Which is more important to you Looks or Performence? and why?

It depends on where you draw the line. I wouldn't swap my engine to upgrade it that's for damn sure. I'm going to tweak the **** out of the engine I presently have...I'd be a hell of alot more proud of it than just getting another factory engine that's maybe pushing 10-30 horses more than mine. I have the JDM SS-II, if I wanted the turbo version I'd have broke the bread for it in the first place. As far as looks are concerned, I think as long as you keep it original then the sky's the limit. We don't need another INTEGRA ricer frenzy where car's are competing against cars with a cheap po-dunk body kit and those god forsaken wiper-fluid-dispencer-LED-things.

Hmm I dunno... performance does have a cost besides the obvious (money) such as gas mileage, temptation to speed and such resulting in increased amount of citations, if repairs are necessary most likely more expensive... where as looks can get you some fine honey's or get some low life thugs staking your ride out, to put an end to my babbling... for my celi what would I rather Have? Ill take looks, Im happy enough with the performance of my GT.

Interesting topic of conversation...
I'm personally trying to get the best of both worlds without spending a small fortune, that is, upgrade perfomance and highlight the looks.
If you start increasing engine performance then you have to start considering upgrading your braking system and then handling.
Once you have that sorted, you want it to look the part.

I want a nice looking car, different to anyone else around here, and that has the performance to backup the looks.

Just for an idea of what I'm planning...
Looks:
1. Interior (gearknob, shift boot, handbrake cover, dash trim kit, bezel gauge, paint some of the black plastic panels, CD player and speakers)
2. Exterior (Body Kit, Wing, Hood Scoop/Vents, Head/Side/Taillights, Paint Brake Calipers)
Performance:
1. Engine(Air Intake, Plugs, Leads, Coil, Cat-Back Exhaust, Fuel Pressure Regulator)
2. Braking (f/r Drilled/grooved Discs, EBC Green Pads, )
3. Handling (koni yellows, 1.5" lowering springs, f/r sway bars, f/r strut bars)

What order .... Make it go, make it stop, make it handle, make it look good.
1. Looks - 1 (quickest and cheapest method to get quick visible results..good for morale!)
2. Performance - 1
3. Performance - 2
4. Performance - 3
5. Looks - 2

Well I prob have to say looks since I have done a lot more for looks than performance!

1. Intake (Pretty Cheap)
2. Exhaust
3. Wires and Plugs
4. Nothin lol, unless turbo or pully
5. I wouldnt mind doing a swap but too much money for my budget

i believe this is a matter of personal prefference
to me it's like this:

1 pick a nice car when u buy one (celica is a great choice... plain stock it looks good )
2 the car definitely needs a good music install!!!!(for this one i work my ass off!)
3 spend some money on original looks
4 spend some money on performance


currently i'm halfway stage 2 and i'm getting into stage 3

i have a nice audio install, although i still need a good compo and want another powerfull tantrum amp
currently i'm working on a nice buildup of my trunk so that's the audio stuff mixed with the looks of the interior

when all this is done i'll start saving money for a veilside kit body kit
don't know yet if it 'll be the complete one or just the nose... i kinda like the ass of my celi already
and i have some "original" ideas(=> haven't seen it done to a celica) to even make it better

after that (by this time i'll be a working and making tons of money so money won't be an issue (plz plz plz pzl pzl pzl )
an engine swap might be up

engine swapping is something i'm reading up on for the moment... it seems to cost a lot... but i'd make my st a LOT more performant...
i'm still studying... maybe i'll have to money when i graduate and start working... we'll c


oh yeah and i also like those custom leather interiors so ... if i have some money in the future it might consider this...

good topic...

well i'd have to say that to me...looks would be the numbet one thing..But you can't have a tight body job and a weak performing engine. So the looks are num. 1 and the performance is second. You could at least beef up the engine a little....but as long as it looks fast... and still drives good...it's all good to me.

i think they are even with me. but hey whatever.

Well if you have a tigh bodykit and its lowered to make the fender gap go away and you have a powerful enigne if you dont granny shift your going to nail the front!

i say both

Thats how I feel also.

If your going to have a car that looks bad ass that you might as well have the ass to back it up.

-Bryan-

If your car goes fast it looks good.
If your car looks good why would you want to go fast?

LOL thats good.

-Bryan-

thank you they just come to me

Ok Im doing both, just not in any speciffic order. Maybe I should figure out a plan, but oh well I go at my own way. Here is why I love the looks of our cars, even if its is still manly stock.
Bryan

well ive been doing ALL looks right now....

however i got a ride in a civic SI that was modded and holy sh!+..... it was amazing.... i now am obsessed with performance...

what i now have planned:
1)install bodykit and current mods
2)eibach sportline springs or TRD springs and koni struts
3)3SGTE

Resurrection....
I'm going more show than go. Right now i'm spending all my time on getting the exterior done. After I go to the show i'm looking at getting headwork done this jan. and then getting high compression pistons. I'm what everyone else wants. 200 hp at the crank will surfice and then i'm going to redo my interior.

Haha, Looks are very very important to me. It's as someone on here always says, if I wanted a fast car, I would buy a fast car. I mean, right now, my car has neither, but I have big plans. I like to keep it simple, you know, nothing too flashy, but definitely really nice. Just like some skirts and either a front lip or like a c-one kit is definitely optimal with a lowered ride sitting on 17" rims. But you see the other side to that is that I love cornering which would mean lowering my car w/ performance springs and putting in some kyb struts, having a sway bar and of course, w/ corners and a lowered car you want some power. But I say make your car look good first, but eventually, people will start to clown you if you have the looks but not the power. (only if people's opinions really matter) You know what, I think I contradicted myself a few times in here. I'd say looks first, then performance. Lowering springs just happen to be both so cornering looks good then. haha, alright, I'm done.

At first it was all about the looks then i got sick and tired of my car looking fast and being slow . So i turboed it i think it should go hand in hand (50/50) get the easy performance upgrades like exhaust plugs headers intake and then wheels body pieces. Just my .02

Well, everyone has different opinions on this, especially what looks good appearance-wise.

Personally, I am an all performance kinda guy. I am a 95% suspension/handling and 5% motor thing. I love lateral g forces. Most of my money has gone to uprates shocks, alignments, and race tires. I wouldn't mind going with a really well-built 3sgte putting around 300 torque to the wheels, but at this point it isn't feasible for a lot of reasons. Probably won't ever happen, to tell the truth. I just don't see the point in doing it halfway (i.e. just dropping a JDM 2nd gen w/160 or so HP.... $$$ to power return is too low for me), and a full build like what I am talking about is just too much time/labor/fundage.

Looks-wise, I keep it simple and tasteful. My car is black, so I went with dark tint all around, and tinted the tails/sidemarkers. I would take off the badging if it was legal in SCCA stock competition. Wheels are from a stock 7th gen GT. Nothing flashy, but not totally stealth, either. I am not a fan of body kits at all, but I know some are, and more power to them.

I think its easier for us Celica owners to settle for Looks AND Reliability

I know a guy that has a Supra and he has a need for speed, so he kept modding and now he has a supra with 500 hp but it breaks down every week. and it looks like crap ,shot paint job, center cap missing from one rim carpet torn. has to spend all his money on repairs never on the body.

looks for sure. im getting to old to care about beating little 16-17 year old racers. girls may like a fast car, but how often do you see them flocking to the civic hatchbacks that are all suped up?

Dude... aint you seen the pics in the magazines?!

looks, i went for performance on my old car(civic hey ya got to start some where) and only got about 170 to the wheels but it kept breaking down. this time i going for looks with the celica. maybe my next car i can do both.

I'm for looks also. To me the best thing to do for our cars performance-wise, is the swap. For the money, it's the best. But sheesh, I don't have the money, or the time to put into the swap. And if I did, then what? The speed limits don't go up cuz I got more power, but I'm sure my insurance would after a few tickets.

But I definetly think my celi should look fast. When I get done with exterior, I wanna powdercoat the valve cover, and put in some plug wires, new hoses, and clean up the engine bay and all. Right now I'm putting on the veilside-style kit, hiro wing and a hood vent. I plan on painting it kandy red with two layers of flake. Looks for me

Ever since i got the 3s I am all bout performance. As you can tell i havent painted my car i used the money to get a stronger tranny and clutch, i figure even tho the car looks bad it'll be more fun when im beating everyone on the highway.

im doing both at the same time....gathering parts and saving up cash for my exterior project and 80% with my 5sfte kit

i look at it this way....
i dont wanna be fast and look like a joke(sleeper???)i have unpainted bumpers and such
i also dont wanna look fast but be slower than a civic

Whats it matter if u look like a joke but bring the game better than ne body else?

You'll always get more respect from being fast than from looking fast.

Also, our cars look pretty fast as is, theres no joke.

you havent seen my car

looks, celys unless swapped arent made for spped, they are made for crusing and gettin some lol

i dunno what celi u have but my celi hasnt brought me any

after i get lisence i get g/f , before then... nothing.... coincidence i think not... o yea and there is constnaly hot girls wanting a ride in my car.... hehe they want it

HEY.....dont mess with the coupes....do i have to bust out the curren pics

but hey its alright i dont want the girls who only look for the cool car

i like show and go. after getting the 3s in my engine bay, im focusing all my attention on running more boost, gettting turbo to spool faster, moitoring my engine, etc, but i still like the idea of having a nice looking car.

damn.. one of my post back from the dead...

depends...if u already have a fast car, u might as well add on to it, but other than that, looks. Looks grabs peoples attentions even when ur car is parked somewhere, but performance only wows when ur on the move. I would like both though.

well, i drive a WRX

so performance, lol

the STI looks good, but just a plain WRX like mine is weak in the good looks category

i'd leave the celica looks stock, maybe highlight it with a paintjob and some 16"-17"s, and then put the rest of the money into performance, cause celica looks good stock, and im not into the whole show car sorta thing, i like some lips and some basic body kits, but i dont like wings/spoilers at all, unless your seriously AutoX at high speeds, or have a 500hp drag car you dont need them IMO (but thats another topic). How bout this for ever second you take off your quarter mile time you can add another stage, lol, thats what sounds good to me

stage 1 : paint job, new wheels
stage 2 : lip/small bodykit
stage 3 : minor hood scoop, good lookin fenders, and bodykit
stage 4 : supra (IMO there the best looking) spoiler
stage 5 : all out w/e you want ,lol

put in short, i'd rather have a sleeper, than a ricemobile

We all know what I'm gonna say. I think looks are for guys who don't know motors.

And Andason (i think u said it) I don;t think racing is an immature thing. Last night while I was at the track, there more middle aged racers then teens.

My celi hasn't gotten me any chicks, really. Girls always tell me how hot my car is, and i show em the nos and he get all "ohhahhhh-y". But no chick is going to sleep with you just cuz of ur car. But a hot car is a great ice breaker

i used to be all about the show. then after 1 auto x event i was hooked on the cornering aspect. so now all my focus is on suspension and power. body kit is now cracked and scratched but at least i can keep up with the bigger cars on some corners.

youve got to have both. Really depends what youre going for, if you want a street racer then what is the point in putting a really good bodykit on the car without having any power to back it up. The same tihing can be said for all go and no show, what is the point if the car looks like a shed even if it is fast

Well looks over power. isn't that really the terminology of a ricer?

looks without power is just plain bull. In my opinion, Unless you have some power (200 bhp and up) you shouldnot even consider looks

Lets see....I have a ST.....so I would say looks lol
But when I work on someones car I always tell them power before looks....If you have the looks you need to back it up.....otherwise you just look stupid on the line!


J-

well stated this thing almost 2 years ago .. about time i post which side i'm on...

performence is good if and when you need it... and to tell the truth i don't think i have ever needed it... it has help me get places quicker when i'm late... but other then that... nothing... yea it's hella fun to have... but i'm not the kind to go to the track a whole lot... and i don't give a damn if everyone else car is faster then mine... if i want to go fast i'll just get another bike ...so much fast thener tjem a car..

as for looks well if you have an ugly car it's just plan ugly ... if you have a sexy car it's just sexy... if you don't want to race or go fast looks will always be more important...

but right now .. i want to go fast .. don't need it just really want it... that damn M3 around my job.. i want to beat him so bad...

ok i'm sleepy im going to bed now .. bye everyone talk to ya'll later..

I believe that Performance has to come before anything else. My definition of rice is: Anything that looks like it can do what it can't. For example: The fart can. A simple straight through "muffler" with a huge tip at the end that makes your car sound like a fart driving down the road. It does nothing for performance but makes it look like you have a descent exhaust back there, the only give away being the sound. Looks come after performance. If you make your car look like the baddest thing on the road, it damn well better be the baddest thing on the road. Why make your car look good if you can't back up the looks with anything that resembles performance. The GT4 guys have it goin on, they look fast and are extremely fast. That is my definition of a real car. Everything evens and balances out.

I cant drive a car that i dont like the appearance and i cant drive a car that i dont like the performance