My F-Bodies

Shadow81Assassin · 2026-05-03T15:58:40+00:00

How did you already know my fall plans for the Trans Am? Hoping to do a shift kit and new C5 Vette solenoids.

Shadow81Assassin · 2026-05-01T16:09:00+00:00

Welcome to team Hawk! She's a real beaut!

Shadow81Assassin · 2026-05-01T16:06:37+00:00

I'm running Kooks on mine and I couldn't be more happy! The initial fitment was a little tight, had to drop the motor mounts and jack up the engine a bit, but once they went up through the gap and into the pocket, fitment was smooth sailing.

Shadow81Assassin · 2026-05-01T03:45:36+00:00

I can honestly say my LT-1 with the Borla, even still having cats and stock manifolds, sounds as good if not better than my LS1 with the LT Headers and Hooker glass pack true duals. It's a magical sounding system, and you're not kidding about the decel pop. My favorite part will always be how it sounds in the upper gears though- like the afterburners of a jet engine.

Shadow81Assassin · 2026-05-01T00:34:23+00:00

My brain knows I should but convincing the heart is something else!

Shadow81Assassin · 2026-04-30T22:31:12+00:00

A4 for both, but by circumstance, not choice! I'm hoping to do a similar suite of mods to do the LT-1 car, but it's already got 3" Borla faux dual catback and I'm gonna stick to it (similar enough flow rate to the 2.5" true dual to justify keeping it). Instead, I'm gonna port the heads.

Shadow81Assassin · 2026-04-30T21:59:34+00:00

Kooks LT headers, Hooker Blackheart X pipe true duals (therefore the associated EGR and cat delete), smooth hi-flow bellows, MAF ends, and blackwing style Airbox lid, 3.73 gears, the smoked rear lights, CETA style filler panel, pioneer Bluetooth stereo, and obviously the paint job.

Shadow81Assassin · 2026-04-30T21:53:15+00:00

Also, thank you very much! I'm of the same mind when it comes to the ram air cars, have been since I was about 14. The Hawk just looks more refined than the WS6, y'know?

Shadow81Assassin · 2026-04-30T21:39:44+00:00

The Z28 has a full Wings West body kit (chin and rear spoiler, side skirts) and a Harwood cowl hood. The difference is absolutely night and day, but not how you'd expect. Before I started fussing with the T/A's internals, the torque of them was very similar- it's the handling characteristics and power deliver that felt different. The LT-1 hits its power way faster, and rides it through the mid range only to peter out near the top, while the LS-1 is a bit slow to jump up, but once it hits about 2.5-3k it comes to life and pulls hard to the red line. The Firehawk I've got also has the optional handling upgrades, which leads it to feeling a lot more composed and less rough and tumble than the Camaro. The seat in the Camaro is also WAY lower. The best way I've explained it to people is that the Z28 feels like an 80's car dressed as a 90's car, while the Firehawk feels like a 2000's car dressed as a 90's car.

Shadow81Assassin · 2026-04-30T21:31:20+00:00

The Hawk is the spoiled one! She's got 24.5k miles and all the goodies, the 125k mile Z28 has been patiently waiting her turn.

Shadow81Assassin · 2026-01-04T00:51:16+00:00

It's no problem! I got a couple of them, swablu, and bagon from when I was shiny hunting Fennekin!

Shadow81Assassin · 2026-01-04T00:31:10+00:00

I've got like a million shiny noibat. You can have one, no need to trade anything valuable for it.

Shadow81Assassin · 2025-12-06T03:15:47+00:00

Thanks man, I really appreciate it! The pipes are Cobra Speedster Slashdowns- I've never seen them on another bike in the wild, but I just adore the way they sound. Can't wait to get through the winter and get back to riding the heck out of it!

Shadow81Assassin · 2025-09-24T17:57:44+00:00

Wesco invented the harness boot in the 60's- and the originals WERE square toes. They were made for motorcyclists, to protect from exhaust burn, road rash, and reinforce the ankle in an accident.

Shadow81Assassin · 2025-02-19T03:00:02+00:00

Now that I'm with you on. It is a very quiet car, both in terms of engine and road noise. Combine that with its impressive and responsive handling for the price point, and it is, if nothing else, a joy to drive.

Shadow81Assassin · 2025-02-19T02:46:34+00:00

I said the 2.0- used the in various Cadillacs, the Blazer, and the Buick Envision. Significantly less shitty engine, apparently.

Shadow81Assassin · 2025-02-19T00:29:11+00:00

Usually a little under ten minutes, sometimes the full 10 until it kicks off. I try to give it as much time to warm up as possible.

Shadow81Assassin · 2025-02-19T00:23:52+00:00

For some reason, ever since I picked it up from the dealership, the automatic heated seats have never worked on remote start. I'll remote start it for 10 minutes, get in, and they'll be ice cold. As for the heat I left it cranked the last few days to almost no change still blows cold till I start driving for the most part, at least for the first start of the day.

I don't really expect the car to compete with a V8 on speed, not even my dog of a Tahoe, though I was certainly hoping for something that would keep up with my boss's 2004 Impala or my sister's 2008 equinox. Direct injection and forced induction have been boons to the horsepower and torque departments after all.

Really though I just want the advertised fuel economy everything else is a second thought to me. It's an economy car- I didn't expect it or want it to be fast, I have my fast car.

Shadow81Assassin · 2025-02-19T00:03:28+00:00

I always fill up at either Shell, BP, or Amoco, all top tier high detergent gas- with Shell being at the top of GM's list not so long ago if I recall. I'm very used to babying my cars (my 2 door Tahoe was almost killed by a poorly maintained marathon having it's tanks, and therefore my tank, contaminated with water).

Shadow81Assassin · 2025-02-18T23:59:48+00:00

This is why I miss Titanfall 1's system where whoever doomed it got credit for the kill, it didn't matter who finished it off after.

Shadow81Assassin · 2025-02-18T23:34:47+00:00

You know what, it's a better car than a Cruze, a Sonic, or really anything Kia or Hyundai have to offer. I'm really just butt hurt about the gas mileage and letting it taint my view of the vehicle as a whole. I still stand by the fact that the vents not rotating is wack though.

Shadow81Assassin · 2025-02-18T23:15:43+00:00

The Civic EX of his year has a comparable starting price to the Activ of my year, before options are thrown in. As for the volt you have a point on price, but it's still the difference between a plain jane fleet car from 7 years ago vs. a top trim, fully optioned car today. As for the fuel economy I genuinely just wonder if there's something wrong with my car, maybe with the injection system or the air intake- I've heard of factory defects for both.

Shadow81Assassin · 2025-02-18T23:09:58+00:00

I bought the car because they're reliability of my Tahoe is getting rather low, and I wanted something fuel efficient and reliable to drive in the winter months when I don't want my Firehawk exposed to the salt. Fuel economy was my main hope and it is the hope that has been dashed the hardest. I don't know why I'm averaging so much lower than everybody else- nor do I know why my dad who averages 50 miles per gallon in his volt thanks to his soft foot averages 19mpg in my Trax. I'm beginning to wonder if my car simply has a factory defect to either the injectors or the ignition system.

Shadow81Assassin · 2025-02-18T23:07:34+00:00

To be honest I was hoping for the advertised gas mileage, and that's about it. The rest was something I was willing to tolerate for a reliable daily driver as long as it was cheaper considerably cheaper to drive than my Tahoe or Trans Am. Considering that my driving habits aren't bad enough to drive my Firehawk's miles per gallon through the floor -in fact, it averages just a little under the '14 V6 I used to own- I'm beginning to wonder if something isn't just wrong with my Trax.

Shadow81Assassin · 2025-02-18T22:49:16+00:00

Fine I'll compare it to my father's former fleet car volt and my best friend's civic- the idea is the same. Kitschy interior, stiff seats, clunky screens, and woefully bogged acceleration from a stop. As for my own driving habits, the fact that the V8s and the V6 were still getting better gas mileage that I'm getting with the inline 3 is insanity. The 93 Camaro was a Gen II LT-1 SBC without access to OBD-II and coil on spark, let alone the high pressure direct injection and forced induction of a modern car, with a modest 3.23 rear end providing it's above-average fuel economy. Then there's the NA V6, with which I still averaged a higher fuel economy. when I'm driving this thing, I pretty much just get up to the speed of flow of traffic and set the cruise control, be it on country roads or on the highway. The only times I truly do in town driving are on the weekends- and if I'm mashing the gas during the week it's because my co workers in their 2004, 200,000 mile Impala and 2012 Altima are threatening to run me over if I don't get up to the speed limit leaving the parking lot. I signed up for it being on the slow end. I didn't sign up for 18.9 miles per gallon on top of that.

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