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Thread: Hello from Chicago

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    Hello from Chicago

    I figure I'd better introduce myself.
    I've been a member for a year now, but never posted. Been lurking for several years at this point.
    I live in Chicago, and have recently taken an interest in modifying my Mirage, (2014 DE 5-Speed with 65XXX miles, Avg 32 MPG.) The only problem I've had was the heater core going last winter, been great otherwise.

    I have an ambitious list for what I want to do, but time is tight for me so I have to chip away little by little. I essentially want to bring the Mirage up to what I believe is should be- An Evo Lite. Do I want to do a 4gXX conversion with AWD? Sure. Will I? Probably not. In the meantime, I want to modify the aesthetics to lean toward EVO III meets Renault Clio RS territory. I love 90s JDM style, and I feel that can easily be achieved on this platform with some minor vinyl, tint, and paint mods.

    As far as suspension goes, I'd really like to go full nine with it: F/R Sway/Strut Bars, control arms, and coilovers. Problem is, this crap is so hard to find here. I know some members make these on occasion, but nothing really mass produced in the States or Canadia. I've spent a year just trying to find rear struts that aren't from the damn dealership with no luck. I may just go with Godspeeds and the Doax rear sway until I can make a friend in the Philippians to ship this other stuff to me.

    For the body- I want fender flares. Just think it looks damn good on this car. Chunky wheels and tires would follow, with all windows tinted to 40%. What have I done so far? Debadge and desticker. It's a start.

    Finally, for performance, I stated I'd like to do a 4g63t swap, but honestly, I have a soft spot for three-bangers. Besides, I'd have to spend a fortune on drivetrain and tires just to keep the car on the road with that much power. At most I'd do headers, intake, and exhaust. I'd love a short throw kit, light flywheel, and better clutch for sure, but those parts are on the list of rarities as well.

    Or who knows- I might just replace my carmax plate frames with plain black ones and be done.
    I'll definitely post if I make progress.



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    dspace9 (01-18-2020)

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    Senior Member Dodge Aries K's Avatar
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    Greetings from the Rockford area!

    The important question... Is there a Gordos Taco Shop?
    -Karl B. No Mirages currently...

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    Quote Originally Posted by Dodge Aries K View Post
    Greetings from the Rockford area!

    The important question... Is there a Gordos Taco Shop?
    Sadly, not anymore. I ran a small taco business 15 years ago out of my old F150. I mostly worked local car shows, but Virginia Beach tightened food laws to the point that it wasn't worth it anymore. The name stuck for years after though. I even had a 1990 Celica GT and someone put a "GordosTacoShop Edition" sticker under the GT emblem.

    Oh, the feelz.
    Last edited by GordosTacoShop; 01-18-2020 at 04:00 AM.

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    Senior Member dspace9's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by GordosTacoShop View Post
    I have an ambitious list for what I want to do, but time is tight for me so I have to chip away little by little. I essentially want to bring the Mirage up to what I believe is should be- An Evo Lite. Do I want to do a 4gXX conversion with AWD? Sure. Will I? Probably not. In the meantime, I want to modify the aesthetics to lean toward EVO III meets Renault Clio RS territory. I love 90s JDM style, and I feel that can easily be achieved on this platform with some minor vinyl, tint, and paint mods.
    My friend has a 2010 Camaro 6 speed manual V6, and he put in a short shift himself. He tells me that the shifting has improved a lot.

    My own 2014 Mirage 5 speed is geared for fuel economy 100%. So my custom upgrades would be for comfort and convenience. I would start with adding blue LED interior lights, and getting an authentic RF stereo with sub-woofer, and 6 speakers.

    Go from there, or maybe pick up an R5 Mirage rally car's 1.4 turbo 4 engine, and plop it perfectly into my Mirage's engine bay, for a true wolf in sheep's clothing. I wonder if they sell just the engine? No AWD add on to my Mirage, just turbo onto my Mirage's FWD.. a handful to be sure.

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2014 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 42.2 mpg (US) ... 17.9 km/L ... 5.6 L/100 km ... 50.7 mpg (Imp)


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    Senior Member Dodge Aries K's Avatar
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    You ran a taco truck? That's awesome!
    -Karl B. No Mirages currently...

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    Senior Member Top_Fuel's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by GordosTacoShop View Post
    ...only problem I've had was the heater core going last winter...
    What exactly happened to your heater core? Did it start leaking, was it a lack of heat, or ???

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 52.2 mpg (US) ... 22.2 km/L ... 4.5 L/100 km ... 62.6 mpg (Imp)


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    Administrator Daox's Avatar
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    Welcome to the site. Sounds like you have a lot of fun planned.
    Custom Mirage products: Cruise control kit, Glove box light, MAF sensor housing, Rear sway bar, Upper grill block

    Current project: DIY Nitrous oxide setup for ~$100

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Mirage DE 1.2 manual: 47.2 mpg (US) ... 20.1 km/L ... 5.0 L/100 km ... 56.7 mpg (Imp)


  9. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dodge Aries K View Post
    You ran a taco truck? That's awesome!
    Indeed. Was a fun summer.

  10. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by Top_Fuel View Post
    What exactly happened to your heater core? Did it start leaking, was it a lack of heat, or ???
    Heat only came out of the driver side vents. Apparently some sort of goop filled half of the heater core.

  11. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Daox View Post
    Welcome to the site. Sounds like you have a lot of fun planned.
    Hopefully it comes to fruition. I'm optimistic, but still a realist. Working on things little by little. Just ordered a weighted shift knob to start the cascade of easy upgrades. Next will be vinyl wrapping the Mitsubishi emblems. The bigger upgrades and mods will come in late spring once the snow stops. Last thing I want to do is drop my car with 8" of powder on the road.
    The local cops in VA beach used to joke that I should charge the city for plowing the streets...

    I had an 89 Accord with a mildly aggressive 4.2" drop and snow chains. Was quite the little snow plow.
    🙂



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