Cars and Motorsports Thread

[Seth Vega]

I would buy a new grey Subaru WRX. That car seems to have everything I want. Power, handling, acceleration, breaking, looks, and practicality. 

[Vhozite]

51 minutes ago, Seth Vega said:

I would buy a new grey Subaru WRX. 

 

51 minutes ago, Seth Vega said:

 looks

Are you talking about the 2022 refresh? Cause even tho it’s on my list of potential cars I’d say it’s a straight downgrade from the current gen. Absolutely hideous from the rear.

[Seth Vega]

On 10/7/2021 at 4:43 PM, Vhozite said:

 

Are you talking about the 2022 refresh? Cause even tho it’s on my list of potential cars I’d say it’s a straight downgrade from the current gen. Absolutely hideous from the rear.

Yes, I am talking about the 2022 refresh. The back does look kind of weird, but I still like it. I also like it because it has tons of grip and it has paddle shifters for fast shifting. It's weight is also not too much. It's a very well rounded machine like many rally inspired cars. 

Edited October 12, 2021 by Seth Vega

[Vhozite]

13 minutes ago, Seth Vega said:

Yes, I am talking about the 2022 refresh. The back does look kind of weird, but I still like it. 

Yeah the rear is the main issue I have with the car. The rest is workable but that rear end is fugly imo. I’m still considering it as a car though since it checks some other boxes for me. If I buy something completely new it’ll be this or a GR86/BRZ.

 

Edit: I will say that the 2022 WRX is one of those cars that my liking it or not is highly dependent on the color. The orange they keep showing it in isn’t the look but black, blue, and the silver from the concept car look much better.

Edited October 12, 2021 by Vhozite

[Seth Vega]

2 minutes ago, Vhozite said:

Yeah the rear is the main issue I have with the car. The rest is workable but that rear end is fugly imo. I’m still considering it as a car though since it checks some other boxes for me. If I buy something completely new it’ll be this or a GR86/BRZ.

I would so get the GR86/BRZ as well. It's another well rounded car. It has everything except top end speed. I never drove one, but I did drive one in Gran Turismo and it's amazing. The 86 was one of my main go to cars in GT. It was really fun competing in races at 500-525 performance points.  

[Vhozite]

14 minutes ago, Seth Vega said:

I would so get the GR86/BRZ as well. It's another well rounded car. It has everything except top end speed. I never drove one, but I did drive one in Gran Turismo and it's amazing. The 86 was one of my main go to cars in GT. It was really fun competing in races at 500-525 performance points.  

I’ve reading up on the GR86/BRZ a lot. Like you said it’s not fast but the refresh does have a new engine with slightly more hp and (iirc) a better torque or some shit. Saw a YT video (I’ll link if I can find it) where they raced a 2022 GR86, a last gen 86, S2000, and a Miata and the 2022 GR86 won pretty cleanly. It’s still not fast like a Mustang or whatever, but it’s definitely more responsive than before. Not sure where it lands top speed wise but realistically it’s uncommon for me to break 100mph on the road so I’m not pressed over it.

 

Really I like it for its low weight, handling, and styling. I’ve never driven one but supposedly it handles like a dream with its low weight and CoG. Truth be told I don’t need something much faster than my current 06 Forester, but I would definitely love something a bit snappier on the curves.

 

Edit: That said, my main targets are still a Mustang GT or Camaro SS

Edited October 12, 2021 by Vhozite

[Faltimar the Dark]

So, has this turned into "what do you want to drive" the thread?

 

Not so many drivers here on sr-megashock.

[Vhozite]

47 minutes ago, Faltimar the Dark said:

So, has this turned into "what do you want to drive" the thread?

 

Not so many drivers here on sr-megashock.

I mean I guess it can just be the “Cars” thread. It’s cool seeing what y’all drive but also that’ll naturally develop into regular car talk 

[misterBee]

I drive an early 2000s BMW 3 series.

 

 

My first car, which my parents still use to haul stuff, was a limited edition Saturn VUE.

 

 

I really want a Challenger, but by the time I get another car it is likely the world will have moved on to using only electric vehicles.  Here's hoping they make an electric Challenger. 🤞

 

[Vhozite]

@misterBeethat generation 3 series is one of my favorites simply because of Need for Speed: Most Wanted. Cool car.

[Vhozite]

Also I think it’s interesting that the Dodge Challenger and Charger are very popular, but over at Chevy Camaro sales are basically in free fall with no hope of recovery. 
 

The Corvette shows that they are capable of selling performance cars, yet they seem to have no idea what to do with the Camaro. The model is basically guaranteed to be canned in 3-4 years time unless public develops a fetish for GM overnight.

Edited October 15, 2021 by Vhozite

[misterBee]

1 hour ago, Vhozite said:

Also I think it’s interesting that the Dodge Challenger and Charger are very popular, but over at Chevy Camaro sales are basically in free fall with no hope of recovery. 
 

The Corvette shows that they are capable of selling performance cars, yet they seem to have no idea what to do with the Camaro. The model is basically guaranteed to be canned in 3-4 years time unless public develops a fetish for GM overnight.

The Challenger and Camaro are both interchangeable for me.

 

I like the styling of the Camaro's front, but the Challenger has the sexier back.  For me it's all about looks - I drive really slow. 🙂

[JGreen]

Love the modern-retro look of the Challenger. 

 

I wish Ford had made a competitor to the C8 Corvette. The current Mustang doesn't do anything for me (though I love the old ones). Ford has the Ford GT, but that's nowhere remotely close to the price bracket of the C8. Currently, the C8 is such an amazing value, even at the inflated after dealer markup prices.

[Vhozite]

5 hours ago, JGreen said:

Love the modern-retro look of the Challenger. 

 

I wish Ford had made a competitor to the C8 Corvette. The current Mustang doesn't do anything for me (though I love the old ones). Ford has the Ford GT, but that's nowhere remotely close to the price bracket of the C8. Currently, the C8 is such an amazing value, even at the inflated after dealer markup prices.

Mustang is my favorite car after the Viper but the current gen is ugly.
 

That being said, I think Ford has the same problem as Dodge when trying to compete with the Vette in that the top trims for their regular muscle cars would be competing with their competition car. Similar to the Challenger, the Mustang can go from like ~$26k all the way to over 100k right now for a GT500, so forcing a whole different model in there probably would be kinda awkward. According to Dodge.com a top trim Challenger goes can range from $30k to over $80k. Comparatively, Chevy.com has  the Camaro topping out in the mid 60’s for the ZL1, while a base Vette starts at $61k. 
 

 

GM positioned the Corvette well and its showing via sales. If Ford wanted to make a Corvette competitor they probably should’ve started like 10+ years ago. With ICE on the way out they probably aren’t gonna develop any fully new performance models until going electric.

Edited October 16, 2021 by Vhozite

[Darc_Requiem]

14 hours ago, Vhozite said:

Also I think it’s interesting that the Dodge Challenger and Charger are very popular, but over at Chevy Camaro sales are basically in free fall with no hope of recovery. 

Camaro is already dead after 2023. They blew it with the current design. It wasn't enough of a departure from the previous model. Prior to it's release, people though it would look like new take on the Gen 2 design. Despite being on all new platform a lot of people think it's just a design refresh. It's a shame because from a performance standpoint it stands above the Mustang and the Challenger. The Alpha Platform is just a really good platform. It allows the car to excel at track and straight line performance. 

[Vhozite]

3 hours ago, Darc_Requiem said:

Camaro is already dead after 2023. They blew it with the current design. It wasn't enough of a departure from the previous model. Prior to it's release, people though it would look like new take on the Gen 2 design. Despite being on all new platform a lot of people think it's just a design refresh. It's a shame because from a performance standpoint it stands above the Mustang and the Challenger. The Alpha Platform is just a really good platform. It allows the car to excel at track and straight line performance. 

See I know that, you know that, and the guy who sits behind me at work whose only driven GM his whole life might know that, but outside of that the Camaro’s performance probably isn’t well known.
 

I might be talking out of my ass but I feel like the Camaro is missing something marketing wise. Everyone and their mother knows about the hellcat. Meanwhile the Camaro isn’t really on the map for anything right now outside of being in Transformers like a decade ago and consistently having shit visibility every model year.

Edited October 16, 2021 by Vhozite

[Darc_Requiem]

Well they decided to canned it couple of years ago. So they really haven't been trying anymore. When they brought it back it had an eye catching design. They didn't do that with the follow up. They were way too conservative. They take more risks with the Corvette than they do the Camaro.

[Faltimar the Dark]

I drove one of these for a couple/few years.  I got it for free when I was 19. 

 

Mine was tan and it was beat up.  I don't remember if it had hubcaps...maybe.  It had rust holes all over the place and sun damage.  It was ugly.  It was fun to drive though.  Load that sucker up and go all over.  And it had Super Shift.  😎

 

I was out doing errands one day and I got in the car and put it in reverse to leave and the fuckin' shifter broke loose and hit the ground.  Fucked up.  Had to hold it up all the way home, made shifting hard.  I just rigged it with a wire clothes hanger. 

[Vhozite]

Been reading car news online and there is a potential magnesium shortage looming as early as the end of the year. 
 

For anyone shopping around I’d say the car situation isn’t looking to improve anytime soon. If you don’t need a new car definitely wait till like 2023 at the earliest.

[Darc_Requiem]

1 minute ago, Vhozite said:

Been reading car news online and there is a potential magnesium shortage looming as early as the end of the year. 
 

For anyone shopping around I’d say the car situation isn’t looking to improve anytime soon. If you don’t need a new car definitely wait till like 2023 at the earliest.

Between that an the silicon shortage the situation has been sane. IIRC GM and Ford's production was down 59% last month. It's not a demand issue people are paying way over sticker. They  just don't have the materials to make the cars.

[Seth Vega]

On 10/12/2021 at 4:11 PM, Vhozite said:

I’ve reading up on the GR86/BRZ a lot. Like you said it’s not fast but the refresh does have a new engine with slightly more hp and (iirc) a better torque or some shit. Saw a YT video (I’ll link if I can find it) where they raced a 2022 GR86, a last gen 86, S2000, and a Miata and the 2022 GR86 won pretty cleanly. It’s still not fast like a Mustang or whatever, but it’s definitely more responsive than before. Not sure where it lands top speed wise but realistically it’s uncommon for me to break 100mph on the road so I’m not pressed over it.

 

Really I like it for its low weight, handling, and styling. I’ve never driven one but supposedly it handles like a dream with its low weight and CoG. Truth be told I don’t need something much faster than my current 06 Forester, but I would definitely love something a bit snappier on the curves.

 

Edit: That said, my main targets are still a Mustang GT or Camaro SS

Yes, the 86 is a very capable performance car especially the newer model. It's very balanced. I think it has 230hp and 230 torque. The new 86 is better all around compared to the older model. 

 

Mustang GT and Camaro SS are also well rounded cars that pretty much have everything I want, but they are heavy. 

 

You seemed to be a performance minded person when it comes to cars. I am the same way. 

[Vhozite]

40 minutes ago, Seth Vega said:

You seemed to be a performance minded person when it comes to cars. I am the same way. 

Yeah I’m not a car snob or anything, but in the last year or so my priorities have changed. Before when I was driving 5 minutes to work I just wanted something to get me there and didn’t really care about much else. Now I commute 30+ miles each way and spend over an hour on the road driving each day. Realized quickly what’s important to me in a car.

 

1. Looks 

2. Performance

3. Bluetooth Radio

4. Working HVAC

 

Don’t really care about much else. I can count on my hands the number of times I’ve had more than one passenger or actually used the big amount of space my car has. Interior quality IMO doesn’t really matter. I the important bits are between the pedal and the steering wheel.
 

 

 

[Seth Vega]

22 hours ago, Vhozite said:

Yeah I’m not a car snob or anything, but in the last year or so my priorities have changed. Before when I was driving 5 minutes to work I just wanted something to get me there and didn’t really care about much else. Now I commute 30+ miles each way and spend over an hour on the road driving each day. Realized quickly what’s important to me in a car.

 

1. Looks 

2. Performance

3. Bluetooth Radio

4. Working HVAC

 

Don’t really care about much else. I can count on my hands the number of times I’ve had more than one passenger or actually used the big amount of space my car has. Interior quality IMO doesn’t really matter. I the important bits are between the pedal and the steering wheel.
 

 

 

I'm not a car snob as well, I just enjoy them. I mainly care about performance, the quality of the performance parts, looks, a working HVAC, and a good enough stereo system. I don't really care much about luxury. Interior quality doesn't need to be luxury level for me; it just needs to be good enough. I don't want anything on the car that is excess weight. I view cars like a refined weapon that is mainly focused on going as fast as a possible. Hard mechanical parts should be good to top quality; important parts should be good to top quality. 

 

Even though I like the current Mustang GT and Camaro SS, they became less good looking. The overall redesign of the Camaro SS looks terrible and the new front end of the Mustang GT looks pretty bad, too. It's like they tried to make it look better, but failed, or they actually made them worse looking on purpose. 

 

The actual cars I actually had were a 1998 Honda Civic EX 4 Door, the first Mazda 3, 2001 Honda Civic Coupe, and a 1990 Mitsubishi Galant GS. All of them handled well enough especially the Galant. Yes, they are all front wheel drive. I don't really like front wheel drive much since they perform the worst in general.

 

The only time I drove a RWD vehicle was when I drove a 2007 Toyota TRD Tacoma. It felt like it handled better than the lighter and front heavy FWD cars I had due to better weight distribution and the placement of the drive wheels. With FWD cars, too much work is being done by the front wheels which causes them to not stop as well, to not accelerate as well, and to not turn as well as RWD and AWD. FWD has the least amount of grip.

 

I feel that FWD should be used for light weight cars so that they can perform as best as possible. FWD performance really goes down when the weight increases and among the drivetrains it's the set up that is the most affected for the worse when weight increases. 

Edited October 23, 2021 by Seth Vega

[Vhozite]

1 hour ago, Seth Vega said:

I'm not a car snob as well, I just enjoy them. I mainly care about performance, the quality of the performance parts, looks, a working HVAC, and a good enough stereo system. I don't really care much about luxury. Interior quality doesn't need to be luxury level for me; it just needs to be good enough. I don't want anything on the car that is excess weight. I view cars like a refined weapon that is mainly focused on going as fast as a possible. Hard mechanical parts should be good to top quality; important parts should be good to top quality. 

 

Even though I like the current Mustang GT and Camaro SS, they became less good looking. The overall redesign of the Camaro SS looks terrible and the new front end of the Mustang GT looks pretty bad, too. It's like they tried to make it look better, but failed, or they actually made them worse looking on purpose. 

 

The actual cars I actually had were a 1998 Honda Civic EX 4 Door, the first Mazda 3, 2001 Honda Civic Coupe, and a 1990 Mitsubishi Galant GS. All of them handled well enough especially the Galant. Yes, they are all front wheel drive. I don't really like front wheel drive much since they perform the worst in general.

 

The only time I drove a RWD vehicle was when I drove a 2007 Toyota TRD Tacoma. It felt like it handled better than the lighter and front heavy FWD cars I had due to better weight distribution and the placement of the drive wheels. With FWD cars, too much work is being done by the front wheels which causes them to not stop as well, to not accelerate as well, and to not turn as well as RWD and AWD. FWD has the least amount of grip.

 

I feel that FWD should be used for light weight cars so that they can perform as best as possible. FWD performance really goes down when the weight increases and among the drivetrains it's the set up that is the most affected for the worse when weight increases. 

Yeah luxury interiors are pretty much pointless to me, and I’ve been in some nice cars. My grandmother has an E-Class Benz, my dad has driven luxury cars (BMW, Acura, Lexus) for like 75% of my life, and I’ve spent entire workdays riding shotgun in my bosses Maserati SUV. I can assure you after the first hour of “wow this is nice”, that shit is all the same. Maybe it changes when you get into supercar/Bentley money, but so far every car interior has still been a car interior lol. 
 

The jury is still out on the new Camaro for me, but the current Mustang is by far the worst post-2000 look for the model. The 6th gen refresh (2015-present) was going on the wrong direction but still good, but now the car just looks like it’s face is melting. It looks like a damn Ford Fusion with an aftermarket body kit from the front now.

 

Ive driven I think 3 FWD cars and while they weren’t explicitly terrible I can’t say I enjoyed any of them. I always accidentally spin the wheels on them, and I feel like they don’t turn great.

[OPTIMUS124]

 

 

I swear that whine never gets old. The J-Turn through the tire smoke . . . 

 

[OPTIMUS124]

Spotted in one of my FB Car groups 🤣.

 

 

Do any of you care about upbadging? It's a sin in the car community 😂. 

[Darc_Requiem]

@DangerousJIt's something we always clowned but I'm not sure what the current view is. Also this C8 ZO6 is fucking ridiculous. a 5.5L 670hp naturally aspirated V8 with 8600rpm redline 😱

 

 

[DangerousJ]

Cool video.  

 

I'm not really interested in cars that much. I drive a 4 cylinder that gets me to places 5 miles and back safely.

 

2003 Toyota Matrix with 95k miles and some scratches boi!!

 

Not pretty but functional- Starscream

[Vhozite]

1 hour ago, OPTIMUS124 said:

Do any of you care about upbadging? It's a sin in the car community 😂. 

I think upbadging like this as a joke is funny. But other than that I literally do no get the point...you’re just asking to be clowned. 
 

That said, I’m much more open to body mods from higher trims. Face swaps like say a GT500 on a regular GT Mustang doesn’t bother me, but I know some people also consider that upbadging. 

[Vhozite]

1 hour ago, Darc_Requiem said:

@DangerousJIt's something we always clowned but I'm not sure what the current view is. Also this C8 ZO6 is fucking ridiculous. a 5.5L 670hp naturally aspirated V8 with 8600rpm redline 😱

 

 

Gonna be honest that V8 is super impressive but I don’t like the direction they’re taking with the Vette aesthetically. I hate to sound elitist but it’s looking more and more like every other Euro exotic instead of a Corvette. 

[Darc_Requiem]

Chevy has basically pushed the front engine/rear wheel drive combination as far as physics would allow. Now that the Corvette is mid engine, prestige is the only thing it doesn't have. I guarantee the Z06 will smoke damn near every exotic out there.

 

@VhoziteThe issue with going on mid-engine is that, form a styling standpoint, it's hard not to look like a euro exotic. You aren't going to have the long hood and short rear of the traditional configuration. 

[Vhozite]

Oh it’s an amazing car, it’s just I prefer the traditional look for the Vette. C7 is my favorite look. 
 

Just for contrast my favorite car is the Dodge Viper. 

[Darc_Requiem]

I prefer the look of the C7 as well. I mean in a lot ways, the C8 is the C7 styling adapted to a mid engine body. I, like you based on your Viper pick, prefer the look of a car on a front engine rear wheel drive platform. Front engine front wheel drive cars usually a have a long overhang which I don't like. I like mid engine cars, but it doesn't strike the same cord with me. Maybe it's because my dad was into muscle cars and I picked it up from him.

[Genghis_Dong]

About to get what I need to front mount my intercooler. After that is all upgrades. This front mount gonna be a bitch to do. Already got the turbo, injectors,etc ready to go.

Edited October 29, 2021 by Genghis_Dong

[Vhozite]

I was pretty much set to order a 2022 BRZ but yesterday I was commuting to work and I saw my attainable dream car on the road (2010-2013 style Mustang GT), and now I’m wavering hard. Had the fog lights on so it looked liked a 4 eyed monster in my rear view. 
 

I know it’s a very “first world problems” thing, but I’m coming to the realization that I’ll never be 100% happy buying anything else. There are plenty of other cars I like and even love but something about them is just special to me.

[Darc_Requiem]

@VhoziteI'll just say from personal experience. There is nothing like getting the car you actually want. My 2009 Pontiac G8 GT was the car I wanted in the color wanted. Favorite vehicle I've owned by a mile and I still miss that car. I've had two cars since. A 2010 Ford Taurus SHO and my current ride a 2015 Hyundai Equus. Both are nice cars but I'd rather have my G8 GT. I loved the way that car felt going through curves. It hugged the road. I'll take the low end grunt of a OHV V8 over a DOHC V8 all day long. The Equus has a DOHC V8. The SHO was really solid, the AWD was  a nice bonus, but it just wasn't the same. The Equus is a cruiser it's honestly not quite sport enough for me. It's got power but it doesn't have the handling of the G8 or the SHO.

Edited November 3, 2021 by Darc_Requiem

[JGreen]

On 11/3/2021 at 10:59 AM, Vhozite said:

I know it’s a very “first world problems” thing, but I’m coming to the realization that I’ll never be 100% happy buying anything else. There are plenty of other cars I like and even love but something about them is just special to me.

Agreed with Darc. Get the car you want as long as it’s within your means. It might take longer, but it’ll be worth it. 

[Gimpy]

I'm driving a 2016 Nissan Altima 3.5 SL with 67k miles. I brought "El Gata Negra" back in December of 2016 after my 09 Altima 2.5 SL named "El Gato Negro" was totaled in an accident. My very first car was my mom's 97 Nissan Altima SE. 

[Vhozite]

Whelp my loan app got denied so it looks like I’m gonna be driving (and dumping money) into my current beater for the foreseeable future unless I want to get fleeced financing through a dealer.

 

Not gonna lie I’m really sad. 

Edited November 20, 2021 by Vhozite

[JGreen]

Sorry to hear that. Did you find out why it was declined? That way you could work towards improving it which will probably help in other ways too. Another thing to consider is getting a less desirable car to replace a beat up car that’s costing a lot in repairs. I had a civic that was really beat up and the cost of repair was 5k which is what it was worth so I sold it for 5k. 

[Vhozite]

1 hour ago, JGreen said:

Sorry to hear that. Did you find out why it was declined? 

Not enough credit history is the short version. I have only one credit card and I’ve literally never missed a payment, but that wasn’t enough to shown I could handle a larger sum of money I guess. The only reason I even got a credit card was to start building history for when i needed a loan so to hear it’s not enough years later and I’ve wasted money on interest for no reason kinda pisses me off. I applied for a higher credit limit (that I don’t need)  but other than that I was basically told that the there wasn’t much I could do short of getting a co-signer. Probably just end up saving the long way.
 

ive thought about just getting another beater but I feel like that could really be rolling the dice in this market with no guarantee I wouldn’t end up back at square one.

[Vhozite]

Unrelated but stuff like this is one of the biggest reasons I dislike modern cars

 

https://www.toyota.com/content/connectedservices/marketing/PDF/Remote_Connect_CFA.pdf

 

Paying a subscription to unlock features on a car that I already have? Suck my dick. I’ll drive old cars for as long as it’s feasible before I ever pay a subscription for anything on a car.

[OPTIMUS124]

May have found my project car. It's a big girl 😂. I'll post pics once the deal is finalized. 

 

I am sticking with the Mopar family though. 

[OPTIMUS124]

Here it is. My new (to me) 2006 Dodge Durango Limited 4 x 4 with the 5.7L

 

 

Only thing wrong with it is the MDS Solenoid on Cylinder 6 isn't activating (which just means it stays in V8 mode). That's just taking the intake manifold off and replacing it. Not much aftermarket support for this year, so that makes things interesting. Belonged to on older gentleman who drove it from NC to Tampa all the time. I got all the service records for the car, so this was a steal. A little over 2K for it. 

[DangerousJ]

1 hour ago, OPTIMUS124 said:

Here it is. My new (to me) 2006 Dodge Durango Limited 4 x 4 with the 5.7L

 

 

Belonged to on older gentleman who drove it from NC to Tampa all the time. I got all the service records for the car, so this was a steal. A little over 2K for it. 

Sounds like a good omen.

[Vhozite]

8 hours ago, OPTIMUS124 said:

Here it is. My new (to me) 2006 Dodge Durango Limited 4 x 4 with the 5.7L

 

 

Only thing wrong with it is the MDS Solenoid on Cylinder 6 isn't activating (which just means it stays in V8 mode)

Is this like the cylinder deactivation thing that lets the cars go from 8 to 4 cylinders under light load? I’ve heard that feature can actually increase engine wear so it staying in V8 mode might not even be a terrible thing. 

[Genghis_Dong]

Alright all cooling/air flow parts are in. Front mount intercooler, piping kit (fingers crossed it fits close enough,gonna be a bitch), water pump, radiator/fans/hoses, exhaust/intake. Get all this installed by New years then its ecu and big turbo time.

Edited November 27, 2021 by Genghis_Dong

[Hecatom]

[rukawa_kaede]

Edited November 27, 2021 by rukawa_kaede
best car i've ever owned never brakes or start issues only normal mantainance, 4 cilynder gas saver and a stick shift. Mine doesn';t have the window on the top though

[OPTIMUS124]

Pulled the intake to get to the MDS solenoids. Took an honest hour to do so.

 

 

The bad one was toast. Resistance for those units is supposed to range from 10-12ohms. The bad one was at 3. Checked the other three and were within spec.

 

On 11/27/2021 at 9:04 AM, Vhozite said:

Is this like the cylinder deactivation thing that lets the cars go from 8 to 4 cylinders under light load? I’ve heard that feature can actually increase engine wear so it staying in V8 mode might not even be a terrible thing. 

True, but it's negligible. The 5.7 can easily run into the 400K mile range if well maintained. The goal is to just get it back into spec (for now). I can tune it out, but if I am gonna do that, I want to add a few more things.

 

That said, the intake and the valley are pretty cruddy. Not super bad, but you can tell it's got some mileage. I got new gaskets for the manifold and EGR valves. Took a vacuum and got any loose dirt out.  To say it's got over 250K on the dash, I'm pretty impressed.