[Derrick_B]

As I do things to my 3, I'm going to post it here. Better to have it all in one thread than strung out all over the forums.

Here is the stock 3 a few days after I got it:

And here it is today (11/7/09):

Mod History:
(06/25/09) 25% tint
(07/06/09) added low-tone horn
(07/26/09) Bronze-painted stock wheels
(07/26/09) Red-painted calipers
(08/04/09) OEM carpeted cargo mat
(08/07/09) Installed Racing Beat RSB
(08/15/09) Assembled and installed LED 3rd brake light v1.0 (36 LED, 5mm)
(09/06/09) Assembled and installed LED 3rd brake light v2.0 (12 LED, 10mm)
(09/17/09) Bronze 18" RPF1's with 225/40 Yokohama S-Drive's
(09/20/09) Assembled and installed LED 3rd brake light v3.0 (18 LED, 3mm)
(09/26/09) Assembled and installed LED cargo light (8 white LED, 3mm)
(10/09/09) Installed Corksport SRI
(11/01/09) Installed Polk MM6501 component speakers, Polk MM840 subwoofer, Eclipse EA4200 amplifier, and all associated wiring
(11/02/09) Reverted back to stock 17" wheels/tires (long story)
(11/21/09) Removed the "2.5" and "3" badges. Added Axela badge.
(11/22/09) Added sound deadener to front doors
(12/16/09) Corksport Cat-Back Exhaust
(01/04/10) Reverted back to stock exhaust (CS unit was just too loud)
(04/25/10) Removed red caliper paint and changed to black (G2 kit)
(05/14/10) Installed LED lighting (map lights, dome light, license plate lights)
(06/29/10) Removed Racing Beat RSB. Installed Tri-Point Engineering RSB.
(02/20/12) Reverted back to stock
(02/27/12) Traded in car for a 2012 VW GTI, 4-door, DSG, Autobahn package

Mods that never happened
3mm rear wheel spacers all around (maybe)
More LED lighting (backup lights, front accent lights)
Dimpled or slotted rotors and performance pads
Stainless steel brake lines
SRP Alloy Pedals
Matte black vinyl rear lower facia
Rallyarmor mud flaps (maybe)
Clear Laminx headlight overlays
Racing Beat 0.6" lowering springs (maybe)
JDM cargo tray (replaces the foam junk we have)

My threads:
http://mazda3revolution.com/forums/...s/1250-first-documented-2010-rsb-install.html
http://mazda3revolution.com/forums/...7-fiberglass-subwoofer-enclosure-project.html
http://mazda3revolution.com/forums/...192-how-paint-stock-wheels-tires-mounted.html
http://mazda3revolution.com/forums/2010-mazda-3-performance-mods/1724-amplifier-platform.html
http://mazda3revolution.com/forums/2010-mazda-3-performance-mods/1899-pics-my-audio-install.html

 

[Derrick_B]

RPF1's

 

[ChrisJuede]

Look great as always man! Keep up the good work. I'm glad you have this thread. You are paving hte way for things I wanna do as well, lol.

 

[Derrick_B]

Look great as always man! Keep up the good work. I'm glad you have this thread. You are paving hte way for things I wanna do as well, lol.

Thanks I think people who are modding their cars a lot should make a thread like this so that people can see it all in one place.

 

[ChrisJuede]

Hehe, once I start posting pics, I will do that. I should start soon, because soon, when things come out, Imma KILL it with mods...

 

[emanon]

it seems that the bronze rims doesn't blend well with the white exterior

 

[E.Tinker]

it seems that the bronze rims doesn't blend well with the white exterior

Hmm...can't say I agree. I really like the bronze, adds depth to the look without making the wheel/wheel well area too dark or amorphous.

 

[supermouse]

how did u paint the rims bronze?

 

[StitcH]

(11/02/09) Reverted back to stock 17" wheels/tires (long story)

You ditched the ENKEI's?

Ride just go to harsh for you, huh? What are you going to do, sell them?

 

[glennk]

Sounds like you may have a buyer, Derrick...

 

[Derrick_B]

You ditched the ENKEI's?

Ride just go to harsh for you, huh? What are you going to do with them, sell em?

A week or two ago, I noticed that the lip on the front driver's side wheel was slightly bent. It was so slight that you could barely see it. At that point I planned on taking off the wheels, fixing the bend, and selling them. Monday, I was pulling out of my drive like I do every morning, but that time I decided to plow right into the curb. I pull the car over immediately and saw that one of wheels had 6-7" of metal shaved off of it. About 1" of the "curb gard" was sliced too. The rear wheel wasn't damaged as bad (about 2"), but the tire was sliced. Kind of hard to explain. I drove the rest of the day on them and changed back to the 17's that night. I don't think the car gods wanted me to have the RPF1's and I actually like the stockers a little better. The RPF1's never really looked right. They looked good, but something was off.

Anyway, yeah I'm going to see what Discount Tire can do for me with the 2 good tires. They only have 1000 miles on them. If nothing else, I should be able to sell them. They are great tires. The other two are probably a loss since I didn't buy road hazzard protection. Three of the wheels are damaged and one is perfect. One of the wheels could be easily fixed, but the other two would be more expensive. I'll see what I can get out of them with the center caps. I'll probably hold on to the extra TPMS sensors and hubcentric adapters for now.

Next chapter in the wheel drama will be intersting. I don't want to run 18's because they're a little harsh on these roads and pot holes will tear them up. I'm going to see if I can find some inexpensive bronze 17's that I like or I might get my stockers powder coated bronze (like I said, I really do like them, just not in silver). Tires are probably going to be 225/50's. Yeah, I'm going bigger, then lowering on RB springs. That will get rid of 1" of wheel gap, but only drop me around .20". I'll also gain traction over the stock tires and they'll look beefy, which goes with the raw/rally look I want. After that, I'll probably be done with wheels and tires. If I stay with the stockers, I may add 3mm or 5mm spacers to resolve clearance issues and/or get a little more flush.

There you go. More information than you ever wanted to know. Hey, you asked! Lol.

 

[StitcH]

There you go. More information than you ever wanted to know. Hey, you asked! Lol.

There is never such a thing as too much information. Unless of course it is something personal and gross, lol.

Tires are probably going to be 225/50's

Wow. That is going to throw off your speedo quite a bit, isn't it? According to 1010tires, your speedo is going to read 3.1% too slow. At least you'll be racking up fewer miles rather than more

 

[Derrick_B]

Wow. That is going to throw off your speedo quite a bit, isn't it? According to 1010tires, your speedo is going to read 3.1% too slow. At least you'll be racking up fewer miles rather than more

Yep, it will. That's okay. I'll just drive the speed limit instead of 5mph over like I normally do To me, it's worth it to get rid of the side wheel gap. Simply lowering a 2010 just isn't enough, imo. The entire wheel well is just way too big. I'll get some more sidewall from the 225/50's to help with these crappy roads too. It won't look like a 4x4 or anything though. Here is a Wrx with 225/50-17's. That's kind of what I'm going for, only with mud flaps and a few other things.

 

[ReD-DrAgOn]

Nice idea for a thread, perhaps I shall do one as well.

To bad about the rims they look sexy

 

[jackf]

A week or two ago, I noticed that the lip on the front driver's side wheel was slightly bent. It was so slight that you could barely see it. At that point I planned on taking off the wheels, fixing the bend, and selling them. Monday, I was pulling out of my drive like I do every morning, but that time I decided to plow right into the curb. I pull the car over immediately and saw that one of wheels had 6-7" of metal shaved off of it. About 1" of the "curb gard" was sliced too. The rear wheel wasn't damaged as bad (about 2"), but the tire was sliced. Kind of hard to explain. I drove the rest of the day on them and changed back to the 17's that night. I don't think the car gods wanted me to have the RPF1's and I actually like the stockers a little better. The RPF1's never really looked right. They looked good, but something was off.

Anyway, yeah I'm going to see what Discount Tire can do for me with the 2 good tires. They only have 1000 miles on them. If nothing else, I should be able to sell them. They are great tires. The other two are probably a loss since I didn't buy road hazzard protection. Three of the wheels are damaged and one is perfect. One of the wheels could be easily fixed, but the other two would be more expensive. I'll see what I can get out of them with the center caps. I'll probably hold on to the extra TPMS sensors and hubcentric adapters for now.

Next chapter in the wheel drama will be intersting. I don't want to run 18's because they're a little harsh on these roads and pot holes will tear them up. I'm going to see if I can find some inexpensive bronze 17's that I like or I might get my stockers powder coated bronze (like I said, I really do like them, just not in silver). Tires are probably going to be 225/50's. Yeah, I'm going bigger, then lowering on RB springs. That will get rid of 1" of wheel gap, but only drop me around .20". I'll also gain traction over the stock tires and they'll look beefy, which goes with the raw/rally look I want. After that, I'll probably be done with wheels and tires. If I stay with the stockers, I may add 3mm or 5mm spacers to resolve clearance issues and/or get a little more flush.

There you go. More information than you ever wanted to know. Hey, you asked! Lol.

Ouch... that really sucks. sorry to hear that!

I've been super paranoid about my wheels! I pull into my drive way at an angle and I have all the pot holes on my route to work mentally mapped out LOL! I know its going to be the "one" I didn't see that gets me :argh 1:

As far as them not looking right... I've had a few people tell me they look small, one of the guys at work thought they where 15's! I attribute it to mine being black... and also the way the spokes land on the inner part of the flange instead of going out to the lip....look a little off?! Overall I like them though!

 

[Derrick_B]

Ouch... that really sucks. sorry to hear that!

I've been super paranoid about my wheels! I pull into my drive way at an angle and I have all the pot holes on my route to work mentally mapped out LOL! I know its going to be the "one" I didn't see that gets me :argh 1:

As far as them not looking right... I've had a few people tell me they look small, one of the guys at work thought they where 15's! I attribute it to mine being black... and also the way the spokes land on the inner part of the flange instead of going out to the lip....look a little off?! Overall I like them though!

I think you'll be fine on 17's. 18's that have low-profile tires and fragile lips are where you start to have issues. Curbs always suck. I just need to be more careful, that's all. The RPF1's defiantely look about 1" smaller than they are because of the wide lip on them. That did bother me, but it was mostly because the spokes were so straight. The 2010 is so curvy that I think a wheel with a curvier design looks a little better. The stockers are basically just a bunch of curves, so Mazda did a good job with them. I would like to have a wheel that's a little more open, lighter weight, and 7.5" wide though. There just isn't a lot to pick from that are 48+, 5x114.3. I'm actually looking at some 05+ STi wheels like in the pic I posed. They would work and are pretty easy to get, but they'd need to bored out to fit our hubs. It has been done though.

 

[jackf]

I think you'll be fine on 17's. 18's that have low-profile tires and fragile lips are where you start to have issues. Curbs always suck. I just need to be more careful, that's all. The RPF1's defiantely look about 1" smaller than they are because of the wide lip on them. That did bother me, but it was mostly because the spokes were so straight. The 2010 is so curvy that I think a wheel with a curvier design looks a little better. The stockers are basically just a bunch of curves, so Mazda did a good job with them. I would like to have a wheel that's a little more open, lighter weight, and 7.5" wide though. There just isn't a lot to pick from that are 48+, 5x114.3. I'm actually looking at some 05+ STi wheels like in the pic I posed. They would work and are pretty easy to get, but they'd need to bored out to fit our hubs. It has been done though.

Lighter wont be a problem... I weighed one of the factory rims at work yesterday 22.5 lbs That on a certified scale! So you have a little to work with there! :tongue: I like those STi wheels they would look good!

 

[Argon]

Derrick, did you see the new PF01's? The spokes are straight but the way they are designed makes them look just slightly curved when looked at straight on. I think they may be a tad lighter than the RPF01's too.

 

[Derrick_B]

I like the look of the PF01's a lot. They'll probably be out of my price range though. I don't want to tear ass down dirt roads on wheels that cost $250+ a piece. If they're reasonably priced and come in bronze, I'll definately be interested!

 

[Quickcinco]

Dude your car looks pretty sick! If i don't say so and have you thought about any Graphics?

Nice thread you have done a lot of things that i wanna do to mine but im still not sure if i should wait to pay my car off first and then do all my mods or start doing little by little?