Starting Out - suggestions?

[imugli]

Hi Guys,

Am new to the whole "I wanna work my Hyundai" thing, so pls forgive the lack of any real technical knowledge.

I have (well it's the wife's) '96 X3 1.5l SOHC 3 door. Bog standard, 138k km on the clock.

I'm after some suggestions as to what people think would be the best add-on to go with first of all. Forget engine swaps, turbo's etc - I'm just thinking handling / ride / gear change for now - starting off very very small...

The top three things on my list (after poring through the forums) currently consist of a rear sway bar, a front strut brace and a short shifter. Does this sound like a good order to do things in? Perhaps a decent air filter after these.

I'd like to put some alloys on the thing, but from what I can gather from reading, these can be pretty hard to come by because of the breaks - is this a correct conclusion to draw? And what do people recommend as a good size without needing to pump guards or roll lips? Are 16 x 6.5s the way to go? TBH I was hoping to put 17s on, but don't want any scraping...

I know I can get the sway bar, strut brace and shifter from PSC - do people recommend anywhere else? I understand Bretton is the owner of this place - is this correct? I've had a look at the PSC site and it seems to have a great range of stuff.

Any tips or suggestions from anyone would be greeat.

Cheers,
J

[Medic_01]

your on the right track!

if you want heaps of power, the beta swap is the best thing for the X3 excell.

your choice of mods is good, and dare say, best bang for buck, you will notice the difference that these make.

PSC are good for all you need, you could always try Whiteline for your suspension aswell.

[newbtastic]

well, im new to the tuning world. but after doing it for a couple months now im learning some stuff from this site. if you want better rims. the best thing you can do would be to do the tiburon brake swap from a 2000 or 2001. this will allow you to get rid of the captive rotars that our car has. I havent done it myself but ive been looking at doing it. there is another thread in the accent forum entitled newby questions or something like that. theres a list on there with everything you need. the guy told me you can do it for 150 or less from junkyard. hope that helps

[imugli]

Well the journey has begun...

I fitted a PSC quickshifter last night and am loving it so far. So much more feeling in the change, shorter throw, less play in the stick. Great first addition.

Have ordered a pair of Twin Cam tail lights too, should get them in about a week or so, so should be fitted next weekend.

[Grandhustleman86]

what size wheels did it "X3" come with stock.....and what lug pattern.....the X2 was outfitted with 13x4.5 and had a lug pattern of 4x114....if it is nearly the same.....im tellin you since your not tryin to spend to much money upgrade to some OE Steelies (I think bigass steelies on any car looks good) wheels off another car....I have spent just under $200 bucks and have 15x6's out front...and 14x5's out back...the 14x5's fit perfectly with my wheel spacer....the 15's however required me to get longer studs (NOTE: the offset on mine could be totally different from your.....I went with H&R performance studs 1/2 inch longer but hey im gonna need em anyways when the 4g63 is installed......I believe your offset is about 35-38MM....so try to find a car with good steelies....perferably the 94-present 4-lug Accord wheels fit real nicely....but FYI like I said a bit ago....i used the LX 14x5's out back....and the EX 15x6's up front....for traction issues....lol