Well Hi There!

[Kaboom214]

Hey there!!

Well after much lurking and poking my nose around these forums I decided to finally Join up and contribute my 2 cents and meet some other Astra owners! :smile5:

So I drive around a 2000 Holden TS Astra in a nice Dark Blue Metallic:
https://fbcdn-sphotos-h-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/529082_10150939505721935_498269654_n.jpg

Came here to see what can be done by me to make it stand out a bit more.
So not many mods done by me yet, but I'm going to start in the coming weeks!
Starting subtle but I'll work my way up eventually to the more dramatic stuff :)

So if you know any Cheap, easy mods that would be good to start out on, let me know!

[Brando47]

Welcome along, Astra is looking tidy :) where are you from?

As for mods, if you're going for looks I reckon a black roof would look sleek, along with some lowering springs. If you don't want to drop a bundle on aftermarket headlights, I've painted the surrounds of mine black which looks great, you'll see the same thing on the fancier models. Plenty of ideas around in the members ride section :)

[Kaboom214]

Thanks :)
I'm in the Penrith Area of Western Sydney

I was thinking of lowering but it scrapes as is if I go over a speed hump without being careful, don't know if that's just due to my suspension being too soft or not. But I was thinking a pair of Angel eyes, but they are a tad expensive, so I was thinking of replacing the clouded ones I have on there for some Black Standard ones :)

[faneca]

As Brandan said just spray the chrome but inside black and get a headlight repair kit, will save spending 150 on standard lights especially if you still plan on savor for angel eyes ... I have a few things done to my 5door but I don't know if they would be defined as subtle LOL.

Could be that your springs have sagged and may need replacing.... So if you do decide to lower by a little eibachs and bilstein shocks are the way to go.

[Brando47]

Probably shouldn't be scraping on the stock suspension but it certainly will if you were to lower it haha. If you check out my thread, I spent 30 bucks on a restoration kit for the yellowing, and a couple of bucks on some black spray paint for the insides. As long as you don't mind sticking them in the oven haha. Looks good alongside a debadged grill

[Kaboom214]

I had a feeling something wasn't quite right with the suspension. I'll have to look into replacing them.

And as for the headlights, I've already had a go wet sanding with fine grit sand paper and a buffer with a little compound, but didn't make a difference, even though it worked a treat on my brothers Commodore! Probably didn't spend enough time on them as I should have. Ah well, I'll keep my eyes peeled for some cheaper replacements, I have a feeling these ones on there might be past their prime anyway

[Brando47]

They certainly can get too yellow to be worth saving, I spend a good couple of hours buffing mine with the kit. Have seen a couple of sets pop up in the for sale section over the last couple of months, so keep an eye out if you're after some cheap.

[Silver Surfer]

Welcome:smile5:

[dutchy]

Welcome to the forum.

I always like colour coded parts like your side skirts, rub strips and door handles. Cheap and easy way to make your car stand out from the others.

[faneca]

I always like colour coded parts like your side skirts, rub strips and door handles. Cheap and easy way to make your car stand out from the others.

+1 makes the car look a little more modern too.

[Kaboom214]

The colour coding sounds like a great idea! That might be my first major thing I do.

Does anybody have any links to how this is done, How-To's on how to paint and get rub strips, skirts and handles off etc?

I don't have the slightest idea how to get any of it off haha :eek6:

Also would I be better off getting it done by a professional? Just preping it all myself with plastic primer and what not and sourcing the paint myself?

I haven't any experience painting what so ever lol :facepalm: