^Thanks guys.
Couple of people asked me about the Mishimoto hose kit I have. I did end up using the 350z/G35 kit. I bought it from Zebra, right around the time I gave up hunting for the Samco hose kit developed for the FX.
of the 4 hoses, only one does not directly bolt in. That is the main Radiator feed. To fix the problem I did this:
That's just a short length of 304SS thin SCH10S pipe that extends the pipe enough to make it reach.
Couple of people asked me about the Mishimoto hose kit I have. I did end up using the 350z/G35 kit. I bought it from Zebra, right around the time I gave up hunting for the Samco hose kit developed for the FX.
of the 4 hoses, only one does not directly bolt in. That is the main Radiator feed. To fix the problem I did this:
That's just a short length of 304SS thin SCH10S pipe that extends the pipe enough to make it reach.
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Oh yeah, I pulled that off for one day to install the weapon R PS tank I have, didn't end up using it, so I plastidipped the stock tank black and reinstalled. Simple but effective.
The engine bay is unfortunately not as far along as I would have hoped, but pretty much everything is taking a back seat to getting the Air Suspension completed.
From the latest pic of your whip thread I chose to post this here to keep that topic free of this clutter.
1st place:
Crazy hummer H2 on 30" wheels, with 4 15" JL audio woofers. Deserved to win, this thing was insane.
2nd place:
Avalanche laying frame. This one was kinda weird like the jeep as well, beside the suspension and footwork thats all the car really had, stock engine, stock media setup. meh.
3rd place:
Now this thing was definitely questionable, a set of bumpers out of the autozone catalogue, a winch, and a set of PIAA lights. Suspension and wheels both stock. Only other mod was the sony stickers due to the fact that it was parked inside the sony vendor booth. I really was disappointed since I didn't think vendor cars would be given awards, after all those people paid to be there so they could sell goods, not to compete...
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Now I will post face this with the fact that I am not "butthurt" over this. I know how judging works, and how some shows are simply looking for different things. This just motivates me to come back at it next year with more.
My car in its current state takes a real enthusiast to enjoy, most people don't pick up on the subtleties of what I have done (antenna deletes, wiper deletes, minor lowering, lighting, etc.). As a complete package my car had much more overhauled than the 2nd and 3rd place winners, but even so, for show purposes my car is not a full package, I have no multimedia setup, and the lack of interior mods hurts me in the score sheets.
My upcoming projects (and plans for the winter) include completing the Air suspension, which gives me the crazy effect, and also adds a big portion for me to show off in my interior. Adding a subwoofer furthers the interior work, and the BBK will complete what I currently refer to as "Phase 3" of my vehicle.
For reference Phase 1 included all the little tiny BS mods, like LED's, sport taillights, exhaust, intake, etc. Phase 2 was basically the vinyl, and the in depth engine work.
As of right now I have only had the FX for less than 2 years. I don't think that's a very long time considering some of the stuff that I have already done. Obviously I am taking it pretty easy and doing stuff incrementally, but I like to get it right.
It is what it is.
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- Car
- 2003 FX45
You should be proud of your car and the work you've done -(and I know you are).
Does one of those phases you mention include a poster model? Not necessarily a vendor supplied one, but Bring Your Own Babe.
Does one of those phases you mention include a poster model? Not necessarily a vendor supplied one, but Bring Your Own Babe.
You can't ever take shows too seriously. The judging is very subjective and if the judges aren't familiar with your model, they don't know what to look for. I once owned a Nissan Maxima, it probably had $30K in work but since judges weren't familiar with the car, they would miss a lot of stuff. So I would tend to do better at shows like HIN or Import Showoff where I could actually talk to the judge and explain what they were looking at. My wife had an Integra, similar amount of work, but since judges were familiar with the car, nothing needed to be explained and it won everything. I think it finished 1-3 in every show we ever entered with it over a 5 year period.
Basically judges get a sheet w/ all categories on it and if you're missing any category, it hurts. To have any little mod is better than to get a zero on a category. And for whatever reason, ICE, wheels, and suspension are way up there in points. Your engine work gives you points, but they may not have even realized that your wheels are aftermarket since they're GTR. Sad as it is, giant chrome rims on the Avalanche are worth more points at a show than your GTR's. I've seen people put in non functioning speaker boxes and amps just to get a few points for ICE. Fake nitrous is always popular since they sometimes gave out points for "power adders".
But don't build your car for shows; it gets frustrating after a while and it's not practical. We were always adjusting the coilovers before shows to slam the car, then having to raise it back up just to drive. It was awesome to see a 2200 watt system with 4 amps and 2 nitrous bottles in my trunk, but groceries wouldn't fit. And keeping a polished engine bay clean is a nightmare.
Looking back, I think I took shows way too seriously (I was in the business so it was marketing, but still). I wish I had just gone to shows to see some cool cars and meet people instead of constantly worrying about what the other cars in my class were doing and getting mad at judges.
Basically judges get a sheet w/ all categories on it and if you're missing any category, it hurts. To have any little mod is better than to get a zero on a category. And for whatever reason, ICE, wheels, and suspension are way up there in points. Your engine work gives you points, but they may not have even realized that your wheels are aftermarket since they're GTR. Sad as it is, giant chrome rims on the Avalanche are worth more points at a show than your GTR's. I've seen people put in non functioning speaker boxes and amps just to get a few points for ICE. Fake nitrous is always popular since they sometimes gave out points for "power adders".
But don't build your car for shows; it gets frustrating after a while and it's not practical. We were always adjusting the coilovers before shows to slam the car, then having to raise it back up just to drive. It was awesome to see a 2200 watt system with 4 amps and 2 nitrous bottles in my trunk, but groceries wouldn't fit. And keeping a polished engine bay clean is a nightmare.
Looking back, I think I took shows way too seriously (I was in the business so it was marketing, but still). I wish I had just gone to shows to see some cool cars and meet people instead of constantly worrying about what the other cars in my class were doing and getting mad at judges.
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Thanks guys.
@Shadow - it's funny you mention the nitous bottles and stuff, because this was the inside of the hummer:
This dudes car was a dedicated show car, and he was, like you, in the industry, so for promotional purposes it made sense. Whereas for me I don't benefit from this at all, its just a hobby, like my photography.
I go exactly for the reasons you mention, I have a blast at every show meeting people, hanging with the guys I go with, etc. This is all just fun for me.
But I am a competitive person, so I want to win.
Funny thing is I thought about shoving my old subwoofer box into the back of the car to get a few points for the ICE, but I decided that was like cheating since I wasnt going to bother connecting it.
@Shadow - it's funny you mention the nitous bottles and stuff, because this was the inside of the hummer:
This dudes car was a dedicated show car, and he was, like you, in the industry, so for promotional purposes it made sense. Whereas for me I don't benefit from this at all, its just a hobby, like my photography.
I go exactly for the reasons you mention, I have a blast at every show meeting people, hanging with the guys I go with, etc. This is all just fun for me.
But I am a competitive person, so I want to win.
Funny thing is I thought about shoving my old subwoofer box into the back of the car to get a few points for the ICE, but I decided that was like cheating since I wasnt going to bother connecting it.
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If it's a Hummer on 30"s, it doesn't matter if it's hooked up or not, it's basically for looks. You could spray a 150 shot and that thing would still run 16's. At least his lines are there, I've seen a lot of show cars with bottles but no lines. Or solenoids in the engine bay that weren't hooked up to anything.
I will say this, on the vast majority of show cars, nitrous is just for looks. It's very cheap to buy, it looks impressive, and it's easy to install. Better judges will know to check for the lines to be connected properly and at least the wiring to look right. We had nitrous on both cars we competed with and both were hooked up and functional, but we never really used them. It was more because of sponsorship and show points.
I will say this, on the vast majority of show cars, nitrous is just for looks. It's very cheap to buy, it looks impressive, and it's easy to install. Better judges will know to check for the lines to be connected properly and at least the wiring to look right. We had nitrous on both cars we competed with and both were hooked up and functional, but we never really used them. It was more because of sponsorship and show points.
Wow, people still purge? That's kind of awesome! Brings back memories...I had a purge kit as well, but it would purge under the engine so no smoke show. I remember people who set up the purge right by the windshield and then would hook up led windshield washer nozzle lights so they'd purge and the light would hit the smoke. Looked like a club. Such a huge waste of nitrous.
Lol I said the same thing. It had been awhile since I had seen someone do it.
How much is a bottle to fill? His looked like maybe 2 gallon tanks?
I don't know about now, but years back, it was ~$50 to fill a 10lb bottle. Sort of depended on if you could find it since not a ton of shops in my area would do it. I don't know if the ones in that pic are 10lbs or if they're smaller like 5lbs. It's hard to get a good reference. A 10lb bottle didn't always last that long so that's why I hardly ever used it. I only used a 35 shot NX wet kit to try and spool my turbo faster off the line. Tuning it got to be too much of a hassle so I never got it working perfectly.
I assume you mean the DTRL?
They were a group buy that a local guy here in BC organized. I had two sets one I am using in my car, and another which I sold with my old headlights.
I contacted the guy who organized it, and he was trying to stock them full time. I will check back with him tomorrow and report back on if he is now doing that.
You are actually the second member who wanted a set.
Just as a heads up though anyone with the turn signal swap mod, will need to mod their bulbs a tiny bit so they fit cause they are a few milliliters too tall for the turn signal bowl.
Well I took the plunge.
Full Accuair E-Level system purchased. Pictures first:
And the mess of stuff that came with it:
Now for the catologue of what you are seeing above.
First picture shows the ECU, Manifold, and iLevel module. This is the brains of everything. All the wires plug into that ECU, it does the thinking communicates with the manifold, and the manifold does the work to inflate or deflate the bags as necessary. The iLevel is the wifi adapter which will allow me to wirelessly raise and lower the car from my cell phone from about 200 feet away (which should be hilarious).
The second picture shows why this system is so special. That is one of the 4 sensor which will be mounted at each corner of the vehicle which will communicate to the ECU if a corner needs to be higher or lower. This system is supposed to be accurate within something like a 1/16". So basically when I get in my car and tell it to go to ride height my vehicle should without hesitation raise to ride height and stay there until I say otherwise.
The final picture shows the mess of other stuff that came with the kit:
-Wires to run to each corner of the vehicle
-Dual ViAir Compressor mounting plates
-Aluminum 3 Gallon tank
-air lines
-more wires
-lots of fittings and misc. stuff.
What is not pictured is my compressor, which is a Viair 444c compressor.
For the time being I am going to be mounting the system with a single compressor and that rather small 3 gallon tank. I will later on be upgrading the system to dual 444c's and a larger 4+ gallon tank.
Now unfortunately I bought all this stuff the day I am going to be heading away for 3 weeks. So for now I get to just put this stuff back in the box, and hopefully sometime near the end of september, or beginning of october I will get the system all operational.
My aim right now is for a deadline of Oct. 20 (my Birthday).
Full Accuair E-Level system purchased. Pictures first:
And the mess of stuff that came with it:
Now for the catologue of what you are seeing above.
First picture shows the ECU, Manifold, and iLevel module. This is the brains of everything. All the wires plug into that ECU, it does the thinking communicates with the manifold, and the manifold does the work to inflate or deflate the bags as necessary. The iLevel is the wifi adapter which will allow me to wirelessly raise and lower the car from my cell phone from about 200 feet away (which should be hilarious).
The second picture shows why this system is so special. That is one of the 4 sensor which will be mounted at each corner of the vehicle which will communicate to the ECU if a corner needs to be higher or lower. This system is supposed to be accurate within something like a 1/16". So basically when I get in my car and tell it to go to ride height my vehicle should without hesitation raise to ride height and stay there until I say otherwise.
The final picture shows the mess of other stuff that came with the kit:
-Wires to run to each corner of the vehicle
-Dual ViAir Compressor mounting plates
-Aluminum 3 Gallon tank
-air lines
-more wires
-lots of fittings and misc. stuff.
What is not pictured is my compressor, which is a Viair 444c compressor.
For the time being I am going to be mounting the system with a single compressor and that rather small 3 gallon tank. I will later on be upgrading the system to dual 444c's and a larger 4+ gallon tank.
Now unfortunately I bought all this stuff the day I am going to be heading away for 3 weeks. So for now I get to just put this stuff back in the box, and hopefully sometime near the end of september, or beginning of october I will get the system all operational.
My aim right now is for a deadline of Oct. 20 (my Birthday).
