Personally, I have always had cars that have been modified in some way or another, just to make them 'mine', and in nearly 30 years of driving I must had had over 100 cars, and spent/wasted, quite literally a fortune on them.

I decided to mend my ways, and buy a car to keep, that ticked all of the boxes, and not to mess with it...........

My first Fabia vRS was nearly spot on, with just a re-map and a Miltek and PD160 intake, although the clutch was on its way out, an uprated one was budgeted for. I would have still had it today, as it was, but it got stolen..:(

My second one had a few more mods. and was definately a 'keeper', but the wife lost her job, so finances dictated it had to go.

The third one ( an SE ) was bought when things picked up, and only has a PD160 Intake, and a Jabba arb, and is great, and I was only going to put an ss exhaust on it, and keep it forever. BUT, the wife liked it so much, she stole it off me, and now I only ever drive it to fill it with diesel, and I have the pleasure of keeping it clean.

So. I went all mid life crisis and bought an MX5, which is great fun, although impractical, and thought 'this will do' Fast enough, great handling, and ultimately reliable.

In a moment of hungover madness, I bought Shiftys Super Skip.....:eek:

To say it's been modified is like saying Jordan needs bigger tits.

I don't think there is much more you can do to it ( apart from an lsd ) but it drives spot on, and although a tad extreme, is still perfectly useable as a commuter car/shopping trolley.

Would I have spent so much money modifying a car ? NO.

Would I consider buying a used one, with all of the essential mods. and usually cheaper than a standard one.....Go figure.

Fortunately, as I am nearly eligible for the government heating allowance, the insurance for me only works out at approx 4 pints of beer a week, and I drink too much anyway, so that's no great sacrifice.

Does all of this make sense? ( probably not!)

Modding the vRS is good fun but as others have suggested just replace the parts as they've worn out. Use a reputable company to carry out the modifications. My car has been 100% reliable with the mods below:

well i must be mad i bought a brand new se and spent thousands on it before it even clocked over 2k miles,would i do it again?.......hell yes:D

well i must be mad i bought a brand new se and spent thousands on it before it even clocked over 2k miles,would i do it again?.......hell yes:D

Yup, I'll confirm it for you if you like Gary......

You are mad.

HTH.

Yup, I'll confirm it for you if you like Gary......

You are mad.

HTH.

Pot, kettle..

a little madness never did anyone any harm:D

Every car i've owned have been modified. Always for my entertainment/driving pleasure in mind. Some cost thousands -a mk4 polo with £16,000 worth of mods over 4 years - or a mk2 polo coupe which cost me 99p on ebay!!! All had their annoying bits and other always brought a smile to my face!

i have always been into modiyfing cars have done it too all my cars i have an old skool mini which is just under 100bhp now and i wouldnt change anything on the fabia that i have done so far

I'm another one who sees their car as a hobby as well as transport, although I sometimes have to balance between it and actually having a life!

I would agree with the ride/handling/brakes route, as that is what I've done myself (Koni FSD's, Eibach springs, uprated discs and pads), plus a few minor cosmetic touches to make it 'mine' (alloys, Milotec grille, debadging, splitter and a few little bits and pieces). This is down to my age in more ways than one...I can't afford to go straight down the balls-out big power route, and even if I could, I wouldn't be able to insure it (hence me having a PD100 Elegance as opposed to a vRS). Maybe one day, but not yet.

The beauty of these modifications is that as well as improving the handling etc, the car has become more comfortable and usable, and safer too in my opinion. So in that respect, I think it was worth it.

It's also wise to consider resale. The more extreme the modifications, the narrower the market for the car would become. I intend to keep my car for a long time, and it will change as time goes on (I'm forever planning stuff), but I intend to always keep it saleable.

My first car remained completely standard, and my intention was to keep my current car the same way...but then I discovered this place! So perhaps it is best not to stick to a plan, but keep an open mind and see what you like on here. (Be sensible though, have a budget, and never go on eBay when drunk...)

Minor mods (even really small stuff like aero wipers etc) to make the car unique to you are always worth it in my opinion. And they satisfy the 'tinkering' bug without eating your wallet.

I hope my hungover ramblings make some sort of sense!

My 2p

1) Forget

a remap - its something to worry about - extra stress on clutch and turbo etc. Not something to get if you are already thinking about pennies. Something BIG could go wrong in future...

b PD160 intake - has little or no effect

c big brakes - unless you drive like you dislike your car. 288's are just fine with standard power

2) Do get -

a RARB - transforms car and takes some getting used to.

b exhaust - makes car sound far more sporty than an average mild hatch diesel ever should (something I found out recently when transporting object with boot slightly ajar so sound could enter cockpit)

hth

I never even thought about modifying - it's all this bloody forum's fault!

I'll agree with that lol I'm £4000 worse off now but then again I've taken a few BMW's on the motorway thanks to Jabbasport and that makes me

This makes sense to me Fabia VRS brand new £12,000 spend £4000 = £16,000 spent so far in total.

Now its faster than a Renault DCI 175 Sport which Costs over £20,000 brand new which I was looking at buying a year or so ago but thanks to Jabbasport Ive got the fun that I wanted for 4k instead of 20k.

Its all about personal choice but when the Furby is modified I'm guaranting you a smile on your face when you drive it

I only have one I haven't modified (my SAAB 96) and that's because SAABs competition department already did everything possible that was available in 1972:D

And more recent modifications would make it ineligible for historic competition so it has to stay just the way it is (perfect).

Thanks for the input:).

TH

I'd probably stick a Quaife or Peloquin on it, for the rest, it is sorted right

I'd say;

RARB

PD160 & panel filter

Remap

Eibach springs (for looks more than anything)

If your still not satisfied then i'd say buy a different car as it can get sillly & expensive, that's what i did anyway;)

This makes sense to me Fabia VRS brand new £12,000 spend £4000 = £16,000 spent so far in total.

This cost me £16k back in 2004....

I very much doubt ANY Furby except the WRC or similar professionally prep'd race machine would stand a chance in Hell of keeping up. Corners I now do in my Furby at maybe 90 if I'm feeling daring used be dispatched at 140+ with no drama. Never felt anything other than composed even when I had matured as a driver to take it right to the edge of its limits. Stunning machine, I miss it like I'd miss my todger :( These can be had for peanuts now thanks to Gordon's financial genius combined with corrupt green propaganda

i did enjoy modding my vrs when i had it i always had new ideas for it i spent around £2.5-£3k on it now i wish i didnt, because i could have spent it on my new car

but the scooby only needed a few more hundred quid spent on it and it would have had a matching set of fog lights