Head Removal Steps

[vtlaxplaya16]

Can anyone either tell me how to remove the head off of a 1g talon or link me to a site? thanks alot

*can you also give me an approximate time and difficulty of the removal*

 

[BUCK]

ABSORB THIS!! ( I need to correct a few bogus p/n's in this doc) Compilation of some great stuff from some great guys...

Face it - when you pull your head for the first time there are a dozen other things you'll wish you'd done & NOW is the time to do it - essentially you strip the block down to nothing but a block & a crank (with tranny still attached of course) do the balance shaft mod - install new piston rings - install all new seals across the front case - put on an air to oil cooler & can your water/oil cooler - Change every gasket & hose you can. It's a mini - rebuild.

PARTS
New 1G rods will run around $75 a rod If you're going with stock pistons, stick with stock rods. Mixing and matching the stock stuff with forged aftermarket stuff isn't the best idea. Thermal expansion is different, plus most aftermarket forged rods or pistons are set up to use a floating piston pin. Stock uses a pressed pin, so if you mix them you will have to convert one or the other, which will add to your machine shop costs (not to mention the possibility that the machine shop might screw up).

The higher compression of the 2G pistons really do help throttle response off boost. You'll notice it just driving around. Where is the threshold for trading boost vs compression on a race motor? I don't know. Not sure anyone can answer that conclusively. Most race guys go with aftermarket forged that fit their particular combo and are done with it.

If you need the specs for machining the rods you can find my page at http://hometown.aol.com/rcm1061/myhomepage/auto.html or link to it through the VFAQ site where it's listed.

The 95 EXHAUST manifold is a HUGE improvement over the 89/90-mid 94 crack prone manifolds.

ARP Head Studs or new head bolts are completely optional on a 1G.

Exhaust manifold Studs - you'll know when you pull the exhaust manifold.

MD194403 - GASKET, T/C OIL RETURN PIPE (QTY 2)
quote:
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exhaust manifold studs/nuts
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MD092806 - NUT, EXHAUST MANIFOLD, SELF LOCK 8 (QTY 9)
MD041192 - WASHER, EXHAUST MANIFOLD, PLAIN 8 (QTY 7)
MD005317 - STUD, CYLINDER HEAD, 8x28 (QTY 9)

another manifold to turbo bolt, and a spring washer

The current exhaust gasket is the same for 1G's and 2G's. The 2G manifold MAY need the lower driver side corner ground down a little to clear the engine mount.

Water pump? YOU would be insane not to change this out - Don't forget to repalce the o-ring that goes in the water pipe behing the water pump and to scrape off any ramains of the water pump gasket before installing the new one. A little RTV on the gasket works wonders too

Purchased 8mm threaded rod at a screw distributor and locktighted 2 nuts on the end to make a tensioner tool.

Clearwater cylinder head sells remanufactured heads for $375 plus a core and they ship anywhere in the u.s. conicelli will have the other parts you need.

www.partznet.com <------- conicelli
Essentially you'll need a complete gasket set AND Turbo gasket set which doesn't come with the Engine set for some dumbass Mitsu reason.

There are two Mitsu parts one should always use - the timing belt and the head gasket. The Felpro head gasket is well-known no-no (at least when it comes to turbo cars).

The Mitsubishi Rally-Art gasket is almost twice as thick as the stock unit and will solve the piston to valve clearance or cam timing issues than can happen when the head and block are resurfaced. If you are using oversize valves or larger camshafts this can be even more of a problem. This gasket is said to have superior sealing.

95$ from turbotrix. Fits all 4g63 engines.

Have the head checked for flatness and resurfaced if necessary. plus machine work on the head, and maybe a few hoses and wires here and there.

Couple of new valves & seals at least...

At the very least, you'll need a new head gasket,

Thermostat housing gasket,

Intake manifold gasket,

Valve cover gasket,

Half-moon seal at end of exhaust cam

Spark-plug gaskets,

Exhaust manifold gaskets (Make sure that you get a metal one)

Turbo to downpipe gasket

Exhaust flange gasket.

New lower insulators for the fuel injectors,

You won't need a new balance belt - you'll be shit canning that

QUITE possibly A NEW CRANK pulley

Tensioners for the timing - no need for a new one for the balance belt,

10mm Allen head IMPACT socket, 1/2 inch drive! you can wring off 10mm regular 10MM Allen into pretzels trying to break the head bolts loose.

Fuel Filter - you'd be daft not to change that out now.

Change out the Tranny fluid w/BG Syncroshift.

Redline shockproof gear oil is good for the x-fer case and rear diff

Also, you may want to pick up another manifold to turbo bolt, and a spring washer while you are at the dealer. Then you can replace the stud coming up from the turbo with the bolt. This makes it alot easier to re-install,

Ultra Gray RTV for the oil pan and whatever timing belt parts your planing to replace. The VFAQ recommends using red and blue thread locker to secure the driven gear bolt into the stub (red) and the oil pump bolts (blue).

Once you start this project you may discover you need new seals and whatnot.

OIL COOLER

Timing belt tensioner Tensioner can wear out or separate, leading to timing belt failure. [Search for 'tensioner']

Water pump Replacing the pump requires removing the timing belts. Do it while the belts are off anyway if there is any chance the water pump might fail, or if it is near the date for scheduled replacement.

Oil pump sprocket and nut The oil pump sprocket nut can come loose, and damage the sprocket. It can also spray oil over the belts, causing them to fail prematurely. Also, loose nuts can chew through the timing belt cover and may eventually hit the timing belt, causing it to break or jump.

Seals for the following: oil pump, balance shaft, crankshaft, and the o-ring under the balance shaft plug. They get old and brittle, and no longer seal well.

Timing belt tensioner bearing, timing belt idler pulley bearing, and balance shaft tensioner bearing The bearings get dried out. They can be repacked, but are inexpensive to replace.

You can also replace the pulleys, but there have been some redesigns and new timing belt pulley may not fit quite right.

Crankshaft accessory pulley/harmonic balancer The rubber portion of the pulley can become old and brittle, and can eventually separate, causing the pulley to fall apart.

You will need:
(1)Upper Gasket Kit which includes:
---(1) Head Gasket
---(1) Valve Cover Gasket
---(4) Spark Plug Tube Seals
---(1) Cam Sensor Seal
---(2) Cam seal
---(1) Upper Intake Manifold Gasket
---(1) Lower Intake Manifold Gasket
---(1) EGR Tube Gasket
---(1) EGR Valve Gasket
---(1) Thermostat Housing Gasket
---(1) Gasket Thermostat Housing to Cylinder Head
---(1) Exhaust Manifold Gasket

(16) Valve Stem Seals (70,000 miles or higher)
(AR) Intake Valves
(AR) Exhaust Valves
(1) Timing Belt (70,000 miles or higher)
(1) Exhaust Manifold to Downpipe Gasket
(1) Gallon of 3 year Coolant
(1) Timing Belt Tensioner (70,000 miles or higher)
(1) Timing Belt Idler Pulley (70,000 miles or higher)
(1) Timing Belt Tensioner Pulley/Bracket Assembly (70,000 miles or higher)
(1) Oil Filter
(4.5-5) Quarts of motor oil

(AR) Indicates As Required.

Additional Info:
I had a 2gnt talon come in about a month ago with a no start condition. The timing belt had jumped time and thus the car shut off. On initial inspection I assumed that the belt had broken. After tearing it apart I found that the timing belt tensioner pulley/bracket assembly had fallen apart. I advised the customer and ordered a new belt, tensioner, tensioner pulley/bracket assembly, and idler pulley. I advised him that there's a chance the valves were bent and that I wouldn't know this until I put on the new parts and did a compression check. I then put the timing belt related components on and got it all in time and cranked the car without the accessory belts or front of the engine put back together. After letting it run for a few mins I shut it off and did a compression check. cyls 1, 2 & 4 had 190-195 psi. #3 had 165-170. It was somewhat close to specs and there was no CEL, no driveability problem or anything else. I advised the customer of the findings and he chose for me to put it all back together again. Both due to the added expense of tearing it down further and because even I thought the valves were ok.

The following week he calls me up and says the CEL is on and I tell him to bring it by the shop. Compression was down to 150 in #3, Cylinder #3 misfire code was set and the exhaust (stock) was making a chirping noise.

I then tore the head off the car, fully expecting to need to replace all the intake and exhaust valves in cylinder #3. To my surprise the intake valves were fine. To even more of my surprise... ALL of the exhaust valves were bent. While trying to lap in the rest of the exhaust valves, I discovered that none of them would seat smoothly and were thereby bent.

Be ready for possibly the same results. DO NOT put it back together without checking ALL of the valves. Otherwise you will be right back in there in a few weeks.

Finally... I mention a bunch of other parts that most people don't replace. Timing belt tensioner, idler pulley, and tensioner pulley/bracket assembly. They are not going to be cheap but the car above is a prime example as to why they should be replaced when doing that extensive/expensive of a repair. You don't want it all done for nothing. There will be people that say "He's full of it, you don't need all that crap." and for some people... yeah it may never let go on them. But I'm not trying to sell you the parts I'm just making you aware of the possiblities given the age and history of the parts that do fail.
Doug

HEAD REMOVAL PROCEDURES

The quickest way Im know how to see if you've jumped time is too take the oil filler cap off & see if the cams are moving - if they've stopped moving when you hit the starter I wouldn't move the camshafts anymore as you might bend the rest of the valves you haven't already bent.

You don't need to take the fuel rail off or even mess with the accessory belts. The easiest way to PULL the HEAD is with the exhaust and intake manifolds (+ the TB and fuel rail) attached. One can pull the head in 40 minutes (or less) - with a couple of guys...

You can have the head off the car in a couple of hours and install the new head in 2-3 hours (with cleaning the block surface, t-belt and tensioner change).

Jack it up - I prefer to get all 4 wheels off the ground & keep it fairly level.

Might want to remove the hood if you can get a helper
REMOVE battery & it's foundation.

Drain the coolant, I like to slip a bigger hose over the small hose at the petcock & save the anti-freeze if possible.

Drain oil - Pull filter

Pull the radiator (4 easy bolts right on top) & a couple of fan connectors.

Put jack under the oil pan (use a piece of wood to distribute the load)

Remove driver's side motor mount.

Power steering pump - remove & cap line to reservoir & flip pump to firewall with pressure line still connected to pump.

Remove Bolt from Power steering pump bracket to head lifting eye.

Remove driver's side front tire & the shields behind it for access to lower crankshaft area.

Loosen the bolts on the water pump pulley and the crank pulley.

Loosen the alternator and remove the belt.

Remove Timing belt cover & all it's hidden fasteners

Remove the bolts from all the pulleys on the front case except the rear small pulley that drives the oil pump.

Temporarily reinstall battery - tap starter & note rotation of crank pulley nut - place a GOOD 1/2 drive breaker bar inside crank pulley nut & push it against a solid surface (motor mount or chassis member) MAKE SURE YOUR FINGERS ARE CLEAR - have partner tap starter when you are clear - NOTE - I did this without placing bar against a solid surface before tapping starter & the impact from when the starter spun & the bar slapped something solid wrung off a 1/2 breaker bar I'd had for 10 years - it can cut your fingers off - be careful - an alternate method is to use a pipe wrench turned in the CORRECT manner & brace it against the upper motor mount prior to hitting the starter - it will spin the crank pulley nut off very easily - just be careful.

Remove the 2 bolts at the exhaust flange downpipe downstream of The turbo,

Remove the intake hose and

Disconnect the thermostat housing from the head (without disconnecting any hoses or sensors). Disconnect the thermostat housing (with all the hoses attached) by unbolting the three bolts and sliding it off the studs.It's also faster if you unbolt the whole thermostat housing from the head (rather than disconnecting the water hoses and sensors).

Disconnect the CPS, TPS, ISC, IS,

Injectors,

Remove all spark plug wires and disconnect throttle cable and cruise control cables (just snap out of their holders)

Start unplugging the wiring harness that goes across the intake (in square covering) it plugs into the o2 sensor, water neck, injectors, throttle position sensor, idle control motor, closed throttle switch, knock sensor, ac compressor, and ignition coils and igniters (should already be unplugged from step 7)

Remove both fuel lines and fuel feed line from the fuel rail.

Coil and power transistor connections,

Pull vacuum hoses.

Pull the PCV line and the other line from the valve cover.

Remove all the guards and shields from the timing belt area. Unplug all connections into coil pack and ignitor, remove ALL small vacuum lines, its okay to cut them, remove vacuum line going between intake and brake booster don’t cut it and remove fuel return hose (be ready with a rag)

Also remove the brace along the back of the engine block that holds up the intake. If you cant get it off, at least remove the Bolts that are on the INTAKE, if the ones on the block are pulled out, you still will have a bi*** of a time removing the head. It's much easier to get to the couple of bolts on the intake manifold bracket from the passenger side.

Don't take the exhaust manifold off either, just unbolt the turbo (4 bolts) (unbolt just the turbo from the ex-man). Remove the bolts and nut that hold the turbo to the exhaust manifold

Disconnect the coolant line from the firewall to the water neck, disconnect the coolant feed line and return line from the turbo (disconnect the big line fed from the hard coolant crossover pipe at the turbo, disconnect the small line at the rubber hose fed from the water neck, disconnect the coolant to oil cooler line on the water neck, disconnect oil return line from the turbo to the oil pan, but you can probably leave the turbo oil feed line connected to the turbo .

Remove valve cover and then remove the bolts that hold the head on. Make sure you untorque them in small steps and in the opposite order of the torque down procedure. This is best done with a 10MM 1/2inch drive IMPACT SOCKET.

The Hex's in the middle are freeze plugs, they stay in. The head is sealed really well, and is stuck on the gasket.

This SHOULD be everything that holds the head on. Now is the time to do a once over check of everything. Look on all 4 sides of the head for anything that isn’t unhooked and take appropriate unhooking measures.

I started by putting a crowbar thru the exhaustmanifold webs & pulling down - it levered the head loose from gasket stiction quite easily.
I then went from end to end of head & placed wooden blocks under each end until head was almost clear of Turbo Stud.

Then I just layed a fender cover over where the radiator was - leaned over the front & picked the sumbitch up.
It mioght be better on your back if... 2 guys had one end of head each or ... Climb up onto the engine bay, and grab the intake mani and the exhaust mani, and use your legs to lift head already broken loose per above...

Make sure to set the cylinder head on a piece of wood or cardboard or something.

OIL PUMP SHAFT MODS / BALANCE SHAFT MODS

Remove the rear balance shaft, pick up a few HP and eliminate the chance of the front balance shaft belt breaking in the future. It'll also make any future t-belt replacement a snap. You don't need to remove the front shaft (that involves tilting the engine and is a real bi*** to do). You can remove just the rear shaft and leave the front one in. The shaft will cover the oil holes (when not rotating), so you don't need to rotate the bearings.

Assuming you have elected to do the above...

2. Take off the transfer case (if you have one)

4. Remove the brace that runs on the drivers side under the pan

5. Remove the 2 bolts holding up the front drivers axle support bearing bolted to the backside of the motor under the AC compreesor

6. remove all the bolts from the pan and the turbo oil return line.

7. take a scraper or screw driver and clean off any of the old seal on the pan and the block, then clean it with degreaser.

8. Unbolt Oil Pump strainer from pump & motor.

9. You may have to unbolt oil pump from back side of freed up front case to get shaft to clear frame.

10. Pull front case.

Replace the rear balance shaft with the stubby shaft from Mirage.

The biggest reason why I go with the oil stub shaft is because if I am this far into the engine, damn straight I am going to disassemble the oil pump and check it out for wear. If I do that, I might as well swap the shaft completely.

Nothing sucks worse than doing all the work to replace the balance shafts and rebuild it only to have the oil pump fail and destroy the motor.

My oil pressure is pretty high now after the swap. I know I don't EVER want to replace that oil pump again, it was a bi*** and a half.

Engines run higher idle pressures after the removal.

Leaving the front shaft in is the half assed way of doing it but is completely effective. If you leave the front shaft in, then you don't need to drop the block and you don't need to replace the front bearings as the stationary balance shaft will block the oiling holes. The rear balance shaft bearings have no oiling holes as the lubrication gets fed from the hollow rear balance shaft so they can stay in place as well after you remove the balance shaft. It will require you removing the front case.

The timing gear has to come off the front of the crank to remove the front cover, it should not be that hard to pull off as it is just press fit on with a moonshaped keyway. Use a puller if you have access to one, but the sprocket should pry off fairly easily

OIL PUMP

I found that the "keyway" in the oil pump sprocket had worn. I put the
sprocket back on the shaft and found it would cluck back and forth as
I turned it. I put the nut back on and tightened it. I then turned the
sprocket back and forth by hand and the nut broke loose! The sloppyness caused by the wear allowed the nut to break loose.

So, for the archives *** Check your OIL PUMP NUT if you have a 1G with over 50,000 miles! ***

I posted about this last year. It happened to me too, but luckily I stopped before the belt let go. (The sprocket did walk out of the timing belt cover slicing a nice round hole in it, and shredded all my accessory belts and cracked the damper pulley... but the TB never let go or lost any teeth. Oil everywhere!) Let this be a warning to ALL 2.0l 1G owners! If you EVER hear a rattling (sounds like a deck of cards in the spokes at first, then progresses to a Raawr under light acceleration) **STOP** your car, and get to a mechanic (or home) and pull the fender liner off. You can tighten the oil pump bolt without doing the whole timing belt thing! This should be a mandatory 50,000mi check for all 1G's. Hell, you ought to remove the nut and lock-tite the sucker on there while you are in there. Mine has loctite red and a lock washer on it (now). Even if the sprocket only loosens a bit it dumps oil all over inside the timing cover - which if nothing else can suck up 4 qts of oil in 100miles!

Just for the next people who read this.... I didnt PACK but I gave a heavy coating of wheel bearing grease to my oil pump on startup, car built pressure as soon as it was started, just like regular startup.

REINSTALL

Then you can take the exhaust side off then the intake side off. Then pull the cams and lifers and rockers out, making sure to note which lifters and rockers went to which valve (I used egg containers, one for intake side one for exhaust side) wrap cams in oily rags and then put them in plastic bags.

The 95 manifold is a HUGE improvement over the 89/90-mid 94 crack prone manifolds.

Be careful with the center exhaust manifold stud, the back opens into an oil drain passage. Metal in there would not be too pretty.

Plus, you could also replace the fuel filter (much easier with the head off), get rid off the charcoal canister, EGR valve and all the emission vacuum lines...

Re-tap the head bolts holes in the block

When putting a head back on... put the crank 90 degrees ATDC so that the pistons are all halfway up (the important thing is that none of them are at TDC, so you won't have any pistons getting in the way of valves when you bolt the cams in).

and torque the head bolts to 72 lbs in three even steps (from the inside out). Good luck. Then put your head on (WITHOUT CAMS so you don't have any valves down)... torque the head down,

Remember that all of the timing marks will only correctly line up on every 6th turn IF YOU HAVE BALANCE SHAFTS. If your oil pump sprocket is truely 180* out of phase you should notice pretty bad vibrations in the car when you get around 2-3k rpms, since the oil pump is on the same drive as I the rear balance shafts...

I redid the timing procedure until I got the gap proper (.15 to .18)

A really handy tip for setting the timing belt tension is if you are
putting a new hydraulic tensioner on leave the pin in until you
tighten the tensioner pulley.

Get everything lined up properly and tighten the tensioner pulley
down.

Use the grenade pin to set Tension.

When you perform the above steps and get the gap close, Rotate the engine 6 times to get all the timing marks to realign, and wait 15 minutes.

Check if the gap is correct (3.8mm to 4.5mm or 0.15" to 0.18") you should be able to reinsert the pin you took out of the hydraulic adjuster through the little hole or darn close. I also used a 5/32 drillbit(0.15625") to double check and there is no more than .5mm of play. An 11/64" drillbit (0.171875") is near the upper limit was slightly too large to fit(but would be within the allowable limit if it had fit)... A 3/16" drillbit (0.1875") is just larger than the upper limit specified in the timing belt procedure(0.18") and if this bit fits the gap is too large and the procdure must be repeated.

Word to the wise. Measure any drillbit you use as I had 2 - 5/32"
drillbits and they varied in thickness by almost a millimeter. When
your working with a gap tolerance that is only 0.7mm wide a 1mm error is unacceptable. I picked the one that was closest and used that one.

OR

Okay, turn the engine until the cam timing marks are aligned with the dowel pins up. Now look to the firewall side of the intake cam sprocket. There will be a timing mark there also (the sprockets are interchangeable). Where this mark is will be indented for a timing belt tooth. Counting that tooth, count on across the top until you reach the timing mark on the radiator side of the exhaust cam sprocket. The timing mark there is located where the sprocket has a tooth instead of the belt. So stop counting at the last timing belt tooth before this. If the cams are in time you will have counted 39 timing belt teeth

Here is a kicker... there is a backing plate that goes behind the crank sprocket (that keeps the bal shaft belt on the bal shaft sprocket). That backing plate has the crank sprocket timing notch on it (!!!!). So if you install that plate backwards, your timing notch will be WAY off (like 70 degrees or so!!). If you put that backing plate on wrong, then assemble the timing belt using the crank timing notch (which is now 70 deg off), you will bend valves.

(BTW, putting it together with the crank 180 deg off is guaranteed to bend valves... I don't know where that pearl of wisdom came from...)

I found it best to get kinda familiar with how the cams and other pulleys react once the belt is put on and tension is applied. A few things I learned it that the exhaust cam will always rotate a tooth c-clockwise, so make sure when you put the belt back on, you rotate it a tooth past the intake cam. Also, we used some plastic straps and strap those to some stationary object on the car and a wrench, that'll keep the pulley(s) (crankshaft and oil pump) aligned. The exhaust cam you'll have to keep in place.

The dowel pins should face up and the two center marks should point directly at each other. Use the head gasket as a reference point.

1 tooth is ~7 degrees, and being a tooth off won't screw up the valves

They won't all 4 align. The cam sprockets are universal so that either one can work for the intake or exhaust cam. The two marks that face toward each other are the ones that are supposed to be lined up when at TDC.

I know what you are saying. That when you align the 2 marks to each other with a straight edge across the sprocket bolt centers they are all lined up. But when you want to put the belt over the gears, the belt teeth don't allow perfect alignment. You are forced to move 1 of the gears 1 way or the other, by one notch. I am sure that alot of these guys have been down that same road. You just don't notice unless you check it with a straight edge. I always allow my exhaust cam to be 1/2 a tooth advanced. Never had any noticable performance losses or gains like that.

OK....... first off... the cam sprockets will align (with the dowel pins at 12:00) every TWO crank revolutions. If you only go 1 crank revolution, the other set of cam timing marks will line up, and you'll see the dowel pins at 6:00. You want to check it with the dowel pins UP. Dowel pins should be up, and timing marks aligned, when the crank timing notch is aligned with the pointer (see last paragraph about the crank timing notch!).

Next.... you were told to do six revolutions because the oil pump sprocket lines up with its timing mark every 3 crank revolutions. 3 revs for the oil pump x 2 revs for the cams = 6 crank revolutions for ALL of the timing marks to line up again. That means every 6 revolutions everything will line up.. you can't just stop at 7 or 8 revolutions and expect it to all line up. You have to line up the marks, go EXACTLY 6 REVOLUTIONS, and check to make sure all the marks are still aligned. Hope that makes sense, I'm trying to make this as brief as possible.
__________________

BRACKETS

I wouldn't delete ANY braces if you are going to remove the balance shafta!!

The bracket that bolts the intake manifold to the block and will bypass the throttle body coolant lines

There is a brace at the back of the intake mani that you can miss. There's two bolts holding it to the top of the mani and one on the back of the motor.

The brace that bolts the intake manifold to the block... I removed that bracket on my car when I resulted the engine. I took the connectors(knock sensor and another one that as there) off and pulled the vacuum lines ot of it. Then I got a few pieces of tubing (small) to connect the vacuum lines to their respective sides. I did took the brace out so that I can have a little bit more work space when working on the car (changing the rear mount, knock sensor, etc...) and I have not experienced any side effects from it. I can tell you that if I have to pull the head off(I hope not, knocks on wood) it would be a lot more easier than with that brace on.

One more thing, too. Do you still have the upper brace (the one between the throttle body and the head)? I've already taken that one off. removed the brace also. I had a nasty boost leak, Intake manifold gasket, and getting the damn intake out is a bi*** with that damn bracket there. Needless to say, it didn't go back in. Did everyone elses bracket have 4 metal lines but only two being utilized? Anyway, screw that bracket

Well, it took 2 1/2 months, but I spent last night pulling the intake manifold off so that I could fix a big-ass vacuum leak.

It seems that the intake manifold vibrated a little too much with no braces to support it and the gasket cracked in a couple of places.

I just wanted to update this post for the archives - I would highly recommend not removing this brace.

I wouldn't immediately blame the vacuum leak on the missing brace since there's plenty of DSMs with no intake leaks and the brace removed as well. If you believe the manifold vibrated a little too much, it might be caused by the TB brace removal. I removed the rear brace (and left just the TB brace on) a year ago and haven't experienced any problems or leaks whatsoever - which makes me believe (when comparing our individual experiences) the problems - in your case - might be caused by the TB brace removal. Since the exhaust manifold and turbo assembly is not braced either (except for the oil and coolant lines. My downpipe doesn't have any hangers.. ) and weights much more than the intake manifold assembly, I'd assume the exhaust manifold gasket should be much more prone to develop leaks than the intake manifold gasket.

Agree.

I have removed the intake brace from all TEL's I have worked in my shop and I have yet to see a problem/leak develop from that

I see what both of you are saying, but I'm not sure I agree. It might be something particular to the mods I have, though. No BS + prothane MM = lots of vibrations.

The intake manifold gasket cracked in two places around the #1 cylinder. I understand why removing the lower brace would cause this, but I fail to see how the throttle body brace could have prevented it, considering it is on the other side of the engine.

In any case, I'll be putting the lower brace back on, although I'm going to leave the TB brace off.

It's funny you should mention the ex. man / turbo assembly, too. I have a hell of a time keeping the bolts from the manifold to the turbo from backing out - perhaps my engine simply has some excessive vibration.

In any case, I'm still going to recommend leaving the brace on. I just want anyone who reads this thread in the future to know that removing it could cause problems.

I like all of those braces from a sturdiness perspective.

I drive my car everyday and have only had one thing actually go out on me unexpectedly, the crank dampener. <knock on wood>

Anyways, the throttle body, the intake mani and the DP brace are all still in place here. They all help support weight, lessen stress on particular bolts/studs and help prevent other problems.

ADJUSTERS

I don't think Mitsubishi even manufactures the older style lash adjusters anymore as the newer style have superseded them and they are a direct replacement for the 1G's.

RING JOB

Crap.. I screwed that up (in my post I mean, .. my motor is put together right). Bevel points DOWN on the #2 ring.

I didn't see any markings on my #1 rings... but generally speaking, if you have markings on rings, they point up.

The oil rings don't have an up or down.

According to the instructions that come with the factory Mitsu rings and the instructions in the Chiltons manual, #1 ring has a small bevel on the inside, which must face up. There will also be a manufacters mark on the top, which faces up, in this case it says "1R". If it were oversized, it would be stamped there also. The #2 ring has a step or bevel that must face DOWN, #2 also has a manufacters mark on it(2R), which must face up.

OR IS THIS RIGHT?

With mitsu factory rings, the #2 compression ring is beveled. The bevel goes up. The other rings don't have an "up" or "down", they're the same either way. Bevel up on the #2 ring though. Like this..

code:--------------------------------------------------------------------------------_______
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Only other thing is to set them up so the gaps don't line up. Picture a compass on the top of the piston, with the arrow facing North.

Gap on #1 compression ring goes at Northwest (45 deg away from the arrow)
Gap on #2 compression ring goes at Southeast (180 degrees opposite #1)
Gap on top oil ring goes at Northeast (90 deg away from the compression rings)
Bottom oil ring goes to Southwest (180 deg opposite top oil ring)

The important things are:

- compression ring gaps are 180 deg opposite each other
- oil ring gaps are 180 opposite each other, and 90 deg away from the compression ring gaps
- none of the ring gaps are in line with the wrist pin (they should all be 45 deg away from a line drawn through the wrist pin, like an X).

OIL COOLER

The threaded part that the filter goes on to is part of the casting, and you will NEVER have the filter back off. also, you engine will last longer, run cooler, have higher oil pressure, yada, yada.

VACCUUM HOSES

Get rid of all the vaccum hoses under there. You can also leave the ports open on the valve that is by the radiator cap. Just leave the ones for the fuel pressure solenoid, PCV valve, breather hose (if you don't have a little K&N in there) and the BOV line. Block off the ports on top of the throttle body and remove the charcoal canister too...

Nope. the bottom of the canister is open. the fumes have to go somewhere. I have mine off (follow instructions below)with open DP.

You can just run a vac hose from the tank hose(the steel one that goes to the canister) & run it to the fenderwell somewhere out of the engine bay. Simple & it cost NOTHING you can use the existing vac hoses that you eliminated, from the emissions system. Hope this helps ya

I dont have the little deal that attaches to the canister on there. It attaches to the A/C port. Those lines run to a solenoid valve & throttle body. the lines that run to the ERG valve run to the sensor on the thermostat. So if you block your EGR all of the vac lines in that system are useless.
I can give you a more detailed description of it but its rather easy, once you actually get in there & trace the wires.

Like most people i've seen they plug all the lines of the TB but dont take all the hoses out, cause they think it will harm the engine in some way. No it wont. Once you block all the ports on the body. the only vac lines that arent affeted are the ones for the turbo & FPR.

PCV VALVE

Do you have a catch can or what? How do you have the hoses routed?

The right way to eliminate PCV altogether is:

1) Remove the stock breather hose (side of the valve cover) from the MAS boot, and plug the nipple on the MAS boot with a vacuum cap. Run the hose to your catch can (so it should now go from side of valve cover to your catch can).

2) Remove the PCV valve from the valve cover, and remove the PCV vacuum hose.

3) Remove the hose barb from the intake manifold (the one that the PCV vacuum hose was hooked up to), and plug the hole. Alternately, you can leave the hose barb on the intake manifold, and use a vacuum cap and hose clamp to plug it. Your call. I prefer to plug it with a threaded plug... vacuum caps can blow out just like a hose and cause problems.

4) Attach a hose barb to the valve cover where the PCV valve was. (1G cars can use the hose barb that was removed from the intake manifold... it threads right in... doesn't work on 2Gs). Run a new hose from your new hose barb to your catch can.

If you shortcut it by T-ing the lines together before the catch can, you're not getting any more ventilation than you had with 1 hose + PCV, so you might as well leave the PCV alone. The right way to do it is to have 2 hoses that go directly from the valve cover to the catch can. The catch can should have a mini k&n breather filter on it to provide the ventilation.

See: http://www.roadraceengineering.com/...nstructions.htm

My intake would not hold boost, and I thought it might be the pcv valve. I checked the stock one...valve was alright if I tried to blow through it (meaning no air would go through) but a bike pump would open it up. So 15 psi or so would probably open it up and I'd be leaking boost into the valve cover.

I bought a new valve from the dealer...same thing, so I decided to just cap off the nipple from the intake manifold and run the pcv valve to my catch can along with my crankcase breather. Teed them together before the catch can and left the pcv valve where it was. Are you saying this is not the proper setup?
I heard that if you cap off the hole where the pcv valve was it can cause blown head gaskets.

HEAT

Wow, you've got alot in the way of keeping that thing cool. I can only suggest a few things to try:
1. Be sure the air flows through the FMIC / rad and not around it. The OEM plastic shroud does serve a purpose and even though it won't fit with your FMIC maybe you could trim it or make some side and bottom sheilds to direct the air through your rad.
2. Sheild or wrap as much of your Turbo and exhaust manifold as possible especially where it is close to the rad.
3. Is your Turbo close to the water crossover tube? If it is you should wrap it with a heat barrier. (Thermo-Tech makes some good stuff) This is a tough one because it's almost impossible to do without removing the Turbo.
4. If you think the vented hood might help try removing your hinge bolts and put a stack of washers between the hood and the hinge and bolt it back up. It will raise the rear of the hood so hot air can escape. If your temps go down then the vented hood would work for you.
Nothin trick here, just some easy and mostly cheap things to try before you throw money at it.

FIRE HAZARD

1G's have two main grounding wires both look to be about 6 ga. One runs from the battery negative terminal to a bolt on the transmission into the block. The other runs from the battery negative terminal to the firewall a few inches away BUT the factory doesn't strip the paint from that grounding point so the main chassis ground current runs through a single 6mm bolt into a fricken nut welded to the firewall. When I pulled mine the threads were starting to get crusty and I can only assume the threads in the nut would be too. I cleaned the bolt and striped the paint from the firewall where the connector contacts it.
I'm also leary of the charging wiring. The alternator grounds through the mounting brackets and after a few years none of them are going to have clean surfaces. the B+ lead from the alternator also looks to be 6 ga and takes round about path back to the battery. It's not exactly what I would use to push 75A around. Since I just dropped in a stereo that could suck down an additional 130A on top of the normal current, I've changed the main chassis ground to 2 ga and I'll direct ground the alternator and upgrade the B+

The most amazing thing is that the bastards don't want to take responsibility for anything - if it's crankwalk or 1G catching on fire..
I just ran the car really hard all the way to the shop, checked the harness - the shit was hot as hell and the plastic wrap was all soft from the heat. The injectors harness is mounted dirrectly on the intake manifold, but it seems like it's the power transistor and the ignition coil harness that might cause the problem and its plastic wrap ignite first (and burn the fuel return line). Either relocating the coil and the transistor to the firewall (which would require custom spark plug wires) or protecting the harness with some fireproof sleeve might help. I think I'll do both - before the bi*** burns to the ground...

The main harness. It splits on the passenger side of the intake manifold (and goes to the TB, O2 and coolant sensors), then it runs behind the intake manifold and goes to the injectors, power transistor and the coil (+ the knock sensor and A/C and part of it is attached to the firewall and goes to the FPS and the PCS). The spot where it seems to catch on fire is where the wiring from the power transistor, the coil and the injectors meet, the harness is some 3-4" off the firewall at that spot. Personally, I think it's the part of the wiring from the coil and the transistor that ignites (since it's less protected than the main harness) and most likely burns the soft vacuum line that goes to the fuel pressure regulator. Seems like the best protection might be firesleeving made by Talor (used for spark plug wires) that withstands long term exposure to 500' and comes in 5/16-7/8" ID ($9.69-12.99 /1'). Even if the harness ignites inside the sleeving, the fire wouldn't have enough oxygen to burn and wouldn't spread. I think that's what I'm going to do..

Just trying to point out which harness to check (not a 1G owner so...), here are two shots of the engine from a '90 Talon (thanks RRE).
http://www.roadraceengineering.com/...irewall-1g2.jpg
http://www.roadraceengineering.com/...firewall-1g.jpg
Can you see the harness in either of these? I suspect that's it to the left of the catchcan in the 1st photo (firewall-1g2.jpg)... ?

Here's a better shot of the area: http://www.vfaq.com/proj-pics/FPR/FPR-17.jpg

Also I bought a fire extinguisher today, would I have enough time to pop my trunk, get the extinguisher, and put out the fire as soon as I smelled something?

Lastly, I'm probably not going to insulate the wiring because it may make matters worse. What if insulating it (which is what shielding will do) actually makes heat build up more on the inside? Is the heat coming from the engine bay? Or from the harness wires itself due to improper wires size or poor connection?

I think what I will do is pull out the shielding around the drivers side pop up headlight to increase air circulation in the engine bay. I'm hoping this will lower

No I haven't seen it in 90's but I have in 91 on. Im not saying it cant happen so be careful.
As far as time. no time. first time it happened to me the first sign was belt squealing (guess the heat caused slack) then I smelled coolant. from there I thought great im overheating. but the mustang I raced comes up from behind screaming and pointing to the bottom of the car. Look in the rear view and see flaming chunks of my car. step on the breaks. no breaks. so im down shifting and pulling the e break to stop.
get out, pop the hood. It looked like the pits of hell. The extinguisher did NOTHING to tame the fire. I just had to close the hood and watch her burn to the ground.
the whole story is on here somewhere if you guys want me to find it.

engine bay temps to the effected area.

here is a link for the tape taboo is referring to (from www.summitracing.com) this link here is thermo tec fire tape (what im going to order i think). i dont want my 1g going a blaze!!

http://store.summitracing.com/defau...=13&s=131

here is the link with all types of fire retarding products from summit.

http://store.summitracing.com/defau...=13&s=131

hey taboo let me know how yours comes out when you do it. if i get mine done ill post some pics when its finished (and when i find the exact part i need to fire proof)

I've found out an interesting fact: 3K VR4s cought on fire indicate the fire originated in exactly the same (ignition coil/power transistor) area as on our cars (although 3K VRs have the coil and transistor on the opposite side - by the battery). One might conclude it's a ignition coil or power transistor failure/malfunction causing the harness to overheat (due to greatly increased resistance when grounded) to the point where it actually ignite. Incorporating a fuse to the ignition coil/power transistor circuit and/or thermosleeving the harness might be aa effective solution to the problem.

Yes, that's exactly where the fire seems to originate (even on 3K VR4s). In my opinion, it's the coil and power transistor harness (split off the main harness) that tends to ignite - due to its relatively soft plastic sleeve. We have a spare harness and a few coils in the shop and I could possibly try to simulate the wiring overload to see what happens. From what AWDkitkat said, the car seems to start running like crap right before it catches on fire - which might be possibly caused by one of the coild shorting out and the car running on just two cylinders. I'll also study the factory circuit, since the fuse-based protection seems to be the best solution (rather than counting on the thermosleeving containing the fire inside and ending up with severely damaged harness).

 

[vtlaxplaya16]

wow thanks for the info man

 

[BUCK]

by vtlaxplaya16
wow

Yeah - that'll teach you to come around HERE asking questions...

 

[Defiant]

Ladeeez and Gennelmen, the new cut-and-paste CHAMPEEEN!!!

Nice job, Buck. Send it in to Tech.

 

[Revolution]

Wow is the word buck I must say it was a good ten minutes to read but it was all well worth it .
The only thing I would recomend is be organized and I mean to the T.

Place all corresponding bolts in containers or cans whatever is your fancy and for all those first timers what I didwas I labeld everything with coloured marker like gold, silver, red, blue, just to be shure y went with x .
I must say that buck has gone into depth because when realigning the cam gaers their is a notch on them (one line on each) so you would know how to align them easy right?
Well when replacing the actual belt the teeth dont always lign up perfect making these lines not match up perfectly, so cudos to buck for clarifying that when this happens that the exhaust cam could be moved one or two notches.

 

[BUCK]

Compilation of some great stuff from some great guys...

EXACTLY - damn little of that is mine - I just Cut & pasted from at least a dozen different Threads before I tore into my DSM last year.