"painless" LS2 mods?

[deevergote]

Oh yeah, even when creating this thread, my intention was never to jump right into modding it. I just wanted to get a few ideas in mind in case the bug bit... so I'd know what I can do without sacrificing what I want from the car.
Still, now that I drive it... I don't need to go faster!

I'll definitely look into proper washing. I may run it through a touchless wash today, just to shine it up a bit. One that just sprays it with soap, and then hoses it off... no brushes of any type.

When I recover from the expense of the purchase itself, I plan on making an appointment with a Cadillac dealer for them to go over it. I figure it'll probably run $200 or so, but they'll be able to tell me if anything is wrong, and if there's anything I should expect to go wrong. I know it needs a passenger side airbag sensor... that's a recall, so it'll be free. Every one I've seen so far has needed that replaced.

[Straight Success]

I know it needs a passenger side airbag sensor... that's a recall, so it'll be free. Every one I've seen so far has needed that replaced.

That wasn't taken care of by the previous owner?

[deevergote]

He said he just had to schedule an appointment to have it done. I think it may be a recent recall, because all 3 CTS-Vs that I looked at needed it replaced, and the sellers said they had just been notified of it. At least two of the sellers seemed trustworthy (the Russian dude that had that red car... yeah, he was kinda shady... But he was upfront about that sensor!)

[Ralphie]

Two bucket ftw!

I love it!

One for dirty and one for clean!

And I agree with AW, invest money into the life of the car.

Fuck modding it, its a CTS-V.

It should keep you happy for a bit.

[deevergote]

Yeah, the question of modding came before I really got to drive it.
As I said, air filter, when it needs to be replaced (chances are very good that this dude replaced it already. He seems to have replaced EVERYTHING.)

The headlights are cloudy and look like shit, so the first thing I plan on doing is to polish or replace those. The cloudiness detracts from the otherwise striking front end.


AW manages to keep the fragile paint on his car looking great, even with MA winters (and no shelter for the car)... so yeah, he knows what he's talking about for sure!
The paint on the CTS-V is flawed... dings, rock chips that have been imperfectly repaired, a couple poorly repaired scratches on the rear driver's side door (invisible most times, but from certain angles, they're VERY visible... but whatever.) A few scratches that look like it was brushed by branches (they might be able to be buffed out... superficial scratches only.)

This thread has kinda turned away from modding, and into my "hey, check out my new car!" thread... but only for those in the know
I'm keeping this under wraps a bit. Half of my friends don't know I have it, or that I was even seriously going to buy one.
Last night, my buddy Jon had to check it out at 2am when I told him what I had. He nearly humped it. He's not even a car guy! That is EXACTLY what I wanted... a car that will be appreciated by everyone. If you're into cars, you drool over the big V8 and 6 speed manual in a Caddy. If you're not into cars, you just like the classy/sporty looking black on black Cadillac. If you don't like it... well... I haven't met anyone that doesn't like it yet...

I think my only complaints so far are with the stereo/nav system. The nav is all dial-controlled. 6 disc CD changer with a single disc DVD, but it doesn't read MP3s (I don't think). There's no auxiliary input (something I grew to love in my Fit). It's a pretty cumbersome system. I'll see if I get used to it. If not, maybe a nice touchscreen upgrade is in order. Nothing pressing, but something to consider in the future. The audio is Bose, though... and I remember reading that Bose components tend to freak out when paired with non-Bose head units...

[Ralphie]

Yeah, the question of modding came before I really got to drive it.
As I said, air filter, when it needs to be replaced (chances are very good that this dude replaced it already. He seems to have replaced EVERYTHING.)

The headlights are cloudy and look like shit, so the first thing I plan on doing is to polish or replace those. The cloudiness detracts from the otherwise striking front end.


AW manages to keep the fragile paint on his car looking great, even with MA winters (and no shelter for the car)... so yeah, he knows what he's talking about for sure!
The paint on the CTS-V is flawed... dings, rock chips that have been imperfectly repaired, a couple poorly repaired scratches on the rear driver's side door (invisible most times, but from certain angles, they're VERY visible... but whatever.) A few scratches that look like it was brushed by branches (they might be able to be buffed out... superficial scratches only.)

This thread has kinda turned away from modding, and into my "hey, check out my new car!" thread... but only for those in the know
I'm keeping this under wraps a bit. Half of my friends don't know I have it, or that I was even seriously going to buy one.
Last night, my buddy Jon had to check it out at 2am when I told him what I had. He nearly humped it. He's not even a car guy! That is EXACTLY what I wanted... a car that will be appreciated by everyone. If you're into cars, you drool over the big V8 and 6 speed manual in a Caddy. If you're not into cars, you just like the classy/sporty looking black on black Cadillac. If you don't like it... well... I haven't met anyone that doesn't like it yet...

Ya man I feel ya on that!

All that shit can be fixed very easily.

Im assuming the headlights are the plastic kind and not glass.

What I use to get the grime and cloudiness off of mine are mothers aluminum polish and 3M plastic polish.


You use the Mothers first, which acts like a cutter. You should see results immediately.

Then after a good buffing you polish it up with the 3m.

You can trust those tips....as they came straight from our very own Brian.

IF the residue is on the inside(my pass side has some inside)

then you can have the dealership do a restoration for a fee.

When my pops worked for Honda, they did it, and I believe it was a few bucks...maybe $175 or so.

You COULD DIY but im pretty sure your not going to want to pull your headlights off and bake them/pry open etc

PITA.

Come to think of it, your's are projectors right?



Anyway Im excited for you!

Hopefully I can mosy on down at some point and check this bad boy out for myself.

My bud took me to test drive one once, and im almost positive it was the gen you have now.

That shit went and went fast lol.

[Straight Success]

Not to get too off topic, but I'm seriously looking into and searching for a '03 540i M-Sport in 6 speed. There's other cars that I would like to own, but for some reason, I just love that thing.

[deevergote]

That would definitely be a nice ride. I'd only be concerned about repairs, though. A 10 year old 5 series will be expensive, and anything M will be even more expensive. If you get something like that, be prepared to fix what breaks. Research, research, research! Cost of ownership is high with an old BMW. That's one reason I chose the Cadillac over anything German, because American is cheaper. Plus, variants of my engine and transmission can be found in numerous cheaper cars, and much of the body/suspension/chassis will be found on cheaper CTS models, which date back over 10 years and are a dime a dozen. Aside from the fact that I truly like the car for what it is, that was a BIG factor in my decision. For a luxury sport car of this caliber, the CTS-V is probably the cheapest in terms of cost of ownership. Still not cheap if anything V exclusive breaks (like those cool but odd 6 lug wheels...) then that'll cost a fortune, but that's it.

[Ralphie]

Not to get too off topic, but I'm seriously looking into and searching for a '03 540i M-Sport in 6 speed. There's other cars that I would like to own, but for some reason, I just love that thing.

The wagons are pure s3x.

[Mayhem Tripp Robinson]

fast 102 intake. 102 tb, Texas speed ms4 cam. oil pump. can be done in about 4 hours then a tune that's about 450 to 475 at the wheels

[Straight Success]

I think this is a good thing about a ME working in the field doing automotive engineering stuff. You figure out way to figure out ways. Only if I were to stay with BMW would I really consider an older BMW like the 540i M-Sport.

Other than that, enjoy all 400 ponies. Do it in moderation, do it responsibly, and do it safely. It's good that you realize that the 400 hp is a shit load of power that doesn't need any implants, butt enhancements, or collagen. The only thing to worry about (after ensuring all preventative maintenance is good) is rear tires. You can break the ass loose very easily with 400 hp and a clutch.

[deevergote]

Too true! I haven't broken it loose yet, thankfully. I'm not positive that the clutch isn't on the way out, so I don't want to risk it.

I also just enjoyed my first reality check... $55 at the pump.

[AccordWarrior]

If you bring it up sometime soon, I just got a new stack of supplies I'm very eager to try.

Everyone's raving about M105 and Surburf MF pads, so it's time to have some fun.

I need to do my own headlights, so once I figure out what works, I'll do yours.

[deevergote]

Cool. We'll have to plan something soon. I shudder to think what I'll spend in gas making that drive!
I've never done much in the way of detailing, so I could definitely use some help learning.

There are definitely flaws on my paint. Front driver's side fender looks like it's been sandblasted, there's a repaired scratch and some weird mark on the other back door... It'll never be perfect without a repaint, but it's worth keeping up with in the current condition.

[Straight Success]

What the overall condition IYO of the car from 1-10?