As the title states AZ and its members influences with trying to keep up with the Jone's can make you poor. Bought my TL on 6/25/11. Since purchasing it with minor front end damage I have done several mods in just the past few months with many more planned.

Day of purchase:




7/5/11: Cleared Headlights/Type-S side markers/Blacked out tail lights/ AEM V2 Intake




7/17/11: Replaced dash and airbag system/Blacked out grill




8/11/11: Full A-Spec kit/De-badged




8/28/11: BC Racing BR Series Coilovers/Graphite painted stockies




Still so much to do. Future plans include 19" wheels, PCD's, J-pipe, ATLP base catback, black roof, sound system.

 

Hats off to you bro!! Great job and the TL is looking SAAWEEET!! Keep the pics coming with each upgrade you do to the car!!

 

I generally dont like the black out theme, but your tails are awesome!!!!!


I think leaving the wheels stock color would make it look better. it just looks like brake dust.

 

blackout on ssm looks good, plus, if I saw correctly, you opened the tails and did it right, not just spray paint the outside.

Jeez...after dash replacement, there isn't anything on this car you can't handle. Amazing progress...

 

same here man it was suppose to be my daily and the list is getting longer and longer good luck car looks great

 

Glad you saved that TL, brought her back to life in a big way. That dashboard replacement looked intense, no wonder dealers charge so much to replace them.

 

No wonder it was wrecked, the previous owner went to Carolina

Damn you've made a lot of progress with the TL! It looks great! You'll love the ATLP.

 

Thanks, I'll try to keep this updated as much as possible.

Thanks. I wasn't to sure about the blacked out theme on a SSM but after I put the tails on it, it set the whole thing into motion. The pictures do the wheels no justice. They look much better in person and I like the fact that they help hide brake dust build up.

Thanks, the tails aren't that spray tinted garbage. I been taking car interiors apart for a long time working at car stereo shops. The dash replacement wasn't too bad, took about 5hrs to do. The summer heat was what kicked my ass.

Thanks. This was suppose to be my daily driver and when I got it I said all I was gonna do was lower it and get a nice set of rims......

I'm happy I saved it too. It also helped me save a lot of money on the purchase price then ended up just going right back into modding it..... I said the same thing about dash after I completed the install.

Thanks, I was always drawn to the TL's rear because of the base exhaust. Think Acura did a good job with that design and I much prefer it over the quads. Seeing pictures of yours and other owners with ATLP cemented me sticking with that style.

 

Car looks great...and in less than 3 months

 

Nice revival!

 

Great progress so far, and nice job at tackling that dash.

 

Looks good man. SSM/ASM FTW!

 

Wow that's quick progress!

 

lookin good, way to revive that car!

 

Gryphen, welcome to Acurazine. Sorry the Mod Bug has bitten you so hard, but the results look great!

 

You're not wasting any time. Great progress so far.

 

Wow, brought her back to life! Keep the progress going even though that means spending more money

 

How much did you pay for the car with that damage? Must have been a good deal I presume?

Nice progress btw. But I would ditch that spoiler, welcome to the SSM family!

 

wow, not typically a fan of the blacked-out tails. but on your car it looks quite nice. also diggin the graphite painted stockies.

lastly, as an owner of the ATLP base exh it's worth every cent.

 

Very nice come back..

 

Nice job so far.

 

This is my twin Car looks great

 

relevant: my post below is from another thread (the items proceeding the '...' were: a-spec kit, coils, black vinyl roof)

all of this was solely due to my venture back to azine after having been away for awhile.



anyways, car is looking very good man!

 

Agreed.

 

Dude, 5 hours...you could make some serious money installing new dashes for 3Ger's with cracks. Too bad the dash skin costs as much as the out of pocket 50% contribution to have it replaced at the dealer.

PS...did you by chance do a DIY on cutting open the tails. i've seen em before but I'd like to see a line of where you would need to cut.

 

love the spoiler and rims

 

the gunmetal wheels look way better that the oem color...

 

Darn good lookin' whip Bro'. Hard work paid off.

 

I got the car for $5500. Structurally there was no damage it was all cosmetic. I got an OEM used bumper cover all ready painted silver for $250. Replaced both headlights one was cracked of course and the other had that nice piss yellow tint to it so I figured I might as well just replace the set, ran me $500 for those. Dash/airbags/SRS module I got for $1000. Got to love eBay. And of course I did all the labor myself. Wasn't a fan of the spoiler when I first got it but it has grown on me and I really don't feel like spending the money for a new trunk or having the holes bondo'd to get rid of it.

Thanks man, can't wait to see your car in person in Oct. I think our wallets could be best friends.

Really depends where you get the new dash from but either way its not gonna be cheap to replace the dash. If I wasn't so anal I would have just replaced the steering wheel bag and got a dash cover lol. To answer you about the tails, I cheated. I bought them like that. They are the Depo Black and smoked tail lights. Think I paid like $150 for them. Last time I checked I don't think they sell them anymore.

Thanks, I think so too. Plus it kind of was a trial run to see if that was the type of color I wanted to go with once I do rims.

Not at all. Got to make sure it looks good for those Oct. events. Can't be showing up looking stock and shit. Can't wait to see your beast at Chill and Grill at the lake.

Thanks to everyone else for the comments. It's great being part of a community that praises progress.

 

Awesome!

 

For Justin:




I actually have to run past by buddies shop tomorrow to help him out. I'll take some pics of the motor and interior while I'm there. Its not very impressive and has cost me more time and money then its worth. All the mods I have done are listed if you check it out in my garage.

 

sean, you're crazy..but i like you.

and if jason houses me, i'm down to ride in the rx-7!

 

lol thanks, I guess.... Sad thing is I haven't cranked the Mazda up in almost 2 years now. After the last accident I really got discouraged and stored it at my friends shop where it has been collecting dust and prolly some rust lol.

If that ever happens don't get excited. It's really nothing special. We're only talking about a 1.2L rotary motor that might make about 175hp. Granted it only weighs about 1400lbs. It runs low 14's in a 1/4 mile but wasn't built for straight lines. On a small tight corner track its impressive but still nothing to write home about.

 

Nice! I forgot to ask how many miles??

 

Car looks awesome. I love the wheel color, ride height, smoked tails and spoiler.

 

I like this pic for your next Avatar!

 

sweet progress.. u got a hell of a deal rebuilding it urself!

 

Time for an update! Been waiting for my wheels for almost 2 months now and they just arrived today (12/12/11). Avant Garde M310's 19x9.5 +40 (Dolphin Grey) and Nexen N3000 245/35/19. Also installed some "Brakemotive" cross-drilled and slotted rotors to pretty up the area behind my new wheels. I know I'm gonna get flamed for the ricer red calipers but idc. They'll be painted black soon enough.











Also, could I get a mod to change the title to "Gryphen's progress thread". Thanks

 

Love the new wheels and rotors! Any fitment problems with the wheels?

 

Thanks. Only issue I had was the rear wheels rubbed against the rear section of the a-spec kit. Nothing my dremel couldn't fix. Beside that they fit perfect just enough clearance at the current height with out any issues of rubbing.