Thinking about DSM thoughts?

[E362G]

Hey guys. New to this forum but have car experience and forum experience. I had a quick question as I know how valuable the information is from forums like this. I have been a BMW enthusiast since I was 5. I drive often an E46 330xi that I bought with a blown motor, new motor and birthday present for the ma. My pride and joy is a 440awhp 2006 WRX Limited edition with a K16 Billet turbo (I won't get into what it took to fab up and a good experienced friend saved me to be honest). I am not able to use the WRX because of my parents pending divorce (I'm 18 but its considered a family asset that I can't add miles to, shoot me). I just sold my dd a 1994 BMW 325is with 201k on it. Blast to drive but rusted out on me, sold it for a $700 profit and now have about $2,300 to spend. I found a 1998 GS Eclipse with the 420A motor that has 80k on it and 120k on the body $2,200 and needs nothing as of now. The car has no rust and I'm checking it out this week. The car seems cool and don't worry I'm not some stupid high school kid who's buying this because of F&F. I wanted a reliable and gas efficient dd for commuting 75 miles a day to school and work. I'm planning on a drop and some nicer rims, and that's about it. I searched a lot about these cars and hear so many different pov about reliability. I work on the cars myself and I'm on top of my cars. Other than missing FWD I think this car will also be a blast but as far as a dd how are these cars? Surprisingly my E36 only needed brakes, tires, guibo and a VCG in 18k of ownership. Any thoughts or advice of trouble places to look at will be appreciated. Working on pics of the car. Thanks again. Hope to help out once I get around these Japanese cars a little.

 

[DSM1G90]

Hope to help out once I get around these Japanese cars a little.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Welcome . Eclipses might have the Mitsu nameplate on them, but these units are made in the good ol' US of A - in Normal, ILL.

Thus, they're American as Camaros, Mustangs and the like.

The 2G is more American than the 1G (outside of the AWD turbo that still uses the Japanese 4G63 turbo setup) since the 1G used all Japanese made drivetrain stuffed in an American built chassis.

The 420A, being a slightly modified Dodge (Neon) motor with a Chrysler tranny attached, are used in these NT units.

the 420A, if taken care of, is a pretty reliable motor - been cases of over 200k miles on these motors without any problems.

 

[E362G]

Welcome . Eclipses might have the Mitsu nameplate on them, but these units are made in the good ol' US of A - in Normal, ILL.

Thus, they're American as Camaros, Mustangs and the like.

The 2G is more American than the 1G (outside of the AWD turbo that still uses the Japanese 4G63 turbo setup) since the 1G used all Japanese made drivetrain stuffed in an American built chassis.

The 420A, being a slightly modified Dodge (Neon) motor with a Chrysler tranny attached, are used in these NT units.

the 420A, if taken care of, is a pretty reliable motor - been cases of over 200k miles on these motors without any problems.

That's about what I know so far from my research. How are these cars from a DIY aspect? I thought my civic was easy but boring and the BMW was just about awesome to work on.

 

[2GJeremy]

Just be sure to check maintenance all these kids that talk about DSM's being unreliable simply don't know how to keep up their fluids and such. What I have noticed as a trend to the 420a is simple stuff, vacuum leaks, some valve troubles. I won't elaborate.

But be sure to also know, the 420a notoriously runs rich, so if you smell while driving. MOST LIKELY it's normal. Rough clutch is normal as well for the stock. Other than that, I think you'll like it as long as your good at running maintenance and know what your getting yourself into.

 

[E362G]

Thanks. And it just sold for $2,400 so now have to find a car. But 240sx would be nice because of RWD but also some tegs I like.. any reason why you guys chose the eclipse?

 

[95EagleT]

any reason why you guys chose the eclipse?

IMO, The DSM (Talon & Eclipse)look is the sexiest look around for the price. I've never in 15yrs, found another little sports car I loved more. They are getting old though, the 2G's are almost 18!

 

[agentorange313]

Hey guys. New to this forum but have car experience and forum experience. I had a quick question as I know how valuable the information is from forums like this. I have been a BMW enthusiast since I was 5. I drive often an E46 330xi that I bought with a blown motor, new motor and birthday present for the ma. My pride and joy is a 440awhp 2006 WRX Limited edition with a K16 Billet turbo (I won't get into what it took to fab up and a good experienced friend saved me to be honest). I am not able to use the WRX because of my parents pending divorce (I'm 18 but its considered a family asset that I can't add miles to, shoot me). I just sold my dd a 1994 BMW 325is with 201k on it. Blast to drive but rusted out on me, sold it for a $700 profit and now have about $2,300 to spend. I found a 1998 GS Eclipse with the 420A motor that has 80k on it and 120k on the body $2,200 and needs nothing as of now. The car has no rust and I'm checking it out this week. The car seems cool and don't worry I'm not some stupid high school kid who's buying this because of F&F. I wanted a reliable and gas efficient dd for commuting 75 miles a day to school and work. I'm planning on a drop and some nicer rims, and that's about it. I searched a lot about these cars and hear so many different pov about reliability. I work on the cars myself and I'm on top of my cars. Other than missing FWD I think this car will also be a blast but as far as a dd how are these cars? Surprisingly my E36 only needed brakes, tires, guibo and a VCG in 18k of ownership. Any thoughts or advice of trouble places to look at will be appreciated. Working on pics of the car. Thanks again. Hope to help out once I get around these Japanese cars a little.

I am also a big beemer fan, I dont know if I could have parted with an e36, I would love to see some pictures of it.

Personally I would not choose an eclipse turbo or NT, first gen or second gen, for a commuter daily drive that needs to be good gas milage, I would personally go with a Honda. From my experience, Honda 1.6 1.8 2.0 have proven to be better on fuel efficiency than any DSM (420a or 4g63).

Thanks. And it just sold for $2,400 so now have to find a car. But 240sx would be nice because of RWD but also some tegs I like.. any reason why you guys chose the eclipse?

I would choose an eclipse, or any dsm platform, for the performance needs. These cars have proven themselves to make big power, and a solid foundation/platform to build on. Very little is needed to obtain a considerable amount of power, remember some our cars came turbo from the factory, dont get me wrong 420a have made great power with proper rebuild but it was never designed to hold boost from the factory. We also have the option of an AWD platform, idk about you, but I love my AWD.

 

[2GJeremy]

Modification, Reputation, Looks, I guess it depends on what you like. My buddy has a240sx with a R34 Skyline engine. Fast sucker.

 

[thomyd]

ive owned 14 dsm and its been an on going love hate relationship. but i wont give em up

 

[RocCitySlayer]

I bought an Eclipse because I love the way they look. And the dollar to power is amazing Iv only driven one N/T eclipse "My cousins" and it was pretty nice. But I had to get myself a boosted car

 

[E362G]

I had a 94 civic I built a d15b7 to rev to 10k and it was just boring after about a week. And honestly I hate the civic crowd for what it is. Most owners are to say the least not very honest.
Here's the E36 (I was refinishing trim so that one was off for picture:

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

The subie:

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

And if money wasn't so tight I would be getting a GSX. Local guy has a rattlecan with syncros going for 3k but need a dd.

 

[darthvadar tsi]

welcome to the forums and i love the subaru looks amazing.as long as the previous owners did all the maintence and didnt beat the hell out it there good cars.

 

[DSM1G90]

any reason why you guys chose the eclipse?

I'm on my third 1G DSM...just comfortable to drive, to go on long trips and a well balanced vehicle - not top heavy.... and the Turbo is fun to have.

I have no mods, thus starts right up, runs smooth and I can get close to 28mpg on the freeway at 80mph.

True though - they're a bit of a heavy car for the motors available why they are not the best on mileage. Mits could have gone to a slightly larger litre size for the weight of the vehicles.

 

[zcoh2gdsm]

the DSM has such an easy layout compared to other engines, everything if right in front of you, even if you dont know cars, this is probably one of the easiest turbo applications to work on.

 

[SHEARER_TSI]

It's hard to beat the performance to dollar spent ratio that the 4G63 offers. I had a 95 M3 that I loved at a daily driver but some lady hit me at 60 mph while I was stopped. My 1Gs have all been insanely fun. My current one is going to be a rocket when it's finished.

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

 

[92AWDHX40]

I love my dsm and project cars, i also like muscle cars, and soon to be project dodge super bee all original, i need to restore, from my uncle, along with the gt-r we own together, trying to get him to get a 2011, fun driving around atlanta, in different cars. I love my bmw 540 its a lot of fun. Our family with love of cars goes back to my grand dad who owned a model t. I love cars. Looking foward to project cars in the future.

 

[jcarmichael]

as others have stated alot of ppl say they are unreliable, but in all honesty my car gets me to work and back 50 miles a day. It has its moments when it can be a pita but its always something simple. If you already like working on cars its a great route to go, if you don't have the time to put into a 20 plus yr old car I wouldn't recommend it. however if you have the time the return on investment is def worth it. also I would suggest a tsi awd or gsx. the awd can make it a bit more painful to work on at times but goes back to the return on investment being worth it.

 

[92AWDHX40]

My first dsm got me to college 5 hours away from michigan to bloomington, my buddy still has it, miss that thing ran very well.

 

[E362G]

It's hard to beat the performance to dollar spent ratio that the 4G63 offers. I had a 95 M3 that I loved at a daily driver but some lady hit me at 60 mph while I was stopped. My 1Gs have all been insanely fun. My current one is going to be a rocket when it's finished.

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

Wow beautiful hellrot. What a shame.. too many idiots on the road these days. Can anyone shed light on what a higher mileage (150kish) 2g gst might go for? Decent condition.

And from all the posts it seems like maintenance and not driving like a high school idiot are the keys to these motors. Nice thing about the bimmer. They can leak, run like crap but will never quit. They can handle any sort of abuse and once it has the new part acts like it was never hurt.. great cars but need 30+mpg

 

[SHEARER_TSI]

Thanks dumb lady said she didn't see me yet the road was straight and it was 4:00 on a sunny day. The car only had 90000 miles on it. I miss it...a lot. The talon is a 90 and has under 55000 miles on it. I wouldn't pay over $3000 for a fwd like you described but I guess it depends on the condition of the car.

 

[E362G]

I just did a whole bunch of work to the E46 this week so went from a $3000 budget to $2200. I need a car by Sunday if anyone knows of one please email me at bmw335cis@yahoo. And yea didn't see.. you mean texting or make up...

 

[jcarmichael]

depending on what side of ohio you are on I would check surrounding major citys craigslist ads. if you can find one completely stock with up to date maintence for a decent price jump on it. if you find one with slight mods and the owner doesn't seem like he dogged it out jump on it. there is a thread on here with a break down of what to look for in the car. see if I can't find it but also see if it has the balance shafts elemination done to it already if its a 4g63 motor as its a potential problem waiting to happen. if it doesn't have it done yet goes back to enjoying working on your car.

http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/fre...estions/238710-dsm-used-car-buyers-guide.html

here goes that post, def worth reading.

 

[E362G]

depending on what side of ohio you are on I would check surrounding major citys craigslist ads. if you can find one completely stock with up to date maintence for a decent price jump on it. if you find one with slight mods and the owner doesn't seem like he dogged it out jump on it. there is a thread on here with a break down of what to look for in the car. see if I can't find it but also see if it has the balance shafts elemination done to it already if its a 4g63 motor as its a potential problem waiting to happen. if it doesn't have it done yet goes back to enjoying working on your car.

http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/fre...estions/238710-dsm-used-car-buyers-guide.html

here goes that post, def worth reading.

I read that on a thread about the balanced shafts. Which shafts are you referring to? And so far I have a list of checking head gasket leaks, strut towers, balanced shafts (once I figure out exactly what you guys mean by that) and if its turbo check the bov for any kind of issues.

 

[SHEARER_TSI]

Here you go..... Balance Shaft Eliminator Kit Install

 

[jcarmichael]

from the naked eye not sure you will be able to tell if the balance shafts have been taken out or not since the lower timing cover, covers up that area. however the cost for the parts to eleminate them is only like 60 dollars, but you have to take the motor apart to do it so it is more time and tools to do the job then money to do it. as far as head gasket goes, check out the radiator the best you can I bought my car last april radiator was original radiator and blew out a month after I got the car. I can't be certain but believe that blew my head gasket. only sign I had of a blown head gasket was I was pushing coolant out my reservoir always. if there is emission testing in ohio check to see if they deleted the egr or not or ask when they last time they did there emissions has been. if you plan to go to ecm link for tuning ask if its a socketed chip or not thats not really a deal breaker but would save you some money.

epromid [ECMTuning - wiki]

a way to tell if the ecu is socketed or not, this is really only important if you plan to use ecm link for tuning the car.