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Since the wee man came along I have swapped cars with my partner. It's a 56 plate mk2 Yaris 3 door. Whilst it's great for the driving I'm now doing its a joyless little thing, cheap but not cheerful (at least my old Aygo had a bit of character). Can't really justify a new car, it gives me 50mpg around town and is is low mileage and is all I really need. But christ, it is dull, tinny, cheap and rattly.
I thought I'd ask the wise ones of STW what I could possibly do to inject even a tiny bit of niceness to it? New radio on the agenda as I'm back to playing cds in the car. Does aftermarket soundproofing make much difference? There's probably not much I can do with it really but just wondering if there was any glitter you could suggest sprinkling on my automotive turd.
You just need some imagination.
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Stick a V8 in it. 🙂
Go on a better holiday and suck it up.
Cardigan and Hush Puppies..
What I would do is find parts you'd find on the more upmarket Yaris models. So look for T-sport parts for both exterior and interior. Maybe seats, dash parts, maybe wheels and bumpers/spoilers. Aftermarket stuff is a bit naff unless you do it very well. A t-sport steering wheel and gear knob will make the driving nicer as they are the bits that you touch.
Giving it a good valet, cutting paint back and a good polish/wax is always a good way of making a car feel nicer too. Damaged scuffed plastics are cheap to replace and make a big improvement.
I hate rattles so hunt them all out and tighten stuff up or pad it with rubber or foam.
You don't have to spend much to make it nicer.
Lowering springs?
[url= http://www.demon-tweeks.co.uk/performance/lowering-springs/car/toyota/yaris-99-06/2006/1-3 ]http://www.demon-tweeks.co.uk/performance/lowering-springs/car/toyota/yaris-99-06/2006/1-3[/url]
I tried tinted film this week. Within 2 mins I discovered this is a specialist job. Results were comical.
Get the steering bushings replaced.
Supercharger?
The calendar on that website will cheer you up even more, although perhaps not your partner.
The calendar is half price though!
Chop it in for something more stylish
[url= http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201702092165751 ]http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201702092165751[/url]
OK, so maybe "pimp" was the wrong choice of word... I don't care how it looks on the outside so not fussed about alloys or spoilers. Certainly don't want to be lowering and stiffening it (it'll only shake and rattle even more!). I'm just wondering if there are any ways I can hide the fact that it feels like it was built from bacofoil and the plastic they use for tic-tac boxes. As I said, sound deadening material anyone? Am I just pissing in the wind with that? As for contact points, good call cos the steering wheel feels rubbish. And as for chopping it in for something more stylish, ha, if only...
Headphones
I drive an old yaris when in uk and its been faultless, albeit a bit dull. Sound deadening is non existent, particularly rear wheel arches and puddles. Interior plastic does scratch easily.
They do hold their value really well so i would keep it stock, or any mods that can be easily restored back to stock.
My only mod was a seat booster as the seat has no lateral support, you slide out of it if you corner too fast.
I reckon the old yarises are bombproof, its never missed a beat.
Our 1.3 is 16 years old and as far as I'm aware nothing has ever gone wrong with it.
Bigger stereo innit, in it.
Mum's got one.
The radio is crap, but he speakers aren't much better and they're pretty 'tinny'.
You can buy stick on sound deadening material but it's expensive, but if you want maybe a £100 or 2 on that, an aftermarket stereo and some OE replacement speakers and it'll fee like a bigger / more than expensive car inside. Maybe pick some t-sport bits up from eBay. It's a lot of time / money to invest in a car you don't like.
The bombproof reliability thing is one reason why I couldn't justify chopping it in. Motoring doesn't get much cheaper or worry free so maybe I'm being churlish to wish for a bit more refinement. However, if it was doable then I would. Depending on where I'm working from I can spend anything from 25 minutes to two hours+ a day in it so it would be nice if I could make it a slightly better place to sit.
Motoring doesn't get much cheaper or worry free
You've got the right idea just there. I drove a POC focus for some time, up and down the M62 for up to 4 hours day. It was crap, but brilliant.
If I had started spending money on it to make it less crap, it would have cost me money and as such, lost what made it utterly brilliant. I have nothing but fond memories of that car.
A radio is all you need 🙂
Supercharger
Yah supercharged cars are so nice to drive, wide power band tis lush and sumptuous. Wish I still had one 😐
Fill the space you don't use with loft insulation. Driving home from town with 8 rolls of rock wool in a felicia was much quite right than usual
Get the steering bushings replaced.
+1
and check out the forums for handling kits. You don't need to go low and stiff to make it handle better. The stock shocks will be cheap and, even when new, are probably barely adequate. There will be better options available that will improve the ride.
Get the steering bushings replaced.
+1
and check out the forums for handling kits. You don't need to go low and stiff to make it handle better. The stock shocks will be cheap and, even when new, are probably barely adequate. There will be better options available that will improve the ride.
Flashing tape is a cheap way to do some sound deadening. It made a big difference doing both doors on my mx5.
Actually, just sell your boring car and buy an mx5!
Drop it 30mm with some TRD springs - Definitely improves handling and looks . .
Had a Yaris hybrid courtesy car this week. So easy to drive but like a hairdryer power-wise and rattly inside after less that 100 miles!
If you're keeping it - sound deadening will make a marked improvement.
I've tried the budget route before with sticky back rubber insulation stuff off ebay, and it does a good job, but it's surprising how much better the good stuff ( dynamat etc ) is.
If you go down the cheap route, best sure it's not a bitumen based product as you'll be sitting In a stinking shed come summertime.
Can be done in a day/weekend - once you start pulling panels off it's hard not to get obsessive and hunt down every single gap you can find to stick more of it down.
Also bear in mind that it's around 25kg per large roll.
4 decent new tyres will make a big difference if the current ones are getting worn
New Goodyears recently fitted, as it happens. I think I'll go down the sound deadening route although when I'll actually get round to doing so is another matter entirely. A new radio can't come soon enough though. One with Bluetooth so I can get streaming rather than scuffing up my cds.
I was surprised at how easy it was to swap the front seats in my old polo.... take a look at the seat fixings from later models to see if they are compatible - you can pick up a full set from a breakers yard for not very much, and it might make your drive a bit more comfortable.
Bit of dynamat in the doors and on the rear arches and boot floor I would think would give a good start along with a Bluetooth head unit and some mildly better speakers if they are weak.
Watch your insurers terms. You may need to tell them.
Had a 1300cc '56 as a family car for 10 years, still going strong. It is what it is, not sure there's much "pimping" to be done really. New tyres is a good call above. Used to get my bike in the back front wheel off.
Fit a V8 and you won't want sound deadening. 🙂
I once put a 2.2l Accord Type R engine in a Honda Beat, so anything is possible. 😉