Photography

ZerOne

At the time I bought this ZerOne product, Ultra Racing had still not come out with its version. I chose this version over the hatchbatch stabilizer and some cutting of the boot housing had to be done though.

Ultra-Racing

With the exception of the front and rear stabilizer bars, the rest of the structural bars are Ultra Racing including 16" anti-roll bar (the 19" version was not developed yet then) and behind the front wheels (under arc)

Pro RS

Beyond a shadow of doubt, this stainless steel braided brake hose is my best single investment. Teflon coated, response time improved dramatically, something I would have installed from Day 1 had I known it was that good. Nowadays driving in heavy traffic has been so responsive and prevents unwanted cut-ins. Previously fast approach to humps ended harsh now are easily avoided even during late braking.

Mythelogy

This product is a lighten and dampen crank pulley geared for improved low-mid range acceleration. One immediately feels the difference in weight and can imagine what the engine goes through to turn the original crank pulley. It took the mechanic 5mins to remove the original pulley and install the new one but my-oh-my,  half an hour to remove and another half an hour to re-install the mudguard housing.

K&N

This mod only shows its optimal performance if a total exhaust system was installed. Earlier on, this car was fitted with a K&N open pod air filter. It gave all out performance in the high end range but because 90% of the time I drive within the low-mid range, I was not making optimal use of the open pod so replaced it with a fast flow element for the original air filter box. I now experience better response in the low-mid range.

Autofoam

A concept I learnt from hi-fi as I had to place sand into the hollow stands to absorb vibration. That concept is now applied in car customization. AutoFoam, a shaving cream-like foam is used and hardens in a few minutes due of a chemical process. I chose the sports package and forgo the comfort package for lack of fund. Four mechanics worked non-stop for 3 1/2 hours. 4 door sills plus the A and B pillars  were "autofoamed". The comfort package concentrates on the chassis but that would take another 2 hours since the front seats must be removed. It takes 24 hours for the  autofoam to dry but the effect was already felt the moment the car reversed out of the shop. She felt structurally solid. I don't think autofoaming improves road handling like what a set of adjustable coilovers does but what it does well is absorb the nitty gritty shakes/wobble and as a package strenghens the car's structure.

HotBits

Courtesy by Izahar

The car has been fitted with the following HotBits parts:

1. Front stabilizer bar
2. 4-2-1 extractor
3. Mid-muffler
4. Rear muffler
5. Chrome rear exhaust tip
   
6. Adjustable shock absorbers
   

As for structural bars, the alloy stabilizer was meant for the KIA Sephia really serves it's function. This experience was so profound that it led me eventually to heavily invest Ultra Racing parts for better safety and road handling.

As for the complete exhaust system, improvement in acceleration, exhaust personality changes. The stock 1.5" pipe was upgraded to 1.7" and was told the maximum pipe size for an auto geared car is 1.7". The purr of the engine  now is really deep without being loud. Increasingly harsh engine noise towards 3500rpm attributed from the inhibitive passageway of the out-manifold was not present the moment the extractor was installed obviously the extractor does not suffer the same design shortcomings of the in-manifold and engine noise is not harsh pass 3,500rpm.

As for the suspension, the suspension height was originally reduced by 5cm (fantastic cornering) but later re-adjusted to 4cm after scraping too many humps. I sacrifice some comfort for traction. The feel's not that bad below 80kph and reasonable pass 90kph. I limited height reduction to 4cm because entry/exit rams to parking bays at many buildings in Malaysia are steep and cause the front spoiler to scrape the floor.

Bonnet sound proofing

A single sheet of soundproofing material is easier to maintain than the many small pieces of soundproofing material. It was installed at the time I was experimenting with the K&N open pod air filter where noise from the filter was a bit too strong when driven hard. Although I reverted to the original air filter box, the soundproofing material was left as it is.

Cold-air-intake

My cold-air-intake (CAI) was made from washing machine hose, plastic right-angle water pipe connector,pvc cable tie and U-Hu glue. Yeap! cheapskate but effective. It began when I started experimenting with a open pod air filter. While dismantling the original air filter box, I noticed other than the main outlet to the fore air funnel, it has a small outlet covered by a rubber seal. I said they must have made it for some reason and not to drain water. I found the open pod air filter unit gave excellent high-end performance but my preference was low-end torque so the open pod air filter unit was sold and the original air filter box refitted but not before I exploited the small outlet for a CAI. The washing hose came to my mind and because it was quite long, I managed to centre the other end in front of the radiator. I capped the front socket with a water pipe connector to face the front secured by U-Hu glue plus 2 cable ties. It still hasn't move till today.

Grounding

I never knew grounding had such a profound effect on automatic gear cars. It started when I began experimenting on grounding, a subject I knew little of and hooked a 6 gauge wire from the (-) battery to the engine and immediately saw my headlights shone from mediocre yellowish-white to bright whitish-white, this even when my car was 6 months old. A senior KIA mechanic told me the auto gear is highly dependent on electricity so grounding re-distributes the electrical power more appropriate to all the electrical components making gearing run more efficiently and the output is a smoother ride. Against the advice of my electro-mechanical mechanic who said my car need not any additional grounding since at that time was still new, I still went along with this project. The 11 points grounding points were:

1. Firewall
2. ECU
3. Gearbox
4. Engine top
5. Extractor
6. Chassis
7. Throttle
8. Alternator
9. Air-con compressor
10. Power steering compressor
11. ABS

A copper bar was obtained, twice bent to create height above the battery then drilled and later screwed at the (-) terminal. A string was used to measure the separate length of grounding cables to be attached at specific points. The cable was purchased and cut accordingly but I left installation to my mechanic since I didn't have the appropriate tools for the job. The outcome: I cannot believe the improvement in the smoothness of the engine, the car feels as it has been revitalized with some multi-vitamins.

Charging

I didn't realize what a 6 gauge wire could do to induce such a strong healthy start-up. The car really starts with a loud vroom whatever time of day or night. It has contributed to a longer battery life as charging is more direct. My first, second and third battery were replaced when they were about 2 1/2 years old only to avoid the inconvenience of breakdown but they still were functioning well when I took them out. Unlike grounding connections which lead back to the terminal end of the battery, this job requires connection from the alternator to the positive terminal of the battery. Get it wrong and you're in for trouble!

Remapping

Courtesy by Izahar

Many types of Korean cars are driven in Malaysia but the KIA Spectra has been the brunt of poor fuel consumption (FC) jokes. By chance, I got to know a Hyundai specialist who does remapping for the KIA Spectra. At the time I had Putt-Putt remapped, there were 3 remapping programs versions to suit different production batch of the KIA Spectra.This chap certainly knows his business. While my ride was being re-tuned he explained that the original program was replaced by another which reduces the original petrol variable by 10%. Subsequently, the distributor was advanced proportionately to accommodate that adjustment. He clarified improvement in performance translates to engine heat so the maximum tolerance he allowed was equivalent to the safety limits of that car generated by the amount of engine heat from remapping, not that it could not be tweaked for better performance. On first test run, I was not impressed and he said results will not be immediate as the ECU needed to gather new input as the database of my driving style was reset to zero and this required approximately a full tank of petrol's usage. It's been some time since the remapping job and I now get better response in the low-mid range torque making it nice driving in traffic jams. I also experience improvement in FC but exactly how much I'm not sure. I travel daily 50km. From a full tank on Sunday, my previous regular readout was 1/8 tank full by Saturday. It now records 1/4 tank full so I'd say that's a lot. However, I don't think this was attributed purely by remapping but from a combination of mods in my ride.

An introduction

Putt-Putt is a cartoon car character I am fond of so I named my ride "Putt-Putt". She was purchased new on 22.9.2003 without the full bodykit, the latter representing the popular version by a large margin but I specifically wanted a sleeker rather than sportier look. The cleaner look was further accentuated when the suspension system was reduced. She now squats cat-like wanting to pounce. This model comes in a few colours yet its aggressive lines looks right in black. Black is also the most popular choice among KIA Spectra owners by a ratio of 5:1 said my salesman. Customization was not to be better than the other Joe but firstly to improve handling, secondly, for performance, at the same time, make it pleasurable to drive, safer plus more responsive to handle emergencies. Money doesn't grow on trees for me so cosmetic beautification was given a back seat. No way can I out-do what some  can afford and splurge on their ride as if there is no tomorrow. Cars generally perform worse over time, not this car! Through gradual modifications, my ride today is now noticeably peppy than when first bought and I enjoy the fruits of my labour daily, this being my only car. Being not of the expensive bracket, it is easier to mingle among the crowd. I have driven better cars but for all her shortcomings, this ride, I like very much. Call it love!

BRIEF

KIA Spectra LS

GA6D 16V MI-TECH DOHC 1594cc

Torque 108ps(7000rpm)

Power 14.6kg.m(4500rpm) 

Torque/Power after customization:Unknown

CKD 2003

UPDATE

I accidentally lost many original photos of my car when I deleted my FB page on her and only managed to salvage some.