Anthony42

So I just recently got a 2008 Acura TL type s. I want to start to put some mods on it, but I don't want to pay a shop hundreds of dollars. I have some mods in mind, but I really haven't done anything to a car before, so I just kind of want to know how easy these are and if I can do them myself.

1. Wheel spacers. I feel as if this is just taking off the wheel and putting the spacers on. If I'm right then that'll be easy, obviously.
2. Lowering the car. I would probably just do a mild drop nothing crazy, but I would use springs not coil overs. I feel as if this one would probably need a shop, but I do have a friend who works on cars every once in a while and he's done a car, so I could always have him help if this is doable without a shop but might need someone more inclined.
3. Cold air intake. I heard you have to take of your bumper for this one which I'm not 100% comfortable doing, but if it is not super hard I wouldn't mind doing it, or if someone can link me a how to post or video.
4. Exhaust. I was looking to do like a 3rd cat delete, but I'm not really sure what a delete even is. I've read about it quite a bit on these forums, but I don't even really know what it is, or what it does. I'll probably have a shop do this one.
5. UR/UD pulley. I heard there's a lot of small things you need to do with this one has anyone experienced doing one of these?

First post sorry if this is on the wrong place. Thanks a lot guys!

04WDPSeDaN

iTrader: (1)

A few questions to ask yourself.

At age 18, how much money are you willing to spend to do modifications based on you're not looking to spend much money to begin with.

2nd, research everything you want to do since all these topics are beaten to death with plenty of DIY instructions. At that point, you make the decision on doing these mods are worth wild.

Before mods, always maintenance. Make sure the vehicle goes through an extensive multi-point check list to see what's needed. Your overall safety and those around you are far more important than a hacked up exhaust system to sound good.

If you do it, do it right. Pay the money to get things done right and buy quality stuff. I am not a fan of hacking up the exhaust system. There are plenty of cat back exhaust systems which are MADE for the TL and dyno proven and quality built.

At 18, the real matter of the fact, on an aging car would be invest none for mods, and keep it the way it is. Most here will tell you to save that money. The TL isn't a money vs mod friendly vehicle. For what you want to do, might not be economical for you. This is your vehicle, you do as you please.

Ill give you my input.

1. Wheel spacers, Get at least a 15mm spacer and one that is NOT cheap. Get wheel spacers from a reputable company. Cheap wheel spacers will cost you big, if they crack while driving.. Read this thread, lots of great information. https://acurazine.com/forums/tires-w...pacers-847923/

2. Lowering. Again, do it right the 1st time. Getting springs is ok, but using them on stock suspension that is original is not ok. For example, if your TL-S has let's say 90K, why would you put lowering springs on suspension that might need replacing soon. If you get springs, get new shocks and top hats. At this point, you're at the same price as at least Tein street advance coils. Do your research before pulling the trigger. Also, before doing this, make sure the rest of the suspension like lower control arm bushings, ball joints ect are in excellent shape. I'm trying to save you the "doing it more than once" mentality.

3. CAI. Plenty of threads on this. Yes, you should remove your bumper, but you can do with without removing it too. It will make your life harder. If you do CAI, avoid flooded areas. If the water level is high enough to reach the fog light, it's high enough to cause hydro lock.

4. Exhaust. Plenty of threads on different stages and sound clips. I'm not a fan, I'd rather see you invest in a catback system. It's all a personal preference. Just a heads up. What sounds good to you at age 18, might not sound so good to you at a later age. With a cat back you have an option for resonated or non resonated. In an event you get a non resonated catback and think over time it's super loud, install a resonator.

5. Pulley. Is it something that will make it or break it deal in performance?? No. If you're looking to do this in part of a lot of other bolt on mods, than yes, it's worth wild.

There are many members before you that put in a lot of time and effort on Acurazine (3GTL section). Please, use the search function 1st to get as much information on your own. As old as these cars are now, there is nearly nothing new that hasn't been addressed. I'd avoid facebook groups, as most lack real common sense and knowledge on these cars.

Flipster23

iTrader: (15)

Coils over springs. Because everyone who buys springs ends up doing coils eventually.

sockr1

iTrader: (5)

coilovers over springs. if springs, you'll just make your shocks fail that much quicker and will cost more money than some quality tein coilovers which are all on sale right now

exhaust: are you going for sound or performance? if performance, switch your front two cats to HFPCs (high flow pre cats). if sound, get a catback exhaust or look up "exhaust stage mods" for a cheaper version (in my mind not nearly as good). an aftermarket jpipe will also add some good performance but little change to sound

as others said...LOTS of how to articles and threads in the forum. use google search for better results and put "site:acurazine.com" at the end to get site specific results. before this car i had never done anything to a car. from this forum i've now done everything to my car BY MYSELF in an apartment parking spot with normal tools. the info is all there and it's great!

truonghthe

lesson learned during my teenager with mods.



Rules

1. Stayaway from cheap parts.
2. If your mod cost $2000 then be prepare have $3500 in your hand.
3. You better install yourself or a trust worthy mechanic. Indi shop and dealer will cost you a ball or two for part installation (some dealer refuse to install aftermarket part even its OEM direct replacement).
4. Most mods have it pro and con, pros in performance but cons in term of everyday comfort.
5. Vehicle maint come before mod.
6. Exhaust will CAI only give you better high end RPM flow and noise no real gain notices via butt dyno.
7. modding a Honda AT is a waste of money because the 4th gear ratio is so dam tall. Even a corolla will flash their highbeam tell you to move over. (if your TL is AT)
8. Save money for better things in the future (house, nicer car, college, business etc....)
9. Stay away from Ebay parts unless the seller has actual store business location.




Not to thread jack but here is what my AV6 looks like back then.

anx1300c

iTrader: (2)

Not true. I've been on H&R sports and Koni Yellows for five years and am quite content with the setup, as are many others.

Anthony42

Imgur: The most awesome images on the Internet unfortunately have some more expenses before mods now

04WDPSeDaN

iTrader: (1)

Sorry for the unfortunate situation, however, ask me how many times younger new buyers end up in the same path.

From the looks of it, you have a CAI. I guess regardless of what you wanted to do, it can be done now.

Best of luck with repairs. Make sure the body shop uses OEM parts. Take it easy when driving.

ggesq

iTrader: (1)

ouch. Sorry to see that. Good luck w/ the repairs.

Anthony42

I thought it comes stock with one

cu2wagon

So you don't know what it is, or what it does, but you want to do it?

My humble suggestion is that while you wait for your car to be repaired, your first "mod" could be on the fleshy brainbits between your ears. Do some reading and research. See what others have done and if it fits with what your end objective is. Then figure out how they did it and if it's something you want to tackle on your own or paid to have done.

You shouldn't just go willy-nilly doing things because you *heard* someone else did it. That's how we get neckbeards and manbuns.

Do what *you* want to do, not because it's popular and trendy but because it fits with your overall goal. Like a Prince Albert.

Good luck and happy modding!

TacoBello

WTF... OP came here hoping we'd select, buy and install all his modifications for him. What is this "read" and "learn" BS you speak of? There's no instant gratification with that.

Flipster23

iTrader: (15)

Well most.

But for the price you payed for those yellows and springs, you could have bought coils.

TacoBello

Anthony, we are MORE than willing to help you along your way, but you have MUCH learning to do first. Shit, before I even began modding my first car, I read into everything I wanted to do and how to do it and what parts to buy before I even owned the car and before I even turned a single bolt. At 16, I started lusting for a car that I would not buy for another 4 years. Even once I started seriously wrenching, I had a long path of learning ahead of me.

Cars are complicated beasts. Feel free to ask us anything. We may poke fun once in awhile, but remember, we were once in your shoes also. For some people, working on cars comes much easier than for others.

You have a good platform to begin with, but before worrying about how much more power you can put to the ground, you gotta know the ins and outs. Your car is fairly fast as is, and if I may make a suggestion- I think it'd be best to learn how to control the beast and how to drive properly before raising the power level. Shit, my first mod car started with 127hp. But shit, I learnt to drive that fucker like you wouldn't believe. It's easier to learn on a lower power car. You have 286hp and a nicely tuned stock suspension from the factory. Learn it. Embrace it. Love it for what it is.

As others have said, if you really want to mod a TL, find one with a 6MT. There's another guy on AZ who spent ~$4000 to date and has only gained 25hp. Is that really worth it to you? If I were you, I'd skip the power mods, besides maybe an exhaust (for the sound and look), and focus on maybe making the car look nicer, with a nice set of wheels and suspension. That's where the TL's strengths lie.

And beyond everything, make sure your maintenance is 110% up to date, before anything else. Learn to do it yourself. You'll save a lot of money, you'll learn a lot, you'll get pissed off a lot and you'll have plenty of bleeding knuckles from doing so.

Flipster23

iTrader: (15)

Well...... someone will be selling a 04 6MT soon that has been taken good care of.....

GKinColo08TL

Well said TB! Anthony, no matter how fast you make that TL, there's always a faster car out there that'll take your title.

GKinColo08TL

True story, cuz I'm passing. Lazy left leg.

Anthony42

Okay sweet thanks a lot everyone. And I tried to find more information about a third cat delete or just deletes in general, but I could really never find too much info about it or what it actually does to increase sound or performance. I also thought I saw somewhere that it does come with a stock cold air intake, but it just wasn't that good. I've been really into cars since I was like 15, but I really never took the time to understand them. And you actually have a really good point when it comes to going more for suspension, and stuff like that. I'll probably look at taking money I would've spent on more performance based options, and do more to suspension and looks. But just to make sure that would be an aftermarket cold air intake that was installed?

FamilyGuy

"Delete" means getting rid of it. Often this means replacing one part with something else.

Your car comes with a factory CAI, but that's not what you have in your pics. You have an aftermarket CAI.

Go in the photo section and read a few build threads to familiarize yourself with your new car first before you spend a single penny.

Anthony42

Okay cool well awesome there's $200 I don't have to spend. And yeah that's why I wanted to know the difficulty about everything. If something was too hard I would've brought it to a shop, but if it isn't to hard I would research more into it. I definitely would not go into an install blind.

TacoBello

Having the right tools makes any job easier.

Seriously.

Anthony42

Yeah I could definitely see that being true. There's a kid who does a lot on cars who I know I'm sure he could lend me some tool, and probably even a hand

usdmJON

1. Wheel spacers.

Do it. I'd go about 15mm upfront and 20-25mm in the rear depending on how much width you want back there.

2. Lowering the car.

My suggestion is go with a full coilover. Even if not brand spankin new. The ride quality will just feel all around better with a full strut/spring combo. Don't go cheap here.

3. Cold air intake.

Not much need here as the TL's without a tune preform pretty similarly with or without the CAI. And many have proven there are minimal to no gains with just the CAI. Though I'd suggest it as it's a fun install and a good feeling knowing you're making these mods. GO for it. I bet you can pull it off yourself.

4. Exhaust.

I highly advise against doing any sort of deletes. Im not sure about your area but a cat delete wont pass smog. Not in cali I believe anyway. Some do muffler deletes which will pass smog if the muffler is behind the cat. But IMO this often makes for a bad sound.

I suggest saving for an axle-back that improves the growl of the TL exhaust. No deletes necessary. You would just be removing the exhaust that sits behind your rear axle (hence the term axle-back) and it'll bolt right up. This will also upgrade the rear of the car with new exhaust tips.

5. UR/UD pulley.

I would say this isnt really needed unless you are going to add other mods and get a tune down the line.

Id say save for some nice wheels and call it a day. VMR became a new sponsor here and you may be able to get a sweet discount being a member.

In the end if you took all the advice I just gave youd have a sweet looking TL that doesnt sound stock and youd walk away with the knowledge that you did some slight performance upgrades. Minimal yes but they are still present. Lowered, widened, breathing easier, looking sharper. I'd call that a day.

cu2wagon

Add to that the fact that on an older platform like the TL, there probably isn't much that hasn't been done and documented already. You can usually find quite a few threads showing step by step how to do anything. E.g. removing the front bumper, and the pitfalls and solutions that people have found.

Since it sounds like you have limited experience, read and learn as much as you can and then just get in there and get your hands dirty. Having a knowledgeable friend is icing on the cake.

Scottwax

The two mods that will make the biggest difference and don't need any supporting mods are a long tube J-pipe (eliminates the 3rd cat) and since you already have the larger TL-S anti-roll bars, go with the Progress 24 mm rear bar. Both changes will be noticeable, won't make your car much louder or ride rougher. With the larger rear anti-roll bar, your car will rotate faster (less understeer) so don't go flying through curves until you get a handle on how more rear roll stiffness affects your car.

TacoBello

Decide what you want first- performance or looks. If you want performance, don't get wheel spacers. They will rob a bit of power due to the additional unsprung weight the engine has to spin. Even 1 pound makes a difference, when it comes to the wheels. It'd be silly to add an exhaust in hopes of gaining 5hp, only to lose that 5hp with spacers.

Then again, unless you plan on riding on the oem wheels, I wouldn't get spacers for looks either, but rather, get wheels with the proper offset you're looking for. That's just my two cents though. It's your car and your money. As you can see, modding this car at 18 is not cheap.

usdmJON

TacoBello

Shiiiiet... I got my 1000th "thanks" from Jon today