Welcome, welcome!

[mrazntre]

Hi all!

I'm not a mechanic and I don't claim to be, I just like cars. I asked AB for this forum because I'm sure we all have car problems from time to time and I think we can throw some ideas around to help each other out.

I do actually work on my own car, but that doesn't mean I know everything. So let's just ask away. Foreign, domestic, whatever. . . . cars are cars, and trucks and vans and SUV's and CUV's and hybrids and wagons and PT cruisers.

[IKPakI]

Here's the first response..any way to make a 1999 Pathfinder any better? heard you can't do much to those cars...except lights and better cd player...

Check out this book called - Road & Track Illustrated Automotive Dictionary...it helps out alot for neophytes or beginners.

[mrazntre]

ikpaki: so exactly what do you mean by better?

[achtungbaby]

Good luck! I'll be posting my car questions here soon...

[karizma]

>> ok ok ok ....here's one...why do hondas suck so bad?

[mrazntre]

damn u karizma. i have a really good reply, but I don't want to be offending anyone in here. i'm gonna leave it at.. mebbe they have an open air element filter. so it sux in more air. it sux-a-lot

[IKPakI]

To me, honda suck because its cheap, lightweight, everyone can afford it and its slow. Wonder why people put alot of their hard earn money on upgrading honda's alot? I mean , the Hyundai Tiburon 2003 can probably go against a 2002 Prelude.

I mean, is there any way to pathfinder attractive or suped up? i was thinking about adding hydraulics or adding under lights, but thats around $100 and its illegal to use when driving at nights. Also thinking about adding bigger rims & getting my windows more darker..How do i upload pics? since i am in korea right now...i can do it at a pc room in chaewon.

[Arex]

What's wrong with Hondas? Perhaps I'm being defensive since I own one and think it's a great car but I've generally found Hondas to be well built (for what they are: cheap japanese cars) and reliable. True, they aren't built out of the nicest materials, but what Japanese cars short of those made by Infiniti or Lexus are (yes, even Acuras are kinda cheapy)? As for power, I guess it depends on what trim level you're looking at but I would definitely agree that Hondas are generally torque deficient. For the most part, though, Honda engines are marvels of engineering when it comes to strength and reliability which is why people in the import fix-up scene love making crazy drag cars out of 'em. And Honda transmissions are renowned for their smoothness and reliability.

As for the whole fix up scene, I can't really explain WHY one would dump so much money souping up a little Honda (or any car for that matter) but whatevers--to each his or her own. I just dismiss it as an expensive hobby. I must confess, however, as I'm guilty of making minor modifications to my own car. Haven't done anything crazy or terribly costly though (just minor cosmetic tweaks, suspension upgrades and a cold-air intake).

As for a Tiburon taking on a Prelude...I don't know how the two would match up together but I imagine it'd be a pretty close race. Apparently Hyundai's made some significant improvements since the previous generation Tiburon, especially with the new V6 and 6-speed tranny. The Prelude has a 20hp advantage over the Tiburon but the Tiburon has a 20ft/lb torque advantage over the 'lude. Both cars weigh about the same. Of course, the Tiburon comes in at about $3k cheaper.


Alex

[mrazntre]

ikpaki: the way you described honda's..... is exactly why a lot of people buy them. those cars are economy cars. that's the main driving force behind the japanese car movement (at least it was when the Japanese first started to export cars)...... now we see the same type of action taken by the Koreans. cheap affordable cars that are supposed to be economical (i mean 100,000 mile warranty!) great gas mileage.honda's make great daily driver cars, it's just that i myself wouldn't hot rod 'em.


as for the tiburon vs prelude thingy.

v6 - instant power
h22a vtec takes damn forever to pick up and accelerate.

torque = acceleration.

i'd go with the tiburon to take the 'lude due to instantaneous throttle response. depends on track length though. lude might catch up in the end when the vtec does hit.

now for a real test.
race up a hill. tiburon wins, hands down.

[karizma]

>> i dont like hondas because every honda owner 'round here with an exhaust and an intake thinks they're hot shit. hondas are meant to get groceries not race. yknow economy cars....for financially challenged college students and families of four...my future car? nissan 240sx :D...booyahhhh

[IKPakI]

Hondas are just cheap cars that people with alot of money cannot afford.

Plus, they are made from aluminum which tiburons are from chrome. Hondas just have alot of acessories that people can add and piss their money into. Its sad, people wasting their money on cheap hondas that won't be worth shit in 4 years.....

Me, i got a 1999 Nissan Pathfinder which is factory and in good condition.

[Arex]

I'm definitely not down with dumping thousands upon thousands of into a car that's worth only $16k to start off with. To me, that's just a waste of money. Like I said though, for those that can and do spend their money like that, it's just a (damn expensive) hobby. If they weren't throwing their money into that, it'd be other things, I'm sure...like upgrading to a Pathfinder, perhaps? But IkPakI, the way you write, you'd think some bonehead rice rocketer ran over your dog or something. No need to despise these people.=)

Re: Prelude v. Tiburon, apparently the Tiburon's performance is on par with other economy sports coupes in its price range. Click here (http://www.caranddriver.com/xp/Caranddriver/comparisontests/2002/may/200205_comparo_sportcoupes.xml) for a nice comparison between it, the Cougar, the RSX Type S, the Celica GT-S, the Eclipse GTS, and Beetle Turbo S from the Car & Driver website. Judging from the numbers posted there, it looks like it'd be too close to call with regard to the 'lude so long as you give the higher-revving Prelude enough gas when you launch. I know any new Tiburon V6 will probably spank my car given that I've been running the same air filter in my car for the past 90,000 miles...=)

Alex

[Arex]

[quote:e42ca818dc="karizma"]my future car? nissan 240sx :D...booyahhhh[/quote:e42ca818dc]

240SX was a pretty nice car for its time. I was trying to convince my old girlfriend to get one of those (so I could drive it) before the Prelude came out. Then I persuaded her to get the Prelude. But before she could, my old car was totalled by some crazy Japanese tourists who ran a red light in a Kia rental car. Thus, I ended up with my Prelude. And then she got her Prelude. And thus, we had matching cars.

But the newest generation 240SX a.k.a. Silvia is a very tight ride. At least in the turbo variant, it's beautiful AND fast. If it came to the states, I would definitely add that to my wishlist of budget sports cars.

[img:e42ca818dc]http://www.silvia.hl.com.au/images/gallery/silvia004.jpg[/img:e42ca818dc]

Alex

[karizma]

>> oh yea i forgot to mention what ill be doing to the 240sx...s15 conversion baby...sr20det en everything...kiss my tail lights riceboys :D

>> i think my baby looks really good in the picture above...they really captured its good side...[every side is its good side]...haha see how much i love that car? im talking likes its human :(

[IKPakI]

I still like my nissan pathfinder...thats my ride for life.

[karizma]

>> slap some big ol rims on it and tint the windows....get urself a nice sound system...the usual suv mods...thats how you make a pathfinder better

[IKPakI]

I was going to do all that, but rather get a 2004 pathfinder then wasting all that money. Never know, might get into an accident tomorrow or later and lose all that stuff...

[mrazntre]

arex: droolll..... s15! Boost, it's whats for dinner!!!!

karizma: i'll let you know how my frens car drives =P . so are you doing all the work yourself? HAH! duma!

ikpaki: do you have 4x4? what kind of fixing up are you talking about? my old co worker was into 4x4ing. he had a lifted and raised toyota 4x4. he did the whole off road thing on the wkds. imagine a mud splashed red truck in the parking lot when an important international customer came to visit the office. hah! not too good for brownie points with the boss.

chrome? aluminum? what are you talking about? are you talking about rims? cuz chrome is heavy as hell.

btw. you DO sound bitter. i don't like Honda's either, but you take it to the next level!

[IKPakI]

nah, mine is 2wd. I want my pathfinder to be eye catching....tinted headlights, bigger rims , but i don't want to spend alot of money.

and nope, im not bitter about hondas..just that i would never touch them...

Aluminum are on japanese cars, their mainframe body shell and korean cars like the Tiburon has chrome body shell which is heavy and hard to sup up good....i might be wrong, but this is why my buddy told me.

[mrazntre]

that's interesting what ur buddy told you.

most cars are made out of aluminized steel (frame) + sheet metal. it's not exactly the same as aluminum.

chrome is usually reserved for decoration like fender lining, rims, etc.

[IKPakI]

i see