Upgrading performance and handling without spending big [Archive]

BlackieS2K

14-12-2006, 11:12 AM

Hi. I'm picking up a 2005 Jazz VTi manual today and was wondering what people have done to upgrade the handling of the car without going all out on new suspension, etc. It's going to be primarily driven by my other half and I don't intend on buying bigger wheels, CAI, exhaust or adding cosmetic stuff to it. I do however want to sharpen the steering feel and handling and if possible the power without shelling out big $$$. So just a couple of questions if I may.

- Wheels are 14" and I don't intend on upgrading them at this stage. What are the best tyres available in the OEM size?
- What are the factory wheel alignment settings and has anyone changed them to different specs and what results did you get?
- Do strut tower braces offer a noticeable difference and if anyone has upgraded their anti-roll bars and with what effect?
- Any other good bang for your buck ways of improving the performance or feel of the car?

Thanks! :wave:

UBH320

14-12-2006, 01:49 PM

JasonGilholme

14-12-2006, 02:01 PM

UBH320

14-12-2006, 02:02 PM

I didnt know they have aftermarket swaybars for Jazz =/

JasonGilholme

14-12-2006, 02:07 PM

I'm sure someone will.

I don't own one so i haven't checked.

UBH320

14-12-2006, 02:08 PM

Yeah...maybe in the near future...

antonio

14-12-2006, 05:52 PM

They are many aftermarket strutbar outside there. you can choose cusco, tanabe, spoon & etc...

Then go for piggyback. Try safc2 or Apexi Neo, it will give u a :)

anjingbalap

14-12-2006, 06:05 PM

1st.. what u do is reseting ur ECU.. by take out the ECU fuse.. for 10 min.. then.. plug it back.. (the ecu is RESET) then u drive like crazy/moron.. and the ECU will detect the maximum setting you drive. and store it in its memory...

there fore.. by setting this memory.. the ecu detects how many air/fuel ratio when u drive.. and sumtimes its better that factory ecu.. setting..

the downside is.. sum times u might feel loss of power

vividjazz

14-12-2006, 08:58 PM

Cusco have an upgraded front sway available now. In Japan they usually just replace the factory front sway in the earlier models with the larger factory sway from the later models. We already get that larger factory sway. Then its struts and coilovers.

Strut bars work great on the Jazz.

CJW07

15-12-2006, 09:39 AM

Hey Blackie, Welcome to the Jazz section,

when Jazzing up my little one, all i have done is-
lowered on king springs
added 16" Ray's Gram Lights
Xforce exhaust
and
Short ram intake with K&N pod filter.

not sure of the performance gains, if any, will be dynoing it in feb:thumbsup:

everything else has been ICE or for looks etc.

i know it is nothing major, just makes it a little more fun to drive, don't need it to go at light speed, that's what the S is for.:cool:

BlackieS2K

15-12-2006, 01:32 PM

Haha. No worries. I might look at a strut bar later down the track.

My first inclination was to change the rubber for something stickier (don't need semi-slicks) in the OEM size. Anyone got some recommendations? Or do most of you upgrade wheels before rubber?

Also, anyone changed their wheel alignment settings? I thought that would be the first thing you could do to dramatically improve handling for the best bang for your buck.

Dylanamus

15-12-2006, 03:30 PM

It can be hard to find decent tyres for 14", for this reason I upgraded to 15". Light weight wheels and good tyres was the most noticible upgrade to my car's handling and I went from stock to fully strutted and coilovers!

Steering response is infinitely better from lighter wheels and good tyres. The main thing is you feel steering response in all kinds of driving, from cruising around the city to driving on the edge. Struts and chasis reenforcement won't be noticable unless you're pushing your car to the limit. So I say place a lot more emphasis on steering at this stage man... That's just my personal experience... ahh and one stiffer rear swaybar will make more difference than upper and lower struts put together. Just to put it into perspective.

And by the way, outfitting your car in decent rubber will be $500 or more plus another $500+ if you decide to change rims. It's not exactly the most budget conscious of upgrades, but at least you get constant feedback to reenforce your spendature!

TypeG

15-12-2006, 04:44 PM

Get the strut bars...it does help...Semi slick tyres should be good on dry but not no wet...aftermarket springs / coilovers

Get cold air intake...Apexi is OK... Header, downpipe, bpipe from Xforce...they quite cheap...
are u serious with semi slick?
the jazz will go like an aeroplane inside and i am 99.99% sure no gals will love it:p

LSD GD3

21-12-2006, 06:02 AM

Best $ i spend on my jazz are the Rims

not just for looks with the offset a lot wider the car handle so much better and much more easy to turn. a lot better to drive. and no more body roll
= much faster getting in and out of corners
= good value.

BlackieS2K

21-12-2006, 11:15 AM

Thanks for the comments guys. Upgrading to 15" alloys would improve grip by a fair amount I would imagine and I might consider that when it comes time to change tyres. I don't mind spending a lot for tyres but don't want to spend too much on rims, so if anyone upgrades their VTIs rims give me a holler if you want to offload them.

It still begs the question though, with so many people changing wheels, etc. what wheel alignment settings did you use?!?!?!?? I can't find the factory specs anywhere on the net.

Dylanamus

21-12-2006, 01:24 PM

More and more people are paying premiums for stock equipment. All a part of the JDM trend, I guess. What I am getting at is, unless you're a part of that JDM/stock look crew, you could get even lighter aftermarket rims for the same price. Rim weights really do improve steering response and handling in general. I'd pay a lot of attention to the weights of the rims if I were you.

BlackieS2K

21-12-2006, 04:46 PM

LSD GD3

21-12-2006, 04:51 PM

Can't agree with you more on lightweight rims but these are generally expensive and I would have thought some second hand OEM rims would be really cheap considering people are upgrading, etc. Never knew there was a JDM stock trend pushing up prices though!

lightweight rims is worth it!!! if you not just paying for the Brand... can change the feel of driving... most can be 1/2 the weight of stock rims, which = quicker car = more fuel Econ

free2d

25-12-2006, 08:43 PM

Jazz's brake sucks. Got any affordable BBK kits that suit our application?

Zimp13

29-12-2006, 11:11 PM

Sorry but i got some stuff that i m selling in the for sale section......

racinghonda

30-12-2006, 10:12 PM

Get Spoon Progressive Springs and Dampers. Did wonders for my wife's Jazz. Corners so much better, its lost that "tall" feeling. She's running 16" wheels with 205/45R16 tyres and it handles and corners MUCH better than stock.

BlackieS2K

02-01-2007, 03:40 PM

Thanks Claymore! Not many non-sports cars are adjustable at the rears so I was expecting that anyway. -1 degree for the rear is fine. Giving the front -1 degree (up from zero) camber would cure the understeer somewhat and hopefully give the car more balance mid-corner. Definitely needs more caster which should give a bit more feel and probably explains why the Jazz steering isn't really willing to self-centre at the moment. Would any wheel alignment place have the smaller pinch bolts or do I need to order them from somewhere else?

Vuey

19-01-2007, 02:35 PM

hey blackie , make sure you give us an update when you get all this done mate . As im looking forward to see the progress on what a simple wheel alighment can do :thumbsup:

tedh1951

28-02-2007, 12:12 PM

Jason,

I'm stepping in here with both feet firmly in my mouth - It's been a lonnnngg time since I played with handling options on anything, (but I keep getting booked for getting my Jazz a little out of shape so I'm looking for answers too). My pre Honda cars used their doors handles as body roll limit stops (before flush door handles - yeah, yeah, there was such a thing - they did exist). I always thought that fitting sway bars to the rear was the LAST step - fix the front, where much of the weight transfer occurs during cornering and control the sway there first, then look at the rear. Otherwise you just end up lifting inside rear wheels when getting enthusiastic in the bendy bits. Right, now I've got my target shirt on - shoot.

Ted

If your after a big handling improvement, go for an upgraded rear sway bar with heavy duty mounts.

You'll never look back.

After you have your fun with that the tyres should be worn out and ready for you to get new ones ;)

racinghonda

28-02-2007, 01:16 PM

tedh1951, upgrading the front sway bar will increase the understeer in the car. Most fwd cars will come from the factory with relatively stiff front sway bars because it makes the car understeer on the limit which is safer for most people.

As a rule, sway bars will transfer load from the loaded wheel (outside wheel) to its diagonal opposite. So, on a RWD you want a stiff front sway bar because in corners, the front sway will transfer weight to the inside rear where it is needed.

In a FWD, to reduce understeer and gain corner exit traction, you want a bigger rear sway bar. In this case the loaded outisde rear wheel will transfer the load to the inside front where it is needed to prevent wheel spin and understeer. There is a limit of course to how stiff you want the rear bar, because it will cause the car to be more oversteery on the limit. Providing you have a sound driving style (ie don't brake and turn at the same time) you will be quicker through the corners.

tedh1951

28-02-2007, 01:29 PM

Ahhhh,
So that's why they modified the door handles.
Cheers and thanks for the info - it DOES make
sense even to 'old folks - the thing with door
handles was RWD (just barely) too.
Ted:zip:

FIT

28-02-2007, 04:49 PM

Add a pulley, you acceleration will improve under load and helps loosen the torque when the a/c is on.

true

28-02-2007, 08:03 PM

if anyone upgrades their VTIs rims give me a holler if you want to offload them.

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=130083155743&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT&ih=003

iced

01-03-2007, 12:36 PM

If your after a big handling improvement, go for an upgraded rear sway bar with heavy duty mounts.

You'll never look back.

After you have your fun with that the tyres should be worn out and ready for you to get new ones ;)

im with him^

strut braces to improve handling as a first mod ais not bang for buck.
on a factory car, strut braces do very little even though they stiffen the chassis.
with other suspension mods and very good tyre where you can push your car thru corners at higher speeds is where youll notice more.
rear strut braces can stabilise the rear a bit where the front will give more cornering precision and hold camber better during very hard cornering.

go the rear swaybar kit if you doesnt have one then you'll benefit even more. this will definately boost cornering stabilty and speed.
you'll corner flat as ever with a fat one.

just because you can see it when you pop your hood because mean it should be bought first.

UBH320

02-03-2007, 10:24 AM

I know a company who finally made a rear swaybar for Jazz but not sure if it will fit the AUS model or not... coz the bolts are different... But I'm sure the mech can do something about it :)

Too bad Jazz doesnt have front sway bar as yet been made...

if only...

Hankook RS-2 they very good... a friend of mine running those on his Jazz with 15s Black Racing... :thumbsup:

iced

02-03-2007, 11:51 AM

i dont have a jazz but are you serious that jazz has no front nor rear swaybar.

UBH320

02-03-2007, 11:52 AM

it does but they dont have any aftermarket sway bars

racinghonda

02-03-2007, 12:54 PM

it does but they dont have any aftermarket sway bars

I can confirm that, I just had a look under the Jazz. It has a front sway bar but no rear one. The rear torsion beam has natural roll resistance in it.