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First i guess i should tell you guys a little about myself. I'm 17 years old, I am a junior in high school and i'm currently employed at a detailing shop in Scottsdale, AZ. I work one day a week and i don't make much money, so its gonna take me a while to get my car where i want it to be. I have a lot of goals for my car, and i'm hoping to achieve a lot of them. I have no experience working with cars, but I am a quick learner and i'm very mechanically inclined. Anyways enough about me here is some pictures of my car!!
Looks like you have an awesome platform to start with. What do you have in mind for the car?
Also, you should have posted this in the build threads section but I'm sure the mods will move it over for you soon enough.
I have a long list of things i would like to do. My next project may be somewhere along the lines of this. Other than that new wheels, possibly lower it, i'm gonna have some paint correction done and possibly buy a spoiler. I have so many ideas and so little money
If I can give a little advice from the perspective of someone who's been working on and racing cars for longer than you've been alive... Get your basic maintenance done so the car runs well and keep your early mods simple. Wheels, stereo, tint, body, exhaust, suspension, brakes, etc. Not because you do or don't possess enough technical skill to install and tune a turbo but because if this is your only means of transportation you don't want it down for long periods when you run into mechanical issues. Save the really big technical projects for when you have a little more experience, time and money.
I can't even begin to tell you how many times I sat in my parents driveway at 2AM fixing an "upgrade" because something went wrong I didn't expect and I needed to be at school or work in a few hours. Couple that with a severe lack of funds which prohibited me from doing things the correct way and it's quite possible to turn a decent running vehicle into a pile of crap. Ask me how I know! Just be patient with your mods and don't rush into things. There are a ton of awesome resources nowadays that I wish were available when I was 16. I would have saved soooooo much time, money and aggravation!
Sorry, didn't mean to go off on a Dad rant there. Enjoy the car as is for a bit - It looks a Hell of a lot nicer than my first car.
If I can give a little advice from the perspective of someone who's been working on and racing cars for longer than you've been alive... Get your basic maintenance done so the car runs well and keep your early mods simple. Wheels, stereo, tint, body, exhaust, suspension, brakes, etc. Not because you do or don't possess enough technical skill to install and tune a turbo but because if this is your only means of transportation you don't want it down for long periods when you run into mechanical issues. Save the really big technical projects for when you have a little more experience, time and money.
I can't even begin to tell you how many times I sat in my parents driveway at 2AM fixing an "upgrade" because something went wrong I didn't expect and I needed to be at school or work in a few hours. Couple that with a severe lack of funds which prohibited me from doing things the correct way and it's quite possible to turn a decent running vehicle into a pile of crap. Ask me how I know! Just be patient with your mods and don't rush into things. There are a ton of awesome resources nowadays that I wish were available when I was 16. I would have saved soooooo much time, money and aggravation!
Sorry, didn't mean to go off on a Dad rant there. Enjoy the car as is for a bit - It looks a Hell of a lot nicer than my first car.
Thanks for the advice dad Only joking haha, i appreciate the advice and you are right, with school and work i need my car running. I wasn't planning on installing a turbo just yet.. maybe in a few years once i graduate and have a little more time, money, and experience with my car. My car runs beautifully currently and im gonna keep it that way. I plan on changing out my spark plugs + wires, and changing the oil along with all of the other fluids. Performance wise i do not think i have any plans other than maybe a cold air intake. Im all for doing things the correct way and hate cutting corners to get the job done. I paid for this car myself and I have a respect for it, unlike most kids.
If I can give a little advice from the perspective of someone who's been working on and racing cars for longer than you've been alive... Get your basic maintenance done so the car runs well and keep your early mods simple. Wheels, stereo, tint, body, exhaust, suspension, brakes, etc. Not because you do or don't possess enough technical skill to install and tune a turbo but because if this is your only means of transportation you don't want it down for long periods when you run into mechanical issues. Save the really big technical projects for when you have a little more experience, time and money.
I can't even begin to tell you how many times I sat in my parents driveway at 2AM fixing an "upgrade" because something went wrong I didn't expect and I needed to be at school or work in a few hours. Couple that with a severe lack of funds which prohibited me from doing things the correct way and it's quite possible to turn a decent running vehicle into a pile of crap. Ask me how I know! Just be patient with your mods and don't rush into things. There are a ton of awesome resources nowadays that I wish were available when I was 16. I would have saved soooooo much time, money and aggravation!
Sorry, didn't mean to go off on a Dad rant there. Enjoy the car as is for a bit - It looks a Hell of a lot nicer than my first car.
Great advice. Reminds me...LOL.... Many years ago, I had an immaculate early model SC300, which was also my daily driver. I remember in one weekend (with help from friends) I did the plugs, water pump, hoses, timing belt, valve stem seals, ARP hardware, radiator and added a thicker head gasket.
I also bolted on a turbonetics turbo kit and ran oil and coolant lines! But none of the intercooler or piping was hooked up, since I ran out of time and had work literally an hour later, no sleep. But the exhaust was fully buttoned up and I drove it with the turbo kit, but piping not connected for about a week until the rest of the parts came in from a SF member. I was like damn, this is easy and maybe I can get the rest done the following weekend.
That's when I had problems, after the piggy back, fuel injectors, fuel lines etc. I thought I could do that all in a weekend. But wrong fittings, MAF problems, and then injector electrical problems, I remember it took about 2- 3 weeks to sort out. I repeated that a few times with some friends SC's and learning from my experience, got their cars running in a weekend with ****ty tuning. Now on to a 1999 SC.
Great advice. Reminds me...LOL.... Many years ago, I had an immaculate early model SC300, which was also my daily driver. I remember in one weekend (with help from friends) I did the plugs, water pump, hoses, timing belt, valve stem seals, ARP hardware, radiator and added a thicker head gasket.
I also bolted on a turbonetics turbo kit and ran oil and coolant lines! But none of the intercooler or piping was hooked up, since I ran out of time and had work literally an hour later, no sleep. But the exhaust was fully buttoned up and I drove it with the turbo kit, but piping not connected for about a week until the rest of the parts came in from a SF member. I was like damn, this is easy and maybe I can get the rest done the following weekend.
That's when I had problems, after the piggy back, fuel injectors, fuel lines etc. I thought I could do that all in a weekend. But wrong fittings, MAF problems, and then injector electrical problems, I remember it took about 2- 3 weeks to sort out. I repeated that a few times with some friends SC's and learning from my experience, got their cars running in a weekend with ****ty tuning. Now on to a 1999 SC.
Haha sounds like a productive weekend to me Thank you guys both for the advice and stories. Definitely puts it in perspective how things must not be rushed. I'm going to take my time and do everything correctly. I don't want to end up with $4500 dollar scrap peice of metal haha
Ordered some more peices of the puzzle last night from Carlos at Lexus auto tek. I ordered the battery harness bracket, along with a new headliner handle. Can't wait to get this car looking new again
Spending way too much money on this car haha, but i cant stop its like a drug... Bought a 97+ spoiler from a guy on the sc300 facebook group, Super excited to get it and put it on the car and give it some shape.
05-03-15, 08:39 PM
JHaggerty's Black 1997 Sc300 - Slow Build Thread
Only joking haha, i appreciate the advice and you are right, with school and work i need my car running. I wasn't planning on installing a turbo just yet.. maybe in a few years once i graduate and have a little more time, money, and experience with my car. My car runs beautifully currently and im gonna keep it that way. I plan on changing out my spark plugs + wires, and changing the oil along with all of the other fluids. Performance wise i do not think i have any plans other than maybe a cold air intake. Im all for doing things the correct way and hate cutting corners to get the job done. I paid for this car myself and I have a respect for it, unlike most kids.
Thank you guys both for the advice and stories. Definitely puts it in perspective how things must not be rushed. I'm going to take my time and do everything correctly. I don't want to end up with $4500 dollar scrap peice of metal haha
