SHUMAI

[Vincent123]

Had a 94 turbo r package on work meisters a few years ago. Now I'm back with a 99 NB.
Figured Id might as well make a build thread and put all my photos in one place.


Picked it up 2 weeks ago from cliqwe

Havent done too much since then. But heres how it looks when I bought it

Alot of my photos are on Instagram @ Vincentshumai

Suspension
Tein Flex Coilovers
Wilwood 4pot BBK Red
Wilwood Stainless lines front / rear
Wilwood 11” drilled / slotted rotors
Wilwood BP-10 brake pads
Motul RBF600 fluid
949 Tie rods
Racing Beat sway bar + brace
Rota Grid 16x8 +0 Bronze
Falken Ziex 912 205/40/16
Harddog double diagonal rollbar
Strut Tower Bar
67.1 to 54.1mm hub centric ring
Chrome tow hooks front / rear

Exterior
OEM front lip
OEM small side skirts
OEM trunk spoiler
OEM small mudguard rear
Black housing headlights
Autoflavor Cree 10w LED reverse light
Brushed aluminum fuel lid

Interior
Kenwood KDC-252U
Nardi Gara3 type 3 steering wheel
Daikei Boss hub
Joyfast handbrake button
Joyfast leather handbrake handle
Nakamae leather handbrake boot
Nakamae leather shift boot
Revlimiter OEM+ gauge faces
OEM cargo net
Mitsubishi dash vent
Blox 490 torch blue shift knob


Engine
2001+ headers
Roadstersport midpipe
Enthuza exhaust
Magnaflow tip
Racing Beat o2 sensor wiring
Optima Red Top battery
Koyo 55mm Radiator with slim fans
M-tuned coolant reroute
Magnecor 8.5mm spark plug wires
Garage Star radiator cooling plate
Garage Star wiper cowl plate
Garage502 oil cap
5x Racing Aluminum shifter bushing
K&N carb legal intake 69-6000TP
AC removed





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[Vincent123]

Got some parts in the mail.

http://i50.tinypic.com/2uyt0yb.jpg
http://i47.tinypic.com/2rdiyhk.jpg
http://i45.tinypic.com/2el8g0j.jpg

[Vincent123]

Got all the parts installed and cut off the enthuza exhaust tip and installed a larger magnaflow one



http://i47.tinypic.com/1532v4i.jpg
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http://i50.tinypic.com/30c0x0w.jpg

[Vincent123]

Installed the K&N intake and strut bar. Cleaned up the bay a little bit, and removed the washer fluid bottle / charcoal canister


http://i45.tinypic.com/aewnwj.jpg
http://i50.tinypic.com/ncea8i.jpg

[Vincent123]

Stripped the trunk carpetting and hit some spots with a fresh coat of white paint.
Bought a used chrome fuel lid. Didnt like the chrome so I stripped it, brushed with sandpaper and sprayed with satin clear. (yes I know I'm missing one bolt)


http://i47.tinypic.com/34gvk9z.jpg
http://i46.tinypic.com/210xag5.jpg

[friday]

This car is stupid clean. Good work.

[kung fu jesus]

Very nice!

I have often thought about doing a white NB in a custom style.

[Demon I Am]

Yessir, that's a beautiful car!

[tsingson]

Your car looks great. I do have to admit. The 99-00 NB with the appearance package looks good without fog lights. But I love having fogs. As soon as I find the cups that they sit behind, I'll install some.

[etikoner]

Looks awesome :)

[Grip Driver]

white NB's, my favorite, looks great :)

[Vincent123]

Picked up a new headunit to replace the outdated oem one


http://i50.tinypic.com/33axymp.jpg

[Vincent123]

Hit up my homie ThaiT and we decided to install my headunit and shifter bushing

5x Racing aluminum shifter bushing

http://i47.tinypic.com/34flh15.jpg

ThaiT removing my center console / radio

http://i50.tinypic.com/2ltq3ro.jpg

All off

http://i49.tinypic.com/2cgczu1.jpg

Enlarged the hole in the back of the metra dash kit cubby to run usb ipod cable

http://i48.tinypic.com/2uo2n9k.jpg

All done! Ipod cable semi-hidden and routed into glovebox

http://i47.tinypic.com/16jq1xl.jpg

Pic of my Nardi Garas 3 steering wheel

http://i46.tinypic.com/rvbn8l.jpg

[Vincent123]

Got a Garage Star carbon fiber spark plug cover. Covering up my magnecor wires. Valve cover needs a respray but I'm too lazy


http://i48.tinypic.com/21bw2yp.jpg

[WASABI]

Pic of my Nardi Garas 3 steering wheel

http://i46.tinypic.com/rvbn8l.jpg

Nice car. Love the bronze wheels against the white, and this Nardi.... sweeeeeet.

[tsingson]

and this Nardi.... sweeeeeet.

I agree. I am going to switch my wheel out. Did any airbag lights come on after the install?

[Vincent123]

Came across a deal on a rx7 diffuser on craigslist I couldnt pass up. Its not carbon but it was cheap, and will do the job

http://i46.tinypic.com/op6xj8.jpg
http://i48.tinypic.com/2w2g36s.jpg
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[I<3flippyheadlights]

That is pure awesome.

[Vincent123]

Went to a plastic supply store and had them cut up 2 sheets of black ABS plastic. DIY sideskirts in the making soon after I get back from vacation


http://i45.tinypic.com/2empen7.jpg

[Vincent123]

Posted up in old town pasadena


http://i49.tinypic.com/3494dih.jpg

[Vincent123]

Test fitted the diffuser. Cut the bumper up in the middle so that it would sit higher up and flush against the bumper. The muffler hangs too low and got in the way of the install. So I'm going back to the exhaust shop tomorrow morning to make them tuck it up higher so that it wont touch the diffuser. Then I can get it mounted up properly.

The width is perfect on the NB with mudflaps. Almost seems like it was made for the car. The hard part was making the brackets to fit. But we got that done in a few hours


http://i47.tinypic.com/15ywxlx.jpg
http://i45.tinypic.com/24px992.jpg

[snake520]

dam, so jealous of your car lol. Im probably going to have to get the red vinyl for the tails too

[Vincent123]

Measure 10x cut once


http://i47.tinypic.com/5pj6ea.jpg


All cut and ready for insertion :bouncin:


http://i45.tinypic.com/345jxfl.jpg


Three man job, thanks to the help of the Leung Brothers


http://i48.tinypic.com/9itfdw.jpg


Drill holes for bolts


http://i50.tinypic.com/212za6t.jpg


Mock up test fit with just front and rear center bolts attached, no sides yet


http://i47.tinypic.com/o8tqbo.jpg


Made our own support rod with a heim joint and threaded rod. Need to cut off the excess rod portion sticking out from under the diffuser. You can also kinda see how the muffler is touching the diffuser, restricting it from going up any higher. Which makes the inner bottom portion sit extremely low


http://i47.tinypic.com/w9guah.jpg


Here is it "finished" at an angle. Not 100% yet because I still need to raise it up higher


http://i50.tinypic.com/2a5wyth.jpg


Dat Ass. Bolts will be painted black to blend it and not be so visible against the black diffuser


http://i49.tinypic.com/23kyfs7.jpg

[Vincent123]

Cut the middle section 2" higher up and raised up the lower brackets by a few inches. The muffler is now tucked all the way up so its not in the way any longer. Lower brackets sit a inch or two above the lower brace under the differential.



http://i47.tinypic.com/vq43d4.jpg


Diffuser installed


http://i50.tinypic.com/nbcgog.jpg
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[Vincent123]

Side splitters with double sided tape applied. Awaiting install. Debating on either leaving them the shape they are now, or cutting them with a new shape that flows with the bodyline.

As of now, they stick out 4" from the side skirts. A bit too far imo, so either way I will have to cut them about an inch shorter atleast


http://i45.tinypic.com/qznh5i.jpg

[Vincent123]

Ordered Supernow rx7 tie rod ends from rhdjapan. Just came in today. Can't wait to install these and finally get rid of my bumpsteer


http://i45.tinypic.com/8wglkm.jpg
http://i49.tinypic.com/2mx1stx.jpg

[tsingson]

Damn man. Your car is gorgeous.

[Vincent123]

My homie hit me up last minute saying he had an extra spot for Nisei that needed to be filled. Didnt think my car was "show ready", nor was I building it intending to be. But the spot was paid for already.

Anyway, plastidipped my side mirrors red to match my bbk. The base of the mirror is now plastidipped black (did it after the show).


Temperature nearing 100 degrees, dying of dehydration. But kickin it with homies is always fun


http://i48.tinypic.com/beiv7.jpg


Then some big booty asian hoe decided to post up on the hood of my miata with her ass juice all exposed.
Oh btw, shameless plug... follow me on instagram!


http://i46.tinypic.com/14uvnt2.png

[Vincent123]

Cut the side splitters so that the rear portion flares outward to match the shape of the oem small sideskirts. Rounded off the edges so they dont slice any ankles. Still need to put edge trimming on the edges to clean it up.
But here it is mounted on the car. Love the way it looks. Gives the appearance of the car being lower, when it actually isnt.



After cut, test fit under the skirts

http://i45.tinypic.com/30ngl5j.jpg


All mounted up with double sided tape and self tapping screws

http://i48.tinypic.com/wvo32o.jpg

[tsingson]

Diggin' the side splitters. Damn that chick left fingerprints on the hood man.

[Vincent123]

Put black edge trim on the side splitters. Need to buy 1 more roll to do the diffuser


http://i49.tinypic.com/bhjdih.jpg

[tsingson]

Is that the black edging you use on door jambs and such?

[Vincent123]

Picked up a pair of Federal 595 RSR 205/45/16 off my friend. Got the pair of tires for $60 with roughly 80% tread life left. Steal! :icon_cheers:


http://i50.tinypic.com/357kp68.jpg

[Vincent123]

Picked up some generic red chrome lug nuts. Figured itd flow better with the whole theme I have going on



http://i46.tinypic.com/25ho4lw.jpg

[Vincent123]

My Bomex replica front bumper came in today. Made by Duraflex.

http://i48.tinypic.com/25r1p91.jpg


Also my Nardi Deep Corn came in as well. Selling my current Nardi Gara3 Type-3 as well. Will post a for sale thread once I remove it.
http://rev9autosport.com/featured/nardi-gara3-type-3-steering-wheel-360mm-1.html


http://i49.tinypic.com/34g4idv.jpg

[Vincent123]

Test fitted my homie hardtop. Such a tease, now hes making me want one for my car. Too bad this is a budget build and I cant justify the price of one. Otherwise I would. SIGH

http://i47.tinypic.com/125nddk.jpg

[atank]

Really looks good !!!!!

[Vincent123]

Installed my supernow rx7 outer tie rod ends today and switched out the lug nuts


http://i49.tinypic.com/8x8oq8.jpg
http://i45.tinypic.com/kyb2f.jpg

[Vincent123]

Went to Temple City Auto Repair today to get my alignment done. The supernow tie rod ends set me toe in quite a bit. Its all good now, camber is sitting at -2.5 front and -3.5 rear. Toe zero'd out

Bumper strapped in my passenger seat. Just dropped the car + bumper at DTM Autobody to get painted and installed


http://i50.tinypic.com/2le71pu.jpg
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[Vincent123]

Ordered some Morimoto H1 Mini 5.0 projectors + Morimoto 35w 6000k bulbs from The Retrofit Source.


http://i45.tinypic.com/rw1cpf.jpg



And stopped by DTM Autobody today to tell them to color match my rear trunk spoiler and mudguards.
Here is my miata waiting for its turn for surgery


http://i46.tinypic.com/2dj8ozn.jpg

[Vincent123]

My seats came in! Thank god someone was home to sign for it or I wouldve missed the package. So comfortable, I'm a 32 waist 5'10 172lbs and it fits nicely



http://i46.tinypic.com/24w905f.jpg
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[Vincent123]

Got some new goodies. NRG short hub and NRG 2.5 quick release. Selling my nardi gara3 and daikei hub. Check the classifieds!


http://i50.tinypic.com/314pf9h.jpg

[atank]

^^Very Nice!

[Vincent123]

http://i49.tinypic.com/59ww2t.jpg

[Vincent123]

Stopped by DTM Autobody again today to check up on progress.

My poor miata in pieces. Front bumper is just primer in this pic (older pic, just uploaded)

http://i50.tinypic.com/20i751j.jpg
http://i50.tinypic.com/2en8dit.jpg
http://i47.tinypic.com/warneu.jpg

[Vincent123]

Some more photos they emailed me today. Rear bumper is getting resprayed too

http://i49.tinypic.com/11tohlt.jpg
http://i49.tinypic.com/2i7o6jk.jpg

[Vincent123]

Car is back finally!

I removed the license plate as soon as I got home. Side splitters are a bit wavy from sitting in the burning hot 100 degree weather for the past 2 weeks. Gotta figure out a way to straighten them up again


Gotta love instagram filters haha

http://i45.tinypic.com/k0ir1s.jpg
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[Dilly]

Oh noooo. I can see the waves. Haha.

[Vincent123]

http://i46.tinypic.com/1dy6c8.jpg

[I<3flippyheadlights]

Car looks great man, except the waves. Really love this NB.

[tsingson]

I like everything but the rear view mirrors. They just stick out too much for my tastes.

[Big Red]

Sweet job on the car so far, The diffuser sets the rear right off ;)

[Vincent123]

Got bored and plastidipped my door sill. Cut out the raised portions to expose the original black. Now I just need to find some tan floor mats so I can dye them red, either that or find some generic red carpet and cut it the same shape as my oem floormats. Not sure how dye would hold up to everyday driving, not really down to have any red dye rub off on my shoes



http://i45.tinypic.com/eg1o3k.jpg

[corkscrew]

I think red checkered floormats would be sick

[Vincent123]

So my homie stephen had some universal side mount brackets laying around and we used them to install the recaro's.

http://i47.tinypic.com/35mej2u.jpg

We decided to install passenger side first because if we couldnt get it installed on the driver side then atleast I could still drive home. But as you can see from the photos, they sit way too high. Compare its height to the stock seat's height.


http://i46.tinypic.com/1zbcwmh.jpg

If I take out all the seat cushion I will sit at stock height, which is super uncomfortable. We used oem rails + universal side mounts. I was thinking of just bolting them straight to the floor, but what would I need to do this? I'm not looking to spend another $250 (approx) to make custom low rails

The good thing is that it clears my door panel

http://i47.tinypic.com/k9qiw.jpg



Here is my car with 1 recaro seat installed.


http://i49.tinypic.com/2pshutc.jpg

[Vincent123]

Picked up a pair of seat brackets made by Pro-Car Innovations from Kazespec Engineering.

High quality stuff here, definitely not cheap but I'm hoping it will help me get the seat much lower.
Mounted straight to the floor with these brackets, fixed mount with no rails.


http://i50.tinypic.com/21dmog8.jpg

[etikoner]

Cool direction the car is heading.

Those (Seat) mounts look super tough haha.

[Vincent123]

Got the brackets installed today onto the recaros.
They sit way lower than my side mount brackets + oem rails.

Very high quality, a little bit pricey but I wouldnt hesitate to purchase again.


http://i45.tinypic.com/auoon.jpg


How it was previously mounted. Universal side mount brackets on oem rails

http://i47.tinypic.com/bey0j4.jpg


Ground clearance before

http://i49.tinypic.com/dn259h.jpg


Ground clearance after

http://i45.tinypic.com/ml6vjo.jpg


Mounted into the car

http://i47.tinypic.com/vpe13a.jpg


Seats sitting below roll bar now

http://i46.tinypic.com/90p0ls.jpg


If you look back at my other photo when it was still on the oem rails, the top of the seat would be parallel to the top of the roll bar. Now it is well below the main hoop, atleast 3-4" lower than it was before. Definitely sitting lower than stock. I can even go as far as cutting out some foam to get even lower, but where it sits now is a good height for me. Finally glad to have it finished, took atleast 4-5 hours to mount it in the perfect spot and multiple trips to the hardware store to get longer bolts with spacers etc


http://i48.tinypic.com/24g845v.jpg

[Vincent123]

http://i50.tinypic.com/zqs9h.jpg

[Vincent123]

JDMzipties did a impromptu shoot for me and some homies.

Here are some of the photos he took.
Couldnt get my Nardi horn to sit properly, so its missing in the last photo. But I got the NRG quick release and short hub installed


http://i50.tinypic.com/2qtg2op.jpg
http://i45.tinypic.com/2e1dl7d.jpg
http://i50.tinypic.com/2pt4ioj.jpg
http://i46.tinypic.com/a3ed6d.jpg

[Big Red]

Damn...... such a clean Nb *drool* I <3 this thing to bits.
How are you finding the lower seating position?

[Vincent123]

Me and my homie Sam filling up gas before heading out to Auto Gallery

http://i50.tinypic.com/qpf3ux.jpg

[Vincent123]

My homie ThaiT installed some LED's into my third brake light for me. WAY brighter than stock thats for sure.


http://i46.tinypic.com/fz8z6p.jpg
http://i48.tinypic.com/11jlnc5.jpg



Then we met up with another friend at yardhouse and I took this pic with instagram.
The only one without a hardtop, so sad


http://i46.tinypic.com/35m1d0h.jpg

[Vincent123]

Shot taken at Auto Gallery by my homie Jordan Mo

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8306/7968482890_086046fa56_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jdm_shots/7968482890/)
Mazda Miata (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jdm_shots/7968482890/) by Jordan Mo Photography (http://www.flickr.com/people/jdm_shots/), on Flickr

[Vincent123]

Finally installed my Morimoto Mini H1 Projectors. Still need to adjust the cutoff. Painted the cutoff shield red to give it a "demon eye" look. Not as visible as I would like, you can only see it if you look directly at the projector. Too lazy to open the headlights back up and paint the entire piece

Instagram photos. If you want you can follow me at username : vincentshumai


http://i47.tinypic.com/2m4abtw.jpg
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http://i45.tinypic.com/rh0hz7.jpg

[Vincent123]

Teaser pic of my homies shooting the car up in the canyons near my house

http://i46.tinypic.com/2guwods.jpg


And he sent me one of the photos after a quick edit. Alot more to come
Photo by Jordan Mo Photography

http://i47.tinypic.com/jjwd43.jpg

[I<3flippyheadlights]

Wish my friends would all take pictures of my car :P

Looks awesome man.

[Vincent123]

Teaser photo

http://i47.tinypic.com/10zb97l.jpg

[Vincent123]

Just picked up a 3.9 Torsen LSD off a 2002 SE 6 speed type 2

No more 4000rpm going 80mph


http://i46.tinypic.com/smayjn.jpg
http://i46.tinypic.com/23w30g5.jpg

[Vincent123]

Got my 3.9 torsen lsd installed today. Was only supposed to take 2 hours, but found out my axle seal was shot, so I had to drive all around town trying to find a mazda dealership that had some in stock

Drives great, car feels a bit slower driving around town now since the rpm's are lower. But I'm sure itll feel better on the freeway


Heres my mechanic driving my car in

http://i47.tinypic.com/jkzqcm.jpg


http://i48.tinypic.com/21ozeit.jpg


Axles off

http://i45.tinypic.com/2d8m9vd.jpg


Painted my braces red since I saw a can of high temp red engine enamel at the shop laying around

http://i50.tinypic.com/jb7n2g.jpg


Drove about 40min away just to pick up these damn seals

http://i47.tinypic.com/343luhf.jpg


Side by side

http://i47.tinypic.com/4h4dx0.jpg


Greased it up and put the new seals in

http://i49.tinypic.com/w0s08w.jpg


Redline oil ftw

http://i47.tinypic.com/35nasex.jpg


Mixed with Amsoil 75w90

http://i46.tinypic.com/2zrgbd3.jpg


All done and torqued down. Diffuser installed

http://i46.tinypic.com/s2cxtd.jpg


Decided to try out some new oil since I needed an oil change
Motul 5w40. Feels good so far, but then again I only drove 5 miles haha
Plus my mechanic sold it to me at his cost, so might as well!

http://i50.tinypic.com/rsx62x.jpg


Engine bay shot after oil has been changed


http://i50.tinypic.com/154f3vb.jpg




Overall Im liking the 3.9 torsen. I'm sure I'll get used to the lower rpm's. And if I ever decide to go boost in the future, I'm all set

[Vincent123]

So heres the thing. After test fitting my apr gt wing, I dont think I can use my oem trunk spoiler with it since the only flat area I can mount it on will have the wing sit too far forward.

Should I either.. cut a slit in my oem spoiler so I can mount the wing further back, or run it with no trunk spoiler?

OR, pick up a touge run duck bill spoiler, and sell my oem one? And mount the gt wing with the touge run spoiler.
But the touge run spoiler is like $200 ><
Got my OEM one for less than half of that


Decisions decisions, looks kinda plain to me with no trunk spoiler =\

[Vincent123]

Here are some pics of the test fit. Not the greatest but it shows you how it sits


http://i50.tinypic.com/r9lemt.jpg
http://i49.tinypic.com/2aeyuf7.jpg

[paulsk]

Take off the OEM spoiler, or sell me the gt wing :)

[Vincent123]

Me and Thanh (ThaiT) filling up gas, on our way to KINOD meet. Havent been to one of these in awhile.

http://i48.tinypic.com/34sp2ww.jpg


My APR wing on top of David's (dilly) gt wing. Can anyone say downforce?

http://i49.tinypic.com/2vdh9w2.jpg


After the meet, we decided to eat at Tops Burgers. Luckily enough, today was their 60th anniversary so their famous pastrami burger was only 60 cents. Originally close to $7 for the burger. SCORE!
The promotion is going on tomorrow too, so if anyone in socal has a tops burgers near you, I suggest you go try it!


http://i49.tinypic.com/jhshs4.jpg

[Vegard]

Your car is looking pretty badass. And that burger looks delicious!

[I<3flippyheadlights]

ALL THE DOWNFORCE!


Damn that burger looks so good.

[artcentermiata]

It was nice having you at KINOD, the car looks great in person!

Wish i wouldve followed you after Krispy Kreme... That burger looks godly!

[Vincent123]

It was nice having you at KINOD, the car looks great in person!

Wish i wouldve followed you after Krispy Kreme... That burger looks godly!

Nice meeting you too! I forgot your real name though, I just remember you introducing yourself as "artcentermiata."
Haha sorry, not too great with names.

The burger was amazing, the promotion ended today :(

OH AND YOU LIVE IN PASADENA! THATS 1 CITY AWAY FROM ME. I'm in Arcadia! Hit me up when you go to KINOD, we can cruise together

[paulsk]

artcenter = Jeremy

[Vincent123]

Me and some homies cruised up Angeles Crest. It was my first time up there, very fun.


http://i46.tinypic.com/nn2n1x.jpg
http://i46.tinypic.com/2psls2p.jpg

[Vincent123]

Took a pic of my shift knob

http://i45.tinypic.com/2nl8lsk.jpg

And got some free dress up bolts, so I figured I might as well install them

http://i49.tinypic.com/w04577.jpg
http://i49.tinypic.com/k1uefq.jpg

[Vincent123]

Called my homie up to help with my taillights. Good to have a friend thats a detailer. He helped me sand down the raised letters and polish up the tails with menzerna polish.


http://i49.tinypic.com/2n06dud.jpg

Polishing

http://i50.tinypic.com/amwlg5.jpg


All done.


http://i49.tinypic.com/2lb12c5.jpg


Then I decided to take it a step further and give it a frost / matte clear finish using plastidip. I was originally going to get it wrapped but since I already have red vinyl over the amber portion, I didnt want 2 layers of vinyl on my taillights. Was afraid it would bubble. Plus, it was going to cost like $100 when the plastidip cost me $10! WIN

So matte clear plastidip over the tails. Red vinyl over the amber center. Brake light mod so only the center circle lights up, and the sides are now the turn signals.

Roughly 3 layers of matte clear plastidip later, I get this outcome. Very satisfied with the results. Did the third brake light and rear side markers as well. Ill try and get daytime photos, looks much better in the day

Light output is almost the same as well, obviously not AS bright but to the naked eye I cant really tell a difference


No filter.

http://i45.tinypic.com/2en3g5t.jpg


And with a hipster instagram filter

http://i46.tinypic.com/2nj8vwo.jpg

[I<3flippyheadlights]

Damn, those look hot! Little things like that really make a difference.

[treeafodo]

I'm jealous that you have a detailer friend. Your tails look really nice like that.

[Vincent123]

Did a mock up with some cardboard for a intake heat shield. Need to go to the hardware store tomorrow to pick up some sheet metal and tin snips.


http://i49.tinypic.com/1zd9csl.jpg
http://i48.tinypic.com/25gf1b6.jpg

[Vincent123]

Went to the hardware store last night, and they aluminum sheets they had were ridiculously expensive. And too thin for what I wanted it to be. So I went to my mom's factory and they had a bunch of stainless steel sheets, so thats what I made my intake box out of.

Stainless steel is way more difficult to cut than aluminum. But good thing the factory had a bunch of machinery at my disposal. Well, the employee did all the work for me, I just watched and took pics haha

Traced onto stainless steel sheet

http://i50.tinypic.com/2iarl83.jpg


Cutting straight lines

http://i48.tinypic.com/34qafzc.jpg


Cutting inbetween for notches

http://i48.tinypic.com/98di53.jpg


Grinding down smooth


http://i45.tinypic.com/1zx6p6q.jpg


Finished and installed on the car. Bottom plate is rivetted onto the main portion. Total held onto by 4 rivets and approx 4 bolts to the chassis


http://i45.tinypic.com/2cwx0ed.jpg
http://i50.tinypic.com/1c486.jpg


Seems like a waste to spray over stainless steel, but I wanted it to match my garage star radiator shroud and cowl cover. Its currently drying in the garage over night so the wrinkles can form. I have 2 shop lights pointed at it to speed up the process.

I ordered some trim lok off mcmaster-carr. Waiting for that to come in so I can have it sealed completely against the hood


http://i48.tinypic.com/255nebo.jpg

[Vincent123]

So I want to put some heat reflective adhesive material on my intake box. But after going through some pics on google, it seems some people are putting it on the outside and some are putting it on the inside of the box. Im not sure which way would be better. Any input?


Oh also, my trimlok came in. Gonna install it tonight with the heat reflective material


http://i46.tinypic.com/110wtg4.jpg

[artcentermiata]

Curious as to why you didnt use a hole saw bit for the maf portion of the shroud... kinda ratty cut there

but otherwise looks nicely done!

love that engine bay... school me on cleaning up like that!

[Vincent123]

Curious as to why you didnt use a hole saw bit for the maf portion of the shroud... kinda ratty cut there

but otherwise looks nicely done!

love that engine bay... school me on cleaning up like that!

Our hole saw couldnt cut through the stainless steel. I tried haha, so we just drilled multiple holes. I have it covered with a trim so the sharp edges are covered. Looks alot cleaner now

[Vincent123]

Installed the trim lok, hood closes perfectly

http://i50.tinypic.com/148gie0.jpg

[Vincent123]

So I was talking to a friend and he has the same wheels as me but his is polished. Asked him how he did it, and he said all he did was strip the original finish and underneath it is this polish plated finish which is shiny as hell and doesnt need any metal polish or upkeep. Decided to do it today

Used Rustoleum aircraft stripper, 1.5" brush, and painters tape.



Original bronze finish

http://i45.tinypic.com/oitcpc.jpg


In process

http://i47.tinypic.com/1eavl1.jpg


After the first coat, hosed down most of the excess paint and this is what I'm left with. Still needs another coat or two to get it all off


http://i45.tinypic.com/2i27foz.jpg


All done

http://i50.tinypic.com/317i7t1.jpg


Up close


http://i48.tinypic.com/auw17p.jpg

[artcentermiata]

Damn that looks good! so much more clean!

You are brave for not masking those tires with that stripper...

[Vincent123]

Damn that looks good! so much more clean!

You are brave for not masking those tires with that stripper...

Thanks haha, I didnt like how dark the bronze looked.

I used the brush on paint stripper so none of it got on the tire

[tanakapz]

looks really good, i've always wanted to strip and polish my 6uls.. wonder if the finish underneath is the same, haha

[Vincent123]

Gave the car a bath the other day

http://i50.tinypic.com/6ymcf4.jpg

[Vincent123]

And for those of you asking why my mirrors are red. I did it to match my brakes. And I saw this pic of a M3 and decided to copy :D

When I get my gt wing on, the end plates will also be red to flow better with the theme.

Next on the list is to powdercoat my roll bar red as well

http://i49.tinypic.com/4zwcp.jpg

[I<3flippyheadlights]

Theres more contrast on the M3 to make the red work. But it still looks awesome on your car and I'm sure it will look better when its done!

[Vincent123]

http://i48.tinypic.com/n4tdfn.jpg

[Vincent123]

Cruised up to the mountains with some homies and decided to snap some quick shots again. I'm glad I have alot of close photographer friends. My iphone doesnt cut it, unless its on instagram.

His Flickr account here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/thuraftw/


While we all met up in front of my house, I snapped this pic of my friends CLK63 AMG Black Series.

http://i47.tinypic.com/o5855k.jpg

Up at Chantry Flats

http://i45.tinypic.com/28me0zt.jpg
http://i47.tinypic.com/30x7qqp.jpg
http://i47.tinypic.com/nfr3gh.jpg
http://i48.tinypic.com/2dqlwqs.jpg
http://i47.tinypic.com/5af7ev.jpg
http://i46.tinypic.com/2v1qemr.jpg

[Vincent123]

Haven't updated in awhile. But I copped a engine torque damper off my friend and got it installed. Still waiting on the gt wing stands.


http://i47.tinypic.com/2ps3s7o.jpg

[artcentermiata]

God i love that bay! my next step is hiding all the junk under mine