Yet Another Vs Ute

[Drawnnite]

seeing as people have been asking i may as well get this up.
Enjoy. and i guess there are a few mods to come
will probably drive this car until it carks it. its good on fuel and does the job. so cant complain there

Model: 2000 VS Ute, Series 3

Odo: 235000 (got it at just under 200000)

Colour: Black

Engine: 3.8Ltr Ecotec V6

Transmission: 5 Spd Getrag

Exhaust: Hm Headers Extractors. with a 2 1/4 single system. with a better flowing central muffler. sounds very much stock

Diff: 3.08 LSD

Interior: 3 Seat all in Stock trim. Lv2 Dash with lv3 loom. Pioneer Headunit. some Wierd and Awesome Cupholders.
Dark Tint. 2 Clarion Speakers. Some sort of switch that must have been for spotties. (has all the wiring for it)

Wheels: 17inch HBD W series
Suspension Country Pack! (raised)

Exterior: Chrome Strips down both sides

Engine:
L67 Cold Air Intake
Painted Engine and Rocker Covers
12mm Mace Plenum Spacer
12mm Mace Intake Manifold Spacer

Future Modifications:
so i did the modifications wanted. however if i ever decide on anything else it will be this
V8 Conversion. either something like a 355 or LS3. but its still a long way away until i can drive an 8 anyway



Pictures:



The Chrome Strips




Coke Can Height Test =P


The Tyre i Blew when it went flat at 100kph (also shows the rim type) (had trouble getting it off ipod, thats why its watermarked)


More Pics to come... =P

[Omerta]

Woooooo!

"First post"

Hahaha

But c'monnnnn man, pic tease

[stick3]

welcom mate , those covers look great

[SP00KSTER]

About time you get this thread started, engine cover and rocker covers also look tops mate. more pics now! haha

[Drawnnite]

More Pics hath been Added for your amusement =P

[SP00KSTER]

looks good so far, but still need more pics you teaser. love the height. lol

[VS_Pete_1]

Nice first ride mate.
Are they holden Chrome Strips?

[Drawnnite]

looks good so far, but still need more pics you teaser. love the height. lol

one day more pics may come =P

your not the only one.
going to work one day driving (mind you its 5am when i was driving)
saw a shadow in the road, through it was just a dark patch, or little puddle or whatever.
get closer and it was a bloody trucks (id assume, it was large) tyre lieing on its side!
didnt have time to swerve or anything, so went straight over it.
lucky it was raised =P

also works great for towing.
fully loaded trailer with someone standing on near the towball hitch, barely made it go down at all =P

Nice first ride mate.
Are they holden Chrome Strips?

originally i wanted to get the proper berlina ones.
but i couldnt find any.
however i cut them to the same shape, and put them exactly where they should go

instead i found this guy with an ebay store called "regional auto parts" and bought them off him.
just cut and then stuck on (self adhesive backing)
they are the exact same width as the real deal (fits front bumper channel perfectly)

i remember he was telling me he was hoping to get OEM spec ones made. but i havent seen any of these from him yet.
if he ever makes them ill probably get them, and repaint these bullet shaped things (for front guard) that say "commodore"

[Trayner]

Looking good mate , get some full body ones up thou hahah . Always thought yours was white for some reason lol . But black man is a mint colour hahah

[MonstaRumba]

Looks good...now get it down to one coke can....lol

[Drawnnite]

Looks good...now get it down to one coke can....lol

find me a big/long sized coke can =P

in other words its not a priority. one day maybe. probably if a 355 suddenly gets dropped in there with a respray, and leather interior... hmmm

oh and sound deadening matting goes on back cabin wall tomorrow. woohoo!
and friday shall be getting quotes for all these bushes... *sigh* =P

and if anyone knows of a place that sells brand new tub liners please let me know.
i remember a guy on ebay was selling them, then he stopped. was $350 from memory.

and hidden words are hidden

and if anyone can answer problem in last psot of this thread. you will be a legend in my eyes.
Front Left Noise

[MonstaRumba]

Rexona cans bro....

[Drawnnite]

so a bit of an update... finally done some work! =P

ok so firstly, entire rear wall in cabin is soundeadened.
was hoping it would reduce fuel pump noise (presumably) as there is some electrical noise. which sounds like the pump.
it feels like its made it louder! =P
i guess ill have to drive it a bit to figure out any other fixes (maybe soundeadener in tank area)

oh and i did this to the glovebox.
non slip mating.
looks wierd, now thinking i should have gone a grey/black liner but oh well =P,
but geeze its practical. and i cannot stand the torch throwing itself around while im driving. hopefully it quietens it up.

[GothicKidd]

Take the tank out and sound deaden all around the tank and on the tank :P

[Wombles]

Looks nice mate! More pics?

[Drawnnite]

Take the tank out and sound deaden all around the tank and on the tank :P

yeah i guess. but i really dont want to remove the tank, probably do some contortionist act and just get in in there.
oh and i found there are like 4 panels that go directly from the cabin into the tub part where tank is -.-
honestly would could the use of that ever be!
seriously i can take it out and look directly to the ground if i wanted to....
hmmm maybe a new cold air intake for the cabin? =P

Looks nice mate! More pics?

yeah more pics will come around one day.
right now it is absolutely fiiiiiilthy.
seriously looks like is has some wierd leopard skin paint it is that spotted with brown dust.
looks like it has just gone from broome to melb and back through all deserts.
i know when i cleaned out behind the dash and so on it actually had enough dust to resurface the sahara =P

so unless you want to come and wash/cut/wax/polish/etc the whole car there probably wont be pics for a while =P


oh and todays update (no it wont be a daily thing =P)
got some quotes for all bushing and so on.
going to be about $450 for everything i could possibly need to redo just about every single bush. (already have some at home)
which means all front end and all rear end (rear end ill do myself as its the new diff rear end =P)

also tried getting quotes for brake rotors and pads.
only quote i got was about $230 for front brakes.
need to find out if this VN V8 rear is the Same as my VS V6 rear otherwise i might just go for whichever is bigger?
so if anyone can confirm them (otherwise it means getting a measurement) that would be excellent.

oh and went to local exhaust shop (i have a hole in the muffler)
not sure if to just get that fixed or to just get a full set up done. got quotes approx $900 for a full set up of pacies and quiet sport set up (exhaust part being about $300-350)
only really want better torque and a really quiet sound that is for low rev range (car doesnt go above 3500 revs, normally max is about 2500 revs)
oh and i want to keep the same fuel economy of which i can get about 8L per 100 on the freeway. right now ive done 400kms off less then half a tank =P
waiting on NAAF's reply but if anyone knows of a good set up that keeps same amount of mufflers that would be awesome.
also ive read HM headers are good for low down and Pacies are for high end of the rev scale, is this true? as the exhaust place said just to get Pacies.
NAAF's reply was for stock exhaust and extractors, has anyone run this set up before? and if so how did it feel/go?

also does anyone know if its possible to make an exhaust crackle on down changes while keeping all the mufflers?
heard a VT/VX today that sounded amazing and crackled. it didnt sound quite like an 8 (close) but tbh was a-mazing (i was on the bike so i stared)
if that exhaust system could be on the ute while keeping it all legal i would be like *droooooool* and then have rust sitting in the footwell of the drivers side =P
i would only go this option if it was all legal. otherwise its a super quiet system.

oh and 1 last thing regarding the exhaust. as im just normally out there with the thinking of things.
has anyone run an exhaust in a v6 so that each side of exhaust doesnt meet? or if it does it meets at say the rear most muffler?
now am i right in saying this would be a twin system?
and are the smaller the pipes the better the torque produced? or is there a whole set of mathematics involved regarding backpressure etc?
which by my reading/research the smaller pipes = the warmer the exhaust gasses stay = more torque lower in the range?

oh and hopefully ill be able to find out why the central locking for drivers side isnt working.
id say its a broken wire (hoping to test this weekend) but i can hear the actuator struggling like it isnt getting enough power.
hoping its not the actuator as it used to be an intermittant problem, which leads me to broken copper. and the actuator isnt that old.
i would say its not a signal cable as i can manual use the key to unlock and it unlocks both sides.
any hints/tips would be helpful as i know car wiring sucks (as it can go through multiple parts and get false readings)

long post is long... =P

[Trayner]

That post was longer then a harry potter book :P

[Drawnnite]

That post was longer then a harry potter book :P

ok tl;dr version for you =P read upper for full info

spoke to NAAF bout exhausts. was suggested to just get extractors for low end torque and keep stock system.
went to exhaust shop they wanted to get me to do a few other things, will go see if they will fit extractors (if and when i get) and fix up muffler (or fit new one) due to hole in it.
will get more quotes on them aswell. and see where i go from there (thinking of hm headers for low end torque)

got some quotes for other parts like bushings and brakes and it isnt cheap but oh well.
will go speak to some other places see what they say and prices i can get it for. and speak to the people who will do some fitment of them

and tomorrow i shall look into wiring problem.
better not be actuator or i will scream and youll hear it from pakenham trayner =P

happier now? =P
oh and ill have to see what the insurance company would say about the extractors.... before anything gets done about it.

[elmaso]

About time this was poster! Looks pretty clean eh.
More pics!

[nathanVY]

About bloody time mate baha.



More low, and get on it with the exhaust too, lookin nice.



More pics?

[Trayner]

ok tl;dr version for you =P read upper for full info

spoke to NAAF bout exhausts. was suggested to just get extractors for low end torque and keep stock system.
went to exhaust shop they wanted to get me to do a few other things, will go see if they will fit extractors (if and when i get) and fix up muffler (or fit new one) due to hole in it.
will get more quotes on them aswell. and see where i go from there (thinking of hm headers for low end torque)

got some quotes for other parts like bushings and brakes and it isnt cheap but oh well.
will go speak to some other places see what they say and prices i can get it for. and speak to the people who will do some fitment of them

and tomorrow i shall look into wiring problem.
better not be actuator or i will scream and youll hear it from pakenham trayner =P

happier now? =P
oh and ill have to see what the insurance company would say about the extractors.... before anything gets done about it.

Hahahahahah!

Insurance should be fine with the extractors me thinks , ive always gotten insurance on both my cars with the mods on them already

[dobesz]

Looks good mate!

[Drawnnite]

TL;DR VERSION:

Thanks. for that guys.
ill look into everything and see what happens.
also fixed some stuff that bothered me/wasnt working.
may be getting 2 new speakers.


LONG VERSION:

Looks good mate!

Thanks for that
i try my best at times =P

About bloody time mate baha.

More low, and get on it with the exhaust too, lookin nice.

More pics?

only took you a week. just proves you dont check the VS part anymore =P
na im happy with the height, its different, and its easy to get into. i sound like an old man but i now struggle getting into normal/low cars. i nearly have to sit on the ground to do so =P
and yeah im still considering the exhaust.
will definately be a stock 2 1/4 system replacement so its stays quiet. just need to look into the extractors and the prices and everything else. and i dont want bright blue ones that stick out like dogs balls. if anything something that looks 100% standard would make me stoked, even if it means hitting it with some paint. (maybe match it to engine cover)

Hahahahahah!

Insurance should be fine with the extractors me thinks , ive always gotten insurance on both my cars with the mods on them already

im not to sure about that, i need to give them a ring.
i just thought i know ill get an online quote with the company, and as soon as i ticked "suspension, exhaust, etc" modifications is said they couldnt insure it.
so until i ring up i will have no idea what the solution will be. i dont care if they are not insured cost wise (hell they cost jack all) but if i crash or get crashed into and they are not "declared" i dont want to be up that creek no paddle.

oh and when doing the soundeadening i found atleast 1/4 worth of a window in broken glass shards.
i have no idea how it got there.
after roadtesting new glovebox set up (looks quite retro tbh) it makes everything super quiet. i highly recommend doing the same thing =P

oh and pulled door trim off today to fix drivers side central locking problem.
no broken wires, all perfect continuity. pull off door lock mech, and actuator. nothing seems wrong. did some tests on stuff.
put it back in and it works perfectly fine -.- ahh well cant complain, got my central locking back.

wouldnt mind fixing up door handle rattle but i cannot figure out how to take it out. just will be something to put up with.
did chuck a tiny square (like 3x3mm pieces) where handle part meets little surround part, which quietened that. which im stoked about.


oh and i may be looking at 2 new speakers to replace stock ones.
if the price is right ill probably do it. otherwise ill keep the stock ones as nothing is wrong with them.
apart from they are covered in dust to recoat the gobi desert.

[gambler]

This looks so damn tidy. Loving how clean the engine bay is. Lucky not to mess that wheel up when the tyre blew.

[Drawnnite]

TL;DR Version:
Thanks gambler.
Insurance Sucks (read Below) even putting in something that was original factory option can void the insurance -.-

Long Version:

This looks so damn tidy. Loving how clean the engine bay is. Lucky not to mess that wheel up when the tyre blew.

yeah very lucky not to mess it up.
thanks for that, well its not clean at the moment. i forgot black shows dust =P

Insurance should be fine with the extractors me thinks , ive always gotten insurance on both my cars with the mods on them already

who the hell did you go with then?
rang up who it is insured with now.
chose the words well and said it would be needing to be replaced because its broken (it actually has a hole in muffler) and that i wouldnt be able to source brand new manifolds from the manufacturer instead they would be slightly different, not improve performance (sorta lie), and actually improve fuel ecomony.
the answer was a straight out no.
they would accept any change that was to exact stock modifications (so a brand new 2 1/4 exhaust to replace old one was ok)

even asked then about the LSD. which was a standard option frmo the manufacturer!.
they said as it wasnt originally fitted to the car by them (holden) it would pretty much void insurance -.-
so evven if i lower it to stock height they could void it =P

so i think exhaust will take to the backburner for now. it was originally anyway, might get only the muffler fixed up, will see how it goes.
but LSD will still go in because it can.

shall also be looking at other companies.
noticed JustCar is cheaper, and will cover everything. anyone had experience with them?
(wont be for ages but still wortwhile thinking)


so what this will most likely mean is just getting muffler fixed (eventually).
putting in LSD anyway.
probably wont do any modifications at all now.
unless insurance gets changed (which i plan to do anyway to get a better rating for when next car comes along)
and just saving the pennies for a v8. which at this rate will be stupid crazy. 4yrs of saving doing an industrial based apprenticeship... =P