Car mods you've regretted

[Rallye Sport]

As per the title has anyone got any stories of car modifications you've later regretted.

For me it was fitting a set of bonnet pins to my Escort. A straight rust free RS bonnet no less.
I remember marking the top then with the Dads old single speed Black and Decker drill I punched holes through the bonnet straight through the inner wing.

That one haunted me many years later when it came to repairing the vandalism, having to carefully weld an otherwise perfect bonnet.

So whats the one you regretted?

[shedcoupe]

Cutting out what I thought was an old spotlight relay on the HR when I was very young and dumb.
It was the regulator.

[whynot]

Back in the 1980's I put a set of Pedders "sport" dampeners into my XC Falcon. It was a big mistake in that it made the front suspension really choppy. Like I had put in a massive anti-roll bar. Towards the end of my time with the XC, I replaced the "sport" dampeners with standard gas dampeners. The improvement in ride was remarkable with no real loss of handling. A close second was installing polyurethane bushings in the rear suspension.

However, other suspension mods worked out OK. Installing a rear anti-roll bar (my model XC was fitted with one). Upgrading the front anti-roll bar. Replacing the dampeners (once I had figured out the right ones to use). A really big improvement was having the steering box out on the bench and the Ford Dealer follow the book process to remove all of the free play in the box.

[jaydee]

Putting my XC on gas.
Not so much the gas, but the plonkers drilled a hole next to my fuel filler cap for the gas filler cap.
I specifically said I wanted the filler at the back attached to the tow bar.
They said the legislation said it had to be there.
I pointed out that the legislation said it was preferable, not a requirement.
Oh well.

[shedcoupe]

Yeah gas. Pffft.
Rodeo 2.6
Backfires blowing apart intake tubes, exhaust valves being eaten (flashlube is only good for intake valves), plugs ditto, no power, injectors getting burnt, extra heat cracking the exhaust manifold, gas tank undertray accumulating stones and dust and rusting out the tank etc etc.

[xb74_black]

It was the 80's, i was determined to have a schmick engine bay with dayglo orange rails and dayglo yellow rocker covers, oh and bird**** in the engine bay because. Part of this idiotic plan involved moving the battery to the boot, and then spending months dealing with dim lights and other associated voltage drop and poor earth issues.

[oldel]

It was the 90's, so I blacked out all the window chrome on my rx3. Also sprayed the white vinyl interior black. The interior looked forever stuffed as vinyl paint sucked back then and I was a noob, irreplaceable window chrome ruined (808s didn't have chrome around the windows, at least I could get replacement front and rear screen chrome from an 808, but the side windows, ruined forever).

Also hacked up parts of the dash and shifter console for gauges and stereo.
I did the battery relocation to the boot as well. NFI why, maybe I was dreaming of a huge turbo one day. I didn't get any power problems as I got huge cables from work. But it was pointless, dumb and most things put in the boot was ruined just because of fumes I think, corroded amp and speaker terminals, stinking sleeping bag etc LOL

It was a $1400 car at the time but all that stuff was mega expensive by the time I parted it out years ago, let alone now them being just under 100k cars now.

These days when I grab an older car I'm restoring to stock as much as I can, undoing dumb previous owner sh!t, but 30 years ago I was the dumb 'previous owner'.

[roKWiz]

1. Cutting up several newish front HJ-Z chrome bumpers and grilles to make a custom Caprice clip on an ill-fittng fibreglass tilt front.
Never did fit the butchered bumperettes.



2. Buying a Daihatsu Delta as the basis for a motorhome.

[jaydee]

Originally Posted by roKWiz

1. Cutting up several newish front HJ-Z chrome bumpers and grilles to make a custom Caprice clip on an ill-fittng fibreglass tilt front.
Never did fit the butchered bumperettes.

image

2. Buying a Daihatsu Delta as the basis for a motorhome.

But how good did those vans look with a Caprice front end

[whynot]

Originally Posted by xb74_black

It was the 80's, i was determined to have a schmick engine bay with dayglo orange rails and dayglo yellow rocker covers, oh and bird**** in the engine bay because. Part of this idiotic plan involved moving the battery to the boot, and then spending months dealing with dim lights and other associated voltage drop and poor earth issues.

That was on my list of things to do to the XC. Donno why. I think it was to improve the weight distribution. Glad I was too lazy. Completely forgot about acid fumes in the boot.

[Vesper Martini]

Originally Posted by Rallye Sport

As per the title has anyone got any stories of car modifications you've later regretted.

For me it was fitting a set of bonnet pins to my Escort. A straight rust free RS bonnet no less.
I remember marking the top then with the Dads old single speed Black and Decker drill I punched holes through the bonnet straight through the inner wing.

That one haunted me many years later when it came to repairing the vandalism, having to carefully weld an otherwise perfect bonnet.

So whats the one you regretted?

Thought about the bonnet pins but glad I never did

[Vesper Martini]

Mine was on an Escort too.

I had a 1600 x-flow with an A3 Cam with a weber twin throat down draft. it ran ran well and had a lumpy idle which I loved.

But I wanted better and bought a set of twin dellorto side drafts, gone straight away was the lumpy idle and we could never get it to rev properly. was getting back fires etc.

well one day it back fired as I drove in my drive, I didn't realise it caught fire - tried putting it out wit the garden hose but needed the fire brigade in the end..

My parents convinced me to write if off through insurance..

[lumen8]

Not a mod per se but since escorts have come up, was given a 76 escort 2 door (XL i think?) with a 1.3 , manual, sold it for 1300 bucks in the 90s. Was more or less mint too, really good nick.

Whats one of them worth now?

[Rallye Sport]

Originally Posted by lumen8

Not a mod per se but since escorts have come up, was given a 76 escort 2 door (XL i think?) with a 1.3 , manual, sold it for 1300 bucks in the 90s. Was more or less mint too, really good nick.

Whats one of them worth now?

Starting at about 5k for a rusty but usable shell

[shedcoupe]

And the gas system on that Rodeo ate a head gasket too.
Gas. Rubbish.

[shedcoupe]

Decided I was going to be a hippy in 1982 so I bought an old Kombi with an engine knock. It had a sliding door on both sides (to give access in narrow European alleys).
Pulled down the engine - the knock was the crankshaft broken right through a counterweight.
Decided to be a bogan hippy and fitted oversized barrels, extractors, cam, mechanical advance distributor, Weber, oil cooler, twin port heads etc.
Would do about 130 flat out.
But it got hot and the grease used to install the rear main seal loosened the big screw holding the flywheel onto the crankshaft. Changed that out while tripping but managed to get it right.
The overheating was eventually fixed with a high-volume oil pump but a head cracked between an exhaust valve seat and the plug during a high-speed insanity run one moonlit night (now that’s a story ...).
Regretted all that madness slightly later on but at the time it was fun - the bus would lift the front wheels off the ground if both side doors were slid back !

[Pis-ton broke]

Originally Posted by shedcoupe

Changed that out while tripping but managed to get it right.

ha,ha. must have been interesting times. how did the hippy thing go? good story.

[shedcoupe]

Originally Posted by Pis-ton broke

ha,ha. must have been interesting times. how did the hippy thing go? good story.

The long version is a most striking and amusing story.
The bits I can remember anyway.
As for the other bits .... who knows ? Maybe someone. If they can remember.

Two Pommy hitchhiking backpackers could relate being terrified by the antics of two degenerates in a Kombi doing a crazy midnight run on a part of a highway known for murders.
The degenerates were harmless of course but they weren't to know that.

[.:4:.]

I dunno if this is classed as a mod, but when i was 17 i was dailying a wb ute. The thing had an efi 304 and th700 4 speed auto. The speedo never worked as the auto had the sensor in it not a cable, which the speedo needs. Turns out the cable from a th350 works when you pull the sensor out. The motor trans conversion was done by a prior owner who to fit the 4 speed auto hacked the trans tunnel with tin snips. So i had a bit of metal go straight through my thumb. 17 years later and i still have no nail on that thumb. I probably should have stuck with the seat of the pants speedo.

[FTE217]

Putting urethane on any Ford I've owned more than the areas it does the job ie link pins/pan hards.
Rotton stuff IF you put it everywhere front to back, never again.
Putting in a new stereo was a mod back in the day no
Keeping a crappy cassette deck that loved eating up the tapes, why o why did I keep persisting thinking it wouldn't happen again lol....I think it was a Clarion !
Who recalls getting a pen and rewinding the tape back to then get to the point of hoping you won't snap it where it was caught inside.

[roKWiz]

Originally Posted by FTE217

Who recalls getting a pen and rewinding the tape back to then get to the point of hoping you won't snap it where it was caught inside.

Try that with a 8 track.

[FTE217]

Originally Posted by roKWiz

Try that with a 8 track.

yep nup, I didn't buy one of those back then for as you know, cassettes became the next best thing.

[Vekgib]

Originally Posted by FTE217

Keeping a crappy cassette deck that loved eating up the tapes, why o why did I keep persisting thinking it wouldn't happen again lol....I think it was a Clarion !

Slightly off topic but I put a Voxson unit in my VB Commodore. Opened the box and the face plate surround was broken. The Strathfield Car Radios outlet that I bought it from apologised and promised to order in a new one.
That was in 1985 and it hasn't come yet.
Must be on backorder I suppose

[Franco Cozzo]

Originally Posted by FTE217

Putting urethane on any Ford I've owned more than the areas it does the job ie link pins/pan hards.
Rotton stuff IF you put it everywhere front to back, never again.
Putting in a new stereo was a mod back in the day no
Keeping a crappy cassette deck that loved eating up the tapes, why o why did I keep persisting thinking it wouldn't happen again lol....I think it was a Clarion !
Who recalls getting a pen and rewinding the tape back to then get to the point of hoping you won't snap it where it was caught inside.

My car was recently fitted out with urethane everywhere front to back, I'm awaiting the squeaking noises to start

It does vibrate the insides a lot more on coarse chip roads though.

[Mr Brooksy]

Buying and fitting a Snort Performance twin screw supercharger to my old BA Futura. I didn't have the car for over 6 months as they used my car as a test bench. They finally couldn't get a tuner (they used 4 of them) to get the thing to work so they fitted one of Snorts highest end Garrett turbo kits which turned out to be a anything but a Garrett...

It became so frustrating I ended up getting rid of the car entirely not long afterwards.

[rare ss]

The original owner of my VK put the car phone aerial in the middle of the roof.. dik move

[shedcoupe]

Another HR story.
Had a boat trailer with a heavy drawbar weight.
Fitted pump-up shockies (Gabriel HiJackers - remember them ? And Speco floor shifts, air horns, racing harnesses, thick-rimmed steering wheels, variable wiper kits, electric radiator fan kits, water ‘injection’ kits that were just vacuum bleeds etc.).
Anyway.
The rough old Bruce Highway punched a shocky through the boot when the steel split.
Welded it up without worrying about the fuel tank being nearby.

[FTE217]

Originally Posted by shedcoupe

Another HR story.
Had a boat trailer with a heavy drawbar weight.
Fitted pump-up shockies (Gabriel HiJackers - remember them ? And Speco floor shifts, air horns, racing harnesses, thick-rimmed steering wheels, variable wiper kits, electric radiator fan kits, water ‘injection’ kits that were just vacuum bleeds etc.).
Anyway.
The rough old Bruce Highway punched a shocky through the boot when the steel split.
Welded it up without worrying about the fuel tank being nearby.

remember the HiJackers well, used to use those shocks having fitted such large wide tyres on the rear to help avoid the gaurds chewing out the outside egde of the tyres lol......
SAAS small steering wheels, always another mod.

[roKWiz]

Chrome tramps bars.
Blow a tyre and its like being on ski's but loved them anyway.
Funny how big steering wheels are coming back.

[FTE217]

another cheap easy mod back in the day that at times was a waste of time.
Dress Rims, how many times did the hubcap let go because the bloody dress rim didn't allow enough bite left for the hub cap to fix properly on the rim !
LOL flying saucer spinning down the road.

Cheeez Vekgib, now that is another ol one to mention, they sure did have some crap service back then, the maccas of the stereo/alarm world, hope that BO gets fulfilled before petrol is banned for that rippa cruise listenning to Pink Floyd through the Voxson.