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My midlife crisis Corolla is fast, furious, and modded

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Re: My midlife crisis Corolla is fast, furious, and modded

#161

Post by telesilla »

steelframe wrote: post #128

I owned only EVs and PHEVs since 2012. The GR Corolla was so compelling that it pulled me back to an ICE. I had forgotten what it felt like to have FUN while driving. The biggest feature for me is that I could pull the DCM fuse and not get constantly spied on. The next-best feature is that I can disable the center screen. And I love my physical buttons.

The Corolla bangs. I had a 1990 model that got me through years of zero problems, it was fully mechanical. We're still a Toyota family and same reliability: I took our current non-electric car to a new mechanic for the yearly check last week and asked him how much life it has left, he says until the rest of my life (city emissions will cancel it well before).

Re: My midlife crisis Corolla is fast, furious, and modded

#162

Post by tristor »

salezred wrote: post #136
tristor wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I promise you it is not limited to the Camry/Corolla/Civic community, it's just that those cars are very commonplace so its more obvious. I had a full track build BRZ that looked nearly stock from the outside other than the wheels and hood vents, and I loved that car and still miss it. Even in the Miata and BRZ/86 communities where these are designed as cheap, trackable sports cars, most of the community is more focu…

As a counterpoint for practical (i.e., performance) mods being the only mods that matter... I have a F82 which has a few carbon fiber parts to make it stand out a bit. I really don't think I need more performance than what it has to offer, so making it look nicer seems like e a good idea (at least it won't look identical to all other F82s). Now, would I do that to a Camry? No freakin way.

I don't think there's anything wrong with doing purely cosmetic modifications if those modifications don't also make the car worse. The challenge is many folks in the community do cosmetic modifications that actually reduce performance.

Re: My midlife crisis Corolla is fast, furious, and modded

#163

Post by rootusrootus »

caconym_ wrote: post #51

Lots of weird judgment and smugness in this thread. This guy bought a fun car that he's excited about? Well obviously he's POOR and IMMATURE because if he was RICH and OLD he would buy an ELECTRIC CAR that's WAY FASTER (in a straight line) and doesn't make nasty noises and smells!!! what an idiot!!! I'm all for cracking down on excessively loud and stinky cars, but the GR Corolla is not that loud, and it has modern e…

> Lots of weird judgment and smugness in this thread. This guy bought a fun car that he's excited about? Well obviously he's POOR and IMMATURE because if he was RICH and OLD he would buy an ELECTRIC CAR that's WAY FASTER (in a straight line) and doesn't make nasty noises and smells!!! what an idiot!!!

As someone who happens to drive an electric car that is wicked fast (and not just in a straight line...), I'm not sure why you'd suggest that the weird judgement and smugness is directed only at guys driving gas cars. I get plenty of crap over driving an EV. Especially a performance-oriented one.

I love manual transmissions too, but you're just as judgy.

Re: My midlife crisis Corolla is fast, furious, and modded

#164

Post by compass_copium »

lapetitejort wrote: post #8

My ongoing midlife crisis vehicle swerves in a different direction: I bought a 1988 Nishiki 1207 at a yard sale for $40. Mostly stock save for a new seat. With the wheels out of true, the stickers plastered over with garbage, the brakes loose, the front tire visibly cracking, the rear cassette visibly rusted, and the rack mounts stripped, the bike needs some work. I am motivated to finally really learn bike maintenan…

It's a rewarding project! I fixed up a freebie old Schwinn roadbike a few years ago and it's so much fun to ride. I have a freebie Nishiki too waiting for a decision on what to do with it--touring bike or fixie conversion. Enjoy the time turning wrenches and then on the road!

Re: My midlife crisis Corolla is fast, furious, and modded

#165

Post by [deleted] »

brokenodo wrote: post #11

I love cars and driving them. But the modded Corolla/Civic/Accord/Camry (why) people have always driven me crazy because their mods often seem directed to inflicting their cars on everyone else, with loud exhaust, subwoofers, and (subjectively) garish cosmetics, rather than things that make it actually good to drive . I recognize this is judgmental and it's unhealthy to always be annoyed at these people on the road,…

[deleted]

Re: My midlife crisis Corolla is fast, furious, and modded

#167

Post by caconym_ »

ElectronCharge wrote: post #156
caconym_ wrote: post #123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The comments I've replied to in this subthread have nothing to do with the aftermarket exhaust issue. It's just people who've never driven a real sports car (at any price point) posting numbers from the Tesla spec sheets.

You're absolutely wrong on both points in my case. I've driven many "real sports cars", and I'm not not just "posting numbers from the Tesla spec sheets", my Model Y is my daily driver. Ironically, you're the one "projecting".

> I'm not not just "posting numbers from the Tesla spec sheets", my Model Y is my daily driver.

Yeah? You measure those 0-60 and max g numbers yourself?

Re: My midlife crisis Corolla is fast, furious, and modded

#168

Post by yostrovs »

redwall_hp wrote: post #131
roughly wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The only socially appropriate ways to inconvenience other people are to build dark patterns into your app to juice subscriptions, dump VC-funded detritus on the street and call it a startup, or take their life’s work and create an algorithm to regurgitate it back to them without paying them for it. Making your car louder? That’s just rude and inconsiderate.

Someone putting performance exhaust on their cool car isn't likely to disturb me in my home. You know what is? The doings of obnoxious adtech people.

I live in an area with mostly a grid road pattern. It's very quiet, mostly the sounds of nature. But about a mile away from my house there's a very nice road with great curves and few intersections. Every weekend the guys with the exhausts come out and it sounds like I'm at a racetrack. They certainly don't care that there are hundreds of people nearby that have to listen to this.

Re: My midlife crisis Corolla is fast, furious, and modded

#169

Post by 0x1d7 »

brokenodo wrote: post #11

I love cars and driving them. But the modded Corolla/Civic/Accord/Camry (why) people have always driven me crazy because their mods often seem directed to inflicting their cars on everyone else, with loud exhaust, subwoofers, and (subjectively) garish cosmetics, rather than things that make it actually good to drive . I recognize this is judgmental and it's unhealthy to always be annoyed at these people on the road,…

Civics are legos with extensive aftermarket support. Type-Rs are designed to be tracked (IIRC fastest FWD in NA). People often mod these to track better, and in JPN obviously mod them to drive them illegally on highways.

Civics, or more specifically the older naturally aspirated engines from Honda as a whole (including the F20C1 found in the S2000 AP1) are high-RPM engines, often revving to 8500-9000 RPM, which is going to be loud no matter what you do.

No, not all mods are designed to inflict something on someone else. Popular FL5 mods are designed around engine/oil cooling, brake capacity (prevent fading), and camber. Yes, you can get nuts with a racing-only, non-CARB DP or a non-valved exhaust, but that's a personal choice. Not every FL5 owner follows that ethos. But you can also go with a CARB-compliant DP, valved exhaust (OE is valved, many aftermarkets use valved exhausts), and even if you do a mid-pipe resonator delete, it's no louder than it's sister car, the Acura DE5, which doesn't even come with a mid-pipe resonator from the factory.

And yes, a modded FL5 is a ton more fun to drive than a non-modded one due to a single, hidden mod - replacing the suspension controller with one from a DE5 or from DSC makes the ride much smoother. Honda doesn't get everything 'right' (but they do get engines down pat).

Ofc, you do have fire-breathing 1000hp S2000s out there.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yw2tYyBbZ-Q

Re: My midlife crisis Corolla is fast, furious, and modded

#170

Post by gtowey »

munificent wrote: post #148
FatherOfCurses wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So much of American car/motorcycle culture seems to be about that nowadays. And it's not limited to the Japanese mod scene, either. Loud exhausts everywhere - pickups, domestic V6/V8's, motorcycles. Super-bright headlights/aux lights improperly mounted or operated, blinding you at night. Stereos you can almost feel before you hear them. All these guys (and let's face it, it's 90% guys doing the irritating stuff) are…

> they will finally get the respect they deserve. I believe this is a big part of it. With the rise of corporations and media, we have seen a loss of any sort of public commons. A consequence of that is that I think many people here in the US don't feel like they are part of a community. They don't feel seen by any sort of meaningful tribe, outside of their job, which is transactional and subject to the whims of corp…

In addition to these reasons, there is the economic side. They're spending money on frivolous but attainable luxury items because the traditional economic path of a house and family seems impossibly out of reach.

You can save for 6 months to buy a car mod for 1500, but when local median house price is $1,000,000 they may feel like it's pointless to even attempt being a home owner.

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