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Street Build Galant VR4 831/2000

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jay-red

10+ Year Contributor
92
4
Dec 11, 2009
sacramento, California
Figured I would put together a complete build log for my Galant project, seeing as I am getting close to it being road worthy again...

The story of this Galant begins about 5 years ago with my friend needing a new car and asking me for help in finding him something. Searching Craigslist endlessly, I stumbled across this Galant for the steal of a price $1800! I told my friend we had to check it out, and were on our way for a test drive. One catch to getting this car for my friend...he couldn't drive stick shift at the time. I drove the car, it all seemed to be ok and we paid him the $1800, didn't even try to talk him down.

My friend drove the car for years as his daily, him not being a "car guy" meant the car stayed stock and was never really beat on. I always reminded him that if he ever needed to sell it, I was first in line to take it off his hands. I got the word that he was getting a new car after the Galant lost compression in one of the cylinders, and I knew it was my chance to pick it up. After we agreed on a very good "friend" price, we limped it to my garage, the last time it would move under its own power for a long time...

The goal of this car is a mild street build that retains mostly stock looks, since I am from California, I would like to make smog checks as headache free as possible, and making sure I pass the visual is a big part of that. It means no emissions delete, all vacuum lines in place, stock intake etc...

Here are the pics I took of it before it would go under the knife, the body is very rough with dings on basically every panel.
IMG_20151022_161008_zpsb55vayoa.jpg

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The engine in the car at the time, looked stock, and we had been told by the PO that it was a "JDM" motor that had been swapped in (little did I know this was NOT the case, I would later find the real origins of this engine). This thing was leaking oil from every possible place it seemed and the entire engine bay was covered in grime.
IMG_20151029_173141_zpsckomanhs.jpg


The infamous timing belt groove from the wrong oil pan bolts:
IMG_20151029_173551_zpsjhogru9w.jpg


A pleasant surprise when I found a small 16g!
IMG_20151029_231440_zpsnt2jbyjp.jpg


Tearing it apart, this engine bay was the worst!
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The old engine removed
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Did I mention there was oil EVERYWHERE!!!
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A lot of cleaning ahead of me:
DSCN0526_zpsl8drmipq.jpg


Some progress in cleaning, trying to shine up this turd:
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Judging by my pics on my photobucket account, I think a lof of the next series of pictures are on my digital camera, I will get those later and keep this post going.
 
No rust, being from California we are lucky that rust isn't even something we normally have to check for on our cars. The interior is good, just needs a good cleaning which is low on the priority list.

Got my camera and found some more pics from the point where the last post left off.

So I got the engine out and wanted to see what caused the zero compression so I began taking apart the engine.

First, once I got the front cover off, I noticed something weird with the balance shaft belt...
DSCN0537_zps0tndnt9h.jpg

closer...
DSCN0538_zpsbikda7zj.jpg

Balance shaft belt snapped and got caught up, it didnt take out the timing belt thankfully, I have no clue how long it was running like this.

Next I got the head off and found exactly what was wrong:
DSCN0540_zpsrw3bbgpe.jpg

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Well there's my problem! A huge chunk missing from one of the valves! I figured the turbo would be damaged from the piece making its way out, but there is no evidence of the piece damaging anything so I got lucky. The rest of the block looked ok, and I thought about just fixing the head and getting all new gaskets and calling it good but I soon found some interesting evidence.
DSCN0544_zpsaup8mbra.jpg


Not pictured, but I determined that the engine had been rebuilt at some point which was cool, but then I realized whoever rebuilt it, used a Hyundai N/A block with no oil squirters. It seems that they at least used turbo pistons but at this point I felt better sourcing a turbo short block if possible.


At this point my friend and I found a poor Eclipse GST that had been sitting for a long time with the engine removed. We got the car super cheap and parted out most of it and basically ended up with the block for free. I sent the block to the machine shop to be bored over and have the deck surfaced. I began building the engine and about halfway through my Wife went into labor with our first child and the project got put on hold for a while.

After some months I was able to get back into the garage and got back to work, I was putting the last piston into the block, and while torquing down the last rod cap, I noticed it wasnt getting tight, after a couple turns the bolt snapped right off. I was pretty let down at this point, realizing I would need to take it all apart, get ARP bolts and take them back to the machine shop to have the ends machined. I wasnt sure what I wanted to do at the point, but soon something would come along to kick start progress again.

DSCN0546_zpsrmorkwax.jpg


My friend sends me a craigslist link for an AWD Laser that had the transfer case lock up and the car was stranded in a neighborhood, the owner had no means of working on it and basically needed to sell it for anything, or it was getting towed and would get nothing. After buying it and getting it towed to my friends shop, we threw in my transfer case and the car was off and driving. The Laser had some upgrades that would save me a little money on top of having a good running engine. We got the car to my place and I proceed to pull the engine.

DSCN0554_zpsl8aqaqvq.jpg

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The engine had good compression and ran well when it was in the car, but while it was out I put all the stuff I had gotten for the other block. I installed ARP head studs, OEM head gasket, balance shaft delete, Evo 9 timing belt, all new OEM gaskets. I got the engine all cleaned up, but did not feel like stripping this ugly blue from the block.

After getting the engine back together I got it into the galant:
IMG_20161006_094452_01_zpsscpvc3k9.jpg
 
Progress is slow when you have a child, so I can only get a little bit done at a time!

So I planned on installing an external oil cooler from a 90 DSM, while testing locations with the bumper off, I noticed something weird with the factory intercooler. I took off the pipes and was greeted to this:
IMG_20161005_154630_01_zpslg3y1zn4.jpg

IMG_20161005_154632_01_zpsbgcvaqu7.jpg


The really bad side had the piping barely holding on, and I am sure there was a boost leak. I have no clue how there could have been damage like this, as there is no evidence of any sort of impact anywhere else. After weighing my options, my friend insisted on just going with an upgraded front mount, this would slow progress down quite a bit.

While we sorted out what to do with the intercooler, my friend had a crazy idea of how to mount the oil cooler:
14231806_1066695253366885_5313393506588015555_o_zpsrmtrzk1t.jpg


We made a bracket that mounted to the AC condenser, and would have air flow from the radiator fan.
IMG_20161005_154548_01_zpso2ixaxam.jpg


Ok on to the front mount! My friend pulled a kit off of a Talon that he was working on that had a Greddy core and a bunch of lovely blue piping. After some mock up we determined that we would be able to make it work, it ended up being a ton more work than we anticipated.

This is what we started with, here we are checking to see if it will even fit:
20160723_183518_zpsqsaaccp8.jpg


We wanted to make it short route, so I clearanced this area as much as I could, it ended up being plenty of room:
IMG_20161006_094419_01_zpse5heparb.jpg


Mounting was actually pretty easy, seeing as the Galant has a bunch of threaded holes for us to use. We decided on using angle aluminum welded to the bottom for mounting and use suspension bushings as isolators:
IMG_20161006_094347_01_zpsn3agfezp.jpg

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To gain maximum clearance we removed the hood latch support, and integrated it into the actual intercooler, providing the support, and an upper mounting point for the intercooler. We mocked it up, then had it welded on.
IMG_20161006_094311_01_zpsjh3xzzlj.jpg

We needed the inlet and outlet to be completely different from what the intercooler had, so I bought this:
IMG_20161006_094412_01_zpszvc0bbxx.jpg


We needed tight bends, so we cut this U in half to make the inlet and outlet. After mocking it up many times we finally committed to welding it:
IMG_20161006_094344_01_zpse1fbi1sl.jpg
IMG_20161006_094241_01_zpsvqscpymh.jpg

IMG_20161006_094238_01_zpssfowcaps.jpg


We got the intercooler mounted:
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The best part about how me mounted it? No trimming was required to fit the bumper! we didnt really plan on this, but when we decided to do a test fit we were amazed that it clears with no trimming.
20160815_232534_zpsdxgn460u.jpg
 
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Now that we had the intercooler sorted out, we had to figure out the piping situation. We had the stuff that was used on the DSM we got the intercooler from, my friend got a couple pieces from someone else, and brought over his crate full of couplers. We mocked up a bunch of times and pieced together what would work with the parts on hand. One of the issues was that the piping was different diameters. The green stuff was like 60mm, same with the white pieces, while we were using 2.5 inch on the intercooler.

Welded on a wider piece to the turbo outlet:
IMG_20161006_094320_01_zps4gw1hhgf.jpg


basically what we started with:
IMG_20161006_094333_01_zpsffh3htrd.jpg

IMG_20161006_094341_01_zpsahl8m3ff.jpg

Some work on the hot site pipe:
IMG_20161006_094234_01_zpss957clfr.jpg

IMG_20161006_094207_01_zpstlphpupk.jpg


Once we were confident with the placement of the placement of the piping, we needed to strip it from all its ugly paint. The blue stuff had at least 4 layers and the white had like 3:
IMG_20161006_094232_01_zpssqcsxwwf.jpg

IMG_20161006_094225_01_zpsolfhcq5y.jpg

IMG_20161006_094222_01_zpsszdaqrct.jpg

IMG_20161006_094219_01_zps0yvmvjub.jpg


I painted the piping matte black, to keep it as stealth as possible, and only used black couplers. Once it was all said and done, it looks pretty nice, and would be hard to tell its not factory at a glance.
20161008_233031_zpsiqqpzlgf.jpg

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A quick mock up with the stock intake:
20161008_235445_zpsow2dxepn.jpg
 
A couple months ago it was 50% off day at Pick and Pull and they happened to have a white Galant I was hoping to steal some body panels off of. Unfortunately the main thing I wanted (Drivers fender) was damaged almost in the same way mine is so I struck out there.

While browsing the random cars in the lot I came across some early 2000's Hyundai Tiberon and noticed the seats looked very nice and were in great shape. Being it was the 50% off day, they were having a special that all seats were $15 each, so I said screw it and grabbed them.

IMG_20161012_133513_01_zpsmnlfotnw.jpg

IMG_20161012_133518_01_zps3shpm3jj.jpg


They look like they will work nicely with some brackets, much easier on the wallet than the Evo seat conversion.
 
Welcome to the forums. I like the recent influx of new Galant VR-4 owners I've seen here lately.

You should start off by building a profile for your car: http://www.dsmtuners.com/threads/welcome-to-dsmtuners-now-go-create-a-dsm-profile.499707/

I'd recommend registering for an account on http://www.galantvr4.org/ if you haven't already. It's a good source of information for Galant VR-4 owners. It's also a great resource for parts.

Those seats look right at home in the Galant. Not bad for $30 bucks!

How do you plan on passing smog with that intercooler piping?
 
Welcome to the forums. I like the recent influx of new Galant VR-4 owners I've seen here lately.

You should start off by building a profile for your car: http://www.dsmtuners.com/threads/welcome-to-dsmtuners-now-go-create-a-dsm-profile.499707/

I'd recommend registering for an account on http://www.galantvr4.org/ if you haven't already. It's a good source of information for Galant VR-4 owners. It's also a great resource for parts.

Those seats look right at home in the Galant. Not bad for $30 bucks!

How do you plan on passing smog with that intercooler piping?
I do have an account on .org, and in fact you have commented on my thread in the newbie section.

As for the smog question, I am hoping that everything will look stock enough to not make the tech look too closely, I know of a couple shops that don't seem to be too strict and I might get away with it. They mostly care about the intake and air box, no open cone filters and chromed out intake pipe and you should be good.
 
As for the smog question, I am hoping that everything will look stock enough to not make the tech look too closely, I know of a couple shops that don't seem to be too strict and I might get away with it. They mostly care about the intake and air box, no open cone filters and chromed out intake pipe and you should be good.

I would strongly recommend against that approach. All the smog shops I've ever been to were all very strict. CA Smog techs go through quite a bit of training, and are subject to serious fines, and possibly the forfeiture of their licenses if the don't abide by CA carb laws. Bottom line, CA smog techs are trained, and aren't idiots. More importantly, the vast majority of them do not let anything slide, as their livelihood depends on them following the law.

If the car has been modified, the tech is going to notice. If the tech notices a modification that's not CARB approved, you'll be forced to revert it back to stock before you can pass. Also, if the car fails smog and is considered a gross polluter, you'll have to go to a referee, which are way more strict.

Take if from me, if you roll the dice with smog in CA, you'll lose every time. I'd suggest either reverting the car to stock for the smog, or finding a hookup.
 
I would strongly recommend against that approach. All the smog shops I've ever been to were all very strict. CA Smog techs go through quite a bit of training, and are subject to serious fines, and possibly the forfeiture of their licenses if the don't abide by CA carb laws. Bottom line, CA smog techs are trained, and aren't idiots. More importantly, the vast majority of them do not let anything slide, as their livelihood depends on them following the law.

If the car has been modified, the tech is going to notice. If the tech notices a modification that's not CARB approved, you'll be forced to revert it back to stock before you can pass. Also, if the car fails smog and is considered a gross polluter, you'll have to go to a referee, which are way more strict.

Take if from me, if you roll the dice with smog in CA, you'll lose every time. I'd suggest either reverting the car to stock for the smog, or finding a hookup.
Im not too worried about it, worst case is they notice the piping and refuse to do the test and I go on my merry way.
 
Have you ever smogged a car in CA before?

Even if they find illegal mods, they still smog the car. My G35 passed the smog test with flying colors, yet was failed because of an illegal intake system. The tech notified me the car failed before it even went on the rollers...

If you fail miserably and the car is flagged as a gross polluter, you'll probably never pass if you have to take it to a referee. They will nitpick the car to death. Literally, if you've got a missing vacuum line you're f***ed.

Once you fail smog there's no going back, which it why I'm warning you. Not trying to be a dick, just trying to inform you so you can attempt to avoid the hassle.
 
Have you ever smogged a car in CA before?

Even if they find illegal mods, they still smog the car. My G35 passed the smog test with flying colors, yet was failed because of an illegal intake system. The tech notified me the car failed before it even went on the rollers...

If you fail miserably and the car is flagged as a gross polluter, you'll probably never pass if you have to take it to a referee. They will nitpick the car to death. Literally, if you've got a missing vacuum line you're f***ed.

Once you fail smog there's no going back, which it why I'm warning you. Not trying to be a dick, just trying to inform you so you can attempt to avoid the hassle.
I have smogged many cars in CA, I have lived here all my life and have been dealing with smogging modified cars since 2006 with my 240sx. I know for a fact going to a "no pass no pay" station they will not even attempt a smog check if they know it wont pass a visual, since they would be guaranteeing they would not be paid. I have also had a car flagged as a gross polluter and the only difference it made was I had to take it to a test only shop, which are plentiful.

Like I mentioned before, I know of a couple shops personally that are not as strict as others in the area, personal experience and a friend that also has used the same shop a few times, hell my friend just had a 1g smogged without a muffler, and that should technically be a fail.
 
That's the complete opposite of any experience I've ever had with smog. I've smogged a dozen cars at half a dozen different shops, and none of them are like you describe. Looks like I need to go to NorCal next time I need something smogged.
 
Finally had some time to work on the Galant, this time I was sorting out the radiator. Because of the intercooler piping route, I have gone with a triple core Honda half size radiator. I did a bit of searching and quite a few people have successfully ran this radiator so I am giving it a shot.

I needed to get it to sit at the correct location, and to do this my friend and I made a bracket that would shift the radiator over while utilizing the stock mount points.
My friend made these risers out of UHMW plastic:
20161026_094649_zpstv8sprzo.jpg


We took some bar stock and made this:
20161026_094640_zpsm54eobuh.jpg

20161026_094826_zpsjm0gu5wl.jpg


Placed into the car:
20161026_094842_zpssqrif0cs.jpg

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To give you a better shot of how it all works:
20161026_095030_zpsdedyyz8x.jpg


After test fitting it I gave it a few coats of black paint to ward off rust:
20161026_100554_zpsivc1luyw.jpg


After getting it all in place I was able to fill it and test it out, the car officially runs, and I am squashing bugs as I find them. First there was a rattle coming from the water pump, turns out I forgot to tighten the pulley bolts. Then the power steering was leaking, replaced the O-Rings. Then there were at least 3 coolant leaks, I have to wait for it all to cool down before I tackle some of those. Then to top it off, the radiator fan did not turn on, not sure what went wrong there, my wiring or the sensor maybe...

In any case, this is a nice sight to see:
20161026_152432_zps7jphu7tl.jpg


It idles pretty steady, but stumbles when you rev it and let it drop. I have to check the timing once I get the cooling sorted out.
 
I tried the honda half just like yours. I like your mount, looks great. Didn't work for me when in traffic once summer hit unfortunately. Was perfect any other time LOL. I swapped back to my stocker with one slim fan and haven't had any issues yet. The Honda just isn't enough surface area to disapate the heat. I'm planning to install the mishimoto radiator soon, with 2 slim fans. But will need to move the bottom mounts over like a inch to fit perfect. I also have my piping like yours and love how short it is. :) let me know if you have better luck! Congrats on getting the gvr4 running bro. They are awesome cars to own haha
 
Haven't had much of a chance to hit the garage lately, but the other day I was able to put a couple hours in.

I figured out the fan issue, first the radiator fan switch (at the bottom of the radiator) is bad, I jumpered the connector and the fan comes on. The AC condenser fan also was not turning on, the fuse was missing from the box, replaced it and both fans now run!

I sorted the coolant leaks, but decided to get new rad/heater hoses. So after I swap that basically every coolant related hose will have been replaced.

I am very close to being able to move it, after the coolant hoses are swapped, I have to take off the t-case and replace the axle seal. After that I should just have to fill the trans/t-case, bleed the clutch and it should move!
 
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