So getting this http://www.trdsparks.com/displaypart...1&parts_id=595
only would be a bad idea? I'm trying to keep the price down here.

 

No it's not a bad idea. But I'd rather get the springs AND the same shocks. Just because I don't want to worry about my stock shocks blowing after a couple years.

 

you are totally ignoring my advice, but then again, you are aren't the first. don't just get that, get this
http://www.trdsparks.com/displaypart...1&parts_id=583

with the trd struts. other wise your tc will be low, but every bump you hit will bob you up and down like your tc is out at sea.

and then won't you look cool driving around on a blown out shock.

pay more and do it right the first time or pay less, do it wrong, mess up your tc, and pay more to fix it. it is up to you.

 

Ok, what I'll do for now is get the trd rear sway bar only, the rest I'll get later. Moving on to sound, what would be the best way to go for a first upgrade. The first thing my dad did was get a muffler, I don't know what you guys recommend.

 

i think it is about time you start using the search feature.

i'd maybe start here:

https://www.scionlife.com/parts/?sub=3

remember, this is your tc, you are the one who is going to spend the money and have to live with it. read, learn and evaluate for yourself what parts best meet your needs. if you want my advice, the answer is work backwards.

come up with what your perfect tc would have, and work backwards from there on what parts you will need and make your upgrades in stages.

i want a turbo for my tc, but i'm not just going to throw a snail under my hood and call it a day. first i got upgraded brakes, right now i have all the trd suspension parts waiting to be installed over spring break, then i'm going to get a trd lsd and stage 3 clutch, then an s-pipe and mid-pipe to go with my trd exhaust, some gauges, and then, it is turbo time.

unfortunately, i have made some some mistakes and wasted over $1000 on parts that i won't use. like my trd intake. turbo's come with their own intake plumbing. trd exhaust, i got it right away when i got the car in 04. but most people will tell you that the trd exhaust is all sound and fury signifying nothing. i didn't even know that if you are going turbo, you shouldn't waste your money on a set of expensive headers because that gets replaced with an exhaust manifold for the turbo. so that is over $1000 dollars that i could have put to much better use if i hadn't just started buying and installed bolt-on parts left and right everytime i got a paycheck. learn from my mistakes or i will be disapointed in how much time i wasted typing this.

 

rear sway bar or if you want to spend more lower her

 

Ok what I'm doing so far is this.

TRD Rear Sway Bar for handling
PrecisionMuffler Axle-Back Exhaust for sound

Next I'm thinking about headlights. I've done A LOT of searching for headlights. which kind to get, something about harnesses, wattage, brightest. Searching is basically getting me nowhere, it just confuses me because nothing is straight up said, its all "go search" or the people all know what their talking about and throw terms I don't know around.

Now I have no experience at all with headlights. However, I do notice that the term 9005's is used frequently and is supposed to be pretty cheap. My questions are; Where do I get these "9005's", How much is it?, and will I need anything special to install it or will it be as simple as taking out the old headlight and putting the new ones in? (which I don't know how to do)

 

9005's are a type of headlight bulb. in this case your scion uses 9005 type bulbs as the high beam (the inside bulbs) and 9006 bulbs for the low beam (outside bulbs)

headlight bulbs are fairly idiot proof to the point that it is hard to put a "square peg in a round hole" because they have specific male and female ends that will only pair up with eachother.

but with 9005 and 9006, if your trim off some little plastic tab that sticks out of the 9005 bulb that is put there so it wouldn't plug into a 9006 socket, you can run a 9005 bulb in the low beam instead of the just the high beam.

9005 bulbs are alittle brighter, are slightly higher wattage (like 55 vs 65) and don't have caps on the end, so they put out far more light, but because your low beam has specific housing and built in cut offs, they shouldn't shine into oncoming traffic too badly.

9005 bulbs cost are all up to you, they can be a dime a dozen from some generic wal-mart brand to $80 a pair from piaa which is a complete waste of money.

i prefer to just use quality 9006 bulbs. i got a pair of eurolite bulbs. they are great, stock wattage and everything, but they have only the slightest hue of blue to them.

i don't like to use the 9005 trick because i feel that it is a cheap ghetto fabulous trick and i like to keep it classy.

once my tc has reached a performance level i am happy with, i plan to buy some true hid bulbs.

check the sponsored sale forum. there are like a dozen sales on HID kits

for the low beam you want the 9006 kit, and for the high beam you want 9005 bulbs.

bi-xenon are for cars like the xa and xb that use one bulb with a dual filament for the high/low beam.

look at the examples to pick the color temperature that you want, but most people choose around 6000k or 8000k for that hid with mild to intense blue color. higher than 8000k turns purple. less than 6000k turns yellow.

 

What K temp is the stock tc bulb rated at? I like the pure white light look it has to it. Thinking about going maybe a little bluer on the low beam but want to keep the high beams white. And like Drax plans to do, I'll probably go with HIDs after I do more mods to my tc.

 

i don't really know, i think your standard halogen bulb is like 4000k maybe? that is really just a guess.

if you are just going to change the bulbget a good quality bulb that too colored. sylvania cool blue are probably good quality, but i never used them, i have silver stars for my high beam and they light up the night on my way home.

i once got a full set of audic bulbs from hidlook. i choose the rainbow blues for my high and low and raibow yellow for my oem foglights. they were pretty cool, the blue ones were very blue with hints of yellow to them, and the yellow ones had a tinge of purple depending on the angle you looked at them. very neat from the outside, but from inside the car, everything looked greenish, and if i was driving somewhere unfamilair i wouldn't know where i was going. and the highbeams were not much use. then one of the low beams burned out a week later so i just replaced all except the fog lights with reguler white bulbs.

long story short, you get what you paid for, don't cheap out on your car, or you'll regret it.

 

Thanks for the info Drax. Not planning on a good HID upgrade as of yet, but just wondering about the normal bulbs for when one burns out.

 

Today I went out and bought some new lights. Sylvania Silverstar Ultra's (9006). I'll install them tonight, hopefully they last, If not stocks are going back in, and will forever. I'm also going to take before and after pics. (I'll post them if anyone wants to see) So thats it for me for now. Rear Sway, and PM Exhaust will be purchased very soon. The rest (lowering, strut, shocks, etc.) has to wait a few months when I move. Thanks for your help.

 

remember, not to touch the bulbs or they will break in a heart beat from your finger oils.

 

Right on Drax, I've actually scene a video of that. Lol, the dude touch the bulb when he was installing it, cranked the car up and as soon as he turned his highlights on the bulb exploded. I didn't think the effect happened that soon but wow, I guess it does. For me, my first upgrades are Injen cold air intake and Magnaflow cat-back exhaust. I'm really new to the mods and stuff but I have a friend thats teaching me a lot and I'm willing to learn anything and everything I can about stuff for the tC. My next upgrade which will be in April will be suspension, anyone have personal favorites when it comes to which brand to use for the front strut tower, sway bar, shocks and coils? I hear a lot of people use TRD's.

 

NAWZ! Naw really get the naws. Really, get the rear sway bar. Changed the car into something completly different car.

 

My few cents about bulbs:
Get either PIAAs or Sylvania Cool Blues...in other words the best looking and longer lasting but expensive($80) or good looking and cheap($20). Don't bother with Sylvania Silverstars as they only last 6 months and cost about $40 a pair.

I speak from my personal experience

 

Cool, thanks, I'll look around for those then and check prices