Was wondering how much it would end up costing me, to land in the 400-450 HP range.

Idea's I've tossed around is stroking the motor to a 2.2L, and building it with low compression so I can run high boost. The good thing for me is I have a bare block and head lying around, so I won't have to take my car off the road, and thus can take my sweet time .

I'm hoping to keep the complete build under about $4,000 when I'm finished (by finished I mean, turbo'd and on the road). I'd start with the engine build, then later start getting the turbo and fuel system stuff I'd need once I've recovered from spending the money on the build .

Also, if anyone has any links or good places for me to look for parts that would be greatly appreciated. Plenty of people tell me to just buy a GSX, and originally that was my plan, but my car is well known among my friends, so I'd like to surprise them all with sudden power . Plus, I already put in a lot of time painting it and I just love the car, so I decided I'd rather just spend the money making it faster, and forget about a GSX. At the end of the day, I got the car when it was stock for free, and I didn't pay anything for the bodywork/paint because I did 90% of it myself. So even if it cost me 4000 dollars to make it fast, I'll still be spending less to go faster than I would in a GSX (based on the ones I've been able to find).

So please don't bother trying to talk me into getting a 4g63 instead . I've put it off long enough, it's time to start really looking into it.

Don't just don't. Nothing good comes from 420a turbo builds. Just sell it and buy a real dsm, it's a much better platform, no need to reinvent the wheel.

Do it up. Most end up opting for a 4g build BUT there are plenty of people on here that built the 420a as well. Just thrift through the build threads and you can find any information you're looking for! Good luck with the build, man.

bigbird94 said:

Don't just don't. Nothing good comes from 420a turbo builds. Just sell it and buy a real dsm, it's a much better platform, no need to reinvent the wheel.

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Lol, Grow up.

GsXdSmKingGsX said:

Do it up. Most end up opting for a 4g build BUT there are plenty of people on here that built the 420a as well. Just thrift through the build threads and you can find any information you're looking for! Good luck with the build, man.

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Thanks Hopefully it'll hold up decently well, it'll be the only one I know of in my area.

I figured this thread would have been filled with more hate by now.

OP as long as you get good parts, a good way to tune and not take short cuts there is nothing wrong with a turboed 420a.

No it doesn't have the aftermarket support quite like the 4g. Nor the legacy that the 4g has but built correctly it's like any other engine.

dsmcrzy said:

I figured this thread would have been filled with more hate by now.

OP as long as you get good parts, a good way to tune and not take short cuts there is nothing wrong with a turboed 420a.

No it doesn't have the aftermarket support quite like the 4g. Nor the legacy that the 4g has but built correctly it's like any other engine.

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I don't expect 4g63 potential. Otherwise I'd be aiming for 600+ haha. I don't get why people hate on 420a's at least they aren't hondas .

There is one guy that swapped his 2g dsm 420a for a srt4 motor, would be a lot of custom work, but would also be very cool and unique which would be right up your alley.

Lazyboy said:

There is one guy that swapped his 2g dsm 420a for a srt4 motor, would be a lot of custom work, but would also be very cool and unique which would be right up your alley.

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I saw mention of that, started doing a little research, It'll be spring before I start on anything, so I'm taking my time checking out all options.

You should also check out Hahns racecraft. They make a very nice turbo kit for the 420a and they have lots of experience. Comes with everything you need and it is not ebay junk.

http://www.turbosystem.com/

If you want to get that kind of power on a budget. Dont stroke the engine. Throw in the tried and true combo of je or wiesco pistions and eagle or manly rods. Dont skimp on the machine work. If nothing else look on the neon forums in the fs section for used pistions and rods since you are much more likely to find them there then here. You will want megasquirt with that power goal. Pm me if you are intrested in some used weisco 8.8 .20 pistions

Why go used when you can go new for a few dollars more? No offense, but if you're springing for a 400hp build, don't cut corners on important pieces.

Biggest thing on a 420a would be head studs and a good finish for the block/head, and a good hg.
Past that, a return style fuel system, megasquirt and HRC turbo setup like the aformentioned should get u to you goal.

Certain things you could budget on like used cams or a turbo in good ahape, but that all depends on how much stuff you want to piece together. Just my 2c

Only way i personally would go used on Internals is If its low miles and a drastic price difference. I agree with the finish work and the head studs being important which is why i suggested spending the money on machining. Also Just a tip don't forget to check ebay for parts. DON'T get no name parts. Check sellers feedback to make sure you are getting genuine parts. I myself have built a 420a with wiesco pistions eagle rods 4g63 stock springs arp studs walbeo fuel pump etc waiting till spring to boost and tune ms.

No intention of going for used internals (Thanks for the offer though).

But I could reach 400+HP without stroking it? That would probably be better because the block would stay stronger. Save me some money too I suppose, which I can later put towards better trans and suspension setup to help get the most out of it. Guess I'll research in that direction. Just figured it would be easier to reach 400-450 range stroked . I'm going to take my time with this because I want it to last once I'm done (Well, as long as something pushing 400+ HP can last ) What I planned on doing originally was building the block and head I have from my old engine (had a bent rod, so it's stripped bear, no pistons no valves in it (Though I believe I have all the Valve parts still) now so it's like an blank page - the piston stayed where it was and didn't scrape the walls up amazingly, just didn't go all the way up anymore, engine still ran ) and then keeping the one I have now stock "just in case".

At the end, if I have to go more than $4k, then I'll just stretch it out a bit longer is all, might take me two summers because I have a lot of other things to spend money on right now, but that's fine, I'm in no big rush, I want it done right. This car has a lot of sentimental value to me.

Thank you all for the ideas/pointers so far.

450hp on FWD is a tease

If you love your car do what you need to do. Myself always wanted a GST and for a while settled on a GS that i put a lot of time into.. I was originally going to build it p but came down to cost found a GST for cheaper than it would cost to have the gs rebuild...

Look forward to seeing you 420 built up..

TehRiceBandit said:

450hp on FWD is a tease

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Me and one of my friends built a SRT4 Neon up to 523 HP without even changing the internals , it was a lot of fun, but didn't keep grip worth a damn. With the right tire and suspension combo, I should be able to get enough grip to have some fun at 450, without having enough grip to constantly break things.

If it sucks too bad, then I'll just dial back the boost until it doesn't.

Good luck! I think a good LSD and boost by gear will help manage it quite a bit. Along w/ suspension, tires, and motor mounts like you said

Speaking of LSD's, where's the best place to look for those for the 420a trans.

You would have to look over on neon forums but Ed Peterson seems to be the go to guy for nvt350 trans upgrades. No clue how to get ahold of him. Personally I haven't been ready to get ahold of him.

dsmcrzy said:

You would have to look over on neon forums but Ed Peterson seems to be the go to guy for nvt350 trans upgrades. No clue how to get ahold of him. Personally I haven't been ready to get ahold of him.

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Ok thanks. That'll likely be later down the road anyway.

I think the highest hp 420a record is 660hp.4g63 record is around 1400hp and counting.
I think there is atleast half less aftermarket/performance parts available compared to 4g63.
with a 4g63 you can hit 400hp on accident.<< done it before.
highly suggest looking into a gst at least if your looking for performance.

DeadlyAKrunna47 said:

I think the highest hp 420a record is 660hp.

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4g63 record is around 1400hp and counting.
I think there is atleast half less aftermarket/performance parts available compared to 4g63.
with a 4g63 you can hit 400hp on accident.<< done it before.
highly suggest looking into a gst at least if your looking for performance.

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As I said originally, I'm not going to buy another car. There are already a couple GST/GSX in my area, but no 420a's. The next car I get after this one will be a new(er) model luxury car of some sort. Which I was going to do before but decided I'd put a little more into this car first. I'll be keeping this car until it rusts into the ground or I die, which ever comes first.

Im sorry but your goals are just unrealistic. 450whp from a 420a for 4k just isnt going to happen. Even using used parts at bargain prices you'll be lucky to make 200whp properly.

Aim much lower or be ready for some major disappointment. I mean the lsd you are talking about is $1200 plus labor. With a laundry list of other drivetrain mods required that will eat your budget before even touching the motor.

For example, Hahn's "stage 2" turbo kit is 3k and thats rated to 250hp at the crank.

You may want to write up a realistic parts list and reassess your goals.

91stocker said:

Im sorry but your goals are just unrealistic. 450whp from a 420a for 4k just isnt going to happen. Even using used parts at bargain prices you'll be lucky to make 200whp properly.

Aim much lower or be ready for some major disappointment. I mean the lsd you are talking about is $1200 plus labor. With a laundry list of other drivetrain mods required that will eat your budget before even touching the motor.

For example, Hahn's "stage 2" turbo kit is 3k and thats rated to 250hp at the crank.

You may want to write up a realistic parts list and reassess your goals.

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I could piece together the parts for much less than 3k. Either way, 4k might not get the LSD, but it should get me a lot further than you think it will. You should really learn how to work on your own car, it'll save you a lot of money in the long run. That said, there are tons of posts across the internet that seem to prove you wrong as to the potential of a 420a, its a much better engine than most 4g63 fanboys like to admit.

But we'll see, because as I get into spring I'm going to start figuring out exactly what the costs are going to be, and who knows, maybe you're partially right and I'll have to aim closer to 300hp. But I doubt you're right since you contradicted yourself in your own posts by saying I probably couldn't make 200hp properly with it, then mentioning Hahns racecraft getting 250 for less than 4k . Change the rods and pistons and that number will go up pretty quick with a few more pounds of boost.

Thanks though, you've given me a little extra resolve to actually go through with it. Should be a fun little car when I'm done.

If you dont know the difference between crank hp and whp then i doubt you have the ability to finish a project like this. Maybe you should at least listen to the advice of the people whos been there and done that. Sounds like you have a lot of growing up to do, have fun.