One of the most effective modification to free up lots of horsepower (especially turbocharged car) is by simply changing to a freer flow exhaust system... If you're driving a naturally aspirated car, you really need to choose your exhaust setup wisely... As for turbocharged car, changing exhaust is as easy as 'ABC'... Normally people will tell you to go with the biggest diameter allow for your engine and the less resistant the better (meaning straight all the way without any resonator)... 

At first I'm planning to go 3" all the way but decided to go against it after much consideration... Now I'm running 2.5" only as noise is my biggest enemy... I like to set it up as quiet as possible as this is my daily drive and I need to ferry my customers occasionally... So I've got no choice but to opt for silent exhaust...

The normal 'Merc' exhaust system was way to restrictive... After changing the piping all the way, I felt my car got a bit more power especially at higher RPM...

One way to solve the noise issue is to use back the original 'Merc' muffler... With this on, you can barely hear anything!!!... Okay, the noise have gone up a notch with the new piping but still very much habitable... Most people will think that I'm running on stock eventhough my exhaust is straight flow all the way (good thing about turbocharged car as the turbo helps to muffled out a lot of noise!!!)... With the original muffler on, I'm very sure I've lost some power but this is a trade off that I must accept!!! Currently I'm really happy with this setup and I don't plan to do anything to the muffler for the time being... 

To be continue...

I will be adding another new category to my blog real soon!!! Believe me, this will be the 'BEST' category as far as I'm concern!!! I'm so very excited about it!!!

STAY TUNE!!!

Recently I found one of the BEST photo editing software and is call 'pixlr-o-matic'!!! I may be outdated but is better late than never as I know this software has been introduce quite some time ago... What I really like about this software is the accessibility of it... I run this software from my 'iPad 2', 'Galaxy Nexus' and also my desktop computer!!! Three very different platform but with the same satisfying result!!!

As for photo editing tool, I believe 'pixlr-o-matic' is also one of the best out there!!! Lots of things and effect for you to edit and you know what, I stop using 'Photoshop' nowadays and my 'DSLR' is sleeping soundly in the drybox... Now I just use my 'Galaxy Nexus' to take pics and edit it using 'pixlr-o-matic' which is so much easier to do... Guess is time for me to pamper my 'DSLR'!!!

Here's what I have to endure for more than one week!!! The whole interior looks really ugly and not forgetting scary as all the wiring loom can be seen snaking all over the place... Before this, all my interior lighting were off except the meter (thankfully if not I really don't know how to drive at night!!!)... So I took this chance and send my car for checkup... The wireman found a short circuit and replaced the wire and now the interior is back to normal except my boost meter!!! Will need to recheck this when I'm free...

This is the looks on my interior right now... All wood parts had turned into carbon fiber instead!!! In my opinion, it looks so much nicer if compared to the original wood trim and also the carbon fiber sticker that I had some time ago...

Thinking of buying some epoxy and hardener for my carbon trim as I ran out of those and some of the part is still not perfect!!! I still need to sand it and reapply at least for one or two more times!!! But too bad I ran out of the epoxy and hardener and I need to live with imperfection now I guess... Anybody know what kind of epoxy and hardener suitable for carbon fiber??? Will those used on fiber kit works???  

To be continue...

Recently, my 'FrankenBenz' have been behaving badly giving me lots of headache... But I don't blame it as this is the life of modifying car!!! If you want peace of mind, then get a new car and you can basically forget about it except for the usual servicing...

Things that I've changed recently was a rear arm and a drag link up front... I felt 'FrankenBenz' a bit unstable when boosting... Sometimes a bit too much that I dare not push it more than 130km/h!!! The car will be moving around and I need constant steering correction to keep it going straight!!! Lots of work and definitely not entertaining!!! Send my car to a reputable 'Merc' workshop and have them checked thoroughly... Found the culprit!!! Firstly the front drag link (unfortunately without pic!!!) and a rear arm... 

As you can see from this pic, the bush on the rear arm is definitely not in a good state... To be honest, I can barely see the bushing anymore... I've always wanted to change all my bushing to those performance 'Polyurethane' one but too bad they don't make it for my model!!! Guess most 'Merc' owners wanted comfort rather than outright performance!!!

Besides changing these two items, I get the foreman to re-tighten all the bolts and nuts including the steering box as well... Send my car for another round of alignment and I'm proud to say that 'FrankenBenz' totally transform into another car... Very good steering feel and no more correction needed when driving in a straight line!!! So the next right thing to do is drive up 'Genting' I guess!!!

To be continue...

So I've made up my mind on which 'Android' phone to get!!! Introducing the 'Samsung Galaxy Nexus'!!! I know it don't need any introduction as this phone was launched almost 6 months ago!!! So why do I get an old phone instead of the latest around as the price is almost similar... The reason is very simple... Is a 'Nexus'!!! The only 'Google' phone selling on the market now... 

There are a few things that I really like about this phone... Firstly, the lack of physical or capacitive button on the screen!!! Currently the only phone in the market that have this or lack of it!!! 

 Second thing that I like about this phone is the 'Google' branding on the back of the phone... 

Definitely not the best 'Android' phone in the market if spec is what you care about as more and more quad core 'Android' phones are being released... But definitely one of the best experience around as this phone is running the vanilla version of 'Ice Cream Sandwich' operating system... 

After trying out the quad core 'HTC One X', I don't really see the difference in terms of speed on daily usage... If you're a hardcore gamer, then it might be better for you to get the 'One X' or the new 'Galaxy SIII'... 

The third and last thing that I really like about the 'Nexus' is update!!! This is the phone that will be updated when there's a new version of 'Android' operating system around... Currently I'm running on version 4.02 as this is the latest official OTA update available... Version 4.04 is available but I will need to root and flash it... Not going to do it at this moment as I'm still getting use to 'Android' after so many years of using 'iOS'... And you know what, I'm not missing 'iOS' a single bit!!! 

'Google' branding when you start the phone!!! Nice... I'm loving every single second with it and it definitely made my life so much easier!!!

The movie that we have been waiting for!!! This is my most anticipated movie of 2012 and there's no way I'm gonna miss it... Pay RM9 (2D version - watch it on Wednesday... yeah I know I'm a cheapskate!!! haha) and you got to watch a few superheroes fighting around plus one super hot lady and that 'Scarlett Johanssen by the way... That's what I call value for money... 

I don't have to tell you how explosive it was as I'm very sure you know damn well it will be... But there's one thing that you might not be aware of... This movie is funny as well and some of the most funny part came from 'The Hulk' which is really unexpected... As for the storyline, the best way to sum it up is simple and old skool!!! Very straight to the point but definitely not boring... Although the movie is a bit long (more than 2 hours!!!) but I'm very sure you're not aware of it as it was entertaining right from the beginning... 

In my opinion, this is one of the all time best movie ever... No doubt about it... I believe there will be a 'Part 2' coming up and I'm dying to watch it!!! Please go and watch it people... You will be entertain!!!

This was the original state of my 'FrankenBenz' center console... The wood was in a very poor condition when I first took over the car... Most of the wood were either chipped or cracked... It looked really ugly and I really can't accept it...

Hair line cracked was all over the place... I needed to do something to it and the easiest way out was to stick carbon fiber looking sticker over it... 

Sticking the carbon fiber sticker over it was really easy... It transformed the center console totally!!! Now it looked so much nicer and not forgetting sportier... But unfortunately, after a few months of application, the carbon fiber sticker started to peel off and making it unsightly!!! 

In my previous blog post, I posted something on a 'DIY' carbon fiber kit... I'm going to use the kit and skinned it on the center console... First thing that I needed to do was to prepare the center console... Last time I was lazy and did not do a proper job of sanding the wood thus hair line cracked can be seen even after applying the carbon fiber sticker!!! This time round, I'm taking extra effort on the sanding part...

 I've even bought a wood filler to fill up most of the chipped area and making it smooth!!!

 After applying the wood filler, let it dry and sand it smooth... 

Time to prepare the carbon fiber cloth... Make sure that the cloth was sufficient before cutting it and remember to align the pattern accordingly... 

Before cutting, stick a masking tape on the area that you wanted to cut... The reason for doing this was to prevent the cloth from disintegration and also make it easier to cut!!!

 Put on the supplied rubber gloves and I'm ready to roll!!!

Mixed the supplied epoxy and hardener with the ratio of 2:1... Two parts epoxy and one part hardener... Mixed it thoroughly and used the brush and lightly coat the parts...

Placed the carbon fiber cloth on top of it... Remember to place it properly as you can't lift it once you place it down as it will spoilt the carbon fiber cloth!!! After that, used the brush and apply a thin layer on top of the carbon fiber cloth... Left it overnight for it to dry up... You don't have to cut out those area yet... Let it dry and it will be super easy to cut later on... This was the part that I got it wrong... I cut out those area before the epoxy and hardener mixture turned hard and disrupted the carbon fiber cloth!!!

After leaving it overnight, cut off those excessive part and sand the parts with sand paper... The reason for sanding the parts was to ensure that the area was totally flat but don't over do it as you might sand off the carbon fiber cloth pattern...  

After making sure that the parts was flat, mix the epoxy and hardener with the same ratio and apply another layer... Let it rest for a few hours and apply another layer...

 Let it dry overnight...

As you can see from this pic, I disrupted the carbon fiber cloth but thankfully, I have left over and I redo this part all over again!!!

Again mix up the mixture and reapply on the parts and let it dry overnight... Used a very fine sand paper and sand it... Cleaned up the parts and apply polisher on it and buff it up so that it looked shiny...

Ta-dah!!! This was the outcome!!! I don't have enough epoxy and hardener so that some of the parts were not covered properly... But still much better compared to carbon fiber sticker!!! Now 'FrankenBenz' looked so much sportier and I'm loving it!!!


To be continue...

Is time for me to change to a new phone... I've been using the old 'iPhone 2G' for more than four years and I guess it's time is up!!! There have been numerous times where I can't answer or make any call and it was really frustrating!!! 

This time round, I'm going for 'Android' phone as it is much more powerful in my opinion comparing to 'iOS'... I found 'iOS' really limited the more I use it... Furthermore, I have an 'iPad 2' and I don't wish to have two devices running 'iOS'... So yeah I'm jumping ship!!! I used to vouch for 'Apple formidable iPhone' but times have change and 'Android' is getting more powerful and not forgetting polish so is time to move on... In my opinion, 'Apple' need to revamp it's 'iOS' as it is getting really outdated!!!

Getting an 'iPhone' is easy but getting an 'Android' phone is not... You are spoilt with choices when buying an 'Android' phone!!! Specification, design, 'Android' version, manufacturer and etc comes into play... Lots of things to consider unlike 'iPhone' where you only need to choose the capacity of the storage!!! 

This was my first choice a few months ago... I know a lot of people dislike 'Motorola' (maybe this is the reason why I like it???) but I have a soft spot for it's product!!! Looking at the new 'RAZR', I'm very sure a lot of people will fall in love with it especially the guys... Just look at the carbon kevlar back!!! OMG so sexy and this reason alone will see me buying this phone... But it is still running on 'Ginger Bread' so this is a no no for me as more devices are running 'Ice Cream Sandwich' now... I need a device running on the latest 'Android' version... So this one is out of contention...

If you follow my blog closely, you will know that I'm a BIG 'Sony' fans... The moment 'Sony' announced that they will change 'Sony Ericsson' to just 'Sony', I was delighted... The first time I laid my eyes on the newly launched 'Xperia S', my jaw dropped... But sadly, the more I see the more I dislike it eventhough this is a 'Sony' product!!! Specification wise, much better compare to 'RAZR' but it is still running on 'Ginger Bread'!!! So this is out of contention as well...

'Samsung Galaxy Nexus'

 'HTC One X'

I really don't know how to choose between these two powerhouse!!! Specification wise, definitely 'One X' have the advantage as this is the latest phone around... The 'One X' is the first and only quad-core smartphone at this moment... Can you believe it, the 'One X' processor is more powerful than my desktop computer!!! Crazy stuff...  Although the 'One X' have almost all the advantages in specification and hardware compare to 'Galaxy Nexus', but there is one thing that the 'One X' lose out... Pure 'Android' experience and update... As this is a 'Google' phone, update will be frequent and chances of it running the new 'Jelly Bean' is really high and I can't say the same to other 'Android' power phone... Decision decision!!!