1991 Ford Laser 1.6L from Australia and New Zealand
Summary:
Great little car, perfect for lots of modifications, highly recommended
Faults:
Not many problems have come from the Laser. My head gasket has blown once, but that was a result from driving in a bad way (burnouts).
The dash started to crack at about 180,000kms, but was easily covered up with a dash mat which I glued to the dash.
General Comments:
To start off, I am a person who thinks looks should come first and power should come second.
This car is a fantastic little car, there is lots of potential for modifications to be done.
I replaced the stock suspension with lowered Pedders suspension, and it handles even better than the stock setup, even though the stock springs are very good.
To improve handling around corners and for a better look, I have put some 18" wheels on the car and now it handles like it's stuck to the road.
The stock engine is very economical, however it does not have too much power in the lower RPM's, so I am currently fixing this problem by installing a supercharger. This will fix the lag the stock setup has when taking off from a stop.
My next venture into modifying the Laser will be a body kit. The car doesn't really need one, but it would look better with a little more style to its shape. I have only seen a few Lasers with body kits, and they stand out from the crowd, unlike the Skylines and other performance cars these days.
Once the car's body is done, the next step will be paint. I am thinking black as most 91 model Lasers have black door trims. I have tested this look with a can of black spray paint on one side of the vehicle, and was surprised at how much better it looked.
At the same time the interior is a little bland and not very interesting. I am changing the interior to hold two front bucket seats, custom back seats, re-trimmed doors, painted console and dash with inbuilt custom gauges.
As you can see, this model Laser has lots of potential and I have only listed a few of the modifications that are possible with the Laser.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 12th May, 2007
6th Nov 2009, 10:07
All of the mods you have listed can be done on any car. Also, why spend so much on such an old car? A supercharger would probably create more lag on the engine in the lower revs, as it restricts the engine at first.