1G Eagle Talon first car

[madjoe]

hey so I'm looking at getting an eagle talon as my first project. the car I'm looking at has engine trouble so worst case scenario it needs an engine swap. how are these as project cars? not exactly wanting advise on buying my exact example. but what are the like to work on and drive?
thanks to anyone that replies

 

[Sirius1995]

hey so I'm looking at getting an eagle talon as my first project. the car I'm looking at has engine trouble so worst case scenario it needs an engine swap. how are these as project cars? not exactly wanting advise on buying my exact example. but what are the like to work on and drive?
thanks to anyone that replies

Engine swap or removal and replacement? Are you getting tsi or esi?

 

[madjoe]

Engine swap or removal and replacement? Are you getting tsi or esi?

removal and replacement and its a tsi

looks like your situation is almost exactly like mine when you bought your car, any suggestions?

 

[pauleyman]

Welcome to the forum. Easy to work on is very subjective. Some parts are getting harder to find. I think it's easy compared to some other makes and models

 

[Sirius1995]

removal and replacement and its a tsi

looks like your situation is almost exactly like mine when you bought your car, any suggestions?

I have a lot of DSMs, though just got rid of sum

I'm glad to hear you're trying to revive one, specially 4g63t one

Engine replacements are stupidly easy on them, if you know what you're doing and turned a wrench before and have engine hoist and at least a car port, you can take out and put another engine in like 4hours

What year talon you're getting? do you know if it has 6bolt or 7 bolt engine?

 

[madjoe]

well its a 1992 but I have no idea if its a 7 or 6 bolt. I will be hoping to buy a 6 bolt because of the crankwalk. are 7 bolt crankwalks that bad?

 

[madjoe]

also dont get your hopes up ( i havent gotten it yet)

 

[Sirius1995]

well its a 1992 but I have no idea if its a 7 or 6 bolt. I will be hoping to buy a 6 bolt because of the crankwalk. are 7 bolt crankwalks that bad?

It could be either since -92 7bolt was introduced in DSMs but I bet it's 7bolt since they're more common in general, 6bolt still can have crankwalk as well, but on design of 7 bolt it happens more frequently I suppose, til they fixed it on evo5 4g63t, so if you can get a Evo 5-9 crankshaft on 7bolt, that's bolt on and reduces the crankwalk a bit, doing oil gallery mods will help prevent it greatly

What you wanna look for getting DSMs is strut towers and rockers for rust, which engine it has and how well maintained and what mods it has if any, and if it do, is it tuned properly, ECM link possibly? Other than that they're pretty solid cars

 

[madjoe]

yeah ive seen strut towers and rockers rust right through and its so sad. the one I'm looking at has a failed engine and so i will be replacing it anyway. the one thing that I don't like about it is the fact that its an automatic. but yeah I think crank walk is preventable 100% but its just one more thing to worry about on a car from 1992. how is its automatic do you know?

 

[97egl]

well its a 1992 but I have no idea if its a 7 or 6 bolt. I will be hoping to buy a 6 bolt because of the crankwalk. are 7 bolt crankwalks that bad?

Being its a 1g and an auto your chances of crankwalk are minimal. It mostly happened to 2GA (95-97) manual cars. 98 and 99 had a better thrust bearing design.

When you are looking for an engine I would not worry much about if it's a 6 or 7 bolt.

 

[madjoe]

thanks that helps but im also wondering if a a manual swap would be better or worse because some cars have horrible automatics

 

[Sirius1995]

thanks that helps but im also wondering if a a manual swap would be better or worse because some cars have horrible automatics

Automatics are fine if you keep it stock but personally I always prefer manual and if you start to grave more power, manual is easier to work around

 

[Sirius1995]

Being its a 1g and an auto your chances of crankwalk are minimal. It mostly happened to 2GA (95-97) manual cars. 98 and 99 had a better thrust bearing design.

When you are looking for an engine I would not worry much about if it's a 6 or 7 bolt.

You're right that 2g's have more crankwalk problems as they use different oil squirter designs on 7 bolt where 1g 7 bolt had same style squirters as 6bolt, which I think is a big reason for crankwalking but any engine can crankwalk, so it is good to make sure it is on specs

 

[Dericsh]

thanks that helps but im also wondering if a a manual swap would be better or worse because some cars have horrible automatics

The 5 speeds are beginning to have parts availability issues.

 

[Canadian_CD9A]

Talon as your first car, or Talon as your first project? There is a significant difference between the two. I would not buy a 25+ year old car in unknown condition if I needed to depend on it on a daily basis, that's what 5 year old Civics are for.

 

[SixBolt_16G]

I will always love DSMs and I cant ever see myself without one.

I think the hardest thing has been been the meticulous work to keeping a 20+ year old car running in general and then trying to add mods on top of that. Just avoid neglecting it too long because issues WILL gang up on you.. usually when youve acquired a stash of cash . I dont come from a mechanic background, but Ive never been afraid to take anything part and Ive learned a lot in the last few years with the small jobs that Ive done myself and even learning a little about tuning with DSMLink. I have a good understanding of my time constraints due to my job and my mechanical skill level, Ive become good at knowing how much i can chew and knowing when a job is going to be too big for me to swallow. Its really the diagnosing part so that makes things tough sometime so that Im not throwing shots in the dark and replacing every part of a system just to find out that it was something completely different. I appreciate that people around here will break down a testing process 5 different wayto the skill level that you need to finally get it, by simply saying that I dont understand.

Boost leaks can be a pain. Scarce parts, as well (Shout outs to our suppliers and freelancers). Think the worst is when you find a part youre looking for but held hostage by someone looking to make a huge profit from it. Completely understand that that is business, but I love the people, myself included that share things that they no longer need just to see another DSM get fixed and back on the road. Seen it plenty of time on here and for me personally, I just want most of this stuff out of my garage .

Despite what non-DSMers say about DSMs... this particular car has been very reliable. This car is just for carving the backroads for my own personal enjoyment so ive kept it modest with an EVO16G turbo. Gone are the days when I was a kid with a GSX with a "what parts do i need to get to 500 hp" mentality, breaking drivetrain parts left and right and leaving the car on blocks for months on end. Since cruising on the weekend is something that my wife and I like to do together, Im really focused on maintaining something that is going to work every time I turn the key, like her Honda. I got really tired of doing more riding in the passenger seat to car meets then I did driving my own car there.

So... excellent project car, easy to work on. Just have realistic expectations with the goals that you want to achieve relative to your budget and time. Understand that it does, can and will cost you a considerable amount of money at times, whether it be as an initial investment or your timing belt slipping two teeth and wrecking your valves because you neglected that oil leak behind the timing cover for the last couple of month. Be sure to factor in the amount of time you have to commit to understanding the things that make a DSM unique from other cars, especially if it is 6 bolt swapped because if there is something you cant handle yourself, youll have to be able to explain the differences someone else who is working on it. It will definitely be on of the most fun cars youll ever own if can follow those guidelines. Never hurts to seek out other DSMers in your area. Everyone needs another set of experienced hands once in a while.

 

[1990TSIAWDTALON]

you can take out and put another engine in like 4hours

You are HIRED! My engine is almost ready....
To the OP, I have one auto car (and I love it) and 2 stick cars, all 1g's. If you drive hard, a stick car is harder on parts, and as said, parts are getting harder to find. The auto's are pretty stout and with the auto, you ALWAYS stay in boost. A stock DSM isn't hard on the drive train like modded ones are. I think you are "lucky" to find a auto AWD, as they are getting more desirable.
One other thing, hang onto that motor. It should have barely any crank end play being an automatic. Mine was still perfect when I rebuilt it.

 

[madjoe]

well sounds like I will need to consider it. I do not know if I will buy it, but now I have a lot of things to ponder on
thanks everyone

 

[Mahreeoh17]

Talon as your first car, or Talon as your first project? There is a significant difference between the two. I would not buy a 25+ year old car in unknown condition if I needed to depend on it on a daily basis, that's what 5 year old Civics are for.

Funny enough, 25 year old civics also do the trick.

 

[pauleyman]

well sounds like I will need to consider it. I do not know if I will buy it, but now I have a lot of things to ponder on
thanks everyone

We are a group of enthusiasts. We love the cars. I've been doing thisb30 plus years. As much as I love them I cannot recommend one to somebody without mechanical skills or very deep pockets. What is your skill level and is this meant to be a driver?
You're considering a car that needs a motor. Does that mean you're qualified to change it?

 

[Sirius1995]

You are HIRED! My engine is almost ready....

I actually live streamed that to my class when I was in automotive college my evo3 was my final thesis

 

[1990TSIAWDTALON]

I've got 2 motors for 2 1990 DSMs. It just doesn't happen that fast for me but I'm no spring chicken either.

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[madjoe]

We are a group of enthusiasts. We love the cars. I've been doing thisb30 plus years. As much as I love them I cannot recommend one to somebody without mechanical skills or very deep pockets. What is your skill level and is this meant to be a driver?
You're considering a car that needs a motor. Does that mean you're qualified to change it?

Yeah that’s why I’m not going to get it , I’m planning on now an integra as much as I love dsms im just not experienced enough. All you guys really helped stear me away from a mistake thanks

 

[madjoe]

Funny enough, 25 year old civics also do the trick.

Funny enough I hate civics

 

[madjoe]

No offence