Where do I start?

[Kibsin]

Do what I did to start out. Basically a simulator before you get to real thing. Go to www.howstuffworks.com. Then go to automotive, type in vtec. Read all. Type in Clutch, read all. Type in rotary, read all, type in V4, read all. Get to know some stuff, and in that time, go to ebay, look up cars you like the look of ((You can have a 10 second car, but if your not happy in it and don't like the looks it's crap)) Look at the engines on ebay, how many Liters is it? What? don't know what liters are? www.howstuffworks.com Look up = Liters in automotive.

Then a good place to learn about engine mods is seriously www.nittoracing.com, download it, get your civic, and just do engine mods, learn the game, read about each mod you do. Why it gains horsepower, etc etc. Next step, get a damn car and go nuts. And don't forget to earn those insurance rates while your still young. Don't get yourself killed, but have some fun and learn.

You have time before you get your license so get to reading. If you start reading and find out it's boring, maybe street racing isn't for you and you probably just want a good car to drive around in that looks sick. Which isn't a bad thing. Good luck man, and welcome to AF.

[BLU CIVIC]

i say do research 1st....but me being biased....i say get a 88-91 civic/crx just as a starter car and learn from there b/c the aftermarket is huge, can pick one up reletively cheap, and there is a ton of information out there......if u want a challenge...i say get something different and not that common on the streets...mabey a subaru wrx or rs

[95civicman]

Originally Posted by Kibsin

1. type in V4, read all. Get to know some stuff,

2. Then a good place to learn about engine mods is seriously www.nittoracing.com, download it, get your civic, and just do engine mods, learn the game, read about each mod you do. Why it gains horsepower, etc etc. .

1. might wanna try to type in inline 4 if you want to find something about import motors cause i doubt reading about a boat motor is gonna help your situation any.

2. any game where you can run a 200 shot of nitrous, 30 psi of boost, and run a 8.3 sec 1/4 mile in a full street civic is not a reliable source of info, but it does show you the different parts of a motor.


also you aren't gonna have a 10 second car with 7g's(unless you get a lot of freebies) i say get a 5th gen hatch with a gsr motor already put in and then spend the rest of the money on makin it look nice, then start saving to get money to work on it. that way you have a pretty fast car that looks nice while your broke. and if you wanna learn how to swap a motor then you could just save the 3500 bux you would spend on the motor and just pull it out and put it back in

[vietxxxtasy]

To get a 10 sec. car how much do you think i would have to invest in my car. And what specific engine mods do you recommend and things you wouldn't recommend. I am practically start from scratch but have read up on lots of book but not the labor part like installation and all that. Do you have any suggestions? Is it difficult to learn how to mod an engine? Seems like this automotive forum is a great resource and i can learn a great deal from it. But do you think it's enough?

[-The Stig-]

Don't listen to the movies Kid... a 10 second machine is incredibly fast. It'll cost more than your $7000 to get to the 10's with your knowledge. They're aren't very streetable either. So just aim your goals a little lower for now... just go out and learn the ways of the road. WE cannot stress that enough. WE don't need a little 'Johnny' racer who think's he's hot shit out there and getting US in trouble or killed... If you kill me, I'll be severly pissed off.

Anywho, Just pick a car that you like and go from there, 99% of the time there's aftermarket support for it. Meaning whatever you end up with you'll have the chance to add go-fast parts.

I suggest one of the first things you need to buy, is a repair manual for whatever car you buy. A Hayne's or Chilton will work fine. Use those to learn how to do basic maintenance on your car if you don't have somebody around who can. This will give you the basic knowledge and workings of your motor... hopefully.

If you've got questions, ask somebody. Either here on Online or don't hesitate to take a trip to a local mechanic.

[95civicman]

ahhhhh!!! my mom was just watching tv on speed vision and they were doin some road car racing and she was like "hey look a skyline gtr" and then i turn to look at the tv and saw it run right into the side of a mountain. front end is all messed up i think it was a r33. if ya'll are watching tv right now turn it to speed, lots of really nice cars racing on the street and crashing, i'm now watching a cobra R racing

[Carguy393]

I am overly impressed with everyone that has replied so far. I could have swore that this thread would hav started one of the biggest flames in the history of AF.

anyways my is just look at some different cars (Test Drive them) and see what you like and you can afford. I used to think that I really wanted an Integra or something along those lines but eventually I decided on a mustang because it is already fast and fun (at least to me) and I can afford insurance. If you want something that looks nice then find cars that you think look good or that you can find a body kit for that you like ect. ect.

[DeViL]

Buy a third gen. F-body, they never break down..........ever.

But seriously, first look at your pocketbook, you said you have around $7,000 to buy a car with. That could make a pretty good downpayment on a car or it could be enough to buy you an older car like an 88 Civic or something of that nature.

The last thing you need to be worrying about right now is racing, end of story, get that out of your head. Being 15 you don't know much about driving in the first place.`

[streetrcr45]

... with devil u shouldnt be thinkin about racing right now... and u shouldnt be worrying about a 10sec car.... u dont even have a car yet

[Polygon]

I hae to say it, well not really, but I have a good option for you. Unfortunatly it is not an import. Recently I found a car for sale in Florida. It is a 1990 Chrysler LeBaron GTC. He says it is in perfect condition just needs a paint job and all he wants is about $2,000.

There are many upsides to this car. Stock it is making about 205HP and 225 ft/lbs of torque from a 2.2L turbo charged and intercooled 4 cylinder. It also comes with a Getrag forged five speed, perfect for racing. The car gets great gas mileage when you don't have your foot in the gas all the time but can get up and move when you need it to. Also insurance is great. I was paying about $90 per month for full coverage because insurance companies consider it to be a luxery car. On top of it all with about $2,000 in mods you can easily be in the 12s in the 1/4 mile.

As you can tell from my sig I am partial to the 1989 and 1990 LeBaron GTC. I think they are great cars. However you might not want to get one because it may be more power than you can handle juts starting out.

Just one suggestion.

[vietxxxtasy]

Well of course i know i am very young to be racing. See i'm not really into racing. I never raced before. Except on nitto racing. Any how.... I'd like to think of this as a project. I just want to know technical side about cars and what makes them go fast. And i want that first hand experience by modifying my ride. At the same time i learn a lot about cars. Now the reason I put up this thread is to ask everyone's opinion on what car i should start out with to modify at a budget of $7000. That's all. I'm not a race but i love the looks and feel of imports.

[DeViL]

I just want to know technical side about cars and what makes them go fast. And i want that first hand experience by modifying my ride.

And what makes you think you'll be able to do that? Just grab a wrench and get to work? "Modifying" anything that gives you real performance is going to cost you, a lot. For example, my little cat-back exhaust for the S-10, $680 bucks for installation, a bigger mass-air-flow sensor which was probably not even worth it, $200 bucks, headers $580 , a supercharger would cost me $3,000 bucks, an intercooler to keep the supercharger cool is another $1,000. Beefier camshafts probably would cost me up to $800, a new 350hp 5.7L V8 for my Firebird costs $2500, that doesn't even have all the parts to actually make the engine start, and the money just keeps piling up.

Soon enough you'll find yourself spending thousands of dollars into a machine that you later think isn't even worth it.

At the same time i learn a lot about cars. Now the reason I put up this thread is to ask everyone's opinion on what car i should start out with to modify at a budget of $7000. That's all. I'm not a race but i love the looks and feel of imports.

Look just get a car that you like don't ask us for our opinions. "What car should I buy?" is constantly asked here and it does nothing more then bring arguments and piss us off.

What do you mean by the "feel" of imports?

[Jm93]

i love the looks and feel of imports.

hmm, you dont have a licence, so you liek to feel the imports? i mean, who goes around feeling up cars? ;-)

anyways like many before said, dont come here and ask us what you should blow your wad on. we dont know you, dont know all of your driving traits, even if john force came ehre and asked for a suggestion, i wouldnt be sure what to tell him.

like said by someone before, read, read and read, learn and make your own decision. answers on the board are merley opinions, and most people dislike, or like cars based on experiences theyve had with them, and not every car is perfect.

also being 15, dont worry about getting your fast car. i thought the same thing when i was younger, i wanted a 3rd gen camaro, what did i buy instead? a sunbird. it was the second car i could actually call my own (first was a dodge daytona) and ive since worked on my standard driving skills. now yes next summer i am more perforamance car, but for a first car, you could get say a 90 economy/2dr for about the same price as a mid 80's sports car that obviousl has been bagged at least once in its lifetime. i mean who buys a sportscar not to drive it quick once in a wile. anyways, off topic here.

bottom line is, you dont need that sporty car to start with, i know its "hip fo shizzle" to have that nice car, but stick with something mild till you learn how to drive better.

[HotBoys09]

Originally Posted by 95civicman

you've done it before but spell vtec wrong not once, but 4 times

I have never owned an Integra nor a Prelude. I was just comparing the top trim, compared to base models, and the difference mods would make. Like I have a Probe GT, and the mods helped more than a 4-cyl automatic probe. And, since hes an import guy, i thought an integra or prelude VTEC, would be good.

[KrNxRaCer00]

learn to drive then get back to us.

i say something with air bags and not very much power to start.

don't over-power urself...ur only going to either hurt urself or a nice car...(or someone else)

if u want an import great (it IS a good starting point considering the low power/torque and good safety features), and u could work up to a monster V8 after that.

EDIT: i do agree w/ the rest...read up online an get a haynes manual so u can do little things like changing ur oil an doing ur own tune-ups.

these things may seem small, but u've got to start somewhere don't u?