Old School DSM & 4G63 goodness-Ads, Commercials, Tuning etc.

[ArcticTsi]

Some souvenirs from the 1988 Los Angeles Auto Show when the X2S debuted.

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[ArcticTsi]

Where did you get a model with the gsx style front bumper? Most I see are the fwd style.

These were models from Japan. The one your thinking of is the large 1/16 scale model that came with a test drive back in the day. Those were all GS models.

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[ist dwa]

I can't believe I just saw this thread for the first time. It has taken me hours to carefully read through it all and watch the videos to this point. I have so many questions, thoughts, and stuff I would like to add.

One, thanks to everyone for sharing. I have been collecting anything DSM related when I became interested in the cars in 95 and I can' believe how much stuff I have never seen, I thought I had most of it.

Two, I want to know what mods were done to the early road racing cars? Not to shit on Dave B at all but he claims he was the first to run 13's. I seriously doubt that knowing all you need is upped boost and a full exhaust to do so. Based on that sweet video of the IMSA Saturday night, the cars had to retain, stock turbos and boost pressure as well as gearing so not them...but they already had a VPC for an American made Mitsu, how was this so? A VPC accounted for so much extra power, it automatically would send you into the 12s because it eliminated fuel cut. Now, a friend and I have been doing research and HKS was making VPCs in the early 80's for what ever car so I think I figured out the key to early DSM power. The HKS VPC is universal UNIT however there is a socketed chip in them, so basically from car to car they just changed this chip to tell it what size injectors and # of cylinder, remember Buschur Racing sold a 660 VPC chip (yeahh I owned one).

From there when did the HKS VPC become sold in America? That article from Motor Trend "Smoking Z-28s..." is from DEC 91. The Galant was being raced in Japan while the 1gAs were rolling off the assembly line so I wonder if HKS Japan already had this going. Prior to that there was no current GVR4 or 1G ecu for HKS to make the parts for, remember it uses an intermediate harness to connect the VPC unit and ECU. So from Nov 88- Dec 91 the VPC was sold in America, who got it on their car first was the first one to run 13s and 12s. Full Exhaust, K&N, VPC, 20psi on a 14b, with race gas and you get low13's or high 12's!

I just really want to know the early paths of modifying the cars, that is the mystery I have been trying to unravel for sooo many year. I mean I am good friends with an original owner DSMer who is from Northeast OH that was racing and hanging out with Shep (he was in Sheps wedding), Dave, Switzer, AL Blaha, etc who were really the pioneers of what we calls the modified DSM game today. But I feel like that was a little late as this stuff in this thread is literally 88 and 89. Who was tigging up an exhaust on an 89 Talon is what I want to know, who was the one putting a bleeder T on the wastegate Line. Who the first guy to run 15psi and hit fuel cut and thought he blew his car UP.....??

I'll leave this here for now, I don't want to make a 10 page reply which I easily could. I will be replying back with all kinds of things periodically.

I will preview with this:
-I did my 98' Senior High School English thesis on the DSM, I spent countless hours at the library going through microfiche files of any car magazine from the late 80s.
-I tracked down the head designer David O'Connel from the X2S concept Eclipse back in 2010 and did an interview with him.
-And much more.

I'll leave this as my oldest related article.......

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[steve]

Find an archive of the Talon Digest for some view into the pre-website DSM world. It wouldn't tell you who was the first to do something but you'll see when things became common enough that people were talking about them.

 

[ist dwa]

Already a head of you, I found this this afternoon:

Subject: Update
Date: Fri, 10 Apr 1992 09:18 EST
From: GREG GRANVILLE <ecl.psu.edu!JSB>

.......
The HKS VPC (Vein Pressure Converter) is supposed to be available VERY
soon. I've been told that it eliminates the factory mass airflow sensor,
and the HKS fuel computer (F-CON) is NOT needed to use it! It drastically
improves intake airflow, and provides the factory fuel computer with
input data that allows it to provide greatly increased power output.
The price is supposed to be around $650. I'm looking forward to getting
my hands on one of these, and a max-flo turbo ($800) someday.
The cost of turning a Diamond Star into a 300hp monster is getting a
little cheaper as time goes on!
...Greg
[email protected]

So we now know there was no VPC by mid 92. I have been searching for old HKS catalogs but couldn't find any. I did find a pic of HKS catalog that showed they made a VPC for an 87 Mark III Supra.

So what mods were done to those race cars in 89? That really was my question, I suppose?

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Then a whole year goes by and the VPC has been release and people are using it, and guess whose name we see DAVID BUSCHUR, no surprise.

Date: Wed, 23 Jun 1993 08:33 EDT
From: radius!oas.psu.edu!FBS3 (SZYMKOWSKI.FRANK)
Subject: stuff
Terry Wells- what kind of times did you turn in the 1/4 mile? What do you
have done to your car?
Cary Eng-
I know a guy with a AWD Talon that is just about as fast as Dave Buschur.
This is what he has done: HKS EVC, HKS VPC, no cat HKS exhaust,
HKS power flow air cleaner, Max Flow turbo, HKS intercooler pipe upgrade,
stock intercooler, bigger injectors, centerforce clutch, and a few other
secret tricks. He lightened it by removing the seats, insulation.
His biggest asset is that he can drive it! He can cut a great lite, launch
without bogging, and shifts FAST. This is how you cut good times in drag
racing in a AWD car. A lesser driver in his car would only be able to
turn about 13.3-13.40.
Dave has this done to his car- Walker Dynomax exhaust, HKS VPC,GCC, fuel
pump
with regulator, K&N air cleaner, 20G turbo by Turbo Performance center,
ported turbo housing, o2, downpipe, custom stainless intercooler piping,
and I believe, a boost regulation system (Greg?). Again Dave is a Great
driver, a MUST in drag racing!


From my understand Dave used to have an actual snail mailing list of some sort before Todd Day built the original Talon Digest email forum. I'm pretty sure Dave has all the old letters and I saw them in the shop at the SO one year, he was documenting all his findings just like he always has. It would take me weeks to read through them all and they are Dave's and not published any where.

 

[steve]

Already a head of you, I found this this afternoon:

Lol, ahead? I read all that back in April of 92...

 

[DreamChaser7]

One of best threads on here. Makes me realize I was lucky to fall in love with them the way I did. Just happened upon one at 16 and it was over. Had I been just a little bit older my life would’ve been different, cuz it would’ve been nothing but DSM from the beginning . Would’ve been awesome to be around the scene when Shep and everyone were breaking the glass ceilings. Anywho, my wife got me this for Xmas so thought I’d put it up. I see it was on page 2, but we got it just last year. From a National Geographic mag originally.

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[ArcticTsi]

I can't believe I just saw this thread for the first time. It has taken me hours to carefully read through it all and watch the videos to this point. I have so many questions, thoughts, and stuff I would like to add.

One, thanks to everyone for sharing. I have been collecting anything DSM related when I became interested in the cars in 95 and I can' believe how much stuff I have never seen, I thought I had most of it.

Two, I want to know what mods were done to the early road racing cars? Not to shit on Dave B at all but he claims he was the first to run 13's. I seriously doubt that knowing all you need is upped boost and a full exhaust to do so. Based on that sweet video of the IMSA Saturday night, the cars had to retain, stock turbos and boost pressure as well as gearing so not them...but they already had a VPC for an American made Mitsu, how was this so? A VPC accounted for so much extra power, it automatically would send you into the 12s because it eliminated fuel cut. Now, a friend and I have been doing research and HKS was making VPCs in the early 80's for what ever car so I think I figured out the key to early DSM power. The HKS VPC is universal UNIT however there is a socketed chip in them, so basically from car to car they just changed this chip to tell it what size injectors and # of cylinder, remember Buschur Racing sold a 660 VPC chip (yeahh I owned one).

From there when did the HKS VPC become sold in America? That article from Motor Trend "Smoking Z-28s..." is from DEC 91. The Galant was being raced in Japan while the 1gAs were rolling off the assembly line so I wonder if HKS Japan already had this going. Prior to that there was no current GVR4 or 1G ecu for HKS to make the parts for, remember it uses an intermediate harness to connect the VPC unit and ECU. So from Nov 88- Dec 91 the VPC was sold in America, who got it on their car first was the first one to run 13s and 12s. Full Exhaust, K&N, VPC, 20psi on a 14b, with race gas and you get low13's or high 12's!

Welcome to the party! I'm an original DSM owner and still have it. I was in the US Military travelling between Japan and the US from the late 80s up till about 2010. All the while playing with my Talon. I was stationed at Grand Forks ND, for a while which proved to be a blessing. I had the Archer Brothers out in Duluth MN. Back in the day, I ran an HKS Fuel Cut Defencer (FCD), The standard Airbox mod, Crushed BOV, and an HKS exhaust (which came from AR). The car was noticeably quicker, but I did not drag race. I was going the track route and built it up with Whiteline, Noltec, Tein bits. Added a manual boost controller, larger intercooler, and put the car on a huge diet. The car was inherently fast when built out for track work.

I mention this to lean into your question of who was the 1st into the 13's. I think a lot of us OGs agree with you that it was not the DSM camp you mentioned who thinks they are.

This is just my 2 cents and humble opinion. So here we go, there were two camps that got cars early. Archer Racing and Dave Wolin Motorsports

The Archers were the first to campaign, April 1989, quite a while before the Talon was even available to the public consumer. So that means they had fully built race ready cars already to campaign for a full championship series in April of 1989. So you know that didn't happen overnight. Then to go on to win the championship for the next 4 or 5 seasons

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Tech Spec: Mitsubishi 4G63 turbocharged 2 liter engine, HKS VPC, HKS EVC, Modified Mitsubishi 5 speed

You can see how dominate the Archer Camp was right out the gate, campaigned 3 cars and all 3 finished in the top 5. As you mentioned EVCs been out since the 80s, bought my first HKS EVC 1, in 87 or 88. So since these were backed cars, first to market, its safe to decipher they were setup to squeeze what they could from the 4G63 in addition to any weight and body mods. As this was all very much part PR/Marketing strategy as well.

So if I were a betting man, the Archer cars were all unknowingly in the 13s before the public even got its first car.

The HKS kits that were out at the time help this argument too. The HKS kit boasted a 1/4 mile of 14 flat with exhaust, EVC, PFC, hi-flo fuel pump, hacked mass on a full weight car. This was further validated when Motor Trend tested one of the cars and got a 14.2.

Honorable mention goes to Paul Rossi Racing. He got his factory car a few months after Archer Racing. Funny side note, his car was actually a Laser, they didn't have a Talon ready for him. So he go a a Laser and the front and rear fascia/taillamps of the Talon so his crew could swap them out and campaign the car as a Talon. Rossi would go on to crush everyone in IMSA. Once even starting dead last (39th) place, for not participating in qualifying, car not ready. Still went on to win the race. Needless to say these three camps proved in 1989 that the cars were potent right off the line with little effort.

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[ist dwa]

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That is exactly the stuff I want to know, I need more.
Line of questions-
1. So the IL Gov got vin #1 DSM in Nov 88. Is that the date it rolled off the assembly line or just when he received it, what is the earliest VIN #?

2. When did the Archer Bros and Dave Wolin Motorsports get their DSMs?
2a) Tech Spec: Mitsubishi 4G63 turbocharged 2 liter engine, HKS VPC, HKS EVC, Modified Mitsubishi 5 speed . Where did you get this info? I want to know more of this, if a VPC was available in 90 from HKS did they have parts strictly for race teams in beta and then sold them to the general public in mid to late 92 as alluded to from tuners in the mid to late 92 race season.

3. When did they start selling DSMs to the general public?

There is an early Vin# thread on tuners https://www.dsmtuners.com/threads/1g-earliest-production-date.475759/#post-153806755

And my contribution for the day.

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[DreamChaser7]

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That is exactly the stuff I want to know, I need more.
Line of questions-
1. So the IL Gov got vin #1 DSM in Nov 88. Is that the date it rolled off the assembly line or just when he received it, what is the earliest VIN #?

2. When did the Archer Bros and Dave Wolin Motorsports get their DSMs?
2a) Tech Spec: Mitsubishi 4G63 turbocharged 2 liter engine, HKS VPC, HKS EVC, Modified Mitsubishi 5 speed . Where did you get this info? I want to know more of this, if a VPC was available in 90 from HKS did they have parts strictly for race teams in beta and then sold them to the general public in mid to late 92 as alluded to from tuners in the mid to late 92 race season.

3. When did they start selling DSMs to the general public?

There is an early Vin# thread on tuners https://www.dsmtuners.com/threads/1g-earliest-production-date.475759/#post-153806755

And my contribution for the day.

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Imma hafta dig mine out now

 

[ist dwa]

Just found this nugget!

Subject: Reiamond Stars in Turbo magazine?
Date: Wed, 31 Jul 91 11:27:41 EDT
From: orl.mmc.com!scottk (Scott Krywick)
> Has anyone been getting Turbo and hi-tech performance magazine...
> ...which back issues might have articles on souping up Diamond
> Star turbo cars.
morning Greg,
I've received Turbo for a year and bought them at the supermarket
a year prior and have most of the issues since Sept. '89.
The following are must have articles:
Sept '89 : pp. 40-42 & 58-59 First article on <>* cars featuring
the AWD model.
Jan '91 : pp. 38-40 Suspension Techniques' techiniques on
the AWD model.
March '91: pp. 22-25 HKS Stage % upgrades (sorry about the
VAX reference) on AWD model.
May '91 : pp. 35-36 PSI upgrades on AWD model.
Other articles include:
Jan '90 : pp. 38-40 Eagles in IMSA
Nov '90 : pp. 50-55 Blurb on suspension (most repeated in
Jan 91 issue.
July '90 : pp. 44-45 & 69 article on the Galant VR-4.
You'll notice that all articles apply to the AWD <>*, but most upgrades,
except for maybe the rear suspension, are applicable to FWD models.
Happy zine'ing
scottk - GSX in Florida

 

[ist dwa]

Getting closer, here we see a modified MAF, looks like they were cutting in half and removing the air silencer out of it. If they were running a MAF they clearly weren't running a VPC yet, or at least they weren't selling them.
Pre-programmed Fuel Management System- what is this?????? I wonder when Al Blaha started doing modified maf thing???

Subject: More Archer Brothers Catalog
Date: Thu, 10 Oct 91 11:19:33 EDT
From: "Edwin F. Gier" <crdec6.apgea.army.mil!efgier>
POWER PACKAGES
Stage I Package Price: $ 425.99
K&N Air Filter
Street Legal Exhaust System
0-60 in 6.3 sec. 1/4 mile e.t. 14.64@ 94MPH 215 HP
______________________________________________________________________
Stage II Package Price: $1,119.94
K&N Air Filter
Street Legal Exhaust System
Electronic Valve Controller set at 14 PSI
Turbo Boost Gauge w/mounting cup
0-60 in 5.4 sec. 1/4 mile e.t. 14.30@ 98MPH 240 HP
______________________________________________________________________
Stage III Package Price: $3,815.69
K&N Air Filter
Street Legal Exhaust System
Electronic Valve Controller
Turbo Boost Gauge w/mounting cup
Pre-programmed Fuel Management System
Modified Air Mass Sensor
High Volume/High Pressure Fuel Pump
Sport Turbo Upgrade
Hight Performance Centerforce Clutch
0-60 in 4.69 sec. 1/4 mile e.t. @103MPH 325+HP
______________________________________________________________________
COMPONENT PRICES
K&N Air Filter ............................................$ 44.95
Street Legal Exhaust System ...............................$ 389.95
Electronic Valve Control ..................................$ 611.95
Turbo Boost Gauge .........................................$ 61.95
Optional Mounting Cup ...................................$ 19.95
Fuel Management System ....................................$ 620.95
Modified Air Mass Sensor ..................................$ 240.95
Core Charge .............................................$ 400.00
High Volume/High Pressure Fuel Pump .......................$ 208.95
Sport Turbo Upgrade .......................................$1,199.95
High Performance Centerforce Clutch .......................$ 424.95


Well this is some interesting info on the MAF.

Subject: Some random info
From: ecl.psu.edu!JSB
Date: Fri, 18 Oct 1991 14:21 EST


Another point of interest for those of you going to bigger turbos ..
They will modify YOUR air-mass sensor for just $150 for increased
flow capability. This modification is pretty much the same mod that
HKS charges approx $240 + a $400 core charge for. ---My guess is that
they install some aux inlet tubes around the perimeter of the air-mass
sensor, then re-calibrate the gain of the output op-amps from the
sensor to compensate for the increased airflow. (Note: this is just
my theory... I'd really like to see one before I start hacking on
mine) They also claim, that unlike the sensor modified by HKS, that
theh stock fuel injection will work with it fine. (HKS recommends their
PFC in conjunction with their modified air-mass sensor)
Alamo also sells the Max-Flow turbocharger, which is also available
from Turbo Performance Center. As it turns out, the Max-Flow charger
is a modified, enlarged, and lightened version of our stock Mitsu TD-05
turbo. As I understood it, they leave the turbine side alone, they just
enlarge to compressor side. Supposedly, they do this to maintain, or
even slightly enhance low RPM response. Mike told me that it doesn't have
quite the top end of the HKS sport turbo, but has a bit more on the
bottom and mid-range. (So they say) The price of the Max-Flow turbo is
$895 exchange (you have to send your original turbo back). For comparison
sake, the HKS sport turbo goes for $1195 outright.

And here we go Dec of 91 and finally someone has figured out what fuel cut is. Not even the Archer bros knew the answer unless they were lying.

Subject: Tips from the Archer Bros
From: ecl.psu.edu!JSB
Date: Tue, 3 Dec 1991 14:14 EST
I got my MDSOG newsletter a few weeks ago, and haven't seen anyone else
post any goodies from it yet... I just can't resist.
The Archers have a monthly column in the newsletter, and this time they
gave answers to what were some of the questions they were most frequently
asked...........
Q: I have an HKS max-flow exhaust and I get 12.5 PSI boost up to about
5,000 RPM, then it rises suddenly to 16 PSI as I approach the redline.
(This happens even on vehicles that have an EVC, or ANY boost controller)
A: The max-flow (which is no longer sold) is in many cases too efficient.
The elimination of the catalyst makes the backpressure so low that the
wastegate cannot operate properly. It's recommended that you re-install
the catalyst and the over-boost condition will go away.
--My comments: I noticed this when I first installed my max-flow, and
never really gave it much thought. I've been told that a larger wastegate
will also solve the problem. However, since most turbos have integral
wastegates, you might as well go to a bigger turbo in the process.
I've also nailed down this high boosting at high RPMs as the cause of
my fuel shutoff problem during cold weather. It seems that the fuel
computer on the DSM turbos shuts down the fuel when a certain air-mass
flow level is exceeded. Although it's not a fixed fuel cut at a particular
boost pressure, it does cut off the fuel if the boost gets to high.
Exactly when depends on the intake air temperature and corresponding
mass-airflow volume.

 

[ist dwa]

New post just to break it up. I absolutely love this post, these are the pioneers we owe so much to, the fact this guy figured out fuel cut, logging injector duty cycles and how the FCD was going to work with the VPC is just amazing. When I read all this stuff back in the 90s it made no sense to me but now it does. Just stunning how smart some of these guys really were.

Subject: Mods
Date: Fri, 5 Jun 1992 14:30 EST
From: GREG GRANVILLE <ecl.psu.edu!JSB>
>Has anyone thought about putting a guage onto the output of the
>airmass sensor? I figure this would give a rough estimate of the
>horsepower output of the engine.
Yes, a gauge on the output of the air-mass sensor would give a fairly
accurate indication of engine output, provided that the air/fuel
ratio remained constant. If you like a lot of gauges (like I do!)
then something like this might make an interesting addition to your
gauge panel.
>As a side note, how over-engineered are the various engine
>monitoring sensors? How much extra load do you think they can
>handle (due to low restriction exhaust, high capacity turbo's,
>fuel-pumps, etc.)
Good question. PSI says you can go as high as 285hp with the stock
air-mass sensor. Their prototype test vehicle (with the "modified"
air-mass sensor) pulls a claimed 390hp. The BIG question in my
mind is wether or not the electronics of the air-mass sensor have
been modified to re-calibrate it, or has it just mechanically been
"opened-up" to permit more airflow. I'm guessing that the latter might
be all they have actually done. If that's true, then the sensor may
be able to put out a fairly linear output signal at close to double
the intended maximum airflow rate. Of course, the even bigger question
is how does the engine computer respond to a signal this large from
the air-mass sensor. I've already discovered (and perhaps others here
have also) that the computer will shut off the fuel when the massairflow
becomes to large. It seems that there is a "fairly" easy
way to bypass this fuel-cut condition... HKS has a small little
box called a FCD (fuel cut defencer) that is part of their fuel
computer upgrade. HKS says that their fuel computer must be used if
fuel-cutoff is defeated. However, I have it from a reliable source
that the HKS fuel computer (for our cars anyway) does not really
replace the stock engine computer. Actually, it just supplies the
stock computer with some slightly skewed sensor inputs (like a
cooler that actual coolant temperature) in order to get the computer
to make the fuel mixture richer. This sounds reasonable, except that
it really doesn't extent the range of the fuel delivery system.
Once the injectors are open 100% of the time, there ain't no way
that an altered fuel curve, from whatever source, is going to
keep up with massive increases in air intake capacity. I've looked
at the injector pulses on my car while at full throttle in third
gear on a portable digital scope (don't try this at home) and seen
about 85% of max on the injectors. And that's at only slightly higher
than stock boost. Interesting, eh ?
Oh well, I'm still trying to figure out just how the heck to defeat
the computer fuel-cut without giving HKS any more of my money.
Once I get that figured out, then I'll worry a bit more about the
air-fuel ratio.

 

[ArcticTsi]

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That is exactly the stuff I want to know, I need more.
Line of questions-
1. So the IL Gov got vin #1 DSM in Nov 88. Is that the date it rolled off the assembly line or just when he received it, what is the earliest VIN #?

2. When did the Archer Bros and Dave Wolin Motorsports get their DSMs?
2a) Tech Spec: Mitsubishi 4G63 turbocharged 2 liter engine, HKS VPC, HKS EVC, Modified Mitsubishi 5 speed . Where did you get this info? I want to know more of this, if a VPC was available in 90 from HKS did they have parts strictly for race teams in beta and then sold them to the general public in mid to late 92 as alluded to from tuners in the mid to late 92 race season.

3. When did they start selling DSMs to the general public?

There is an early Vin# thread on tuners https://www.dsmtuners.com/threads/1g-earliest-production-date.475759/#post-153806755

And my contribution for the day.

In this post I'll touch on your first question

1. So the IL Gov got vin #1 DSM in Nov 88. Is that the date it rolled off the assembly line or just when he received it, what is the earliest VIN #?

The very first production car to roll off the line at the plant was a red 1990 Mitsubishi Eclipse, which was given to then-Gov. Jim Thompson, who helped bring the factory to the Twin Cities. Thompson immediately bought the first Plymouth Laser (black) off the line for his wife, Jayne. These two cars are considered Job #1 for the plant, September 1988. The two cars were held for the formal Grand opening ceremony in Nov. 1988.

The Governor's Eclipse VIN: 4A3CS44U0LE000760.

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Earliest VIN is tough with these because they were build sheets basically and not always sequential. The Champagne H24S Pre-Production model which had a built date of 05.88 is VIN: LE000302 is the oldest pre-production model that was kept in North America.

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[ist dwa]

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I was so obsessed with the vert I didn't even notice I was standing next to DSM #1....but I am sure I saw it anyhow as it is pictured back there. This was my MOD trip in 2010.

Dude you are killing it, keep it coming!

 

[ist dwa]

Speak of the Vert, here is some lucky dude driving it after the show....that's my teal Laser in the background!!!!

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[ist dwa]

We got our first post of how to mod the 1g OEM MAF.

Subject: Re: HKS Upgrades
Date: Thu, 9 Jul 1992 15:11 EST
From: GREG GRANVILLE <ecl.psu.edu!JSB>

Before you put the airmass sensor back in and re-assemble the aircanister,
there is a somewhat more radical mod that you might want
to consider. I did this quite a while back and haven't noticed any
negative effects yet. What I did notice was a very noticeable
improvement in throttle response, and even better breathing on
the top end. The mod consists of simply removing the two pieces
of honeycomb material that is glued into the throats of the airmass
sensor. I haven't heard from anyone that has tried this yet,
so try it at your own risk. If you do try it, I'd recommend that
you disconnect the battery for at least 10 seconds to clear the
computer memory before starting it up right away. This will allow
the computer to adjust to the increased air going thru the air
mass sensor a bit quicker. To me, this particular mod made a
greater overall improvement across the entire rev-band than the
$250 HKS powerflow aircleaner did.

 

[ArcticTsi]

Speak of the Vert, here is some lucky dude driving it after the show....that's my teal Laser in the background!!!!

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Vert pics are awesome. The Vert Concept was coded as a H24S pre-production car too.
VIN: LE000308
I think everyone has always thought that would have been a great addition to the line up. I can tell the Vert is your favorite. So I'll add that in Europe they had a shop that was producing targas and roadsters. On one of my old drives I have all the schematics if someone were to want to build one, .

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[ist dwa]

Oh this is just glorious. Someone asked what the diagnostic port by the interior fuse block is. Todd Day says ahhh it's nothing. Another member says well I was at the dealer the other day and he plugged in a scan tool and saw everything and could control things like cylinder shut off etc. That was the spark he needed to dig into the ECU and make TMO datalogging as he starts to crack the DSM ECU.

Subject: Engine computer - an inside look
Date: Sat, 5 Sep 92 6:28:19 PDT
Once again, I opened up the engine computer to see what I could see.
This time, I was a bit more intelligent about it, though.
All this talk about controlling the car via a handheld PC has got
me hooked into figuring out how it works. Well, I did a bunch of
tracing on the circuit board, but got caught in SMD hell and was
unable to figure some of it out.
The key appears to be the line marked "DATA". I don't have the main
part of the manual with me here at work, but I could have sworn I
saw something to the effect that grounding this line allows you to
make some adjustment to the car (either idle speed or timing). After
reading the electrical manual, this strikes me as odd, since there are
check plugs for doing either of these tasks. The DATA line is not
mentioned in the electrical manual except for the schematic.
Let's back up a bit here. The line marked "ENG" provides the error
codes for sensor failure, or the "heartbeat" pulse if everything is
okay. So what I'm thinking is that DATA is input and ENG is output.
However, this is not true. The second you ground DATA, the heartbeat
from ENG stops. What is it waiting for? I decided to do some tracing
on the pc board to find out.
The DATA circuitry looks pretty much like what is shown for the reed
switch input. Basically, the line is pulled to 5 volts through a
protection diode and then drives a transistor to give a clean logic
level waveform to the CPU.
The ENG circuitry is almost impossible to decode. I get lost in a
massive tangle of SMDs with two character labels and laser-cut
resistors. However, I was able to decipher about a third of the
circuitry. Surprise! Except for the protection diode, the third
I could decipher looks almost like the DATA circuitry.
This is curious. Just what is output circuitry doing with input
circuitry? I think that DATA is a mode switch and ENG functions
as both an imput line and output line. You leave it
floating when you want the computer to talk to you. You ground
it and then talk to the computer on the ENG line. Just a wild
hunch, but it's the best I could come up with.
Now the bad news. Since I don't have the slightest clue what the
computer requires (i.e., it's language), I have no idea of what to
try to send to it. Besides, it's just a wild guess.
I'll do some reading of the main manual when I get home, and update
you if I figure anything else out.
talon mgr

In 2000 at the SO I got to meet Todd (on left) once at the SO, it was so EPIC, he hung out in our hotel room at the Econodump. I was showing him all my street racing videos that we had on VHS tape... ah man that was a great SO. The other man pictured is Mario the Porsche killer from TAMPA, my street racing hero, the teal 92 talon was his.

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[ist dwa]

I love the verts and targas. I have had del sols and 2g verts...loved them both, hell I currently own a 4g eclipse vert! Here is a hacked up 1g convert some friends of mine made for me for the SO one year.

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[ist dwa]

I found somebody selling a targa 1g in Europe one time.....priceless pics IMO.

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[ist dwa]

Subject: 500,000 diamond stars
Date: Thu, 29 Oct 1992 16:43 EST
From: GREG GRANVILLE <arlvax.psu.edu!GAG>
I just heard on the radio that the 500,000th vehicle to roll off the
assembly line in Normal, IL was a red Mitsubushi Eclipse. There was
some kind of big celebration and DSM/Mitsubishi donated a bunch of
money to some big educational fund (tax write-off) during the press
coverage.
A half-million diamond stars... Wow, I knew there were an awful lot
of them on the roads anymore, but I didn't realize that there were
that many. What was once a farily distinctive vehicle, is now getting
all to commonplace...
Greg Granville
[email protected]

 

[ist dwa]

Yeah I finally found it, the first release of the VPC and the first mention of the GCC as well for sale. Wow there was a lot of parts of available like HKS 264s, a FMIC, etc....so in one year it went from not a lot available to a lot available. The fall of 92 must have been a frenzy to see who could go fastest I am sure, the race for more HP was ON!

Subject: Complete List of DSM Upgrades from PSI
Date: Mon, 2 Nov 92 09:44:57 PST
From: Sam Sivakumar 52-12s on L'Alpe d'Huez <PTD.intel.com!SSIVAKUM>
This is the complete list of upgrades for the Diamond Star
Turbo cars that I received from PSI. Although I have tried to take
care while typing this in, it is not inconceivable that some typos
crept in, so use this list for information purposes only.
Direct any questions to PSI at the following address. I found
them to be very friendly and prompt over the phone, and I am sure
they will be happy to answer any questions. I also received some
technical documentation on some of their upgrades, so if anything in
this list catches your fancy, give 'em a call and see if they have
any further details.
Performance Systems, Inc.
15808 Upper Boones Ferry Road
Lake Oswego, OR 97035
(503) 598-0503
AIR FILTER/INTAKE ASSEMBLY:
~-------------------------
K&N filtercharger $ 45.00
High flow air filter, cleanable
includes instructions for housing modifications
K&N recharge kit (chemical cleaner and filter oil) $ 12.00
HKS power flow air filter assembly $ 249.00
EXHAUST SYSTEMS:
~---------------
HKS high flow exhaust system $ 389.95
2 3/8" diameter pipe, aluminized, polished dual tip
TRUST performance exhaust system $ 553.08
2 3/4" diameter pipe, painted black, dual tip
BORLA exhaust
rear muffler only, stainless steel, polished dual tip $ 328.49
WALKER dynomax
2" diameter pipe, aluminized, stainless dual tip $ 238.84
SELECT 5 exhaust system $ 649.00
available for AWD models only
includes down tube from turbo to CAT
2 1/2" diameter pipe, ceramic metallic coating,
large 3 1/2" single outlet
SELECT 5 down tube $ 325.00
from turbo to cat
2 1/2" diameter, ceramic metallic coating
stainless steel flexible section
available for 2WD and AWD applications
EXTRUDE HONING:
~-------------
Intake manifold (exchange) $ 450.00
Exhaust manifold (exchange) $ 450.00
Turbo compressor housing (exchange) $ 450.00
Complete turbocharger
includes lightened and balanced cartridge $ 695.00
and extrude honing of compressor housing and
turbine/compressor blades (exchange)
TURBOCHARGERS:
~------------
HKS sport turbo $ 1199.95
Mitsubishi competition turbo $ 995.00
Extrude honed, balanced and blueprinted turbo $ 695.00
available for any turbo including stock
FUEL MANAGEMENT/ENRICHMENT:
~-------------------------
HKS PFC F-con programmed fuel computer $ 620.95
Modified mass air flow sensor $ 240.00
core charge $ 400.00
HKS vein pressure converter $ 669.95
requires powerflow VPC adapter $ 199.95
eliminates mass air flow sensor
High volume fuel pump upgrade $ 208.95
High flow fuel injectors $ 589.95
BOOST CONTROL:
~------------
HKS EVC electronic valve controller $ 611.95
Trust performance fuzzy logic boost controller $ 1000.00
Boost guage with mounting cup and hardware $ 83.95
Peak hold boost guage $ 199.95
HKS GRAPHIC CONTROL COMPUTERS:
~----------------------------
For fine tuning of HKS electronic devices in 1000 rpm increments
GCC for EVC $ 269.95
GCC for PFC F-con $ 269.95
INTERCOOLER:
~----------
Intercooler upgrade $ 800.00
Intercooler pipe upgrade kit $ 239.95
CAMS:
~---
Re-ground intake cam (IMSA Firehawk) $ 350.00
HKS 264 duration cams (pair) $ 431.90
ENGINE:
~------
Port and polish head $ 1100.00
Balance and rebuild bottom end
available with racing main bearings
stress relieved/sized rods, custom pistons, etc. Call
TRANSMISSION:
~------------
Shift improver kit $ 24.95
Replaces rubber linkage mounts with solid bushings
Red line MTL synthetic gear oil (in quart bottles) $ 7.25
3 quarts required for AWD
Centerforce dual friction clutch $ 522.95
Conversion kit to install turbo from $ 275.00
manual transmission car or sport turbos
on automatic transmission car
BRAKES:
~------
Carbon/Kevlar pads (complete set, front & rear) $ 351.80
Big brake conversion (front only) $ 850.00
IGNITION:
~-------
HKS/NGK racing spark plugs (set of 4) $ 91.80
High performance spark plug wire set, 8mm red $ 104.95
TURBO TIMER:
~----------
HKS turbo timer with plug in wiring harness $ 154.95
SUSPENSION:
~---------
Anti-sway bars (front and rear) $ 349.00
front bar is in addition to stock bar,
rear bar is a replacement for the stock bar
includes polyurethane bushings
Suspension techniques sport springs $ 289.00
Eibach sport springs $ 289.95
Archer Racing springs Call
HKS adjustable gas shocks $ 639.95
4 position adjustable front, 8 position adjustable rear
GAB autocross/racing shocks $ 810.00
4 position adjustable front, 8 position adjustable rear
Koni gas shocks Call
KYB gas shocks Soon
Eibach sport springs and HKS shocks $ 869.95
Sold as a set
CHEMICALS/ADDITIVES:
~-------------------
PTFE teflon engine treatment $ 19.95
Red line S1 fuel injection cleaner $ 4.95
Red Line MTL Synthetic transmission oil $ 7.25
Red line water wetter $ 4.95
lowers surface tension of coolant
lubricates water pump
Red line 75W/90 synthetic rear differential gear oil $ 7.95
Max-race nitromethane fuel additive (quart) $ 14.95
1 qt. to 10 gallons = 0.025% nitromethane includes
cleaner and upper engine lubricants
Rain-X windshield treatment 7 oz. $ 3.95
DIAMOND STAR STEALTH PACKAGE $ 1100.00
~---------------------------
For those of you who think that 240 hp in your Diamond Star
would make it just about right, we've put together a special package
just for you. We call it the "Stealth" package because under the hood,
your car appears completely stock. Since we don't employ any form of
boost control, this package is relatively inexpensive and trouble-free.
You will enjoy faster throttle response (less turbo lag), a
stronger midrange and at high rpm, your Diamond Star just keeps pulling
and pulling.
This package consists of:
Select 5 exhaust system
K&N filtercharger
Extrude honed turbo compressor housing
285 HORSEPOWER PACKAGE $ 3150.00
~---------------------
This package also drives better than stock, and you might be
surprised how quick a 285 hp Diamond Star is.
This package consists of:
Select 5 exhaust system
K&N filtercharger
Boost control guage
Electronic boost control
Electronic fuel management system
Extrude honed intake manifold (exchange)
Completely balanced, blueprinted and extrude honed stock turbo (exchange)
These are two examples of complete packages we offer, or we can put
together a custom performance system to meet your needs. These packages
and custom systems can be done in stages or steps as your budget and needs
dictate. Our research vehicle is driven daily and produces 390 HP.

 

[pauleyman]

New post just to break it up. I absolutely love this post, these are the pioneers we owe so much to, the fact this guy figured out fuel cut, logging injector duty cycles and how the FCD was going to work with the VPC is just amazing. When I read all this stuff back in the 90s it made no sense to me but now it does. Just stunning how smart some of these guys really were.

Subject: Mods
Date: Fri, 5 Jun 1992 14:30 EST
From: GREG GRANVILLE <ecl.psu.edu!JSB>
>Has anyone thought about putting a guage onto the output of the
>airmass sensor? I figure this would give a rough estimate of the
>horsepower output of the engine.
Yes, a gauge on the output of the air-mass sensor would give a fairly
accurate indication of engine output, provided that the air/fuel
ratio remained constant. If you like a lot of gauges (like I do!)
then something like this might make an interesting addition to your
gauge panel.
>As a side note, how over-engineered are the various engine
>monitoring sensors? How much extra load do you think they can
>handle (due to low restriction exhaust, high capacity turbo's,
>fuel-pumps, etc.)
Good question. PSI says you can go as high as 285hp with the stock
air-mass sensor. Their prototype test vehicle (with the "modified"
air-mass sensor) pulls a claimed 390hp. The BIG question in my
mind is wether or not the electronics of the air-mass sensor have
been modified to re-calibrate it, or has it just mechanically been
"opened-up" to permit more airflow. I'm guessing that the latter might
be all they have actually done. If that's true, then the sensor may
be able to put out a fairly linear output signal at close to double
the intended maximum airflow rate. Of course, the even bigger question
is how does the engine computer respond to a signal this large from
the air-mass sensor. I've already discovered (and perhaps others here
have also) that the computer will shut off the fuel when the massairflow
becomes to large. It seems that there is a "fairly" easy
way to bypass this fuel-cut condition... HKS has a small little
box called a FCD (fuel cut defencer) that is part of their fuel
computer upgrade. HKS says that their fuel computer must be used if
fuel-cutoff is defeated. However, I have it from a reliable source
that the HKS fuel computer (for our cars anyway) does not really
replace the stock engine computer. Actually, it just supplies the
stock computer with some slightly skewed sensor inputs (like a
cooler that actual coolant temperature) in order to get the computer
to make the fuel mixture richer. This sounds reasonable, except that
it really doesn't extent the range of the fuel delivery system.
Once the injectors are open 100% of the time, there ain't no way
that an altered fuel curve, from whatever source, is going to
keep up with massive increases in air intake capacity. I've looked
at the injector pulses on my car while at full throttle in third
gear on a portable digital scope (don't try this at home) and seen
about 85% of max on the injectors. And that's at only slightly higher
than stock boost. Interesting, eh ?
Oh well, I'm still trying to figure out just how the heck to defeat
the computer fuel-cut without giving HKS any more of my money.
Once I get that figured out, then I'll worry a bit more about the
air-fuel ratio.

Wow this brings back memories. I was there for all of it. I was also at that 97 shootout and spent some time with Todd. That was the year I hosted a dinner at the Ohio border where a bunch of caravanners met up en route to the SO. afterwards like 50 dsms all drove the remainder of the trip together. Can't remember if im right but 50....yeah about that I think.

 

[ArcticTsi]

2. When did the Archer Bros and Dave Wolin Motorsports get their DSMs?
2a) Tech Spec: Mitsubishi 4G63 turbocharged 2 liter engine, HKS VPC, HKS EVC, Modified Mitsubishi 5 speed . Where did you get this info? I want to know more of this, if a VPC was available in 90 from HKS did they have parts strictly for race teams in beta and then sold them to the general public in mid to late 92 as alluded to from tuners in the mid to late 92 race season.

3. When did they start selling DSMs to the general public?

I don't recall exactly when Archer Racing and Wolin Motorsports got their cars. Its out there on the boards though. But, they were part of the first run. This gets us back to the muddiness of the early VINs.
VIN: LE000302 -Early H24S - Champagne Car (Pre-Production model)
VIN: LE000308 - H24S - Red Vert Car (Pre-Production model)
VIN: LE000760 - Gov. Thompsons's Red Eclipse Car (1st production car for public consumption)

So you see there is some major gaps.
We know the first transport was loaded and left the plant in December of 1988. Picture of said transport below.

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So begs the question were all of the cars sent of for racing programs in theory "pre-production" as they were produced before JOB #1 (Governor's two cars).

Initial batch of cars that went out
1 car - went to Paul Rossi
3 cars - (if memory serves me right) went to Archer
3 cars - went to HKS
17 ~ 20 cars - went to Wolin Motorsports. They campaigned 3 and prepared another 14 ~ 17 for the Macau Grand Prix. My recollection of how many Wolin got is hazy on this one too. Have some old correspondence on this. (adding a picture of the Eclipse Series racers at the Macau Grand prix)

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I'll catch up on your posts and provide some details and insight on all your thoughts and questions on the tuning aspect. But, basically in the states the shops and individuals were all doing their own R&D and we were just playing catch up to what was already out on the Japanese market.