Just bought a 420a. I am looking for help.

[KotaR]

Hello, I am new to this forum and I was looking for help and opinions on what I could do with my 1996 420a GS Eclipse. I would like to know if anyone could tell me how to push the car to 300hp from stock. I want to give it the extra balls but I don't want to go to lengths too big and too pricey. Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[jonathanfl]

Search feature here is going to be your best friend. Check out the build section there are quite a few of us who have done the builds.

 

[Babnaw]

Unfortunately with the 420a major he is not really possible with out big money unless you have a shop and can fab everything other than that do some bolt ons ...cold air ,short throw, exhaust and have a fun dd but with out big money these na 420a motor don't do much hp...don't let is discourage you by all means try...I got a 99 rs and a 97 gs and there fun dd but no real hp out of them

 

[KotaR]

I planned on getting a new exhaust and headers. I have a cold air that I haven't put in yet. Thanks for the search feature hint. I didn't even see it at first.

 

[grothe3297venge]

Only way you will make that 300hp goal will be if you go turbo.

 

[jonathanfl]

It all comes down to how much your willing to spend, is this a dd or car you want to build? You seem to be set on the hp which is not. An issue since the 420 is more than capable of handling power and you wont have to worry about the crank walk like the 4g. It will cost more to build but then again your engine wont blow up 50mi down the road .

 

[BlackKnight2013]

your best bet for 300hp would be to strengthen the bottom end with forged pistons and rods, new bearings, turbo kit with stage 2 turbo grind camshafts from crower, stronger valve springs and retainers, larger injectors and a way to control fuel like a fmu for mechanical control or full stand alone control like megasquirt or a piggy back system like greddy ultimate piggy back system.

i am building a 420a myself but have a lot more into it and a higher hp goal. here's the link to my build journal: http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/dsm-build-journals/469506-1998-eagle-talon-street-build-monster.html

i wish you luck on your build. im willing to help you with questions and concerns as is everyone else here. only have to ask the question to get help.

 

[KotaR]

The help means a lot guys. I bought the car for 1600 and I was thinking about in the end spending about the same amount upgrading everything or about 400/500 more. I really like the car, it is my DD which is why I don't want some monster sized hp goal. I like being able to go quickly but I don't want to be stuck to my seat from acceleration.

 

[Cdc1221]

It all comes down to how much your willing to spend, is this a dd or car you want to build? You seem to be set on the hp which is not. An issue since the 420 is more than capable of handling power and you wont have to worry about the crank walk like the 4g. It will cost more to build but then again your engine wont blow up 50mi down the road .

Any engine can crank walk. Most 4g63 engines that were going to already have. The 420a in stock form won't handle much power. The compression is too high, you might squeeze out stock gst hp out of it without blowing it first pull. Chances are it wwon't last long either way. Now, with a properly built engine, with forged rods and pistons, it can handle quite a bit more. You are looking at $2500-$5k depending on what deals you can find, and if you can do all your own work, or if you'll need to have the engine built, car tuned, etc. It isn't exactly easy or cheap to get that power out of an na 2.0l platform. But if you're set on doing it, I wish you luck.

 

[KotaR]

I do not know how much money I want to put into it yet for sure. At that price though, wouldn't it be easier to buy a 4g63?

 

[jonathanfl]

It would cost more to do a full swap than it would to sell your car and purchase one with a 4g.

Yes any engine can crank walk but not all engines use such a poor design when it comes to the main caps and bearing material. Between the design of the caps and doubling the amount of pressure from the clutch (now were talking a lot more than 300hp here) people are sucking the crank right out of the block. My comments were strictly towards high performance builds not just bolt on hp gains.

 

[97_Gs_Dsm_lover]

I have a 97 eclipse with a 420a as well i would look into dsmgraveyard.com

 

[RadDsm]

I have a 97 eclipse with a 420a as well i would look into dsmgraveyard.com

Recommending DSMGraveyard should get people an automatic red chicklet . OP, please look up the vendor reviews of DSMGraveyard before ever ordering anything from them.

 

[slickers111]

Like everyone else said. The 420a wont be able to make that much, reliably, unless you put a good amount of money into it.
You can do some bolt ons to it. Maybe 2.5 inch Exhaust, Manifold, Intake, Bigger throttle body, maybe port a little, throw in a set of mild cams.

But the way I always prefer, is the I/H/E, and suspension. With a not so strong engine, the suspension helps maintain the speed through corners.

Every little bit adds up.

 

[BlackKnight2013]

i bought 80% of my engine internals from race engineering without any problems. plus they will beat any price ci motorsports has and dsmgraveyard, just call and talk to rob. here's a link: Race Engineering, Inc - 420A

 

[VtecvrsTurbo]

It would cost more to do a full swap than it would to sell your car and purchase one with a 4g.

Yes any engine can crank walk but not all engines use such a poor design when it comes to the main caps and bearing material. Between the design of the caps and doubling the amount of pressure from the clutch (now were talking a lot more than 300hp here) people are sucking the crank right out of the block. My comments were strictly towards high performance builds not just bolt on hp gains.

You need to do some more research on crankwalk. Advising someone to avoid a 4g63 (notice the "63" after the 4g) because of the fear of crankwalk is incorrect. I shall not explain why you're wrong here.

OP: 300 hp is not going to happen with the 420a for cheap, period. Yes if you had a 4g63 platform, $1000 can get you 300whp.

Dont even consider swapping the 420a out for a 46g3, you will have to hack apart your entire front clip.

 

[synthetek]

OP: 300 hp is not going to happen with the 420a for cheap, period.

200 hp is not even going to happen easily with an NA 420a

 

[renovatdkitchen]

Crankwalk buddy should look into a Chevy Volt. I hear those things never walk.

 

[jonathanfl]

Do NOT get anything from dsm graveyard, you can read my journal as to why as well as their reviews. I ended up getting almost all my major components from xtreme fabrications. I would hate to see someone go through what I went through trying to get parts..

 

[KotaR]

Do NOT get anything from dsm graveyard, you can read my journal as to why as well as their reviews. I ended up getting almost all my major components from xtreme fabrications. I would hate to see someone go through what I went through trying to get parts..

I did not plan on doing that, I am in the middle of fixing the flywheel and painting the car right now. By mid july I should be able to get most of the internals of the engine replaced.

 

[codym]

I say get the car in top notch condition, before pushing it for power.

More and more people seem to be striving for power from the 420a, they are actually pretty easy to maintain but on a motor that isn't designed to make power from the factory, proper maintenance is key.