My First Car - Corsa D 1.4 Turbo "Black Edition"

My First Car - Corsa D 1.4 Turbo "Black Edition"

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MCFCNATHAN

Original Poster:

66 posts

61 months

Thursday 1st August 2019
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Hi all,
Its my first posting on here and I've always wanted to make thread on my car and try to address the corsa stereo types at the same time.
so here is my 2013 Vauxhall Corsa 1.4T. i bought it may 2018 as my first car, i was 19. i hadn't passed at this time (i passed in august), paid £5750 cash and i was away. i managed to negotiate a £250 off the asking price as the wheels on the car were badly kurbed but had decent tyres. i then managed to find a replacement set of wheels in the original diamond cut on the corsa forums for £150 with tyres. RESULT.

The next mod for me was to improve the stance of the car. im not really into cars that are obviously modified from the outside as i kinda wanted to go for a sleeper vibe with this as the car as standard its a really good base. Forged rods, cast pistons etc, also shares alot of parts with the VXR. i dont earn much so couldn't really afford coilovers that were a decent standard so instead i opted for 40/40mm lowering springs. in hindsight i wish i had gone 60 on the rear. by this time i had passed my test so was out and about driving. i had hit a pot hole which damaged my left side drop link causing some knocking. the left shock had a tiny bit of misting so i change both drop links and shocks at the same time. it made a massive difference to the handling. the whole car just gave much more confidence and generally well planted.

i really enjoy the detailing side of things so over the next few months i gave it weekly full details to help get the paint back to its best after years of just quick washes i presume. i really like autobrite products as i find they always give good results. the purple velet shampoo is great. ive recently invested in DA polisher and gave the car a 2 stange polish all over myself and the results were brilliant. a glassy mirror finish all over with the metallic flake of the carbon flash paint sparkling in the sunlight.

at Christmas time i wanted to work on the exhaust tone. a full scorpion system is what i wanted but as they didnt make many of my car the second hand market is very small and couldn't afford a brand new system. a lad in mansfield was selling a custom cobra back box delete with a really nice 4 inch tip for a reasonable price. so i trundled off down the m6 and a50 to pick it up one night. i was still running standard power at this point (120) but it completely changed the car for me and still puts a smile on my face to this day. it was an easy fit and took under an hour.

improving the turbo noise was next on the agenda. a day trip to demon tweeks resulted in me picking up a pipercross cone filter. the blow off sound really brought out my inner child.

as a birthday treat to myself it was time for a remap. i booked in at local tuners DDG in trafford for a stage one map. they had great reviews and i wanted a dyno map so nit was a no brainer. the car made 165 on low octane fuel and 172 on momentum. this was a safer map as the cars can easily handle more power but the weak clutch lets them down. the map is amazing the car pulls so well and surprises alot of people.

my uncle sent me some sky blue etech caliper paint so that was next on the list. took all the calipers off and hand painted it on with a fine brush. i was impressed with the results. really make the car pop and dare i say make the brakes look bigger. Very happy. i also upgrade the rear pads and discs to brembos at this stage. fronts had loads of life left. also fitted some eyelids a few weeks previous and colour matched them to the car. helped give the front end some aggression.

ordered a airtec intake hose to go with my pipercross. made the engine bay look really smart improved and enhanced the turbo noises and it fells to pick up better now and a touch more torquey but maybe thats just me. i took the car to PVS where it ran 15.4 seconds on the runway at bruntingthorpe which i was happy with. i also purchased a maxton spoiler extension to improve the rear of the car. only a small touch but looks classy and adds a bit of something. i then colour coded all the caps in the engine bay to match the racing red airtec intake hose.

i took the car round the track at my local oulton park. it was an amazing experience but made me realise i need to upgrade the brakes so that will be next on my list.

ive probably missed things off here but i felt this post was getting abit long. it wont let me upload some pictures as it says they are too big.
check out my instagram for plenty of pics
@corsablackedition
thanks
nathan




MCFCNATHAN

Original Poster:

66 posts

61 months

Thursday 1st August 2019
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i have loads of future plans so ill keep updating this thread. i know this car inst much to people but i love working on it and cant wait till its finished

Paul S4

1,183 posts

211 months

Thursday 1st August 2019
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Very nicely done.... subtle mods and it looks great.

Wise decision regarding the remap...I had an Alfa 156 JTDM that I had remapped from 150 up to 190 BHP, and was advised it may wear out the DMF/clutch.... The remap was done at 90,000 miles and went on until about 150,000.....so not too bad really !!
Just to add, my car was mainly used for commuting on A roads/Motorways so not too much strain on it, and I was ' mechanically sympathetic' with the car as well. But the extra torque was quite addictive !

LordGrover

33,546 posts

213 months

Thursday 1st August 2019
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Congrats, a nice first car. Enjoy.

MCFCNATHAN

Original Poster:

66 posts

61 months

Thursday 1st August 2019
quotequote all
Paul S4 said:
Very nicely done.... subtle mods and it looks great.

Wise decision regarding the remap...I had an Alfa 156 JTDM that I had remapped from 150 up to 190 BHP, and was advised it may wear out the DMF/clutch.... The remap was done at 90,000 miles and went on until about 150,000.....so not too bad really !!
Just to add, my car was mainly used for commuting on A roads/Motorways so not too much strain on it, and I was ' mechanically sympathetic' with the car as well. But the extra torque was quite addictive !
hi paul thanks for being my first reply.
the standard turbo on these can run upto 200 bhp. intercooler is advised. my clutch was fine untill i fitted the silicone hoses in the engine bay. i have noticed that when boost comes in, in 5th gear i can get some slip but its manageable. i might push for 200 but its just funds.
stage 3 daul friction clutch from cg motorsport. intercooler and the map adds up. a decat is advised too

MCFCNATHAN

Original Poster:

66 posts

61 months

Thursday 1st August 2019
quotequote all
LordGrover said:
Congrats, a nice first car. Enjoy.
Thank you! theres loads of other little things but id be here all day typing. 21,000 miles covered since i passed and i look forward to driving it everyday

MCFCNATHAN

Original Poster:

66 posts

61 months

Thursday 1st August 2019
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EnzoUK

57 posts

76 months

Thursday 1st August 2019
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Welcome mate,

and thanks again for taking the pics of my mates S3 at Oulton Park smile

Car sits and IS lovely, I had one myself in white a 2012 Corsa D 1.4 SRi Facelift in white, with black wheels and didn't really do loads to it, headunit, DAB radio, heko's, 6000k DRL's, 8000k HID's. That was it really, good little car for the money but the seats used to ruin my back and it was too small. I had it round the Three Sisters track a few times running Dunlop Sportmaxx RT2's all round and it was a planted little car on standard suspension. I understand the move away from the stereotype as it's a good looking car with the right mods, however you'll never escape the 'it's still a corsa' at the end of the day. They'll always have a bad rep cause of the scene.

MCFCNATHAN

Original Poster:

66 posts

61 months

Thursday 1st August 2019
quotequote all
EnzoUK said:
Welcome mate,

and thanks again for taking the pics of my mates S3 at Oulton Park smile

Car sits and IS lovely, I had one myself in white a 2012 Corsa D 1.4 SRi Facelift in white, with black wheels and didn't really do loads to it, headunit, DAB radio, heko's, 6000k DRL's, 8000k HID's. That was it really, good little car for the money but the seats used to ruin my back and it was too small. I had it round the Three Sisters track a few times running Dunlop Sportmaxx RT2's all round and it was a planted little car on standard suspension. I understand the move away from the stereotype as it's a good looking car with the right mods, however you'll never escape the 'it's still a corsa' at the end of the day. They'll always have a bad rep cause of the scene.
what are the chances! he was really going for it in the s3
ive been tempted to put vxr seats in mine for a while and i really want to but im not keen on putting parts on a car from one above mine. i kind of find it offensive almost to people who buy vxrs if you have people copying etc. been tempted by 3 sisters, been a few times to watch and generally it seems like it attracts nutters so worried someone would cause me more issues than id want. ive put perelli pzeros on the front and they are brilliant until it rains then i might as well not bother. splitter next for me then maybe more power but i have a large desire for an fiesta st or burg vxr

emu002

24 posts

193 months

Thursday 1st August 2019
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Cool thread, keep up the good work

Reminds me of my first car when I was 17 and how enthusiastic I was about cars, over 20 years later and I am still buying and modifying fast cars

MCFCNATHAN

Original Poster:

66 posts

61 months

Thursday 1st August 2019
quotequote all
emu002 said:
Cool thread, keep up the good work

Reminds me of my first car when I was 17 and how enthusiastic I was about cars, over 20 years later and I am still buying and modifying fast cars
thanks mate. dont suppose you know the benefits of hubcentric spacers over the cheaper ones that just sit on? now the rears lower the back wheels seem a little tucked for my liking.

Mike1990

964 posts

132 months

Thursday 1st August 2019
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Great first car tbh. I’am liking what you’ve done to it. Keeping it subtle.

That 1.4T is so detuned as standard.

MCFCNATHAN

Original Poster:

66 posts

61 months

Thursday 1st August 2019
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It most definitely is. The newer models and Adam s use it. They run 150 standard but have better clutches

MCFCNATHAN

Original Poster:

66 posts

61 months

Thursday 1st August 2019
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Saleen836

11,118 posts

210 months

Thursday 1st August 2019
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Subtle is always good, you didn't include what the insurance cost was and is now with the remap and everything else!

MCFCNATHAN

Original Poster:

66 posts

61 months

Thursday 1st August 2019
quotequote all
Saleen836 said:
Subtle is always good, you didn't include what the insurance cost was and is now with the remap and everything else!
i didnt think insurance was that relevant tbh as theres so many factors and variables involved. these are pretty cheap. in our group all mods declared are anything from 300 to 2k. mines 1500

Mikebentley

6,121 posts

141 months

Thursday 1st August 2019
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That’s a great looking first car. Subtle and well presented. You seem to have a great attitude. . I wish you many years of happy motoring, be safe and stay the right way up!

MCFCNATHAN

Original Poster:

66 posts

61 months

Thursday 1st August 2019
quotequote all
Mikebentley said:
That’s a great looking first car. Subtle and well presented. You seem to have a great attitude. . I wish you many years of happy motoring, be safe and stay the right way up!
much appreciated. im trying to get the car to as nice a show spec as i can. theres more to being a car enthusiast than chasing mad power so ive just had a quote to refurbish the diamond cuts as some are showing some decay now which is frustrating. ive been surprised that people have taken a liking to it. made my day.

Aluminati

2,510 posts

59 months

Thursday 1st August 2019
quotequote all
Mikebentley said:
That’s a great looking first car. Subtle and well presented. You seem to have a great attitude. . I wish you many years of happy motoring, be safe and stay the right way up!
Seconded. Even though it made me feel old as my first car was a Mk1 Capri...i think biggrin

Deejbb

55 posts

127 months

Thursday 1st August 2019
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I reckon some 10mm front / 15mm rear wheel spacers would look good on it