The F87 M2 has been a massive hit amongst BMW enthusiasts all over the world. It represents what the M3 once was: a small and nimble RWD car. Although it’s nearly perfect straight from the factory, us enthusiasts know there is always room for improvement. Being that the F87 M2 is turbocharged, it loves bolt-on modifications like an intake or exhaust system. By letting the air flow more freely, the turbocharger experiences less resistance and can make more boost. Producing more boost results in more power. Plus, the M2 is an excellent little sports car, and you want to be able to hear it when you’re ripping through a back road. These things combined are what makes aftermarket exhaust systems for the M2 so popular.
QuickSilver is one of the best-known exhaust brands out there, and they’re best known for their high build quality. One of the biggest problems with choosing an aftermarket exhaust system for your car is finding something that isn"t too loud and isn"t too quiet. Luckily, this exhaust system from QuickSilver doesn"t have this issue thanks to its valved muffler. With a valved muffler, your car will be quiet when you need it and loud when you want it. Being able to keep your car quiet during early mornings or late nights is great because no one likes angry neighbors. This exhaust system has been under development for quite some time now and is now being released to the public aftermarket. Archie Hamilton is one the first M2 owners to rock this exhaust, and QuickSilver put together this sweet video showing off how it sounds. Check it out below.
If you would like to preorder or have any questions about QuickSilver Exhaust system for BMW M2, please do not hesitate to contact us. We can be reached by phone at 1.480.966.3040 or via email at sales@vividracing.com.
https://youtu.be/lQ1Bv8uWy4k
Saturday, April 21, 2018
Sound Check: Archie Hamilton"s BMW M2 with a QuickSilver Exhaust
Friday, April 20, 2018
Tesla Model 3 with Vorsteiner V-FF 103 Wheels Photoshoot
There is no doubt that the hype behind the Model 3 is very real. There are some enthusiasts out there who aren’t looking forward to a world of cars that don’t make noise and can’t easily be tinkered with, but electric truly is the future. The rest of us are excited about the Model 3, as it’s the Tesla the common-man can actually afford. With some many on order, we expect the aftermarket for the Model 3 to be pretty strong and so does Vorsteiner. They are one of the first companies on the market to offer a high-quality flow forged wheel for the Model 3.
With so much excitement behind these new wheels, it only made sense for Vorsteiner to do a big photo shoot for the world to enjoy. The particular set up uses V-FF 103 wheels in Carbon Graphite. The fronts are 20x9 et38 and the rears are 20x10.5 et45. Tesla seriously should’ve offered some wheels like this from the factory because they look absolutely amazing on the Model 3. Be sure to check out all the photos below!
If you have any questions about the Vorsteiner wheels on this Model 3 or would like to purchase wheels for your Tesla, please do not hesitate to contact us. We can be reached by phone at 1.480.966.3040 or via email at sales@vividracing.com.
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How to Pick the Right Racing Seats
As you modify your car and make it handle better, the speeds at which you take a corner will begin to increase. Depending on what kind of car you drive, the factory seat might not be able to support you properly during those hard turns, especially during fast transitions. This lack of support will result in you sliding around in the seat, forcing you to brace your legs and hang on to the steering wheel to sit still. Not only does this ruin the driving experience, but it’s also dangerous. With a proper racing seat, however, this issue is solved, as your hips and shoulder will be properly supported. Many enthusiasts have a lot of questions about racing seats, so we set out to answer all those questions and more with this article.
The Purpose of a Racing Seat
As we mentioned above, the main purpose of a racing seat is to hold you in place during high g-force corners. It’s also used as a safety measure and is a required part in all professional racing series. In order to keep your body from breaking or falling out of the vehicle during a crash, the seat needs to keep you firmly in place. If the seat breaks, it will no longer be able to hold you in place which could result in injury or death depending on how bad the crash is. Medical bills are definitely going to cost more than a quality racing seat and even the best drivers in the world make mistakes, this is why we always recommend purchasing a quality seat.
Different Features
Every racing seat out there is slightly different and each enthusiast has different needs. There are three main features that separate each racing seat: mounting system, recline-ability, and support.
There are two main ways of mounting a racing seat to your car. You can either use the traditional bottom mount system which is simple. Depending on your configuration, bottom mounting can easily allow usage of the stock sliders. A side mount system allows the seat to be mounted as low as possible and as secure as possible.
Factory “racing seats” like the Recaros found in Ford performance vehicles or many other performance cars still allow you to recline back. This is a feature that makes daily driving much more pleasurable, but in terms of racing, it’s just another point where the seat can fail. If your seat fails where it reclines during a hard crash your spine, neck, and head, will be completely unsupported. This is why all race cars use a fixed back seat which eliminates the reclining system for maximum weight savings and lower weight.
Now the last differentiating feature is the amount of support (bolsters) the seat provides. With huge bolsters comes a massive amount of support for your legs, hips, shoulders, and head, but all that bolstering also makes it very difficult to get in or out of the seat. This is especially true if your vehicle is something like a lifted truck, where getting in is already difficult. A seat with less bolstering will still be more supportive than the factory seat and will still be easy to get in and out of.
Summary
Be sure to check out our huge selection of racing seats, below will also be a list of our most popular seats. To summarize all this, just remember that a quality racing seat could save your life. Aside from the safety, it will also improve the driving experience dramatically and open a new world of performance driving. Check out some of our most popular aftermarket seat brands below!
Thursday, April 19, 2018
Customer Spotlight: Porshce 981 GT4 with Vorsteiner and APR Aero
Although the Porsche 911 will forever be Porsche’s bread-and-butter, many enthusiasts love the Cayman platform for its small proportions, lightweight chassis, better weight distribution compared to the 911, etc. When Porsche released the GT4 version of the Cayman, enthusiasts over the world fell in love. For the first time ever, Porsche created a Cayman that legitimately competed with the 911 and in many categories was actually better. Being such an outstanding car, it’s no surprise enthusiasts started buying them and modding them. Just recently a customer of ours picked up some aero parts that really transform the look of the GT4 and also provide more downforce, resulting in theoretically faster lap times.
Parts ordered:
- Vorsteiner V-CS Carbon Fiber Aero Front Splitter Porsche 981 Cayman GT4 14-16
- Vorsteiner V-CS Carbon Fiber Aero Rear Diffuser Porsche 981 Cayman GT4 14-16
- APR Performance Side Pods Porsche Cayman GT4
The first bit of aero our customer picked up is the Vorsteiner V-CS carbon fiber front splitter. This front splitter makes the front of the 981 GT4 much more aggressive, something it needed. In the rear is a Vorsteiner V-CS rear diffuser, which takes the design language of the OEM diffuser and cranks it up to 11. WIth a more aggressice look and a full 1x1 carbon fiber construction, both the front lip and rear diffuser are an excellent addition to the Cayman GT4. The last bit of aero our customer picked up is the APR Performance side pods, which help scoop more air from outside the vehicle for additional cooling. Be sure to check out the images below!
If you have any questions about the parts used on this Cayman GT4 or would like to purchase parts for your Porsche, please do not hesitate to contact us. We can be reached by phone at 1.480.966.3040 or via email at sales@vividracing.com.
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VR Tuned Kia Stinger 3.3 Turbo ECU Tuning Box Released
The Stinger GT represents a new chapter for Kia, the chapter of knocking on the M3’s front door. It was one of the most talked about car of 2017, and many enthusiasts are buying the Stinger GT in 2018. A lot of people hear that it has a twin-turbo V6 and assume it would for sure have over 400 horsepower, but are slightly let down when they find out it only makes 365 horsepower. There are two reasons for this lower-than-expected power number: tiny turbochargers and Kia holding it back. A lot of turbocharged cars are held back from their full potential for reliability, emissions, and fuel consumption reasons. A lot of enthusiasts also fail to account for the small turbochargers that Kia uses, which results in lower horsepower numbers but a whopping 376 lb-ft at 1,300 RPM.
Vivid Racing’s tuning division, VR Tuned, recognizes this growing market for aftermarket Stinger GT parts and worked hard to develop a tune that not only gave the Stinger a big bump in power but also kept it safe and reliable, unlike tuners who crank the power as high as possible. On top of the massive increase in power is much-improved throttle response, making your Stinger GT way more fun off the line or when pulling out of a corner.
- Stock Horsepower: 365 horsepower
- Stock Torque: 376 lb-ft
- Tuned Horsepower: 430 horsepower
- Tuned Torque: 486 lb-ft
As you can tell from the numbers above or the dyno graph below, this tune adds quite a bit of power. Horsepower is taken from 365 up to 430 horsepower, representing solid gains of 65 horsepower. Torque is taken from 376 lb-ft to 486 lb-ft, an insane gain of 110 lb-ft of torque. This massive jump in torque gives the Stinger GT a much faster 0-60 time and overall much more enjoyable for street usage. With a quick and easy install, this truly is the best bang-for-buck modification for any Stinger GT.
If you have any questions about VR Tuned ECU Box for Kia Stinger GT or would like to purchase parts for your Kia, please do not hesitate to contact us. We can be reached by phone at 1.480.966.3040 or via email at sales@vividracing.com.
- The box has a removable cover with dial settings you can adjust. This is to allow small adjustments to the power setting so the box can work correctly in different climate conditions and on different quality fuel. See adjustments here.
- Download Installation Instructions Here
Wednesday, April 18, 2018
Now Available: Vorsteiner Lexus V-LC Aero Program
When you hear the name Lexus, you probably don’t think of an AMG or BMW M competitor. Lexus is best known for their luxury sedans and luxury-sport coupes like the RC. For someone who wants a large couple with big power and wild looks, there is the Lexus LC. The biggest problem with the LC is that it doesn"t look very aggressive like it’s German counterparts. From the factory, it lacks any sort of rear wing or aggressive front lip. Luckily, Vorsteiner recognizes this problem and they set out to make a simple, yet elegant solution; now that solution, V-LC VRS Aero, is available through Vivid Racing!
Both the rear decklid spoiler and front lip are made from autoclaved 2×2 carbon fiber with UV inhibiting satin lacquer coating, giving the parts a beautiful, premium look, just like the rest of the car. The decklid spoiler isn’t too "in-your-face" with its low profile design, however, it’s just enough to transform the rear of your LC and give it a much more aggressive look. The same can be said about the front lip which has a simple design that’s just enough to transform the look of the front end. Be sure to check out the photos below!
If you have any questions about Vorsteiner VRS V-LC Aero Program or would like to purchase parts for your Lexus, please do not hesitate to contact us. We can be reached by phone at 1.480.966.3040 or via email at sales@vividracing.com.
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Introducing AEM CD-5 Carbon Digital Dash - Now Available!
One of the most critical parts of any performance vehicle is the ability to monitor its vitals. If you’re not able to watch or log essential metrics such as AFR, Oil pressure, oil temperature, boost pressure, ignition correction, and more, your engine could be running improperly, and you won’t even know it. The problem is finding a good way to monitor all these metrics without having a dashboard covered in gauges; This is where AEM comes in with their new CD-5 digital dash display.
The CD-5 carbon digital dash is a small 5”, daylight readable display that’s custom programmable with data logging. It requires a single cable for power, ground, and receiving CAN data, making installation much more manageable. If you want to go crazy with your data monitoring, you can add additional sensor data with the AEM 22 Channel CAN Sensor Module. The CD-5 Carbon receives channels from CAN bus inputs, and it does not require special modules to read AEM and/or 3rd-party CAN signals. If you have a 2008 or newer vehicle, the CD-5 digital ash will be able to read CAN bus data from the OBDII port after installation of the OBDII CAN Adapter Sub Harness.
One of the cool features of the CD-5 dash is the ability to set up custom warnings and alarms. If you’re trying to focus on driving as fast as possible, you might not notice that something is overheating, for example. By setting up a custom alarm, you dash will alert you when something is critically wrong. If multiple things go wrong at once, the CD-5 dash will scroll through them in order of importance.
This digital dash is the perfect solution for monitoring the vitals of your vehicle in a small 5” screen. It"s ideal for a race car or even a daily driver. If you want a dash with a larger screen, AEM also offers their CD-7 digital dash.
If you have any questions about the AEM CD-5 Carbon Digital Dash or would like to purchase any parts for your car, please do not hesitate to contact us. We can be reached by phone at 1.480.966.3040 or via email at sales@vividracing.com.
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