hello, new member and i need lots of help please...

[fly_wzm3]

hi,i really don't know how to start, but here goes. i drive a Nissan versa sl hatch back with the audio, sunroof (im still confused if it's called a moon roof or sunroof, but i know people have lectured me about this b4), and convenience package. I dont have abs, which kind of makes me upset. i have the CVT motor and my car is white. i recently found this web forum and have read a lot of posts and i see very clearly that you guys are very pro when it comes to the versa. So i come here asking for your help and advise.here are my questions, which i hope you guys can answer:1.) because i don't have ABS, is there anything i can do to help my braking system in any way become better? now i am not sure if better is the right word, but i do want to improve my car's brakes performance. Is there any recommendation for that? 2.) I bought the aftermarket tail lights for my car before i found this wonderful forum and i bought the ones from ebay that someone posted about long ago. I wanted to know if it is better to follow the instructions on how to black out my tail lights and re-install those and if i do will i get a ticket for them being smoked? Because according to the company i bought them from, they had guaranteed that my tail lights are street legal and are DOT/SAE approved. i did check guidelines from police forums that said for altezza lights to be good they need to have red reflectors (or something lie that) and pass some code that had a lot of numbers on after a letter. In which, they said when the lights are DOT/SAE approved (which they also mention DOT is the important aspect) that they would past this regulation and you probably wont get a ticket. Now my friend smoked his lights for his altima and got pulled over right away because the cops here love to give tickets. I recall he said he two tickets for his lights in total for them being smoked. What should i do here? keep the ones i have or smoke my OEM ones? (also what does fish tank mean? because i see people writing something about fish when talking about aftermarket tail lights)3.) I don't quite understand what a strut bar does and if i should invest in getting one. i know DC is selling one and if i get one, how do i go into installing it? is it hard?4.) question on grills. i have seen a lot of people's pix's of their cars and they have all stated that they blacked out their grills. Can some one explain to me the procedure in doing so, because i really like how their cars turned out. I know it probably is a simple process, but i dont want to mess up, because i suck at cars.5.) this one is about fog lights. now i read a lot of posts about fog lights and i kind of already bought some really bad ones from ebay and got ripped off. now i want to fix my problem, but i don't have much money left, so i was wondering where i could find good quality aftermarket fog lights for a cheap price. The color i want is amber. i did try going to Kragen, but i hate that place. (well the one near my place is horrible)6.) next is about lowering my car. i want to lower my car because when i drive in places where there is high winds my car starts to move on its own. and my weird logical explanation is because it could be that my car is just a little too high. So i want to lower it, but how do i do this. I mean i read posts about the tanabe lowering springs. Do i just need to buy those and install them? or do i need to also buy a kit or what exactly am i suppose to do? (sorry i really am new at this)7.) Question about rims. i want white rims, but i cant find any. i would prefer either 16's. does anyone know where i can get some. i did read a post about rota and they did have one, but with a red lip. Is that the closest there is? And if so where can i go to by these rims and how much do rota rims cost? (i couldn't find a price on their website- they were called the auto-X)8.) are there any small tips and tricks i can do to my car that would overall increase its performance? As well as its looks that are very cheap? because i am a student in college with not a lot of money, but i love my car and i really want it to stand out, so if anyone can give me some suggestions i would really appreciate it. As well as, where i could go to buy parts. i did read about versaspeed.com and i love their inventory. thank you for taking your time to read my post and i am sorry i bombarded you with all these questions. Please don't feel pressured to answer all my questions. I mean i know its pretty selfish of me to ask a lot when i haven't really done anything to help this forum. I also apologize for any incorrect spelling and confusing questions i have. i still do have more questions about my car but i will try reading more posts before i ask a question that someone else might have already asked. once again thank you very much!

[drummernamedpat]

Hey, cruise around some of the old threads on here. Pretty much every question you had has been answered in another thread. Good luck.

[benchthug]

yes i know its kinda annoying to fish around for answer... but heres some quick answer for all your question...

about the dc struts... i didnt know it was a full hallow steel... i would wait for a full aluminum light weight... struts will help you a little with that high wind and car moving by it self... using a lowering springs may cost you about 230 or less will also fix that problem a little...

fog lights i would wait for a factory kit...blacked out tail lights check with your state...altezza lights there is none that currently fit the US versa...black out grille check out the new picture on the new thread...performance stuff ill stick with the CAI for now and wait for 6 months for new parts to come in... <<< trust me on this one...

[BBISHOPPCM]

Since you have an SL, your car is pre-wired for fogs (well, mine is anyway). The dealer should be able to install fogs (anyone else try this before?) using factory parts. The strut bar should help stabilize the car in extreme cornering. You can have your factory alloy rims painted white (powdercoated) for a fraction of the cost of new rims (you should have a powdercoating shop in your area).

[Ever Victorious]

Lowering springs will not help keep your car planted in high winds. The simple fact as to why the V can sometimes get blown around is because it has the side profile of a sail. The only realistic thing that will change its handling characteristics in the wind would be a change in its aerodynamics... I.E. less surface area, or area that breaks up the wind easier. Not really feasible in the grand scheme of things.

As for white wheels... keep looking. there's a place on eBay that sells tons and tons of wheels, and wheel packages. I found them browsing for versa stuff the other day, and they had some 6-spoke ADR white wheels available. Sorry, I don't know the name of the store off the top of my head.

Strut tower braces help keep the front struts vertical in turning (not just extreme turning, since most passenger cars are oddly flexible up there from the factory). this helps keep the body flatter in the turn, and as a result, improves handling. Most strut tower braces are extremely easy to install... you just undo the bolts on the top of the strut mount, drop the bar on, and tighten the bolts back up.

welcome to the site, and since a lot of our info is on pages way in the back, feel free to use the "Search" feature. To help you get more hits, you might want to try making sure "search post bodies" is selected, that way it looks inside the post and not just at the title.

[KimberKenobi]

1.) {make the breaks better} You could investigate whether having disc breaks in the back would be useful and also talk to the dealership about whether it is possible to add ABS after the fact. My shop guy said it was possible, but expensive. 2.) {fish tank} Basically what we are talking about is the fact that they leak water into them. These tails also don't sit right on the V (and if they did, you could just bake them apart and re-seal them before install) Also, some places say that certain accessories are DOT/SAE approved, but each states Department of Transportation requirements are slightly different and some companies aren't being completely honest.3.) {strut bar} Easy install, helps stop body roll and make your ride more stable. Useful particularly if you live in a high wind area. Try this thread: zerothread?id=2458834.) {grill} Threads: zerothread?id=252852 zerothread?id=253291 5.) {fog lights} Some people have good luck buying them from Wal*Mart or the like, I suggest O'Reilly's or AutoZone, or (insert car store name here). Rule to live by: recognize the brand, breath a sigh of relief, don't recognize the brand, RUN!! 6.) {lowering} Depends on how low you want to go. Clipsed wants to have his ride adjustable, so he's gonna airbag it. Most people just want an inch or so so they choose coil overs, Versaspeed has some cool ones coming out soon (if they haven't already) ... Basically, for this one you're going to have to figure out what you need for your car to do/be before progressing.7.) {rims, which are actually called wheels ;oD} Try painting yours first, it's considerably cheaper and gives you some time to decide what you like. (plus you can always re-paint them much easier than you can switch out wheels) 8.) {tips/tricks for performance} Don't push your car, but know what it can do. A Cold Air Intake (CAI) and a new exhaust are probably your best bets in this are for things that will help your car perform while not costing tons or possibly doing damage to your engine (site turbos). As far as looks, we've all done our own things from painting sideskirts to purchasing spoilers and valances. I changed mine up for $45 and will probably spend another $200 in decals and $50 in paint. The world is your oyster. Enjoy!!

note: to clarify, I'm not contradicting EV about the wind - just that if you car is handling better during high winds, it is easier to control.... more of a cause and effect rather than a cure all.
Modified by KimberKenobi at 9:41 AM 6/16/2007

[ms_stylin_versa]

Welcome. I would just like to mention on my previous car (VW Beetle) I had white rims. Now while they looked good right after I cleaned them... basically as soon as I started driving they got dirty. Now I know VW's tend to have lots of brake dust so maybe this is part of the problem, but I think white is just not that good for wheels (unless you can clean them EVERYDAY). I just got new wheels for my car and they are a gun metal colour. I will post a pic soon. They look amazing on my car, and they look like they are easy to keep clean. When I was at the shop getting the rims put on, I was talking to the guy about my white rims. He said white rims aren't popular and that recently he tried calling to get 2 rims for a girl that had a car accident, and when he called his supplier (or whoever it was) they just laughed. Apparently white rims are no longer cool so nobody really makes them. I will admit that I loved it when it was on my car and looking clean, I didn't like them after I drove a bit because they were dirty.

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[steeda763]

1) You don't get any safer than Anti-Lock Brakes. The next best thing would be to get a big-brake kit, but that'll just shorten your stopping distance. You'll still be able to lock your wheels up and be completely out of control. Plus big-brake kits usually cost $1500-3000, depending on size and brand. The brakes you have now are more than sufficient for stopping the weight of your car.

2) Don't buy altezza taillights. Ford puts them on their mid-sized sedans. They're just not cool anymore. Plus they leak like crazy and they turn yellow after a year or so.

A good rule of thumb is, just because it's made for your car doesn't mean you need to put it on.

3) Strut tower bars are good for a few things. One was mentioned, that it'll help the handling while turning *marginally*, but also since the chassis is being stiffened, the car won't be as susceptible to flexing and squeaking later on down the road.

4) That was answered. Yeah it does look good.

5) This is another item that, like taillights, should be scrutinized when shopping on eBay. Fog lights have different sizes, shapes, beam shapes, intensities, and mounting options, and of course, manufacturing quality. Make sure to get what you need. And remember, you get what you pay for -- cheaper setups might be made with cheap parts. You don't want something as simple as a light socket causing a vehicle fire.

6) Your car has the same amount of surface area at any altitude; lowering your car won't reduce side wind resistance. It will, however, reduce turbulence with less air passing underneath your car.

7) Rota rims aren't too expensive as far as quality rims go. Probably about $1000 for a set, give or take (I haven't looked up 16's).

8) Quote »"are there any small tips and tricks i can do to my car that would overall increase its performance? ...i love my car and i really want it to stand out"[/quote]You're asking two different questions. You want to increase performance but you want it to stand out. You can increase performance with a cold-air intake, header, exhaust, cams, pulleys, fuel injectors, dyno-tuning, etc., but it won't really "stand out." I suggest if you want the visual effect stick with a body kit, rims, and lowering springs. Maybe add some bass and a nice head unit. You'll stand out then.

Good luck and welcome to the Nissan family

[fly_wzm3]

thank you to everyone who replied to my post! i feel a little bit smarter now when it comes to my carn and i couldn't of done it with out your help. i have read all the ocmments and i will look into getting a strut bar, but wait until an alluminum one comes out. i think i will throw away the lowering springs idea and go with painting the rims at a local shop somewhere. (powder coat right?) i also wanted to apologize for my lack of knowledge in cars and i really appreciate how you all took the time to read all my questions. once again thank you all very much!