New Member - Greeting

[itsdamo]

Hello all my name is Damian.
I was unable to find a intro section on the forum so I hope here is ok.

I had the pleasure of seeing a lovely Blue SP20 pass me this morning on the M2 Motorway while commuting in my Wife’s car.
The thing that struck me about this car was it’s BIG front brakes and the sticker on the rear window.

So I thought I would sign up and say hello.

For the sake of joining the Astina Forums I hope my Wife’s car is acceptable.
She has a 2001 Ford Laser KQ LXi Hatch with a 1.6 ZM series engine and 4 speed auto which is more or less essentially the same as a BJ Astina.
Her car is white in colour and essentially standard apart from the few minor little things I have had done to it. Tinted windows, Unifilter air filter element in factory air box, NGK Iridium plugs and enlarged throttle body and a fumoto oil drain valve to make oil changes quick and easy.
It also has 185/60R14 tyres in lieu of the standard 175/65R14 which did improve it a lot.

Her car has travelled 81000kms and I service it myself every 5000kms with Castrol Magnatec it has been a very reliable car and the only problem it has had was a sticking thermostat which I replaced.
The car will soon require new front brake rotors as they have that ever so slightly warped feel which is noticeable when braking from higher speeds.

I am interested in doing a brake upgrade from the 1.8 spec BJ/KQ series car (discs front and rear) if I am able to obtain the parts cheap enough from a wrecker.
Obviously this will be without the ABS side of things.

Also later down the track when the motor tires I was thinking about upgrading the original motor and changing ECU to 1.8 specs.
My father in law works for a engine reco shop so getting the job done should be easy enough.

My own car is a 2000 model Suzuki Baleno GL hatch which is heavily modded.
Custom turbo conversion, gearbox and clutch upgrade, front rear disc conversion and the list goes on.

I look forward to learning a bit more about the little Mazda/Ford and chatting to you all.
Cheers,
Damian

[arden]

hey welcome to the forums mate!

you wouldve seen Preeman80!!
he has 19"s!

[AstinaBoiV6]

hey dude welcome... looking forward to some more posts form you

[Kel26C]

G'day, G'day...
where abouts are u situated??

Just wonder'n..

[tidy protege]

hey mate welcome to the forum, this place will be a great help for you with a fair bit of technical info as the laser and 323 are sister cars, this place is also a great place to meet new people and come on some cruises as well, enjoy.

im pretty sure the blue sp20 with huge brakes you saw would have been preemman80, rolling on 19" wheels.

[pocketrocketsp20]

hey welcome dude

hope you find what your lookin for on this site! if you cant find it or find out about it here it doesnt exist!!

[Red Frog]

OMG! Welcome! Finally, another L'astina to join the ranks I own a KN laser, and it's great being part of AGT as ppl who own the BJI can help me out with things. You'll be mostly looking for ppl who own the BJII, as that coincides with the KQ. If you need any help with things, feel free to PM me whenever. And I own a (very bald) set of Goodyear (best tread, hey Nate! ) Ventura 195/65 tyres, but to my knowledge the 185/60 were standard on the KN. Neways, i've found the wider tyre to make a huge difference!

You'll be wanting to speak to Chicaboo about the engine upgrade, etc. Go 1.8L! Go Manual! Do it! Do it! Next step: lowering? lol

[Critter]

Yeah, welcome aboard moit!
This is a community, not a "you have to have x" place.

[preeman80]

hi mate, hope I wasnt driving like a maniac, I live at Glenwood and was on my way to work. good to have you onboard.

[ATOMIC]

I'll hi-jack this thread and say g'day also

My names, Chris and i'm currently in the process of repairing my 97' 323 Astina. Looking forward to chatting with you all!

[dfvadr]

two new members welcome peoples , plenty to learn an do as the years progress , look forward to seeing more people on our days out