LUVTruck.com

My AWD talon that I had had less then $4000 in mods and I would rape vipers, vettes, camaros, supras even crotch rocket bikes in that thing and the total cost for the car, mods included was less than $10K. It ran 12.6 with several problems, broken axles on launch and boost creep. It would easily run low 12, high 11s if tuned correctly and just dialed in. There is nothing better than beating a punk in his $100K car with your $10k POS.

Crotch rockets on the freeway didn't pull me until about 160, it was dead close up till that point. Honda CBR1000 was the bike I raced. Sure, a Hayabusa or something would be a little quicker.

All the cars that I beat were stock or very slighly modded. A pumped vette or viper would be a different story. But still, $100K compared to $10K?

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No LUV anymore, but still in the GM truck family. Running a lifted 2002 Silverado Z-71!

Another thing to consider is what they REALLY spend. This generation is all about excess. Look at the price of teen-agers clothes. Its cool to say you spent $100 on a pair of jeans. So IMHO, alot of these mega-buck ricer/tuner cars are alotta BS. They want to claim they spent that kind of money so others think they're cool. But I'll bet most of them don't have but maybe half what they claim they have in 'em money wise.

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'46 Studebaker truck "project"
'90 Trooper 4X4, 2.6L 5 spd

that is very true. Unfortunately, most of the cars you see on TV, like at shows and stuff are all about how much they spent on it. Those are also usually the all show and no go ones. I feel bad about how much I have in my car, I don't want people to say "you have how much in a neon, or a luv?" or whatever. I know we all get that alot. So I usually say I have less into than I really do. But then again, I'm not your typical teenager either. I spend $15 a pair on shoes at walmart But then I spent $2500 on the stereo stuff I had in my truck. Or $900 on tires on my supra. $550 0f which was for back tires that I had previously left in 3" deep piles of rubber in random parking lots and streets.

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No LUV anymore, but still in the GM truck family. Running a lifted 2002 Silverado Z-71!

The part I like about Domestic V8's is the dollar to horsepower ratio. You can take a SBC and put $2000 into it and have some good horsepower. Unlike these tuners cars, where they put $10000 and still only don't make the same horsepower that the SBC makes. You can argue that with "Well tuners are modern day vehicles and they are all computer controlled so that why they cost so much." Thats true with ever new vehicle, i don't car if its a Ford Festiva with a 1.2L or a Chevy Sierria with a 6.0 BBC. Any new vehicle costs a lot more to boost hp figures. I guess a lot of us V8 fans, are stuck back in the 60's and 70's with are 350's and 454's, when Hp was cheap. Maybe if they made these four cylinder wonders back then, they would get some interest from the general hot rod community. But since they are a new addition to the scene, nobody seems to like them and there name gets trashed. But thats my opinion....

for the record the Ford Festiva has a 1.3L, and it hauls ass
But yes any computer controlled car will cost more to upgrade unless you know what your doing. In auto tech class we were able to almost double the HP out of our Tahoe whith a 5.3L V-8 whith out spending a dime or even lifting the hood...
If you can reprogram a computer you can make far more HP than a small block whith a carb for the money.

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1980 LUV 4x4, going under re-construction...

dude i love festiva's too my cousin had one before their cheap jus like luv's you can usually get them next to nothin but i d rather have a luv jay leno owns one of the the good model shogun it was called pretty cool car
0-60 in 4.6 sec and 12.9 1/4 mile time with out power adders i got that from a site 220 hp those things are tiny too

munch.....munch.....munch.......stude (with a mouth full of popcorn)....munch....munch......I was just playin'....tryin to ....munch.....cool ya off....munch.....

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03Cobra

I have to agree with some off the posts here that a hot rodder is a hot rodder, whether it is with a flathead Ford, a small block Chevy, or an import 4-banger. It is all just different era's of people who enjoy working on their vehicles and wanting to improve the performance. While I personally prefer V-8 power, since that is the era I grew up in, that doesn't mean I don't appreciate the effort that goes into a true performance upgrade of an import. I just don't understand the large amounts of money going into some of these cars, but then that just might be the Scotsman in me.

I'll probably get hanged for this statement but oh well:

"Why in the hell would you put that much mone in a Luv? Did they even make those for more than 2 years?"

Don't get me wrong, I love the little trucks too, but you can see why people would question that or ridicule us for putting so much money into a luv. Its the same thing as putting too much money into an import car.

We are all guilty of it. At least you guys are willing to except the little cars and appreciate the amount of technology and work it takes to make one of them fast. Thats cool. I get a lot of crap for my 510 and my neon, but I love em both and they are both faster than many a V6 or V8 camaro or mustang (stock ones of course.) Even if I have put too much money into it. And yes, Its still "just a neon"

I get that alot, "Dude, its just a neon, why would you bother?"

Well if its "just a neon" then why did I just hand you your ass?

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No LUV anymore, but still in the GM truck family. Running a lifted 2002 Silverado Z-71!

Somewhere on the 'net is a website w/ a wicked Neon. They swapped a V6 out of a Voyager mini van, then slapped an Eaton M90 blower on it, too. Thats something I could get into.

But you're exactly right- whats w/ the whole "its only a _______" thing? Hopping up a car is hopping up a car. "Its only a Neon", or "its only a Honda", or yes, even "its only a LUV" show just how limited peoples vision is in some instances. All cars are just a blank canvas waiting for someone w/ a vision to bring out its potential.

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'46 Studebaker truck "project"
'90 Trooper 4X4, 2.6L 5 spd

yup i get alot of crap for putting money into my luv and my ford 300. People just dont understand that i like these trucks becouse they are reliable and durable. And yes ALL of us on this site are guilty of "import tuning" to a point. We are after all working whith a japaniese frame arent we?

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1980 LUV 4x4, going under re-construction...

Yeah neons have LOTS of unknown potential. There is a FWD neon hitting about 1100 hp from a 2.4 PT cruiser motor. I have a friend with a daily driven 4 door neon that looks bone stock, and runs high 11's with some traction problems at the line. SLEEPER!

As much as I love the little cars, I love the sound of a V8 with a hot cam. I thought about putting my 350 into my Datsun 510, but then decided against it because the car handles so nice with the good weight balance.

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No LUV anymore, but still in the GM truck family. Running a lifted 2002 Silverado Z-71!

yeah i have to agree with MEPR ... we are all guilty of the import scene. ISUZU !! hello LUV ding ding ding!

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Juice

Pics of the 510? I love Datsuns, and all the old imports.


To be completely honest, I hate the [new] import scene because the majority of them are punk ass, d-bag teenagers (coming from a teenager, hmm) with nothing but a wing, a primer body kit, and a fart can, and think they are fast. I know, I know this has been covered, just thought I'd give my opinion.

Brings back the memory of a customer who had a hot Datsun, crossflow head, intake, exhaust, he had all of it. He came in to see about getting a kit to do a V8 swap. He claims to never have been beaten by anothe Datsun truck. Then one day a Datsun truck pulled up next to him at a light, motioned to race, light turned green and he was gone. Whe the hopped up 4cyl guy caught up he got him to pull over. The guy had a mild 350 with auto we had installed. What really turned the 4 cyl guys head was when they discussed fuel milage. The V8 got about 25% better.

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The light at the end of the tunnel, may just be a train coming!

Cadillac Northstar V8 in a VW Golf.



Remember I am a VW nut too.

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75 Luv, 350 V8, TH350, Camaro rearend. New 1975 Luv Step side. Stock for now.
Grandmaster of the "Shade Tree" way.. I can't see the yard for all the cars. Come on down and we will sit on the porch and watch the grass grow.

whats that like to drive?

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76 mikado project,mean green