The Top DSM Community on the Web

For 1990-1999 Mitsubishi Eclipse, Eagle Talon, Plymouth Laser, and Galant VR-4 Owners. Log in to remove most ads.

Please Support ExtremePSI
Please Support Rix Racing

420A Planing out my build.

This site may earn a commission from merchant
affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

TalonDraukner

Proven Member
35
3
Apr 3, 2014
Tacoma, Washington
Hello all!

Background: I'm not a mechanic. I have never done any major alterations to a vehicle. I know more about motorcycles than cars. However, I don't pay for routine stuff I can do myself and I want to do as much of this project with my own hands as possible.

What I have: I have a Green 1996 Mitsubishi Eclipse RS with 210k+ in miles. The car need some work, but it has a solid body, no rust, and aside from a cheap stereo, a half missing alarm, a stripped sub-woofer power cord (been removed), and 17" rims, it has no real modifications.

What I want: In the simplest phrase, I want a Track worthy Street car. I want to turbo it, put in an aftermarket suspension, deck it out with a sweet audio/video system, and put Enkei WDM rims on it. Oh, and of course give is a sweet paint job and body kit.

What I need: Primarily, the know how. I need to learn, I need to read, and I need some help. Secondly, I need the money, which will come with time. This is going to be a long and slow build, but I'm looking forward to it. Finally, I need a well drawn out plan.

Planned: Below is a list of planned upgrades. Some may be very vague, but will be expanded upon as I figure out more of what I want. Pictures and links may be added as well.
  1. Megan Racing Coilovers (eBay:$680)
  2. Rear drums to disks
  3. Enkei WDM 17" Rims
  4. Turbo
  5. In dash Audio/Video system
  6. Custom interior
  7. Body Kit
  8. Sweet paint job
Finished: As I complete the maintenance and upgrades, I'll add them to the list below.
  1. New Battery


I will be documenting in detail, everything I do to this car. Photos, video, and written walkthroughs of what I've done will be a record of this project and through my own trial and error, maybe I'll be able to help out the next newbie like myself.

Feel free to leave me any tips, tricks, or suggestions. Pictures and tutorials are appreciated too.
 
Last edited:
What will be the 1st thing you do?

The first thing I think I'm going to do is the suspension, and change the rear drums to calipers. I'd like some suggestions on the suspension and what all I should do to it. I know I want to lower it a bit, but not sure how much and I'm considering adjustable shocks to change it up if I go to the track. I was looking at Koni adjustables, because they seem to be the easiest to adjust, but I've also read that coilovers are better. Any insight would be appreciated.

Note that I'm not rich and it will take me awhile to save up for expensive parts. I'm willing to spend a decent amount for good quality, but I'm not above a great deal.

EDIT: This seems like an insanely good price to me, am I wrong and is this product any good?
 
Last edited:
Current Status: Having some electrical problems and my exhaust manifold has two large cracks. If you want the whole story and to try to give me some help you can find that topic here.

As stated in the main post, I need to make a plan. For that, I need some help and information.

The major question being, what do I need to do to prepare my car for a turbo upgrade and what all can I do and have it still run well without the turbo? This will be a piece by piece project and little by little is my moto, but I want it to be driveable after each modification.

I know I'll probably have to rebuild the engine, but I want to save that for next summer when I'll have more money and time. In the winter it will become my daily driver, but for now I do have a motorcycle that I take to and from work. Please don't suggest I swap engines, because I just don't want to. Am considering doing a 4G63 in the future, if this project goes well.
 
First you need to build your engine before you worry about everything else on your list. Engine then drivetrain.. then all that extra stuff you have listed. This looks more like a show car than a race car.
 
If your comfortable on 420a platform then a 4g63t aka the "Best 4 banger in world" (my opinion) LOL do what you wanna do forget what people say about them. I started with no Intel either but on a 4g63t......never i look back and im so glad I did!!! Just remember no innerchangible parts and maintenance maintenance maintenance before mods
 
Coming from a 420a owner, the above posts are good advice on saving up for a 4G63 platform for a car to mod. Fix up the 420a, do full maintenance including but not limited to timing belt, water pump, spark plugs, acc belts, ect. Then enjoy a nice DD, while repeating the benefits of great MPG's while saving up for a 4G63 platform car.

If I was to do any mods on a 420a, they would be light wheels, MAYBE a slight drop ( I love how factory suspension rides tho.. ), sound system and just restore the car to it's original glory. I'd skip on the body kit, as these cars already look great from factory but that's my 02. It's your car, do what you want with it. All I can offer is advice. :)

Good luck!
 
Keep the 420a as a daily and save up for a 4g63 to build.

When I bought my 2Ga GS eclipse I was told the same thing, however, Its just like any other motor. Just build the head up for a turbo and make sure your compression is good. Then go with the supporting mods. If you like the car, do what you want. Now i am not saying the 420a motor is worse or better than the 4g63. but, the 420a will handle enough boost to have alittle fun. good luck bro!
 
Doing maintenance first is the best thing to do to any car you just bought and know nothing about and know nothing of the maintenance history of the vehicle.

if your looking to start off by doing the suspension work first, i would look into a complete bushing kit and some good coil overs. be fairly warned that polyurethane bushings do squeak a lot going over bumps unless you can keep them lubricated. a good coil over system will allow you to adjust your ride height and also the dampening force of the strut/shock. do know when you do lower the car a little you may need camber kits to correct your camber angles when you align the vehicle. Specialty products makes some good camber kits; been using them a lot and i haven't had any problems with them.

learning by doing and having others help teach you is a good way to learn. most of all you will need information and a repair manual is going to be one of many few of your best friends to learn from and to help you learn how to do the repairs, removal and installs of parts.

as for the 4g63 platform, yes the 4g63 is the more popular engine for modding and such. if you wish to build the 420a then by all means build it up and try not to let other get to you by saying sell it and buy a 4g63 car.

you can still get a good amount of power out of the 420a motor if your willing to shell out the cash to build the motor to hold the power and boost from a turbo. i know its not cheap to build a 420a motor as i am/have built a few myself, and i will say mine cost more than the car is really worth. here's a link to my build journal: http://www.dsmtuners.com/threads/1998-eagle-talon-street-build-monster.469506/ Primarly for a turbo engine build with the 420a you will need to strengthen the bottom end with better rods and pistons; and build the head for better flow with larger valves, cams and port work. you will need a gates kevlar timing belt, i've seen way too many stock timing belts in the 420a's snap with higher power level because the belt stretches too much and snaps from it. One of the biggest things about modding an engine is to figure out an achievable power level that you would like to have and is achievable and not some outragious number like 1000hp. I would suggest something that is affordable and achievable like 300 to 450hp. another key part will be how you set up your engine and which parts you choose, like supporting mods; and turbo size selection.

were all hear to help, all that you have to do is just ask for it. Im certainly willing to help you here and there to the best of my ability and knowledge.
 
Last edited:
Thank you all for the great responses, and especially you BlackKnight2013. Like I said before, I'm going to stick with my 420A. I think it will be a great first project and a gateway to future builds. I'm not looking to make this the fastest car in the world, but I would like it to be something that turns heads.

I'm going to eventually do a body kit and I am considering even painting the car myself (There are rentable paint booths near me). I'm well versed with an airbrush and I plan on painting my Ninja in the garage before the end of the summer as practice and for repair/touch up.

Maintenance is my primary focus right now, as the car does not run. Battery is dead and possibly the alternator. Once I figure out the electrical problem, I'll be replacing the water pump and the radiator. I've already done the spark plugs, wires, and the ignition coil. It also needs a new front passenger side rotor. I bought a compression tester, so once it is running again, I'll give that a go as well. The air filter is in good condition, but I'll probably change that too and I'll be getting a new fuel filter as well.

The only other thing is that I need one upper and one lower control arm replaced in the front.

Any other routine maintenance I'm missing?
 
Last edited:
The 420a is a good base. I think everyone here knows of dsmZero. How is pushing over 661 horses to the wheels for the world record.

If u plan to turbo the 420a be sure to install ARP head studs.

I have my 97 eclipse gs torn down to block. (Bought it with blown head gasket) but ive bought everything new that ive taken off. All new cooling system. Timing. Header. Ect.
The best place to shop for parts on a budget is ebay. With the price of my car($350) and everything to rebuild my entire 420a engine i have a total of $700. All from shopping on ebay n finding the best deal on the best parts.

Do your research on what u want. You only realy want to take it apart once.
 
Status Update: Had Autozone check the battery, it is completely toast. I'll be picking a new one up on Friday and the testing will proceed from there. Hopefully it was just the battery that caused my random loss of power. I'll also be ordering a new manifold on the same day.
 
Planning out my first upgrade: Going to start with the suspension and I've been looking at coilovers. The most common one I've seen is the Megan Racing Coilovers. I don't know much about suspension other than the general parts and a basic understanding of how it works together. I'm not looking to spend a fortune, but I good quality. Has anyone had experience with MR Coilovers and what do you think of these and the price? Also, aside from strut bars, what other parts should I add/replace with aftermarket (better) parts?
 
Status Update: Cracked manifold replaced, radiator fan relay replaced, and removed all of the alarm wiring. For about half a mile, the car ran great, but started to sputter after that. Random drops in RPMs and died at a light, but started right back up. Confused on why it is doing this, but going to change fuel filter next, because it is cheap.

Also, I'll be uploading some pictures soon and possible a post about my experience changing out the manifold.
 
Wow, it's been awhile. Time flies when you are busy and distracted.

Status Update: I eventually found out that the reason my car ran the way it did, was because of a vacuum leak in two separate hoses that were falling apart. After replacing them, it has been running great ever since. However, every single time I drive on the freeway for a moderate distance, say 40 miles, my car still overheats when sitting at a light afterwards. I believe I may have either another leak somewhere in or around the intake manifold. I used some Seafoam engine treatment and found a small amount of smoke would come from somewhere near the intake manifold. I also purchased a cold air intake that should be arriving withing the next week.
 
Support Vendors who Support the DSM Community
Boosted Fabrication ECM Tuning ExtremePSI Fuel Injector Clinic Innovation Products Jacks Transmissions JNZ Tuning Kiggly Racing Morrison Fabrications MyMitsubishiStore.com RixRacing RockAuto RTM Racing STM Tuned

Latest posts

Build Thread Updates

Vendor Updates

Latest Classifieds

Back
Top