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1G Ordering maintenance & repair parts, advice needed

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XC92

Proven Member
1,573
358
Jul 22, 2020
Queens, New_York
Hi, I'm fairly new here so I hope this isn't inappropriate or too long, but I'm about to order a bunch of parts for my '92 Talon TSi AWD manual (build date May 1992), with around 79k miles on it (yes you read that right), and wanted to make sure they're right for the job. If anyone cares to weigh in pro or con or offer better alternatives or suggestions, it would be highly appreciated. If not, that's fine too.

It's for a clutch, timing and drive belt and pad/rotor replacement, and tuneup, all regular maintenance jobs except for the clutch, which is shot and needs to be replaced to get the car moving again.

My Talon is stock everything, original parts (other than standard maintenance replacement parts like pads, rotors, tires, etc.), no mods, including the turbo and exhaust, so it puts out 195HP. I don't race, track, compete, show, etc. It's a daily driver that will likely never be driven on any kind of track. I MIGHT mod it someday, but as they say that plus $2.50 gets you a cup of coffee at Starbucks, and even if I do it's going to be a year or two down the line.

I'd say that I'm a somewhat aggressive driver, e.g. fast out of the "gate" when the light turns green, quick merges on the highway, fast (but safe) lane changes, etc., but nothing too aggressive, e.g. no launches, burning rubber, drifting, tight turns that would make most passengers uncomfortable, etc. I used to engine brake, but have learned not to. I still downshift when it's called for, of course, and double clutch, but not to slow the car down.

Anything else you need to know about the car or my driving style, local roads and weather, etc., feel free to ask.

So here goes:

Pads/Rotors: Power Stop Z23 or Z26 (probably Z23 for my driving style and needs)

Clutch: Either an SBC K05048-HD for ~$220-230 or an SBC K05048-HD-O for ~$335. The former is rated up to 300HP while the latter up to 320HP. It seems like either would be suitable for my needs, but I've been advised that the latter would be less likely to burn out sooner. But it's also ~$105-$115 more for just 20HP more clamping power. Does anyone know what the real-world difference between the two is, for my driving style & needs?

Throwout Bearing: Pretty much everyone advises literally throwing out the aftermarket throwout bearing and getting the OEM one instead, which is sourced from several makers, including NSK. Is the NSK 48TKT3202 ok, or should I go to a Mitsubishi dealer and get it from them?

Timing Belt: I was going to get the Gates complete kit, with water pump & hydraulic tensioner, but was advised to get the more basic kit and buy the OEM tensioner separately. It's pretty pricey at $110-$140, but if it's the right part then it's the right part.

But are the rest of the Gates parts ok, e.g. belts, idlers, (non-hydraulic) tensioner, etc.?

There's also the SKF TBK167P kit, which also includes 2 cam seals and a TB cover seal, for $13 more. Is this preferable to the Gates, or is the Gates ok and get the $21 Dayco SK0079 seal kit separately?

Water Pump: Gates 42163 for $25 or AISIN WPM012 for $40

Thermostat: STANT 45869 (195 Degree)

Belts: Gates 9260 (WP/PS), K040372 (A/C) & K040390 (WP/Alt)

Spark Plugs: NGK BPR6ES

Plug Wire Set: NGK 9634

PCV Valve: FRAM FV266

Air Filter: WIX 46264 or K&N E-2875

Fuel Filter: HASTINGS GF288

Oil Filter: FRAM TG7317

Oil
: Mobil 1 10W30 Synthetic High Mileage (skip the HM & get non-HM?)

Transaxle Oil
: Mitsubishi OEM 75W-85 or Motul Gear 300 75W-90

Transfer Case Oil: Red Line 58404 Lightweight Shockproof

Rear Diff Oil: Red Line 58404 Lightweight Shockproof

Power Steering Fluid: Mopar ATF+4 or Valvoline ATF +4 Full Synthetic

Brake/Clutch Fluid: Valvoline DOT 3/4

Coolant: Prestone Concentrate

That's about it, for now. I WILL get the flywheel looked at and resurfaced. Thanks in advance.
 
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Sorry if this is so long that folks hesitate to respond. Would it be easier if I broke it up into task-based lists, e.g. belts, tuneup, fluids, etc.?
 
I'll comment on a few of these.
For rotors, I would go with the cheapest rotors you can find that you trust. Dimples and slots aren't going to do you any good on a stock car. Save your money there. Since your car is a 92, do you have single piston front calipers? If so, I would upgrade those as they are woefully inadequate for even stock cars in my opinion. Then you can do pads and rotors and calipers all at once.
For the water pump, themostat, and timing belt/pulleys/tensioner I would go oem. I don't like to skimp here. The gates belt is good from what I've heard, but I wouldn't trust any of the other components. Jnztuning and extremepsi both I believe sell kits with everything you need. You don't mention the balance shaft belt and tensioner for that, so I would include that in your list as well and go oem on that also.
For the pcv valve, I would go oem. I've seen brand new aftermarket ones leak during a boost leak test right out of the package.
Everything else seems fine. I usually use heavyweight shockproof in my transfer case and rear diff, but I can't remember if the lightweight also works. Lots of debate on this probably.
 
Thanks. I'm replacing a bunch of parts which is why I prefer aftermarket, as OEM can get pricey, but if it's that important I'll get OEM. Are they a lot more expensive than decent aftermarket?

And yes, I'll be replacing the balance shaft belt and tensioner. Basically everything that a proper TB replacement entails. I actually took the top cover off the other day and the TB "looks" in good condition, so I might keep it as is for now as I work on these other jobs, but I'm definitely going to want to replace everything there within a few months if not sooner. But I'll first turn it over by hand to see if there's skipping or roughness before starting the engine up. Since I'm removing the

The Powerstop front pads/rotors set is $100 IIRC and I think it even includes new caliper boots, which I'll actually need. Are there decent alternatives that are much cheaper?

As for the front calipers, single piston, and I'm rebuilding them right now. I actually started it yesterday, after finally getting the stuck pistons out. They'll be as good or better than new when I'm done. I already did the rear ones. I don't recall having major stopping issues with the car, even in wet conditions, but it's been over 5 years since I've driven it. I'll keep the rebuilt stock ones for now but once the car's back on the road I'll pay attention to stopping power and smoothness and see if I notice any issues.

The SBC Stage 1 clutch kit (with an OEM release bearing) is fine for my car and driving style, or do you think it would be safer to go for the Stage 2 kit?
 
Oem is definitely going to be more expensive. Here's a kit that has everything: https://www.extremepsi.com/store/Extreme-PSI-Timing-Belt-Kit-Mitsubishi-Eclipse-90-99.html
I didn't realize how much more the oem water pump is. That's a big difference. It all comes down to what risk you are willing to deal with. Oem is going to last you until the next timing belt change. I've never had any issues with any of the oem timing belt components. That doesn't necessarily mean the aftermarket ones will fail. But if they do, are you willing to accept the downtime and the work to replace those components as every one of those parts, water pump included, requires the removal of the timing belt and then going through the retensioning procedure? If so, and you don't mind, it may be worth it to you to save some money, and there's nothing wrong with that. I would think the water pump would be a little safer to substitute than something critical like the tensioner.

$100 isn't bad for pads and rotors. As a quick comparison, rockauto has centric rotors as cheap as $13 a piece before shipping.

I think the stage one is fine since you are planning on staying pretty much stock. I've had great luck with south bend clutches so I think you are good there.
 
I'll price the various parts and decide which I'll go OEM on. And, like everyone says I "might" someday mod the car and bump up the HP, but no plans any time soon, so I suspect that Stage 1 is fine for my needs right now.

Btw, is it worth getting a K&N air filter for my situation? It's a lot more expensive but I understand that they last 100k miles if cleaned and oiled regularly and actually improve performance a small amount. Should I instead go OEM? And any other parts worth going premium on?

Whatever I do end up getting, it'll likely be better than the generic parts the various service stations I've used over the years put in the car, so between that, flushing and replacing all the old fluids, and restoring or upgrading various parts like brakes, clutch, etc., I should have a nice car in the end.
 
We have sold TONS of aftermarket water pumps, both Gates and GMB, and have never had a single complaint. We only recommend OEM for all timing components (INCLUDING) the belt, but for water pump we recommend aftermarket as we don't feel the price difference is justified by any quality difference. The only NON OEM belt we ever recommend is the Gates Racing Blue belt. K&N air filters are not exactly cheap, but good quality, and OEM is not cheap either. For oil filters, we sell almost exclusively OEM. For rotors, if you still have single piston calipers, I would recommend getting the cheapest rotors, as you are likely going to be upgrading your calipers before too long anyways, and will need larger rotors then. Southbend is a good choice for clutch, and it sounds like stage one is fine for your needs, unless you are planning to up the HP in the near future, in which case I would go with the stage 2 daily.
 
We have sold TONS of aftermarket water pumps, both Gates and GMB, and have never had a single complaint. We only recommend OEM for all timing components (INCLUDING) the belt, but for water pump we recommend aftermarket as we don't feel the price difference is justified by any quality difference. The only NON OEM belt we ever recommend is the Gates Racing Blue belt. K&N air filters are not exactly cheap, but good quality, and OEM is not cheap either. For oil filters, we sell almost exclusively OEM. For rotors, if you still have single piston calipers, I would recommend getting the cheapest rotors, as you are likely going to be upgrading your calipers before too long anyways, and will need larger rotors then. Southbend is a good choice for clutch, and it sounds like stage one is fine for your needs, unless you are planning to up the HP in the near future, in which case I would go with the stage 2 daily.

Thanks. Just to make sure it's clear, my Talon is all stock, but even then, you recommend OEM for timing (other than WP) and most other parts, like oil filter?

And, where do I buy OEM parts? Mitsubishi dealership parts centers? Specialty vendors?

Yeah, I know, total newbie question. :tease:
 
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That link I included in my post from extremepsi has all of the options for the timing components. You can select the oem parts. You can even choose the gates waterpump instead of the oem.
I'll bet RTM racing has all of that stuff also. JNZ tuning will as well.
 
Thanks, I'll take a look at it. With all this new information on doing a proper TB & related parts replacement, I'm going to put off buying anything I've decided what's best for my situation, and focus on other jobs I need to do on the car for now.

Btw, I've done some reading on the PCV valve on the turbo DSMs, and apparently it's a pretty involved situation that's much more complicated than it is with non-turbo engines. Lots of people ditch the PCV and replace it with check valves and catch cans. That's clearly something I also need to look into, but with all the other things I need to research and do, I'm going to have to put that off for now too.

In the meantime, I'd like to replace the PCV valve since the current one's pretty old, well over a decade. Any recs until I decide what to do with my PCV situation long-term? Should I still splurge and get the OEM, or is a decent aftermarket one ok for a few thousand miles, until the next oil change?

Ok, one other question. When I finally get to doing the TB job, should I replace the harmonic balancer as a precaution? It's definitely been replaced before, at least once and possibly twice. Because it uses a rubber-like damper it's a maintenance item, but I'm not sure how often in terms of time and miles. It's been at least 10 years and likely more like 15 over even more.

The one time I know it was replaced, it broke right after I drove out of a car wash where I chose the underbody option. To this day I wonder if that was what finally did it in. Luckily there was a Meineke service station literally across the street and they were kind enough to replace it for me for a mere $500 or so. The engine made a horrible metal knocking sound and I barely had enough power to drive it there.
 
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