Even though we pretended to cheat by taping $$ to some parts, we really didn't. The cone air filter was on the car when we got it but the strut tower bar came off our spare parts car. So technically that would be a little fib.
We also built reliability in the car...not performance enhancment. (sort of like mild cheating, but cheating nontheless maybe) We replaced the timing belt and water pump which IMHO everyone should do since it's impossible to inspect without stripping down the motor which they won't.... Plugs and wires, and fuel filter (which we documented in our receipt book) Plus we took the cluch to a clutch guy to clean it up and do something to it. I have no idea what they did so your guess is as good as mine. I'm not really a clutch guy... I paid the guy $75 then I was on my way. We got lucky and ran with the hoses and belts that came with the car plus we had spares from the other spare car. We ran water wetter up till we went through tech which I think is legal then drained it all and replaced it with water... We removed the radiator and had it cleaned and tested then reinstalled and changed the thermostat.
Thats about it. Not real bad cheating, eh?