Easy upgrades

[Nsw]

Hi, i have a '89 Ford Festiva L. Im new to this whole Festiva upgrading thing. Im only 16 and im starting to want to put some money into my Festiva. I was just wondering if there is any easy upgrades, that dont cost too much. I wanna get the most out of my Festiva!

[fudge]

Spray paint pin stripes!

[mikemounlio]

Rims and tires will be #1 - get off the 12" tires for a major upgrade.

#2 mod it how you want it. (i like to take the back seats out, make a heater, smoke the headlights...) Make it make you feel good to drive it.

#3 IMO would be suspension (500$ for top of the line) this will make the biggest differenct to the car aside from a motor swap. With a good suspension the festiva is amazing.

#4 aspire or rio brakes (depends on rims that you get. some rio brakes require 14" rims) some might say do brakes as soon as you can.

#5 then do a motor swap.

[TWFodor]

One of the cheapest upgrades I did when I first bought my 4 speed Festy was to install the $10 civic short shifter.

[1990new]

Lots of upgrade options are possible at varying cost. What upgrade category are you most interested in? Automobile upgrades generally fall into these four categories: Safety, Performance, Comfort, and Appearance. Some upgrades fall into multiple categories: for example rust can be both a safety and an appearance issue depending on where it is located.
Here is a link to a site that show some general ideas. Not sure if it is meant to be, but the car in the header page looks a lot like a Festiva.
You might be tempted to go for the appearance upgrades first, but if you have any safety issues, put those at the top of the list.
If you have to pay someone else for labor, that is usually your highest cost when upgrading a Festiva, so the first thing to invest in is a shop manual and and a vacuum and electrical trouble shooting manual. They will save you a ton of money. Then if there is a part you need, first ask if someone has a good one they will send to your for just the shipping cost.
http://lifehacker.com/how-to-bring-y...-few-493086102

[Nsw]

Okay, thanks for the suggestions. But im still wondering if there's and thing i should "tune up". Should i clean it or tighten anything? Also my Festy is an automatic.... If that helps you guys at all.

[mikemounlio]

You should do a full check over the car. Fix anything that needs attention before you go changing stuff that doesnt matter.

A ... mod doesnt matter if your car dies on the side of the road! Make sure its all good then mod it.

[firebush357]

Check out This Thread for some Motivation

[Nsw]

You guys are awesome! I'll see what i can find after i get home from school. Also gotta make sure me doing stuff to my festy doesn't upset my dad lol

[Advancedynamix]

1. Make sure your spark plugs and wires are in good condition.
2. Replace the fusable links with real fuses (located on drivers side shock tower in the engine bay, behind battery) and clean the connections.
3. Look over the engine bay for loose, broken or corroded wires and fix them properly with solder and heat shrink (no wire nuts...ever).
4. Keep an eye on your oil often, keep fresh clean oil in your engine. Don't overfill the engine.
5. Buy a set of original factory service manuals off eBay and study them as much as you can. These will help you not only learn about your car, they will give you a good foundation for how to repair everything you break for the rest of your life. Trust me, a lot of the procedures that are outlined in factory service manuals have helped me in so many situations. Learning to go to the book for answers will help you to be the guy we all ask for advice when we get stumped.

[ryanprins13]

I also got my festiva when i was 16 or 17, had it over 9 years now and the goal was to make it run as cheap as possible except for the last 2 years or so.
Cheap mods: a nice sterio with a usb, aux and bluetooth input with handsfree calling. Well under $100 and its awesome.
I just put up with it for 9 years but these cars get real hot inside in the summer. Try doing your own window tint, but pay someone to do the back window.
Maintinance:
Brakes are something to look at. The first day i had mine i took the front brakes off and the pads looked fine so i was going to stick them back on. My dad saw them and took a screwdriver and gave them a light whack and they cracked and chipped.they were super old. I have driven the car well over 200,000km and not worn out front or rear pads but have replaced them because of age. Do that and whats also very important is to buy some brake caliper grease and grease the caliper slider bushings and pins. Make sure the boots are in good shape as well. If the boots crack and let water in and/or those pins stick your brakes will not work properly. I think the stock brakes work very well when properly maintained. Then the rear brakes- the adjustment mechanism likes to stick/sieze or get stiff, so take it out and lubricate all the pivot points. Probably get new shoes too, their cheap. While the drum is off wipe out the old grease from the bearings and stuff new grease in there.when putting the drum back on its important to tighten it properly. Too loose and it will wear your tires bad, too tight and it will wreck your bearings and spindle.i have done both. Tighten the nut real tight, then back off 1/8 turn works for me. Wheel should spin freely but have some resistance still.
Flushing the brake fluid is also a good idea, really old brake dfluid doesnt work well and rusts the lines from the inside.

Ill add more later, but you picked a great first car! These cars are super cheap to maintain, easy to work on and very fun to drive.

Sent from my SM-G920W8 using Tapatalk

[firebush357]

What Ryan said about brakes is Super Important Safety is #1 and you will learn a lot while doing the work. If you want some easy cheap things to do that will change the looks there are many seat upgrades, Interior & Exterior lighting upgrades, Wheels upgrades etc... Take some time to browse what everyone else has done on the forum and decide what you want to do but Brakes and Tires to keep you safe if the most important.

[Nsw]

Awesome, thanks guy. My dad works on the car, he loves it almost as much as i do. He replaced the brakes when we got. He changes the oil and did most of the maintenance on it.

[mikemounlio]

Awesome, thanks guy. My dad works on the car, he loves it almost as much as i do. He replaced the brakes when we got. He changes the oil and did most of the maintenance on it.

Dont let/make your pops have all the fun. Get in there with him learn from him and enjoy the time together.

[Nsw]

I never really was too much into cars and stuff, but lately ive been more it them. Ive been talking to him and he's been teaching me more lately. Dont worry he wont be doing all of the stuff any more lol.