According to You: What small/mundane vehicle modification is most satisfying?
We asked you for the most satisfying small, mundane, or quick modification you like to do to a car or truck. The answers we received ranged from adding more power and improving handling to cosmetic upgrades, lighting improvements, and interior upgrades. This list is so good it might even inspire you to make some changes of your own to your own vehicle. So let’s see what everyone in the Hagerty Community came up with.
Tires
@Marc: Are tires small/mundane? Probably not, but I vote for them anyway. I dare anyone with a sporty-ish car to upgrade their tires to something on the level of the Michelin Pilot Sport 4S and not be smiling afterward. Assuming you didn’t have a tire that good in the first place.
@David: Totally agree. Tires are often the most overlooked but single most important component of your car’s suspension system, and therefore its fundamental handling and ride characteristics. In my opinion, Michelin MP4S are the best all-around “summer” ultra-performance tire currently on the market. I have them on two cars: a ’00 Ferrari 550 Maranello, and a ’23 Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio, and I love them. You get what you pay for. Buy the best.
ECU tuning
@hyperv6: The best mod I ever did was to go from a 2-to-3 bar MAP sensor and a computer flash. This added 65 hp to my Chevy HHR SS, getting it to 300 hp. It took the boost to 23 psi and it was still under warranty.
Antiroll bars
@David: I tell everyone that the best bang for the buck (and generally “driveway accessible”) modification is to add or upgrade the antiroll (aka sway) bars. Reducing body roll while cornering significantly raises the fun factor of any car. Add good-quality brake pads and a nice set of tires, and you have the recipe for smiles on a twisty bit of road.
@Yes Dear: Especially on an NC Miata. I installed RoadsterSport sway bars from Good Win Racing and gone was the soggy, keeled-over, squirmy 1970s feel on long curves. Can’t imagine why Mazda installed such puny bars in the first place. It still has the unfortunate 4×4 stance due to the too-large wheel wells (see BMW for how to do that), but I don’t want to lower it and drag its underside over every “traffic calming” device installed here by the local nannies.
@David: Probably the best small/mundane modification I have come across is to replace the old rubber sway-bar bushings with a new set of polyurethane ones. This is particularly satisfying in older sports cars that are a tad past their prime. While you’re down there, if there is an easily accessible thicker-diameter bar from a higher-performance or later version of your car, that’s another big “bang for the buck” upgrade (particularly if you can find it at a junkyard).
Steering wheels
@Rick: I changed the giant steering wheel on my ’87 Mercedes-Benz 560 SL to a smaller (about 3/4 inch) from a ’90 SL. [It] looks exactly the same and utilizes the airbag from my original wheel. Helped tremendously in ingress/egress. Only downside is I have to move my head so I can see [the] fuel gauge, but I just watch odometer and fill it up at 200 miles as she is a thirsty girl.
Some vehicles make anything easy!
@Tim: Our Gen6 Bronco is probably a poster child for modifications. We bought ours nicely equipped, but even so, there was room for some small improvements. Nearly first on the list was replacing the prop rod for the hood with struts. This seems lame, but it sure is nice not having to work around a prop rod. Not that I’ll have much under-hood work to do, but I do open it up every time I need to connect the air compressor to air up the tires after off-roading.
The second simple, yet satisfying change was replacing the large whip antenna with a little stubby. I found one online that is only about 2.5 inches–so much better!
Then I added a glove-compartment organizer and a center console tray. It already has LEDs all around, but maybe I’ll get some further inspiration from other commenters.
OEM+ the wheels
@Douglas: I like different OEM wheels on the same make but different model. I had a set of the 1978 Trans Am gray “snowflake” wheels on my 1973 Grand Am and later on my 1977 Grand Prix SJ.
Headlights from other regions
@RauckyM3: I changed the headlights on a ’97 BMW M3 as the OE-sealed beams were like shining flashlights to see at night. The set of Euro-style reflectors with replaceable halogens made such a difference, almost like night and day! I can’t believe the OE lights were acceptable to BMW for U.S. lighting standards.
Bed bars
@Binksman: For the last 20 years, every truck I have gets a “bed bar,” as I call it. Bolt-in or weld-on, depending on the truck, but basically a piece of box steel mounted to the front of the bed rail. I have tied-down loops welded to it in multiple places to secure loads or act as anchor points for winching. Family members have mounted bicycle fork mounts or wheel chocks for motorcycles. The whole idea is it strengthens the front of the bed so it doesn’t dent toward the cab when you load motorcycles, mowers, etc.
I make my bed bars strong enough [so that] they also act as an anchor or mounting point for a small winch that I use to drag scrap, furniture, dead mowers, four-wheelers, deer, etc. into the bed. My knees and back aren’t getting any younger, so I have to work smarter. 🙂
De-badging
@David: I have removed badging and lettering from every vehicle I’ve ever owned. It really cleans up the look in my eyes. It’s a LOT easier to do with modern cars as they are usually installed with two-sided tape. Removing older chrome bits used to mean also filling in the holes they left behind. In the case of the big chrome Nissan globe in the grille of my Frontier, I removed it, shot it with a couple coats of flat black plasti-dip, and snapped it back in. Looks great.
Necker/Brody knob?
@DUB6: This is about as mundane as it gets, but on my pickup, I mounted one of those steering-wheel knobs that I can grip and that swivels in my hand as I crank the wheel back and forth—especially neat when backing up and/or maneuvering a trailer. I can concentrate on watching mirrors and don’t have to worry about crossing hands and/or losing my grip. I used to have them ages ago when driving semi-trucks and they sure came in handy, so I’ve tried to put one on all of my “working” vehicles (including tractors) since.
@TG: Suicide knobs are what they are called in the trucking industry. Illegal in semis … not sure about cars.
@DUB6: Nah, they’re legal almost everywhere, and you can easily buy them in many truck stops!
Springs/shocks
@Trekker: I lowered my ’78 Datsun 280Z about 2 inches with a set of Tokico gas struts and Eibach lowering springs. Not only did the car look 100 percent better, but the handling was greatly improved without sacrificing ride quality. The finishing touch for a classic ’70s look was to add white-lettered tires. The stock tire size (195 70-14) is no longer available with raised white lettering (I’ve looked everywhere!). Consequently, I used oil-based white paint pens (they cost $13 for 12 pens) to color the lettering and the tires, and the car looks amazing!
LED lights, again
@Steve: Like the article was about, I recently bought a set of super bright LED bulbs for my parking lights, tail/brake lights, and reverse lights for my ’66 El Camino. They have superior daylight visibility, and I like the peace of mind when making upgrades that improve safety which makes it less likely to wreck my dream car.
A stick for your stick?
@02 original owner: You asked for simple changes … being old school, I love the feel of a wood shift knob (a real stick shift) so that’s the first thing I change. Have turned a few on a wood lathe to get exactly the shape I want. And what goes better with a wood shift knob than a wood-rim steering wheel–on pre-airbag cars, of course! Or maybe not …
Audio upgrades
@ap41563: I had an over-hour commute one way and a nice full-size comfy sedan, with just an AM/FM radio and CD player/cassette. Even in 2003, you could still get a tape deck in your new luxury car.
Wanting good tunes for the commute, I added a SiriusXM Reciever that fit nicely in the ashtray cubby. I could easily look down and see to change stations but hide it out of sight for a clean look. After seeing a Mitsubishi Mirage place the antenna on the dash (from the factory), I decided to do the same. Just a little one-inch square on the dashboard, in the corner of the windshield it was perfect. I always had a great signal.
Monochrome all the things!
@Brian: My favorite mod is strictly cosmetic and addresses my number one pet peeve—ugly, unpainted black plastic. It’s ugly and makes the vehicle look like the manufacturer was too lazy to finish the car’s styling. Favorites in order of preference is body color, gloss black, or even some DIY carbon-fiber-look trim. Almost anything is better than unpainted black plastic.
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I have to go with tires and all suspension upgrades, there is no point in having a whole lot of power if you can’t keep the car under control, also if you have very little power the ability to not shave speed so you can turn makes a huge difference in how much power it feels like you have.
As for suicide knobs, I worked in a freight yard where all our forklifts had them, that was an excellent use of them, on a car they are just about useless unless you only drive in parking lots.
All EXCELLENT points!
Sound deadening/absorption. Maybe I’m a little different as I worked in this automotive field for awhile, but one of the first things I do is add sound deadening and absorption in the interior. I usually pull the upper trim and cover holes with foil backed butyl, cut a strip of ‘shoddy’ (shredded fabric mat) and stuff it behind the trim. Cover the gap between the side of the IP and A-Pillar, most holes between the cargo shelf and trunk* (*you can’t cover all of them but rather create a more ‘tortuous path’ for the air flow since covering them would effect your defrosting performance in the winter), add more butyl deadener on the trunk floor.
Basically any flat piece of steel will transmit sound…. add mass to reduce it.
Adding boost to my turbo cars, stickier tires, suspension upgrades and audio upgrades have been a few of the things I have done on my cars.
Back up camera. Some of our classics have huge blind spots. It is so easy to install a simple camera next to the license plate light and the screen can be fitted next to or even above the rearview mirror. The camera and screen can be found for less than $20 on eBay. It sure makes it easy to back into a parking space at a car show and stop exactly where you want the rear bumper.
And front dash cam for accident evidence. Remember though that if it is your fault the other driver can have the footage.
I used to own a ’64 Chevelle Malibu SS. It was equipped with 283/220 hp, M20 4 speed, and a 3.36 posi. Goldwood Yellow with a black interior. It had manual brakes and steering, but factory A/C. When I bought it in the mid 80’s it had a set of old bias ply tires that were at about 50%. It rode poorly and steered even worse. After about 2 weeks I had a new set of radial tires installed. Completely changed the ride and steering characteristics of the car. The only modification to the car was a rear anti-roll bar for a ’65 Z16. Otherwise it the car was original. It appeared in the movie “The Doors”. You can see it at the very beginning of the movie.
Me too (76), but I recently bought a used 2018 Fiat 500 Abarth and all that changed. I’m going to put a really good set of tires on it to make my smile even wider.
When I was much younger, the first thing I did to my “new to me” used Porsche was lower it, install better headlights, and install a louder exhaust. Now if I buy a car that has been lowered and has a loud exhaust, I raise the car and put the stock exhaust on!! I still install better lights.
There’s no warranty that is going to cover a mod that allows 23 psi of boost to an hhr.
It’s a GM Performance kit that doesn’t void the factory warranty. Or didn’t…back when these were still under warranty.
https://www.crateenginedepot.com/Chevrolet-Performance-Stage-Kit-19369111-P17741.aspx
The advent of LED sealed beam replacements has reversed the flow of headlight assemblies. Mercedes W116 and W123 owners are buying US market round headlight assemblies to replace the original composite lights because they can easily be upgraded with LED units. I would guess that some Peugeot 504 owners may also be looking or US headlight buckets.
After putting Hella square headlights and the Euro legal Sylvania H4 LEDs on some of my American cars, this totally makes sense to me.
Cosmetically, less is more. Clean design requires no bolt on enhancement.
I’ve already applied two of these mods to my ’86 300SDL. The Euro headlights, with their one piece glass, really classes up the front end vs. the North American sealed beam surrounded by plastic. The previous owner also installed 100W H4 bulbs in the high/low/fog lights, with a relay harness to run them all.
The mod I did after taking ownership was doing the “OEM+” wheel setup. I’ve always loved the AMG monoblocks, so I got a set of replicas in 17×9″ that really set off the look combined with a bit of lowering.
Hey, I’m not out running anyone with 140hp of diesel fury in a 4100lb sedan, so I may as well look cool while I cruise.
You are absolutely living the life of quick but super beneficial modifications. Love it.
I can’t stand vehicles with the headlights (DRLs) on all the time, so I remove the fuse. If it’s just the parking lights on in the daytime, that’s okay. If people can’t see a car during the daylight, they shouldn’t be driving.
ECU tuning on my 46 CJ2A and 50 CJ3A Willys Flat Fenders will not do much for me. The 46 does have a Supersonic engine. I may need wheelie bars for that extra 8 horse power. My old Jeeps are slow, but so cool to drive!
How did cup-holders not make the top ten? 🙂
NECKING KNOBS. I love them! My dad one on a commercial vehicle – a beautiful real rose bud encased in plastic. I begged him to give it to me when he sold the vehicle (he sold everything he ever owned). He promised, then “forgot.” Recently, a friend passed along another one – a nude lady (not porn). I’m still waiting to install it in my refurbished ’32 3WD Deuce. This is one of the most valuable articles Haggarty has ever listed. The chassis upgrades are a great check list as I upgrade the Jag suspension on my Deuce.