Hi All,
First post - so I guess this is my intro and build thread. Plan to get all the maintenance squared away on my ZHP and add a few bits & pieces of aftermarket parts along the way. I'll document the journey here!
Background on me - I have terrible car ADD. I'm 34 and have owned nearly 20 different cars in that time. A wide range, but mainly Audi/VW. However, I have always wanted a ZHP. I have been drawn to them in an odd way. Some of my more notable vehicles have been a B5 S4, Audi S3, Saab Viggens(a few), 15 WRX, 16 STi, 2003 Terminator Cobra, and a few add other fun cars like GTi's.
Now with a wife and kid(second in the near future) my daily drivers are a bit more practical. My current daily is a 2020 4runner thats been given some aftermarket love & the wife's ride is my old 2015 Sierra Denali I handed down to her LOL.
So I started looking for a ZHP as a weekend car and a project. Jeez, tougher than expected finding one locally and for a reasonable price. 2 weeks ago a 2005 sedan popped up about 30 miles from me. 150k miles, decent maintenance records, no accidents, and an owner in his mid 40's that owned it since 2014 and knew the previous owner.
The car is in fair condition i'd say. Exterior is fairly good besides a crack on the underside of the front bumper & the wheels needing to be refinished ASAP. Interior was pretty gross - I don't think the owner cared to keep the inside all that tidy.
The car feels pretty tight. I noticed some oil from the differential and the power steering cap. Suspension feels pretty tired, and overall needs a refreshing.
So with it being brutally cold in CT with lots of snow at the moment I decided to get to work on the interior last weekend. Pulled out all of the seats and the center console. Worked some magic with the alcantara and gave them a thorough wash. Still not done yet, but looking much better. There is some wear on the drivers seat I may have addressed at a shop. Ordered some trim bits, and having some sanded and painted. Also, went ahead and ordered a new shift boot and shift knob,
Already starting to look better(wife is about to kill me with car stuff all around the house!)
While interior was out I gave all the carpet inside the car a nice shampoo. Starting to look much better. As I type this I should be expecting a shipment from ECS today for some interior bits, so may have the seats/console back in by end of this weekend.
Additional parts I've ordered thus far:
-Black kidney grilles
-Engine oil,filter, trans fluids, diff fluids plugs
Overall my goal is to get the car squared away maintenance wise and fix some blemishes that bother me. As the weather warms up I plan to refresh the cooling and suspension - looking at the kits on FCP Euro, but open to suggestions.
As for aftermarket parts- I plan to tint the windows and likely put some Apex wheels on in the spring/summer. Once I get the car squared away from a maintenance perspective maybe some of you can persuade me into some modifications....shouldn't be difficult!