Christian370Z's Progression Thread

[christian370z]

It is with great sadness that the Saab is officially out of my custody. The auto relocation company came to pick up the new gen to take it to it's new home in New York. I have learned almost all my automotive know how by dealing with all the mods and trouble this car has caused me. I have slaved over this car but I could not justify letting it languish since I got the Z.

To be honest, it feels wrong not having it in the garage as it has been around me for most of my life and the attachment I developed after the ungodly amount of time I spent making sure it was perfect is scary to think about...

I just hope that this auto relocation company does not trash the car like the last one but I protected the car as much as I could which is why it is hard to see it out of my hands.

Walk around video:









Being loaded up, wasn't pleased about the company it was facing on the trailer:










A final quick photo op by the ocean:

[Boost_lee]

wow that Saab was in outstanding shape...

[travisjb]

great start! I like the lights! good choices on your first mods... might think about a rear diff next, and oil cooler

[christian370z]

Originally Posted by Boost_lee

wow that Saab was in outstanding shape...

Thanks Lee, it was a labor of love. At the time of sale, it was putting down roughly 285whp/290wftlbs or 350 crank hp which made for quite a few surprises for E46/E92 M3s, EVOs, and STis but the chassis was aweful. In the end, I realized (too late) that I could not overcome the fundamental weaknesses of the car and detuned the car which felt so much better.

Originally Posted by travisjb

great start! I like the lights! good choices on your first mods... might think about a rear diff next, and oil cooler

Thanks Travis! The oil cooler is next on my list, I got a great deal from a guy at Stillen on their 25 row Setrab cooler kit so I would have it done along with a crank pulley. I have yet to see oil temps above 220-230 but I haven't been pushing the car much at all since it is still in break in.

[christian370z]

I finally got my intakes back from powdercoating today after suffering through switching my CT driver's license to my CA driver's license at the DMV. I went for textured black since I wanted a clean, OEM look in the engine bay and I really didn't like the way the intake looks in its polished form. What do you think? I like it, and will be installing them tomorrow!


Before:




After:





I know that the whole concept behind having polishing intake pipes is to reflect heat but honestly, I doubt this will make much of a difference as the primary cool air benefits of the G3 intake come from having the filters located in the bumper. Coming next will be a Tanabe Y pipe and later this year, a custom road tune from SpecialtyZ to round out all the bolt ons!

[ChrisSlicks]

Originally Posted by christian370z

For some reason, the embedded video is not working so here is a direct link to it:

When you do a YouTube link just put the part after the v=, I did it wrong the first time as well.

Looking good!

[christian370z]

Originally Posted by ChrisSlicks

When you do a YouTube link just put the part after the v=, I did it wrong the first time as well.

Looking good!

Awesome Chris, thanks for correcting that! I did that in my Y pipe thread after reading AK's embedding instructions, don't know why I never rectified this thread.

How do you like your BC coilovers by the way?

[second_2_nun]

Gotta get those bulbs nice find.!

[ChrisSlicks]

Originally Posted by christian370z

How do you like your BC coilovers by the way?

The BC coilovers rock, good default spring rate and damping range. Probably the only downside for a street vehicle that occasionally hits the track is that the rear adjusters are at the top of the shock tower, which happens to be hidden by all that plastic in the trunk. I believe extenders are available to solve that problem.

[tbonesteak]

Dude cool stuff. Are you gonna put on the intakes before i come check out your car for the hfcs next week??? NooooOOOO hahah

[christian370z]

Originally Posted by ChrisSlicks

The BC coilovers rock, good default spring rate and damping range. Probably the only downside for a street vehicle that occasionally hits the track is that the rear adjusters are at the top of the shock tower, which happens to be hidden by all that plastic in the trunk. I believe extenders are available to solve that problem.

I have to say that I have not really heard anything bad about them which is excellent because they are much cheaper than stepping up to the Tein/HKS/KW options. I figure if I am going to start messing with the suspension past the Stillen sways I already have, I might as well do it right with coilovers.

Originally Posted by tbonesteak

Dude cool stuff. Are you gonna put on the intakes before i come check out your car for the hfcs next week??? NooooOOOO hahah

Hey, it will just give you more motivation to buy an intake! Unfortunately, I will have little time to install it before I go back to school for the semester so tomorrow is a good time for me. No worries though, you will still definately get a gist for the way the exhaust sounds!

[Boost_lee]

Intakes look good, I like the OEM-ness of this build

[travisjb]

Did I not send you the extenders!!!!? I'll check my garage... sorry!

Glad you like em!

Originally Posted by ChrisSlicks

The BC coilovers rock, good default spring rate and damping range. Probably the only downside for a street vehicle that occasionally hits the track is that the rear adjusters are at the top of the shock tower, which happens to be hidden by all that plastic in the trunk. I believe extenders are available to solve that problem.

[ChrisSlicks]

Originally Posted by travisjb

Did I not send you the extenders!!!!? I'll check my garage... sorry!

Glad you like em!

I have the extenders but I couldn't be bothered figuring out how to install them

[christian370z]

It took me about 3 hours to install my Stillen intakes but I was pleasantly surprised that it was a much easier job than I was expecting. I used the dremel to trim back the air intake passages in the front core in order for the pipes to clear which turned out very nice, then it was a matter of getting all the pipes where I wanted and then tightening down all the fasteners and clamps. Once I finished, I reset the ECU in car and started it up to check for any issues to which there were none.

The bumper went back one and I finally got to look at the finished article; it is perfection in my opinion, the look is exactly what I wanted as it looks sleek and oem but yet the texture black powder coat has just a bit of sheen to give it that something extra. I am very happy with it, now to head out for a nice drive!


How the filters sit in the front bumper recess:





All finished, love it:






Next up will be the Tanabe Y pipe and a custom road tune!