[Bob Gervais]

OK all, in light of some of the current discussions about performance mods, and the mysteries behind whether they work or not, I've decided we should have a worthless mods module available.

This will help on many levels:

-It will save members money by preventing them from being mis-informed about products.

-It will save us from answering the same questions repeatedly, and getting into debates about a product's merits.

-We will be able to move on to other discussions about mods that do work.

So, no flaming, keep the posts clean. If you disagree with someone's opinion or facts that a mod doesn't work, please do so in a proper manner. Present your facts or theories logically, don't quote stuff that you can't pronounce out of a book, and don't get offended that someone's challenged your thoughts. It'll only be counterproductive, and get deleted.

So, post 'em here. Dyno sheets or time slips are always good, but I know that a lot of us don't have them, so they're not a requirement. Images are also a good tool for this.

Please note that a mod that is deemed worthless by you may not be by the staff. The staff will make all final decisions on what content this new module will have. It will be updated regularly.

Have at it.....

 

[sixfofalcon]

eRam
super-secret intake resistor chip mod +20HP!
tornado
Bosch 12-electrode spark plugs (everyone knows the minimum # of electrodes to see any real world gains is 16)

 

[Twilight]

The IAT mod or any form of it. Simply because fooling the car into thinking it is cooler and running rich is in no way guaranteed to increase performance. In fact, it does not, as factory tuning is set to err on the rich side rather than lean, and if you look at what's coming out of your tailpipes (those with chrome tips know what I'm talking about), your car runs fairly rich already.

Tornado...haha. The design does a better job of blocking the intake charge than swirling it. Also remember that many engines have heads designed with air swirling in mind, so in the end you are hurting your engine's output by superseding the manufacturer's design.

Eram of course, just worthless, does not put out nearly enough power for the price point.

Oh and SixFo related to your spark plug electrode comment, can we toss in the six-ways-from-sunday speakers? A speaker with more "ways" is not giving you any better sound quality. Note that most of the premium brand coaxial speakers (re: those worth buying) are two-way units with the odd exception being a 3 way on a larger speaker like a 6x9.

 

[mykej27]

The poweraid throttle body spacer. 2 words...expensive CRAP!

The Turbo whistler. HAHAHA! This mod is a joke. You might be saying to yourself, "well at least it will sound like I have a turbo engine"...Ah, no you won't. You'll just block the exhaust flow and it sounds like crap.

 

[Troper8]

Type "R" Racing sticker mod adding 20 hp...I, know but all the other "actual" worthless mods I thought of were already taken.

 

[sfblacksel]

[IAluminum Wings[/I], completely worthless, unless your on a track cornering at like 100+ mph. Last week I saw a Camero with one on it. It was completly stock looking with the stock rims, and had a huge alluminum wing. I wanted to stop the guy just to hit him, he was that dumb to put that on an american icon. Well....at least it wasn't a Mustang.

 

[mobiuslogic]

Body Kits and hood scoops, yeah they're great for looks, but street cars aren't anywhere near the speeds that a body kit will really start doing a noticable amount of downforce. That is of course if it's even designed to give downforce. And yeah, massive wings on a FRONT WHEEL DRIVE drag racer. Omg it cracks me up everytime. Heck I was at a light and some kid was in a mitsubishi with a huge set of dear antlers on his trunk deck lid and I just started laughing and pointed at the wing. I rolled down the window, put the parking brake on, and in the midst of my hysteria yelled out "I know the truth about downforce on front wheel drive bucko!" and gave the engine a few good revs so he could hear it roar. He just put his head down in shame as his g/f gave me this puzzled look. The thousand dollars on a body kit, stupid wing, and the paint job to match is much better spent on the engine.

-mobiuslogic

 

[Doc]

how about COLD air intakes that do not actually draw in cold air. Instead they just pull in the engine compartment's hot air.

and I have seen wheelie bars on front wheel drive cars, lol. I guess the thought behind that is if you load the bars enough to lift the back end some it shifts weight forward to cause better traction on the front wheel driven car. Um...ok.

 

[Smola97GL]

*The air fresheners that look like tweeters. I like my tweeters to sound good and could give a

on how they smell.

*Cheap parts. Dont buy them. You get what you pay for and if you pay little you get little. Get quality stuff the first time and save yourself alot of time.

*I personaly don't like OEM brake rotors or pads.
*I love crossed drilled and slotted Brembo w/ Hawk HPS pads

*Crush bend exhaust- NO
*Mandrel bend exhaust- YES- More Flow

*Cheap floor mats- dont waste your time they fall apart. Spend the extra and get a good set.

*I think that metal bolt ons for your pedals is worthless.

*Rubber bushings- Not for me. Too Soft
*Poly-Bushings-

Nice and stiff

 

[mikehawk]

Mounting a fire extingusher in your seventeen second beast.

 

[Adam B.]

Any "Chip" costing less than $50 where you don't have to give them you're computer's code. It's the worthless IAT mod, not a chip. My brother was taken in by this and got ripped off $10.

So sad....

 

[mwt]

Originally posted by mikehawk@Jan 17 2004, 08:34 AM
Mounting a fire extingusher in your seventeen second beast.

A fire extinguisher is a good idea in any car

 

[sfblacksel]

Actually Doc, those are hydraulic operated wheelie bars and the put a majority of the cars weight on the front wheels. So, yes they do help with traction. In my opinion, if you are going to go that far, why not just do the front wheel drive to rear wheel drive conversion. I mean it is like making a full on race car out of a street car and it doesn't make since. There has to be a limit somewhere along the line.

My fire extinguisher is in the trunk so it is out of the way, especially in an accident. And no it isn't chrome

. I like to draw attention to my performance mods, not my safety mods. Dude check out my chromed antilock brake sylinoid.

 

[Patrick Norris]

Originally posted by sfblacksel@Jan 17 2004, 05:10 PM
Actually Doc, those are hydraulic operated wheelie bars and the put a majority of the cars weight on the front wheels. So, yes they do help with traction. In my opinion, if you are going to go that far, why not just do the front wheel drive to rear wheel drive conversion. I mean it is like making a full on race car out of a street car and it doesn't make since. There has to be a limit somewhere along the line.

My fire extinguisher is in the trunk so it is out of the way, especially in an accident. And no it isn't chrome

. I like to draw attention to my performance mods, not my safety mods. Dude check out my chromed antilock brake sylinoid.

Those kind of wheelie bars are not legal by any sanction body I have looked at. The standard is that all wheelie bars have to be off the ground with no way of having them contact the ground without lifting to front suspension to prevent people from using then to stop weight transfer.

So that makes wheelies on a FWD a useless mod.

 

[sfblacksel]

Cool!!!!
Good call Patrick.

 

[Mikeys_Taurus]

Originally posted by Patrick Norris+Jan 17 2004, 05:28 PM-->QUOTE (Patrick Norris @ Jan 17 2004, 05:28 PM)

<!--QuoteBegin-sfblacksel

@Jan 17 2004, 05:10 PM
Actually Doc, those are hydraulic operated wheelie bars and the put a majority of the cars weight on the front wheels.  So, yes they do help with traction.  In my opinion, if you are going to go that far, why not just do the front wheel drive to rear wheel drive conversion.  I mean it is like making a full on race car out of a street car and it doesn't make since.  There has to be a limit somewhere along the line.

My fire extinguisher is in the trunk so it is out of the way, especially in an accident.  And no it isn't chrome

.  I like to draw attention to my performance mods, not my safety mods.  Dude check out my chromed antilock brake sylinoid.

Those kind of wheelie bars are not legal by any sanction body I have looked at. The standard is that all wheelie bars have to be off the ground with no way of having them contact the ground without lifting to front suspension to prevent people from using then to stop weight transfer.

So that makes wheelies on a FWD a useless mod. [/b]

Actually, This is quite common and perfectly allowable as far as the tracks are concerned.

One of the 10 second GTPs is running a set.

 

[fvt]

Originally posted by Doc@Jan 17 2004, 03:09 AM
how about COLD air intakes that do not actually draw in cold air. Instead they just pull in the engine compartment's hot air.

DOC - That is SHORT RAM INTAKE.

Takes in hot air from the engine
Its sole purpose to make car sound nicer.
============================
ALSO those ebay turbo noise makers. ANYTHING YOU SEE IN FAST AND FURIOUS!

 

[9824vdohc]

I just bought a "short ram intake". I have noticed some pickup increase, but are you saying that all it does is make the car sound cool?

 

[diesel600]

Originally posted by 9824VDOHC@Mar 2 2004, 03:13 PM
I just bought a "short ram intake". I have noticed some pickup increase, but are you saying that all it does is make the car sound cool?

That's right. Your original intake took in cooler air from the fender well. Cooler air is more dense, so it contains more oxygen per unit volume. More oxygen lets you burn more fuel, in turn making more power. A short ram intake takes in hot air from the engine compartment. Hot air = less dense = less oxygen = less fuel = less power.

 

[fantacmet]

Originally posted by Smola97GL@Jan 17 2004, 06:00 AM
*I think that metal bolt ons for your pedals is worthless.

Well while I agree some, if not alot are worthless, some of them do have a definate purpose(unless you live in sunny california or some other place that doesn't get rain. I found after I put the set in my car, I had a much better grip on the pedals. When I put my foot on the pedals I don't want it moving around just under the inertial movement of the car. The only time I want my foot moving on the pedal is when I move it MYSELF. The stock pedal pads do a horrible job, or maybe I'm just picky. The wetter it is the worse it gets. So as for the pedals being a worthless mod, it depends, which ones oyu get, how much you pay and where you live. I picked up a really nice set with good traction for 11 bucks, and you know what? I feel they have been a great safety mod, the fact they look good is just a bonus.


Oh yeah before anyone puts up anything about a shift knob being a worthless mod, it all depends on feel, and height. A knob can change or later hand positioning if you get the right one, which can lead to more comfort, better safety, less fatigue, and quicker shifting. Of course this is just for the guys who have manuals, for those who have auto's well um, then I retract me statement.