To Style Or Not To Style?

[Clatters]

Hey, this site and forum is packed full of really usefull tips and guides and obviously everyone loves there cars! Im only 18 and have had my nova club 1.2 for a year now... i still have to pass my driving test as i failed the last one on a stupid mistake! but tht is coming.. i love to drive my nova it is racey, fun and a cheap runner on fuel and insurance which is great for me as a young driver nd male! Although, looking at sites like this and seeing all the work people do on there nova's i am wondering wether to style mine and improve it? or wether to let her go and buy a bigger engined car? is it worth me styling my 1.2 or not? any help and advice would be much appreciated as you all know what your doing alot more than me!
thanx alot
joe

[Stoo]

entirely your decision

[Clatters]

True... but its what to do with it? if i choose to? im going int he navy in 6 months so money wont be a problem! just not sure if i should or get a 1.4 or 1.6? or do the shell nd interior then later on drop a bigger engine in it when ive been driving longer?

[Stoo]

hahaha money wont be a problem, its not rock star wages in the navy you know, no matter what the careers office told you!!!

If its a Mk1, you could go the GTE look route, if its a MK2, then you could go down the SR/GSi route, personal preference!

[Clatters]

no but 1000 a month will pay for most stuff especially as i will have nothing else to pay for :D
i was looking at GTE kits as it is a mk1.. its what my m8 did to his astra and they look good and simple not to extravagant! but then if i make it look like a GTE and its not its a bit of a cop off!

[Stoo]

hahaha ?1000 a month, not for a while mate!!

Even if you fit a GTE kit, it doesnt matter whats under the bonnet, as long as you dont fit GTE stickers trying to pass it off as one itll look fine

[Jack]

Howdo, welcome to PNG.

First thing you need is some PNG stickers. Best way to do this is to join the club, its only ?10 for a year. Plus you get the added benefit of being in the elite South West region :D

Recruitment drive aside, as stu said styling is a very personal thing. What do you want from the car? Outlandish kits, wild colours? Euro smoothness? Or OEM styling?

If you've got money to burn and you can't decide what to spend it on then first look at the integrity of the car, remove any rust, repair things that need repairing, servicing etc. Better to begin on a solid, standard car than a rusty one with a few mods strapped on.

Bear in mind any mods WILL affect your insurance policy, especially engine conversions. At 18 you may have trouble finding someone who will cover a conversion, as HIC/Flux only touch people >19. Plus, if the car is a rotter you might end up better off selling/breaking it and buying a GTE/SR etc.

[Clatters]

basic is 12k a year then 26 weeks l8r its 15k a year nd u go up every year, but less about tht crap. I wouldnt want to pass it off as a GTE as it is not! but i do like the styling so i may go for a kit like that! i assume it should be the same mountings? although mine is club styled? what can you do to smaller engines to get better running out of them? i no this is the styling section!

[Clatters]

yeah razor i have just had it put through the mot and hand all the chassis wellded so tht is fine... and the body work has 2 bits of rust ont he door corners and a bit ont he skirt. but its minor and i have had it cut out and temporarily filled so the body work is pretty good base! im not into big huge kits that stand out as im not into drawing attention to myself! after i pass my test and get rolling properly with the work i may join the club just to be in touch with other nova drivers! ( as all my m8s take the piss out of my car )

[craig green]

Seeing as its a mk1, it would be criminal to facelift it to a mk2. There are fewer & fewer mk1's about these days.

GTE look can be stunning & I see no shame in going as far as badging it & colouring it as a GTE, they are a rare sight nowadays.

Failing that, the bare bumpered minimal early mk1 look is pretty tastefull these days, almost like a mk1 Golf with the body colour exposed metal below the fr bumper etc.

Just avoid tacky bodykits & wheels IMO & focus on cleanliness all over.

A mint (& I mean MINT) poverty spec 1.0 merit would turn more heads than a ropey, modded SRi at a show IMO.

[Jack]

GTE "kit" (i.e. bumpers/skirts) will go straight on, although the sideskirts will need clips riveting into the sill, or you could use a sealant like tigerseal to hold the skirts on with. The tailgate will need a few holes drilling if you want the spoiler, although am I right in thinking the "club" model already has a spoiler on the back? Interior (seats, doorcards, steering wheel) will be a straight swap, as is the dial set although they will need a little extra wiring for the additional dials.

So long as you don't put "GTE" badges on it, you'll be fine.

For UBER coolness, get an early SR front bumper and valance :D

As for running on the smaller engines, your best bet is to keep it serviced well. You can mod them to a certain degree, but for the cost-per-bhp and potential gains you'd be far better off getting a bigger engine.

[craig green]

The only styling on this car in the pic is the wheels & clear indicators.....

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c323/turbocraig/HOT%20METAL/LETsport.jpg

Likewise this mk1 SR looks stunning IMO. My fave look for a Nova, esp in that colour.

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c323/turbocraig/HOT%20METAL/sweetwhiteSR.jpg

[Clatters]

fair shout... its different cus its a club and ive only seen 2 others! but i prefer the GTE look.. so i may go that way.. but i do respect the point bout keeping it a mk1 like the golf.. i prefer older cars nd they gettin good status now! so i will have a look around and properly sort the body work out with my m8... and just do it in stages! just wish i new othe rnova drivers near me! all my m8s going for newer cars and dont understand my love of older cars lol... so i got no one else ot help me out other than chattin to you guys!
cheers for all of your help im sure i will be on here alot now!

[craig green]

Be sure to join up Clatters, get yourself to a meet sometime when we get our cars on the road!

Mk1 makes the most sense! I'm actually going to ditch all the mk2 lights & bumpers from my TD & put it to mk1 GTE style, because its a rarity these days.

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c323/turbocraig/HOT%20METAL/img106.jpg

[Clatters]

to you point razor the club does not have a spoiler or atleast mine doesnt! the interior is a big thing tho after the kit bcause the club interior is horrible yellow and grey! not a great mix! ive got stock vauxhall alloys on at the mo 13inch cross spoke effect! cant explain things to well! just now to find my self a decent priced GTE kit! and interior! i may need a new bonnet as mine has been dented byt he little A******E up the road he got wat was coming to him tho! unless there is a way of knockin the dents out with out ruinin the paint work on it?

[craig green]

Dent-master is your best bet re the dents, I scrapped a straight bonnet at the weekend too.

You really need some SR/GTE type seats in your Nova. Makes the whole driving experience far better & you wont slip into the door pocket exiting roundabouts with sports seats either. They hold you in tighter & sit much lower than the poverty spec deck chairs.

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c323/turbocraig/bits4sale/Novabits003.jpg

Theres 2 or 3 sets of GTE interiors on ebay at the moment.

[Clatters]

yeah definatley... well i just need to have a look around for a nic eocndition GTE kit.. and interior and slowly put it all together then i will definately join the club just meet up nd show off my work lol.. i got 2 m8s now sayint hey want to help me do it! and my friend is a mechanic with his own private garage! so if any of you think of niice stuff to put on my car or things to do to it just say and message me i will start using this forum alot just because of the help you have given me! thanx alot i owe you guys a pint after the work is done ;)

[Clatters]

can i ask i have read about debadgeing cars? i know i can heat gun off my nova badge and 1.2 badge but eh club logo is a sticker and the sid eof the car has a stripe dowin it which is asticker how can i go about gettin it off with out damaging the pain or will it nee dot be sanded off and resprayed?

[paul james]

Just heat the stickers to melt the glue on them so they peel off, a hair dryer will do the job. The paint underneath them won't be faded like the rest of the car - particularly if its red, use some t-cut to try and match it up.

[Clatters]

ok sounds good although these graphics have been on for the life of the car so im ecpecting a fight!

[craig green]

A fudge wheel can be used on a drill to get the glue residue off.

[Clatters]

cheers m8, i will get tht done on my next dry day off!

[Dave.]

ive got a cheaper way to remove that gay stripe

if its a bump strip.. eg it sticks out afew mil then yes a fudge wheel will work

if its just the little decla strip then all you need is some t-cut a haridryer and a plug

just heat up the glue at one end and start to peel the sripe away. slowly pull the stripe whilst holding the hairdryer pointing at the glue. once done t-cut all the colour fadd bits out

think yours is like mine
before:
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h80/x_novadose_x/DSC00171-1.jpg

after:
http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h80/x_novadose_x/DSC00209-1.jpg

http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h80/x_novadose_x/DSC00212.jpg

if its like mine the hairdryer way works a treat. and is very cheap to do

[Lee]

what can you do to smaller engines to get better running out of them?!

Best thing you can do to a 1.2 is leave it well alone, and just make sure its serviced regularly. Save your money for an engine transplant or an upgrade later on. As craig said, concentrate on getting the bodywork tip top, some money spend on fresh bumpers and trim can do wonders. Also sorting the suspension and brakes are a must before you even think about the engine.

I recently bought a 1.2 from someone who was convinced the brakes arn't servo assisted.. thats how crap they are!



Blimey, not seen a pre reshell of Lee H's before! Looked tidy then lol

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c323/turbocraig/HOT%20METAL/img106.jpg

[craig green]

Yeah, I posted somewhere in the last couple days that the best (only) mod I did to my B reg 1.2L was to fit 14" steels with 185/60/14 tyres. My weekly journey to Uni was taking the best part of 2hrs. The Sunday I travelled back was 25mins quicker thanks to carrying far more speed through all the B road corners. HAPPY DAYS!

[Clatters]

hey guys i had the day off today so decided to debadge my tailgate! i think it looks quite good! heres a b4 and after!
Before...
http://img129.imageshack.us/img129/8052/rearveiwac7.th.jpg (http://img129.imageshack.us/my.php?image=rearveiwac7.jpg)
After...
http://img104.imageshack.us/img104/5047/rearview2kl8.th.jpg (http://img104.imageshack.us/my.php?image=rearview2kl8.jpg)

what you all think?
cheers

[craig green]

Improvement. Dont chuck the badges away though.

[Clatters]

i got them in my gagrage! just need to do the sides of the car on the next dry day then it will be done with that job!

[Jack]

Can you move the car a little more to the left please, I don't think the caravan has enough room lol

[Clatters]

the caravan doesn't deserve the room! bloody parents swanning off all the time! takes up my cars aprking space! the cheak of it!
ill update again wen i have done the sides cheers guys

[Clatters]

hey guys... removing the side transfers is easy... but the glue behind is killing me! takes me so long to rub it off! is there any substance that removes it easily without damaging the paint work?

cheers joe

[Jack]

Try one of these (http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/TEX-ERASER-WHEEL-Fudge-Wheel_W0QQitemZ120167399152QQihZ002QQcategoryZ3092 3QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem)