After several years of dreaming I finally bought an 2G Eclipse last december. It was a bit of a struggle since they were never officially sold here in Belgium.

So now I'm the happy owner of a monarch green 96 Eclipse GS, completely original.

While the car is technically sound, it does have a few issues.
Exhaust system is in need of complete replacement.
Suspension feels tired, pretty sure it's still the original set.
While original, the alloy rims are not that good looking.
And as I guess many before me, I prefer the nose and spoiler of the '97 version.

so my initial question would be,
which rims would fit the car? my preference goes to the Enkei TS10 Storm Gray or RSM9 silver. though none of my local shops stock Enkei so I'd be forced to buy online. Friend keeps trying to convince me to buy golden rims, claiming it'd go well with the green paint but i'm not sure i'll keep it in that color.
any suggestions on suspension? preferably adjustable.
is it worth getting a performance exhaust (complete from engine to muffler)?

any place you could recommend that sells the 97 front end/spoiler as a complete set? converting the car is probably gonna be a project for next summer.



Anything suggestions?

Welcome to the site, for rims 5x114.3 is the bolt pattern, remember that we are hubcentric so get the correct hub bore or hub centric rings. As for size and offset... that's on you!
http://www.dsmtuners.com/threads/will-these-wheels-tires-fit.286685/ <<< good link for fitment
Remember if you do the bumper conversion you will also need the 2gb headlights. Many people have had good luck with the ebay 2gb bumpers, some haven't so do some research and decide for yourself. http://millerimportparts.com/ Is our trusty dsm wrecker but you would have to see if he ships international...
Welcome again

Welcome man. Nice looking car. Looks well kept from the pictures. As for rims, its all personal preference and what our style is. Good luck man.

seems like i'll be pretty limited in rims unless i import, been looking for good alternatives. looking for a good 9 or 10 spoke rim.

different question, is it possible to install a turbo in the GS without issues
and is a custom exhaust manifold worth it or should I just replace it with a new standard one?

lastly, since i'm pretty new to all this. any suggestions on what I can do to improve my car? any stock parts that can be replaced for better performance?

Welcome! Where in belgium do you live? I'm from the netherlands and starting to build mine ga towards gst (Yes its possible! So there you have the answer of your question)

I'm from West-Flanders, 'dutch' part of belgium near the french border

Not so close towards each other, I live in Zeeland, but maybe we will meet each other

Nice looking car, welcome aboard.

Welcome! This must be 4G63 NT model! Can you can take a photo of the engine? I bet most people will get a kick out of it!

well, euhm, there hasn't been any work done on the engine so yeah, it does not compare to what i've seen here on the forums (it's a mess )


if you got some advice on how I can start to make this engine look at least somewhat presentable, let me know.


as for rims, i've decided on OZ Ultraleggera rims since Enkei is almost unfindable in the EU.

some issues i've run in during my time with the car:
radio antenna does not extend/retract, i can hear the motor running when starting/stopping the car but the antenna does not move.
can't open the trunk with the keys, have to use the release in the car.
also installed a new radio but i'm having some clearance issues with it, anyone got any ideas how i can clean this up?




i'm also looking into replacing the suspension but belgium is a difficult place as it requires its own certificate for custom suspensions. luckily i'm on friendly terms with the local garage so i can count on him for some help.

It might not be pretty, but this is very unique for US! Our NT models came with 420A Chrysler motor, which looked very different and had NOTHING in common with 4G63 (other than displacement). It is crazy how DSM built two versions of 2.0 NT motor at the same factory!

But that is good for you! 4G63 is a better motor and accepts most turbo parts. I would bolt on T25 turbo/manifold/02 housing and limit it to around 10 psi. In US, you can pick up parts for $100-$150 (not sure how easy it is to come by those parts in Belgium)

Just have to be careful here in Belgium, everything is very regulated and must pass yearly inspection.

Well, if you use OEM Mitsu parts, it will look factory! You can also show them photos of US cars and it will match them

doubtful, inspection here is draconian, my last car failed inspection because of the custom rims & low profile tires, suspension ended up a tad too stiff, instant red card
even adding a spoiler is a gamble. every part you put on a car must be inspected and approved.
according to my dad, adding a turbo would never fly with the inspection. but it's something i'm considering and may do some research on the possibilities.

Will they allow you to import a turbo DSM?

maybe, but it'd be difficult

We also have some Draconian laws in some states, but if we can fool the inspector that modifications are stock, we usually can get away with it! Why would they object to a factory turbo? How will they know the car didn't originally came this way? You can come armed with dealer brochures showing a turbo!

I'd look into the regulations. I would hope that, as long as it were a factory conversion you'd be able to get by.

Sorry you have to deal with such car regulations. That must be very frustrating.

GRNDSM said:

We also have some Draconian laws in some states, but if we can fool the inspector that modifications are stock, we usually can get away with it! Why would they object to a factory turbo? How will they know the car didn't originally came this way? You can come armed with dealer brochures showing a turbo!

Click to expand...

More than likely, the vin number would tell them it was a non turbo.

This is what a stock GSX/GST engine looks like:

Tanro said:

More than likely, the vin number would tell them it was a non turbo.

Click to expand...

Possible, but most regular mechanics will not notice that.

looking up regulations now.
things that are flat out not allowed:
-tinting front and front-side windows
-removing the lock on the trunk
-removing the locks on the doors
-changing the structure of the hood
-changing the distance between the hood and the engine
-changing the hood hinges
-spoilers in materials with a low absorptiondegree (?)
-topchops
-removing fenders if they are part of the supporting structure
-hindering or disabling airbags
-removing airbags
-exchanging a 3point seatbelt with a 2point one
-covering signals
-installing NOS (duh)
-placing a start button
-removing 3rd breaklight
-placing a 4th breaklight (?)
-placing wheels with a kit with central placement
-modifying the breaksystem
-widening the track(?) google translate is failing me on this one
-placing a different type of suspensionrubber
-changing the diameter of the exit of the original exhaustmuffler
-placing a gearbox with different gear ratio
-ENGINETUNING
-placing non-retractable front seats in 2 or 3door cars unless the rear seat and the seatbelts are removed and ancorpoint of the rear seat are made permanently unusable
-rims with spacers
-installing a steeringwheel with non-adjustable adapter

general info run through google translate: https://translate.google.be/transla....be/nl/p/ak-pa-verbouwingen-tuning&edit-text=

afaik the only allowed 'tuning' you can do to an engine is replacing the airfilter...

also, everything is documented, they keep track of every change in the car

like I said, draconian

Wow! That's a N/A 4g63 in a stock 2g??? I owned a 98 rs and it was most certainly a chrysler 420A. Great engine btw. Drove it from 125k to 235k with literally one issue. And it was my fault.
Those poor 2g 420As tooka thrashing by kids cause they LOOK fast and most people couldn't grasp the fact that it was a 120hp motor and you aren't gonna get much more out of it(though i've seen one over 200whp N/A on the forums, lottsa money, lottsa skill, and a whole lotta time to do so).


It's a nice car and VERY unique with the engine. The fabled 2g 420A to 4g63 swap, which most beginners dream of and is not a practical solution? Well, unless my eyes deceive me you are 90% of the way there. You have a 4g63. If you're iwlling to invest a bit you will have a gs-t.
Now, the internals won't handle what a stock gs-t or gsx would but that's ok. You don't need that right now

Those are some strict laws! Technically, we have many of the same laws, they are just not enforced. They care about safety stuff and making sure that your OBD2 is "ready" and not showing any faults.

Widening the track, is making your car wider, like using wheels with different offset. I haven't seen this one in US

boost97gst said:

Wow! That's a N/A 4g63 in a stock 2g???

Click to expand...

HA! I knew that most members here haven't seen this before! Very unique!

420a was put into DSM to shift the "made in USA" parts count, to make it "more American'.

They didn't have such pressure in Europe, so the used NT 4g63 for that market. I can't believe they went through all that effort!!! Why not just sell 420A DSMs worldwide?