TrevoREX
Proven Member
- 106
- 12
- Sep 2, 2013
-
Kalamazoo,
Michigan
97 Mitsubishi Eclipse Spyder gs-t
Background:
So its the ever familiar m.o., I buy the car cause its kinda cool and Im a fan of dsms. It looks like a good deal and the few things that it needs are simple to fix. The guy wants $2,200. I offer $1,750 given its qwerks. We settle at $1,900 and both of us are happy. I couldnt test drive it because of the lack of battery but we put on some cables and started it so I could see that it would run. It did so we parted ways. Even at 30 years old, I still give people the benefit of the doubt.
Heres what I thought I was getting;
The good:
- 97 spyder gs-t with no rust and a brand new vinyl top
- 1g turbo and pipe kit
- tokiko struts, lowering springs and camber kit
- new front control arms
-95 computer
- awd trans installed with viscous eliminator
- transfer case included
The bad:
- no power steering pump or reservoir
- no coolant reservoir
- no battery/mount/ tray
- bad rims/ tires
What I got was all of the above plus some extra bad, you know, for good measure. The bonus stuff came in the form of;
- a top that was not installed properly
- a top that wont go down (bent articulating arms/ brackets)
- a very hastily done engine swap (engine is a 95)
- bolts loose/ stripped, wrong or missing
- wiring not plugged in and retaining clips broken
- vacuum hoses brittle or missing
- hose clamps loose
- oil leaks
- clogged cpv
- weak brakes front and rear
- bad slave cylinder
- way worn clutch
- bad alternator
- leaky rack
- improperly installed gauge faces (cant see em at night)
- other nit picky things
Having owned one other dsm, Im familiar with the basic upkeep of these cars. Im also comfortable with the comparison of these cars to old Harleys as far as needing some regular lovin via a wrench. That being said, this will be most in-depth Ive got to just get the car up to snuff. Luckily Ive got a shop in town (Graveyard Motorsports), that has stuff in stock and some of the random bits available used. There are also a couple other places to get used oem and performance stuff.
Plans/ ideas:
There is a road coarse in our area (Gingerman Raceway) so I want to build a car that I can drive there on occasion. Other than that, I want to build a safe, reliable and fun car to drive during the summer. Given the unpredictable availability of used performance stuff, I havent followed the traditional upgrade path, however, Im not implementing all of my purchases until it is safe to do so. Once I get into the final build stages I will buy factory new stuff but for the transitional period Im savin money where I can.
Engine/ drivetrain: goal; 400 ish awhp on the ground
Upgrades Ive got: (+ if installed)
- used cx racing tubular manifold; massaged and cleaned up welds
- rebuilt mhi 16g big wheel (thx MI turbo)
- used 680 cc injectors
- used 3 megan o2 housing
+ used complete intake hard pipe kit with 1g bypass
+ new specter dual cone high flow air filter
Upgrades I need/ want:
- gm maf
- tuning software
- custom exhaust
- wideband
- boost controler
- fuel pressure regulator
- fuel pump
- water pump
- radiator
- fmic
- street/ track clutch
- TRE trans rebuild
- other bits and pieces
Chassis:
Upgrades Ive got: (+ if installed)
+ Prothane poly mounts
Upgrades I need/ want:
- roll cage
- sub-frame supports
- awd conversion
Suspension/ brakes/ wheels:
Upgrades Ive got: (+ if installed)
+ Tokico shocks and struts
+ lowering springs
+ eccentric bolts for the upper control arms
- 17 primax 618 wheels
Upgrades I need/ want:
- big brake kit
My plans for the car include:
- full maintenance work-up including timing belt (not sure what all has been done so Im gonna do all of it)
- removing the soft top permanently (already done)
- sheet metal the gap where top used to rest when down
- removing all glass and related bits other than windshield
- removing rear seat and trim (already done)
- mount battery in trunk
- mount radiator in trunk and run ducts out bottom where spare would be
- mount spare where the rear seat used to be
- engine bay clean-up
- weld doors
- new paint
- custom leather cover kind of like tonneau
- rework dash
-...other stuff I've forgotten
Background:
So its the ever familiar m.o., I buy the car cause its kinda cool and Im a fan of dsms. It looks like a good deal and the few things that it needs are simple to fix. The guy wants $2,200. I offer $1,750 given its qwerks. We settle at $1,900 and both of us are happy. I couldnt test drive it because of the lack of battery but we put on some cables and started it so I could see that it would run. It did so we parted ways. Even at 30 years old, I still give people the benefit of the doubt.
Heres what I thought I was getting;
The good:
- 97 spyder gs-t with no rust and a brand new vinyl top
- 1g turbo and pipe kit
- tokiko struts, lowering springs and camber kit
- new front control arms
-95 computer
- awd trans installed with viscous eliminator
- transfer case included
The bad:
- no power steering pump or reservoir
- no coolant reservoir
- no battery/mount/ tray
- bad rims/ tires
What I got was all of the above plus some extra bad, you know, for good measure. The bonus stuff came in the form of;
- a top that was not installed properly
- a top that wont go down (bent articulating arms/ brackets)
- a very hastily done engine swap (engine is a 95)
- bolts loose/ stripped, wrong or missing
- wiring not plugged in and retaining clips broken
- vacuum hoses brittle or missing
- hose clamps loose
- oil leaks
- clogged cpv
- weak brakes front and rear
- bad slave cylinder
- way worn clutch
- bad alternator
- leaky rack
- improperly installed gauge faces (cant see em at night)
- other nit picky things
Having owned one other dsm, Im familiar with the basic upkeep of these cars. Im also comfortable with the comparison of these cars to old Harleys as far as needing some regular lovin via a wrench. That being said, this will be most in-depth Ive got to just get the car up to snuff. Luckily Ive got a shop in town (Graveyard Motorsports), that has stuff in stock and some of the random bits available used. There are also a couple other places to get used oem and performance stuff.
Plans/ ideas:
There is a road coarse in our area (Gingerman Raceway) so I want to build a car that I can drive there on occasion. Other than that, I want to build a safe, reliable and fun car to drive during the summer. Given the unpredictable availability of used performance stuff, I havent followed the traditional upgrade path, however, Im not implementing all of my purchases until it is safe to do so. Once I get into the final build stages I will buy factory new stuff but for the transitional period Im savin money where I can.
Engine/ drivetrain: goal; 400 ish awhp on the ground
Upgrades Ive got: (+ if installed)
- used cx racing tubular manifold; massaged and cleaned up welds
- rebuilt mhi 16g big wheel (thx MI turbo)
- used 680 cc injectors
- used 3 megan o2 housing
+ used complete intake hard pipe kit with 1g bypass
+ new specter dual cone high flow air filter
Upgrades I need/ want:
- gm maf
- tuning software
- custom exhaust
- wideband
- boost controler
- fuel pressure regulator
- fuel pump
- water pump
- radiator
- fmic
- street/ track clutch
- TRE trans rebuild
- other bits and pieces
Chassis:
Upgrades Ive got: (+ if installed)
+ Prothane poly mounts
Upgrades I need/ want:
- roll cage
- sub-frame supports
- awd conversion
Suspension/ brakes/ wheels:
Upgrades Ive got: (+ if installed)
+ Tokico shocks and struts
+ lowering springs
+ eccentric bolts for the upper control arms
- 17 primax 618 wheels
Upgrades I need/ want:
- big brake kit
My plans for the car include:
- full maintenance work-up including timing belt (not sure what all has been done so Im gonna do all of it)
- removing the soft top permanently (already done)
- sheet metal the gap where top used to rest when down
- removing all glass and related bits other than windshield
- removing rear seat and trim (already done)
- mount battery in trunk
- mount radiator in trunk and run ducts out bottom where spare would be
- mount spare where the rear seat used to be
- engine bay clean-up
- weld doors
- new paint
- custom leather cover kind of like tonneau
- rework dash
-...other stuff I've forgotten
