering some other things first. Anyway performance mods would be number 1 but any other suggestions would be much appreciated Thanks BK

Wheels. Make the biggest difference in how your car looks to yourself and to others. Nobody is gonna notice your color matched console or shift knob or that you put in an intake and got 2 horsepower. Absolutely nobody.

I would go with the Performance Mods( Exhaust , ECU and Intake) would make a significant increase to your performance numbers and you will still have some money left for some H& R Springs for appearence.

exhaust , intake, ECU , springs, 104 octane

Performance is the way to go

de-snork/de-baffle, catback exhaust , intake, headers , ecu tune in that order, or all at once if you can afford it.

GT3 seats or equivalent Recaro's which are what, half the price? I'm big and always have trouble keeping my body secured when on track especially. Unless I can use my feet/hands without using them purely to stay positioned, I find my performance suffers. You may not have that problem - my Boxster had std seats but the CS has sport seats so maybe they're better - haven't driven the car aggressively yet. Oh, and you need a gator and CC sticker - I'm surprised K-Man hasn't told you that (gotta get myself some....)

If your looking for track performance try a racing school, $4,000 will cover most. Don't know your experience, just a suggestion.

Why not save some more and see what else comes up? I know you're itching, but patience pays off. Before I supercharged my M3, people bugged me about getting an exhaust , chip, intake, headers , etc. Instead, I waited for the stage 1 to go on sale and now, for the same money I would've spent on bolt-ons and tuning (at most maybe another 30 whp), my car spits out 374 whp (about 90 whp more than stock) of pure fun!

Well, I would do whats important to me (obviously) so for 4K, and in order Clearbra Bluetooth XM radio Catback Headers Wouldnt even bother with the intake or giac flash for two reasons There are claims on much higher HP gains from other companies ... just not well known nationally yet Messing with ECU will, most likely, make the car no longer under warranty or something like that. The other thing to consider is how long your going to keep this car.

If i were to get the ECU done at my dealers tuning shop (Pfaff Tuning), it's still covered under warranty.

Thanks for the suggestions I think that I'm probably just going to wait until better things materialize or either wait for an engine conversion or supercharger. It was interesting to see what you guys would do. BUt still thinking about it. If I do anything it will be either an exhaust or upgraded wheels. Thanks again

Double-blind tests have repeatedly shown that it takes a relatively large change in power to be ACTUALLY noticable. Something like 10%. A significant increase in performance would be something like 20%? From what I have seen on this forum, mods like an intake or chip will make you imagine that you are noticing a difference but in a double blind scientific test you probably would not be able to tell. You might notice a new exhaust and headers - barely. Lighter wheels will help performance too - not saying its going to be "significant" but I am just saying that I bet it does more for acceleration than some of the mods people spend hundreds of dollars on.

here's what i would do with your budget de-snork k&n filter - $28 - PM me for info (i don't know if we're allow to show link) miltek exhaust - 1999 victor lemans ~ 1100 eibach springs ~ 375 cheap RF 10" sub (because that's all you'll ever need) ~ 50 homemade enclosure ~ 50-100 cheap RF amp just enough for the sub ~ 150-200 use the rest of the money for pizza & beer since you'll be needing some help installing all your parts.

BK - do you want to go fast or look fast?

You could also spend some of that money on a racing school to make the driver faster. That is always a nice upgrade that you can move from car to car.

Well, you are gonna blow through 4K pretty quick with a good set of wheels and maybe springs. If you already have 19's then you might be able to save the skins and that would save you a little bit. If not....well, bye bye to all 4 grand. Im a wheels guy so that would be my first thing. 19's and a set of Eibach or H& R springs to lower that 4X4 look of the stock suspension. If you arent already a PCA member, then join. Real cheap way to get into your local PCA and do some DE days which shouldnt really cost you too much.