I have an 04 Liberty 2.5i Safety (Manual, 130K km) which I've owned for the last few years now and absolutely love it. I'm now looking at doing a few little modifications to make the car even nicer to drive and a bit different to stock. However I don't want to throw money away so I'm after advice on the things I can do/add that will make a noticeable improvement/difference for the money invested. As it sits now, it is completely stock except for a GROM audio/bluetooth kit I put in last year. I've done some research through the forum as well as a few others and come up with a few ideas but still have questions and would also appreciate any advice/suggestions/comments on the ideas I have as well as any others you may have. Thanks!
Tyres:
Currently on Bridgestone RE050A's which I haven't changed since I bought the car 50K km ago (@80K km) and are now pretty beat up. I have no complaints with the RE050A's and my understanding is that they're a (street) performance orientated tyre but having said that I can't really compare them to anything else. My current position is to replace these with Bridgestone RE002's which I understand are very similar but better value. I can get 4 of these fitted with a wheel alignment for $875
Rear Sway Bar:
From reading around, the best value and first modification to make to a Liberty is add a rear sway bar to flatten the car a bit through turns and somewhat improve the way the vehicle turns in and tracks. Is this something that you will feel the difference in typical spirited driving? I was thinking the Whiteline 20mm bar with upgraded mounts but have also heard good things about the AVO adjustable ones which I think are the same thickness.
Cobb (Double Adjustable) Short Shifter:
Another cheap modification that apparently is great value and makes the car much more of a pleasure to drive. Any thoughts?
Springs:
Now starting to reach the extremes of my knowledge. Have heard that aftermarket springs can make a noticeable improvement in the car the car rides and handles. How big of a difference would this make. Also wouldn't mind a slight bit of drop (20-30mm) but this would be more of a bonus than the main reason for doing it. I have heard good things about the STI Pink springs that are more performance focused (as opposed to lowering the car to the floor) and believe that this would cost around $500-600. However, would I need to replace the current struts if I did this? If you now replaced both the springs and the struts would it still be a worthwhile investment?
Lots of questions, hope some of you can shed some light for me. Many thanks!