There could be many reasons for modifying your car; a few could be for appearance, performance, and reliability. Often a high schooler has to make these changes on a tighter budget. It is important to first plan out your budget, what type of changes you want to make, and if they are road-legal modifications.
Here are three easy ways to get started down the road of car modifications:

Appearance
Depending on how much you want to change the look of your car, there are different options available. Many people start off by using a low cost and low risk paint product called Plasti-Dip ($5.98 a can). This product allows you to paint small accents on your car or even paint the whole car with no permanent effects of normal plaint. The product is a plastic-based sprayable paint which you can peel off when cured if you don’t like the color, style, or you didn’t apply it correctly. Plasti-Dip is availablein almost every color including different finishes suchas glossy and matte paint. If you grow to like the look of the paint, it is also available in large kits to paint your whole car.

Reliability
Modifying your car to increase its reliability is one of the best modifications you can do. A good example of this is changing your tires. Often your car will be sold to you with basic tires. These tires can even be dangerous in some situations. Most car dealerships, new and used, will sell a car to you with all season tires which are okay in climates with little rain or snow. But in areas like Massachusetts where the weather is rather unpredictable, having a pair of summer tires and a pair of winter tires at about $100 a tire to change during each season is very beneficial. Not only will your car handle the weather conditions better, but you will have more confidence when driving in these conditions.

courtesy Matt Franks

Performance
A good example of a modification that is small, cheap, and quick to install is changing your car’s exhaust. This modification will improve your car’s throttle response and acceleration for highway merging, increase your engine’s power, and help it run smoother. This type of modification can be done at home, if you are handy with tools, or at an exhaust shop for a small fee of about $100. Most shops will also help to find a new exhaust system that will best benefit you.

Adding these modifications to your car is a great start to more advanced changes like improving your radio and speaker systems, increasing your car’s handling with upgraded suspension parts, or changing your headlight and taillight light bulbs to LEDs for increased visibility. The community of people who modify their cars is great: cars shows are hosted to show off the modifications you have done and see the amazing changes others have made to their cars, and websites such as CARID and YouTube will help you choose and install a great variety of possible modifications for your car.