Wheels and tires, MIN $2500
Exhaust $2000
Interior $4000
Headlights $1300
Heads/Cam $3000
Intake $1000
Misc goodies for appearance $500

Cost of the Car $18,000

Cost of Mods I want $14,300

Seriously it feels less painful to spend $14,300 on mods for my Z06 that I paid $35,500 for than for a Vert I spent $18,000 on.

Does anyone else feel like it is less painful to make a $35,500 car into a $49,800 car than to turn an $18,000 car into a $32,300 car? I mean for the money in mods I could buy a coupe and have a whole set. Kind of Sad actually, I'm totally bummed on mods. I really want to mod the car, but can't really seem to justify it in my mind.

I have well over $5000 in mods to the Z06 and didn't bat an eyelash. Spending money on wheels is absolutely killing me right now. I want them SOOOO bad, but just cannot justify the cost for the ones I want.

I guess it is just the natural progression of things. I'll be able to justify it again in 40 years when it is a "classic".

 

Ive done cam, LT headers, Stingers, FAST 92, LS2 TB, CAI, and my tune for around $2800 413RWHP 396RWTQ before the FAST. Where are you buying your parts from? For what you have listed for the motor why not put a A&A kit on there and be done with the motor?

 

Yeah, did you happen to look down at the Z's wheels?

Add that to your numbers

OK I see your point, lets break this down

LG PRO $1500
GMS Exhaust $500
TFS Heads $2400
Cam $300
Springs $300
Ported Fast and T/B if you are REALLY LUCKY $1000
Sorry forgot tune $500

Considered a S/C but I like N/A power better. My Escort was way more fun to drive than our turbo beetle because even though it is much faster the turbo lag is irritating as ****. I like to feel the power off idle.

But that doesn't really matter since either option would be equally illogical on an $18,000 car

 

You have TWO corvettes... what was the down side again - I forgot...

 

 

Thats why I like to buy Corvettes that are already modded. Provided the previous owner took good care of the car

 

yup, the Vette Tax lives...throughout this down period in the economy there hasn't been one great bargain anywhere in the mod scene. Even the new Camaro's equivalent mods are priced much lower. Sellers of Vette parts would rather starve than lower their prices substantially...only in America!

 

If you can find me an already modified Electron blue Vert 6 speed, hit me up, I'll trade in a heart beat

 

Well since your so picky ....

 

Yeah and plenty of people on this forum have 3+ what is your point?

 

Now that is true.

See with me I dont fall into the name brand header thing. Not saying there is anything wrong with them, but $1500 for bent metal? I think it when gets to that point your paying for the name. My $475 headers and X-pipe have looked and worked great for the past 3 years.

 

Yeah I passed over so many black,red, and silver verts it made me sick

 

I have had two sets of headers on my Z06 and trust me the power and sound of the LGs makes them worth it.

I'm a pretty picky individual, the corsas on this Vert sound like BUTT compared to my setup and they were over $1200. I prefer what works and sounds great, regardless of price.

How about $4500 for forged rims made by a machine out of a piece of metal?

 

If it sucks so much, why not just drive it and be happy with it, invest the money you would otherwise spend on your depreciating asset (car), and retire a year earlier? But I realize everyone has different priorities.

 

I don't believe in traditional retirment accounts. If it makes you feel better though my wife and I both invest 10% of our income matched into a 401k and are shopping for our second rental property. I'll be OK either way .

You live life like that and you would never buy a movie, go shopping, eat out etc...

Those things aren't even depreciating. I also don't drink alcohol or smoke cigarettes. I'll bet if you are a drinker, you have spent more money in the last 6 years on alcohol than I have spent on mods, again like you said different priorities.

You live in Orange County with more than double the housing expense of Wildomar. Why would you choose to live somewhere so much more expensive? It isn't fiscally responsible .

 

Lol, touché. I wasn’t actually trying to offer instruction or anything; effectively, I was simply offering an alternate viewpoint, even if you were only sarcastically stating that modifying your car sucks.

Another argument in your favor is that you never know how long you will live (you, me, whoever could die tomorrow), and I fully understand that people need to enjoy their lives. It’s a balancing act, obviously- balancing an enjoyable and fulfilling life while still preparing for the future.

I certainly have not spent thousands on alcohol. I’m a light drinker at worst, and anyone semi-intelligent knows that cigarettes are just a ridiculous waste of time, health and ones wallet. And I actually don’t eat out that often. I can get way better tasting, variety of, and healthier food at the grocery store for cheaper. You can’t beat that.

Why do I live in OC? Awesome climate, a ton of stuff to do (beach, mountains [nearby], Disneyland, you name it), and it’s fairly nice (not ghetto). I think that my fiancé and I are pretty fiscally responsible- we bought a foreclosure in 2009 for a fraction of what the people before us paid in 2006, we invest (401k, Roth IRA), and will also be buying a rental in 2011.

In any case, it sounds like we both seem to have our **** together for now. Good luck with the mods- it sounds like you will have a pretty nice car afterward; not that it’s bad now. You have a nice Z06 btw.

 

Thank you, we try to keep ourselves in a balance and our main focus right now is getting everything "paid off". We just paid our beetle off yesterday, so now we will move that $500 a month towards another vehicle. Another two years and everything is paid off and we'll keep it to one low rate vehicle loan at a time, if at all. The wife is getting the bug, so maybe she will be able to help me "justify" things.

I bought like $20,000 worth of circuit city product for $800 when my building closed down. Whenever I feel like mods I sell some of my "fun money stash" , so I don't touch any of our income for mods.

I grew up in Huntington Beach and I just visited a few years back to see my wife's cousin. I forgot how nice it was down there. This weather out here is awful in the summer. I was out all day in the 80 degree sun and didn't get burned. I get burned outside here in 30 mins

My dad died at 54, so I always try to remember life is not a guarantee and you have to enjoy it while you are here.

I'm starting to feel good about modding again

 

Yeah....I gotta support the OC thing. Admittedly, I can't afford to live there because the commute and housing is ridiculous (on a military budget). My mortgage PTI is lower than the military housing allowance here in the IE. However, I'm fully aware OC is a much nicer area. As the saying goes, ya get what you pay for.

 

where did u get your headers and x-pipe for 475 bucks??

 

I actually really love my neighborhood, very well established, almost no forclosures during the recession. Everyone is middle aged with grown children and really laid back. My neighborhood in Lake Elsinore where we bought a house for $400k really pissed me off. We had nothing but a bunch of Orange County immigrants that liked to remind you what "they paid" for their house. I never understood why they thought their $3000 mortgage payment was in some way better than mine.

They probably thought we rented, just like Daddy bought me both my Vettes . If I couldn't live in Wildomar, then Temecula would be my next choice, and then beach cities from there. Corona kind of went to hell after the recession hit. I'll retire by the beach, but for now I'm an "in-lander"