Newcomer Looking for Suggestions and Insight

734 Views 8 Replies 6 Participants Last post by Markstang, Jul 16, 2009

Derelict

Discussion Starter · Jul 9, 2009

Hey, I'm new to the forums. Up front I want to say that I'm a new driver and plan to delay the upgrades until I become more experienced.

I'm 16 and recently got a '03 v6 Mustang. I'm loving it, but I want to learn more about my car and look into some future upgrades. I've been looking around some forums, and I've come up with some ideas.

Right now I'm looking at purchasing either a CAI or a dual exhaust. From my understanding, a CAI would run me about $80 while a dual would run me $300-400. Honestly, being a teenager, I'm looking some something that would make me feel/look/sound cooler in my Mustang. From what little knowledge I have, the duals would benefit me most.

With this introduction, I have a few questions

Are there any other economical upgrades I can make to give me a bit more push, sound, or style?

What else accompanies the aforementioned upgrades? (installation, other costs, tuning, maybe even insurance or emission repercussions)

What other upgrades should I educate myself about?

Please go easy on me, I'm pretty ignorant. Any elementary explanations are welcomed, even appreciated, so long as you extrapolate. I'm sure I'll have more questions in the future.

Also, should I look into joining an autocross club, or signing up for advanced driving classes? Off topic, but input is appreciated.

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Silver J

· #4 · Jul 10, 2009

Yeah, the guys here pretty much said what the "economical" choices would be: CAI, UDPs (underdrive pulleys), and tuner. Next step in terms of cost is probably gears, LSD (limited slip differential - often called t-lok, which is actually a brand name...), and exhaust. After that, you kinda need to decide if you are going NA or using a power adder.

My advice: slide on over to the "V6 Tech" section and check out the intro posts (especially the one called "Bolt-on run down" or something)... then post specific questions so we can more directly help ya out. :bigthumbsup

Oh - and welcome to the site!! :shigrin

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Silver J

· #7 · Jul 14, 2009

^^^^ You beat me to it! :shigrin Yes, definitely get a manual: it will help you tons! Most maintainence things are explained pretty good in there (air filter, fuel filter, spark plugs, etc) as well as a schedule of how often to change things.

For the oil: you will need a drain pan and jack with stands. (You can also use ramps, but they can easily damage your car :happyhapp). Prop it up on the stands; open the oil cap on top of the engine; place the pan under the drain plug; use a 15 or 17mm socket to remove the plug and let it all drain into the pan (about 10-15 mins); reinstall plug; place pan under oil filter and unscrew (may need gloves); drain the remnants into pan and carefully throw away old filter (I put it in the new filters box, then tie it up in a bag, then in the trash); install new filter to hand tight; pour 5 quarts of whatever oil (weight is in the manual) you choose in; close oil cap - start her up and away you go! :bigthumbsup

You might wanna wait on the tuner, since it can be expensive... Lemme know if you have any more questions.

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