What cars should you not modify

[300bhp/ton]

heebeegeetee said:

omfgmynamewontfi said:

any modded car is chav

alway leave standard IMO

Couldn't agree more. I do think that modding is an immense waste of time and money which would be better spent on driving and traveling.

I think that's a rather narrow view of the world. Driving and traveling are hardly direct substitutes are they? I mean, come on, lets be serious.

If you get say 20 days holiday a year. And you can buy a set of new wheels for maybe £30/month over 12 months and you only have 4 days holiday left. Then a fortnight in the Caribbean is hardly likely to be an option is it.

Not too mention mods are pretty varied. Yet you seem to claim they are all chav and a waste.


This is one of my modded vehicles, very heavily modded. Maybe you still consider it chav however...??



And I can tell you, it's a much better vehicle modified than it was standard.


This is another one of my 'modified' vehicles. But I'm still puzzled how this is chav either?




And I've got this, which is very heavily modified and must completely sum up what being 'chav' is all about despite being a lot more fun now than it ever was standard.

[SuperchargedVR6]

Speed addicted said:

aka_kerrly said:

Speed addicted said:

I think if the modifications are performance orientated and actually make the car better they're fine,

Big spoiler on a low powered FWD hatch that will actually make it slower and handle worse are bad.

Would you have evidence to back up the claim?

Many tests/videos available showing that FWD cars benefit from having a rear spoiler which creates downforce/stability. There is a good video of a Spoon Civic going around Tsukuba a couple of seconds faster with a (what PH experts would call a Chav) spoiler fitted.

I'll bet the Spoon civic had more than just an epic untested spoiler fitted though, and it's quite a bit different to the 1.4 barry version seen trundling about with badly fitted bodykits and an optimistic drift charm on the towing eye.

Modifications for performance make sense to me, modifications that effectively ruin the ride and handling of an already slow car do not.

I remember disconnecting the pop-up spoiler on my Corrado once, just for the sake of experimentation. Does that tacky little thing actually do anything? At normal driving speeds, diddly squat, squared. Once you get up to 90+mph, you do notice it's absence, but it's not a spit you into a hedge / not spit you into a hedge difference. I'd say it was more marketing than anything else.

[anonymous-user]

heebeegeetee said:

I long remember reading about the Lotus Driving Academy at Hethel and the quote from one of the instructors: 'For £600 we can really change you as a driver and make you much faster, but most owners will spend that amount on a stainless exhaust'.

I have to say I've since since experienced the talent of one of those instructors and was shocked at his speed.

heebeegeetee said:

I do think that modding is an immense waste of time and money which would be better spent on driving and traveling.

And how would travelling help exactly?

The point that you are missing, completely is that travelling, for some, is a total waste of time and money. Ditching the run flats on a modern BMW, would you say that was a waste of time? As for money, are you really claiming that a newish modern car is a better financial bet than an older, depreciation proof car with a few thousand pounds invested, which can all be removed and sold should you wish to do so?

A better driver is always going to be faster, this isn't about lap times, it is about what you enjoy.

[feef]

It can depend on the car too I think.

I can't think of any mods I'd want to do on my Citroen C6. It's a big wafty barge, it's not designed for handling, it's built for comfort. The only 'mod' I may consider is an EGR delete but that's nothing to do with performance nor aesthetics,

The MX5, however, well, that's got a custom dash, custom center console and audio system, Tein S-Tech springs, a subtle splitter/lip, and once the welder gets back from being repaired, I'll be able to continue with the installation of that 1UZ 4.0 V8 to replace the stock, but supercharged engine that ate a couple of pistons

[Herbs]

heebeegeetee said:

Herbs said:

So subtle mods on say a Lotus or Aston Martin is chav?

Hahaha ok then..

I long remember reading about the Lotus Driving Academy at Hethel and the quote from one of the instructors: 'For £600 we can really change you as a driver and make you much faster, but most owners will spend that amount on a stainless exhaust'.

I have to say I've since since experienced the talent of one of those instructors and was shocked at his speed.

Agreed, but i never realised that they were mutually exclusive

Also, driving skills has no bearings on whether you can wirelessly stream music from your phone or strap in a harness for track days, etc

Mods come in all shapes and sizes so a blanket comment that they are a waste of time and chavvy is just naive.

[heebeegeetee]

300bhp/ton said:

I think that's a rather narrow view of the world. Driving and traveling are hardly direct substitutes are they? I mean, come on, lets be serious.

I mean driving and travelling combined, use the car for what it's for, get out there in your car and keep going. Until you have to come back.

[julian64]

Its not the cars, its the people who shouldn't modify.

Most people who modify separate into two different types.

1) Those people who want to enhance a cars appearance or performance

2) Those people who think a LS engine is the answer to any question yet to be asked

Type one are usually enthusiasts with an interest in the cars they are modding. Type 2 are just car vandals who's justification for everything they do is the BHP with no regard to character, quality, or sensitivity.

I actually like the LS engine, but some people want it in everything that has wheel in each corner.

[MinuteMan]

heebeegeetee said:

use the car for what it's for

Getting from A to B you mean? Because getting from A to A via B road is surely a waste of time and money?

Or do you do it because you enjoy it

[julian64]

DELETED: Comment made by a member who's account has been deleted.

Is that sarcasm? Difficult to tell.

[Iddz]

I wouldn't modify a luxury sedan such as BMW or Merc, then again there is types of modifications as some have already mentioned above.

Chav mods = 1.0L to 1.4L with huge bodykits and exhausts
Discreet mods = Different wheels, tints, remap etc...
Real mods = Classic/rare cars that are tuned professionally for power

[aka_kerrly]

Iddz said:

I wouldn't modify a luxury sedan such as BMW or Merc, then again there is types of modifications as some have already mentioned above.

Chav mods = 1.0L to 1.4L with huge bodykits and exhausts
Discreet mods = Different wheels, tints, remap etc...
Real mods = Classic/rare cars that are tuned professionally for power

1st post>Welcome!!

You are potentially pigeonholing too much, there are no clear rules as a modified BMW or Mercedes saloon can be a fantastic thing.

1.0>1.4L engines for example Mazda rotary, VW Polo G40s, Toyota Starlets 1.3, Suzuki Swifts 1.3, Vauxhall 1.4 16v, Pug/Citreon TU or the classic Mini 1275cc engines are all fantastic and benefit from tuning which can generate some serious power.

Real mods = classic/rare that are only tuned for power - I don't agree that cars tuned for power is a sign of well modified, power is only one part of what makes a great car, having the chassis/suspension/steering to apply the power is far more important.

I hate seeing cars where the owner brags about doubling the power but still has tiny brakes hiding under huge wheels shod with average or budget tyres. This applies equally to old classics and modern cars , rare cars and common cars.

[IroningMan]

Mod what you like, but I don't quite understand the point of performance mods to a mid-range model - almost always better to swap to a higher performance model instead, surely?

Oh and 300bhp/ton: chav wheels on the TR...

[Jesus]

Not cars, but vans - seeing lots of new vans modded with massive wheels, lowered (lowered? - it's a van, made for carrying stuff that's sometimes heavy) side bars and big Jimmy Hill chin spoilers.

Bally awful.

[Fattyfat]

Bit of a difference if you compare what Jay Leno does in his restoration/modification vlogs to someone sticking wheels and an exhaust on a Corsa. Still car enthusiasts in their own way though?

[aka_kerrly]

Fattyfat said:

Bit of a difference if you compare what Jay Leno does in his restoration/modification vlogs to someone sticking wheels and an exhaust on a Corsa. Still car enthusiasts in their own way though?

I agree.

Although I do find it funny that the Corsa gets a hard time whenever modified cars get mentioned yet there are some bad ass ones out there plus many are used in various forms of motorsport from rallying to drag racing.

[Iva Barchetta]

Look at these chavved Audis.



What on earth were they thinking of ?....

[Hugh Jarse]

300bhp/ton said:

lovely

[RobXjcoupe]

For those of us not blessed with a large bank balance we have to start at the bottom with a regular everyday common car to try to make it ours. As we get older hopefully our bank balance grows a little to afford a more suitable project car.
But to those that can't see the point it's an opinion. Also a M badged BMW is a factory modified regular saloon. An rs Audi is a factory modified car and so on for most car manufacturers.
Fast Fords have a huge following. Pushrod engines, ohc, dohc, v6,v8, turbo, supercharged all equally modified in all manner of differing models of various low and high specs from the past to now and of course the future. Sometimes it's actually cheaper to build a better car from a lower spec variant because prices on an original have rocketed due to rarity.
Live and let live I say

[dazwalsh]

So what you are saying is, the shark fin aerial (from a BMW) that I fit to my Peugeot 307 didnt look all that badass after all?

Morale of story, stuff that looked awesome at 19 doesnt look so great at 35 and onwards.

Oh hell I just remembered I put massive mud flaps on that Peugeot too to make it look like a rally car. I really should dig a photo out of that God awful heap if shyte.

[Matt Harper]

Hugh Jarse said:

lovely

Agree - that is a bad-ass little car - the in-car video early in this thread gives a great feel for what it drives like too.

Me likie mucho.