2002-2006 Lancer Super FAQ
Aug 1, 2007, 06:41 PM
#1
2002-2006 Lancer Super FAQ
This FAQ page is meant to answer the basic questions that new owners of lancers usually have (and if you’re reading this I assume you have). If you can’t find your answers here, try searching first than start a thread. All the info here is based on years of personal experience with Lancers and Evolutionm.net.
Disclaimer: It should be noted that this is my opinion (it should also be noted that Doug AKA Blacksheepdj will be helping with this FAQ). While some of it is based on things like basic physics, fluid dynamics, dyno results and the experiences of other members, it is still my opinion. This means you can ignore it all you like, I don't care and I'm certainly not going to lose sleep over it.
-----Table of Contents-----
Engine Information
How An Engine Works
Modifications:
Naturally Aspirated
Forced Induction
Motor Swaps
Electronic
Tuning
Suspension
Drivetrain
Interior and Exterior
Useless Mods
Suggested Upgrade Paths
Lancer Vendors/Useful Websites
-----Basic Engine Info-----
The engine code is 4G94. It is based off the old 1.8L 4G93 found in the
Mirage. The motor is stroked and bored. This is why the motor cannot handle high amounts of boost or rev as high as the Mirage motors. For the 4G94, the bore is 81.5 mm and stroke is 95.8 mm. For the 4G93, the bore is 81.0 mm and the stroke is 89.0 mm.
The motor has a single overhead cam thus it is SOHC.
The displacement is 2.0 liters.
The major weakpoint of this motor is the bottom end, namely the pistons and the rods. If you plan on heavily modifying the motor, it is suggested to upgrade to forged pistons and heavier duty rods.
The stock compression is 9.5:1.
The 2002-2003 lancer used a return fuel system. This means that some fuel that didn't get pulled into the combustion chambers would return to the fuel tank. One end of the fuel rail is the supply line and the other end is the return line. Fuel is constantly circulating in the fuel rail. The 2004-2006 used a returnless fuel system. The fuel rail only has a supply line and fuel is only delivered when needed. This comes into play when you want to make modifications to the fuel system.
Naturally aspirated (NA) means only the motor is used to make power, no forced induction (although generally nitrous is still considered an NA mod). Forced induction, as the name implies, means something from the outside forces more air into the motor thus making more power. For the Lancer this means a turbocharger or a supercharger (or nitrous technically).
Other motors to be aware of:
The engine code for the Evolution I-IX motor is 4G63.
The engine code for the ralliart engine is 4G69.
The engine code for the older eclipse motor is 4G64.
-----Some useful engine concepts-----
-----How an engine works-----
An engine is basically a massive mechanical pump designed to do work, it sucks in air and releases exhaust gases with some fancy stuff in between. In order to explain this better, we’ll follow a chunk of air through the entire engine.
The air starts off outside doing its own thing, it’s floating around, mingling with other gases and generally having a good time. Along comes the car and the air gets sucked into the intake. From here the air moves through the open throttle body, into the intake manifold where fuel is injected and finally into the engine through the intake valves. In the engine, the air is compressed by the pistons. The air does not want to be compressed, it is much happier being relaxed and laid back so this increases the heat substantially. When the air reaches the peak of its compression, the spark plug goes off and the mixture ignites. This releases a lot of energy and the piston goes down at a very high rate. The now spent air is released from the motor through the exhaust valves. It passes through the exhaust manifold first, then the downpipe, then the catalytic converter and finally the exhaust system.
For more info, please read the information available through these links,
Wikipedia article on internal combustion engines.
Howstuffworks article on car engines.
The head of an engine is the top section which contains the camshaft, valves and all the supporting material needed.
This is what the head looks like. This is from an LS1 motor.
Here is the lancer head courtesy of Road Race Motorsports (RRM).
The block of an engine is the bottom section which contains the pistons and the crankshaft.
This is an example of a block (not sure what motor it’s from).
-----Air to fuel ratio and detonation-----
When people talk about AF ratio, they are talking about the air to fuel ratio. As an example, an AF ratio of 10:1 means that for every 10 units of air, there is 1 unit of fuel. What fuel ratio is ideal depends on the application. For reference, the stoichiometric ratio for gasoline is 14.7:1 and this is the ideal ratio for the complete combustion of gasoline. You do not want this in the motor at all times however!
As a general rule, NA motors want to run on the lean side (meaning a higher AF ratio) while turbos want to run rich (a lower AF ratio). This is because fuel is also a coolant in a motor. Running richer reduces the intake charge temperature, reducing the likelihood of detonation. This increases fuel consumption and is why some cars shoot flames out of their exhaust systems.
Detonation is a nightmare for tuners. It is as nice a thing as the name suggests, it is when the air:fuel mixture ignites and detonates prematurely in the engine (ie. at the wrong time in the cycle) which puts strain on the pistons and the rods. If it is severe enough and occurs at the wrong time, it can cause the motor to literally destroy itself.
-----Timing-----
There are two types of timing, cam timing and ignition timing. While both can be modified, most people just deal with ignition timing as it is the easiest to do using various piggyback or standalone ECUs. Cam timing is modifiable using adjustable cam gears.
Cam timing refers to the relationship between the rotation of the cam (and thus the opening and closing of the valves) and the crankshaft (and thus pistons). By modifying the cam position, it’s possible to change the power characteristics of the motor. Care needs to be taken though as if the position is changed too drastically, you can completely destroy the motor (imagine what would happen if the valves and the pistons collided).
Ignition timing refers to when the spark plugs go off in the engine cycle. Correct ignition timing is extremely important to the proper functioning of a motor. Advancing the timing means you are making the spark plug go off earlier, retarding the timing means you are making the spark plug go off later. Both of these are in reference to the top-dead center (TDC) position of the piston. Setting the timing too advanced can lead to detonation and a lose in power, retarding the timing can lose power and is very inefficient.
-----Powerband-----
The term powerband refers to the correlation between engine power (measured as horsepower or torque) and RPM. This is what you see when you look at a dyno graph. People normally break a powerband into various parts such as the lower powerband, mid powerband and upper powerband. This is based on what RPM range is being discussed.
Here is an example of a lancer powerband.
Here is a more indepth definition of powerband courtesy of Wikipedia.
With that out of the way on to the mods!
-----Naturally Aspirated-----
A lot of the mods here can be used with forced induction. Those that cannot will be indicated.
This is generally where most new owners start, they want a little more power for cheap. Unfortunately when it comes to Lancers there is more emphasis on the little part than the cheap part. Don’t expect major gains this way, I went this way and netted a very small increase (5 hp increase and 3 ft-lb torque loss). This was with close to $5000 in the car. More information is available here. It is important to decide early how far you want to go with the car and whether you want forced induction or not. With lancers, it’s go big or go home; if you think you can make a slow car fast with $1000, you’re being delusional.
-----Intake-----
All intakes are the same, there I said it. I don’t mean to step on people’s toes but it’s true. If you like a specific cold air intake (CAI), get that, if you like a specific short ram intake (SRI) get that and if you want to make your own using a mass air flow sensor (MAF/MAS) adapter and a filter, go nuts. This is more of a cosmetic mod as all you really get is more noise. Yes this makes the car seem faster but it actually isn’t. As an example, Import Tuner testing found gains of roughly 2 whp and 2 ft-lbs with the Buschur SRI (as seen here). Some good manufacturers are AEM, Injen and RRM. When you go turbo, your intake is replaced.
Here is an example of an intake (most look something like this).
-----Exhaust-----
As with the intake, this is a cosmetic mod. Get whichever one you like the best. This is important, the one you like the best not what some nerds on the internet think. The stock diameter is around 1.5” give or take a bit. Generally the max you want to go to is 2.25” but if you are turboed you could go to 2.5”. If you go with a large exhaust on an NA motor you’ll notice a drop in low-end torque. This is because of backpressure. Essentially backpressure helps the motor to work properly and not over exhale itself (imagine how fast water moves through a standard hose and through a sewer pipe). Greddy, magnaflow, JIC and eBay (yes eBay) are all good sources for an exhaust. Alternatively, you can get one made for you at an exhaust shop using whatever muffler you want. This is often the best solution as it is cheaper than a name brand exhaust but offers the same gains.
More information can be found here as well.
This shows what an exhaust system generally looks like.
-----Header-----
Say it with me, header, a lancer has only one. This is a good mod but be prepared for a louder car especially if you have an exhaust system. When I say loud I mean loud as in people can hear you coming from blocks away (no I am not kidding). It is designed to aid mainly in the mid to upper RPM range. RRM, RPW, OBX and Kamikaze all make a decent header. The best is RPW because it is a long-tube header. This means more low-end power in theory but some people have observed different results. It is also the most expensive so the decision is yours. If you go with RRM’s turbo kit, this can be used in place of a turbo manifold utilizing an up-pipe, down-pipe system. Otherwise it is replaced.
RRM’s header
-----Throttle body-----
The stock throttle body is 52 mm. Currently the only manufacturer that has these readily available is RRM. They bore it out by 5 mm (making it 57 mm) and flute it to 65 mm at one specific portion. I would not recommend doing it yourself as you have to get a new butterfly valve as well. It is designed to aid in throttle response.
The lancer throttle body looks very similar to this one. Notice the butterfly valve in the middle.
Here is the stock throttle body compared to the bored out RRM throttle body.
-----Intake Manifold-----
This is also bored to match the throttle body. As before the best source is RRM or you can do it yourself/get it done. This is also designed to aid throttle response. Alternatively you can use the 4G93 manifold. It is supposedly better but there are no hard facts to base that on so take it with a grain of salt.
This particular manifold is from a Honda and appears to be a truly aftermarket model rather than a modified stock unit.
Here is the RRM intake manifold (powdercoated in a very nice red that looks fantastic under the hood for you show guys).
For a comparison between the 4G93 and the 4G94 intake manifold, look here.
-----Fuel Rail-----
This is simply a bored out stock fuel rail. Again RRM is the best source or you can do it yourself/get it done. It is designed to remove some of the hesitation seen with the stock rail by allowing more fuel to be present at any moment in time.
No picture for this cause it just looks like a metal tube.
-----Lightweight Crank Pulley-----
If you’ve ever felt the stock pulley you’ll notice it’s heavy. By replacing it with a lighter unit you help to reduce how much weight the motor has to spin. This doesn’t make power persay but it allows the motor to use what it has more effectively. RRM makes one but you can find them on Ebay as well.
Here’s a general example. Most cars have very similar looking pulleys since there’s no point in reinventing the wheel when they serve such a basic function.
-----Pistons-----
As far as pistons go you have a few options. You can get forged pistons with the same compression as stock (9.5:1) or you can get a different compression ratio. If you plan on staying NA (permanently) you want to go with a higher compression ratio, ideally 10.5:1 or higher. How high you can go depends on what octane you are willing to run and how much tuning you’ll do/get done. For these you can go Wiseco, Ross or get a set from RRM or RPW. These can make power if you change the compression but at the very least they allow the motor to handle more power.
Pistons normally look like this.
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-----Rods-----
Rods are what link the pistons to the crankshaft. Since these are a weak part of the motor, you’ll want to upgrade them if you plan on going in deep. Pauter and Crower are currently your only options that I know of. They do not make power but allow the motor to handle more power without going boom (or snap).
An example of Pauter rods.
-----Camshaft-----
The camshaft is responsible for opening and closing the valves in the engine. For a cam upgrade there are a few options. RPW is by far the best source as they make turbo and NA specific cams meaning you get the most out of it. RRM makes a universal cam but because of this generalization it will not make the most power. Alternatively you can get a custom regrind from a shop/company. Depending on how aggressive the cam is you may need to upgrade the valvetrain (valve springs, retainers, valves, etc.), the cam gear (available from Fidanza or RPW) and get some sort of ECU for tuning. If you get an NA cam, you cannot use it with a turbo motor and vice versa.
Most vendors that sell cams order them in different stages (ie. stage 1, stage 2, etc.) This refers to how aggressive the cam profile is. If you have a daily driver and just want a little more power without needing a variety of other parts (like the previously mentioned valvetrain upgrades or intake and exhaust modifications) or tuning, a stage 1 cam is probably best. If you’re looking for more power and already have or are willing to do more engine modifications and tuning, a stage 2 cam would work. Generally, stage 3 and up are for people who race their cars (and I mean real racing, not once or twice a year at a local parking lot) and need maximum power in the upper region of the powerband.
It is very important to select the right cam for a variety of reasons. Driveability is a major one, the more aggressive the cam, the more loopy and rough the idle will be which makes for a bad daily driver. This relates to another problem, where in the powerband the cam is beneficial. A very aggressive cam will typically sacrifice low-end grunt for high-end power, making it difficult to drive in relaxed fashion. To help understand this, imagine driving a car in stop and go traffic that only made power at 10000 RPM. A lesser discussed problem is efficiency, a more aggressive cam only works properly if you supply it with everything it needs. If you bolt a stage 4 cam to a stock engine, A. it probably won’t even run, B. if it does run, it could ultimately damage the motor and C. if it does run and the motor doesn’t break, you’ll be making less power than stock because the motor will be highly inefficient. Something else to consider, two cams with identical specs (lift and duration) may not perform the same. Think of lift and duration as being equivalent to the height and the weight of a person. Sure it will give you a general idea of what that person looks like but it won’t tell you the details.
For those unfamiliar with how a camshaft works, here is an excellent explanation.
-----Ported and Polished head-----
This is a pricey mod no matter how you cut it. RRM offers a professionally P & P head but it costs an arm and a leg, same goes for RPW. Alternatively you can get it done at a machine shop/race shop but this will mean being without your car for some time.
Disclaimer: It should be noted that this is my opinion (it should also be noted that Doug AKA Blacksheepdj will be helping with this FAQ). While some of it is based on things like basic physics, fluid dynamics, dyno results and the experiences of other members, it is still my opinion. This means you can ignore it all you like, I don't care and I'm certainly not going to lose sleep over it.
-----Table of Contents-----
Engine Information
How An Engine Works
Modifications:
Naturally Aspirated
Forced Induction
Motor Swaps
Electronic
Tuning
Suspension
Drivetrain
Interior and Exterior
Useless Mods
Suggested Upgrade Paths
Lancer Vendors/Useful Websites
-----Basic Engine Info-----
The engine code is 4G94. It is based off the old 1.8L 4G93 found in the
Mirage. The motor is stroked and bored. This is why the motor cannot handle high amounts of boost or rev as high as the Mirage motors. For the 4G94, the bore is 81.5 mm and stroke is 95.8 mm. For the 4G93, the bore is 81.0 mm and the stroke is 89.0 mm.The motor has a single overhead cam thus it is SOHC.
The displacement is 2.0 liters.
The major weakpoint of this motor is the bottom end, namely the pistons and the rods. If you plan on heavily modifying the motor, it is suggested to upgrade to forged pistons and heavier duty rods.
The stock compression is 9.5:1.
The 2002-2003 lancer used a return fuel system. This means that some fuel that didn't get pulled into the combustion chambers would return to the fuel tank. One end of the fuel rail is the supply line and the other end is the return line. Fuel is constantly circulating in the fuel rail. The 2004-2006 used a returnless fuel system. The fuel rail only has a supply line and fuel is only delivered when needed. This comes into play when you want to make modifications to the fuel system.
Naturally aspirated (NA) means only the motor is used to make power, no forced induction (although generally nitrous is still considered an NA mod). Forced induction, as the name implies, means something from the outside forces more air into the motor thus making more power. For the Lancer this means a turbocharger or a supercharger (or nitrous technically).
Other
motors to be aware of:The engine code for the Evolution I-IX motor is 4G63.
The engine code for the ralliart engine is 4G69.
The engine code for the older eclipse motor is 4G64.
-----Some useful engine concepts-----
-----How an engine works-----
An engine is basically a massive mechanical pump designed to do work, it sucks in air and releases exhaust gases with some fancy stuff in between. In order to explain this better, we’ll follow a chunk of air through the entire engine.
The air starts off outside doing its own thing, it’s floating around, mingling with other gases and generally having a good time. Along comes the car and the air gets sucked into the intake. From here the air moves through the open throttle body, into the intake manifold where fuel is injected and finally into the engine through the intake valves. In the engine, the air is compressed by the pistons. The air does not want to be compressed, it is much happier being relaxed and laid back so this increases the heat substantially. When the air reaches the peak of its compression, the spark plug goes off and the mixture ignites. This releases a lot of energy and the piston goes down at a very high rate. The now spent air is released from the motor through the exhaust valves. It passes through the exhaust manifold first, then the downpipe, then the catalytic converter and finally the exhaust system.
For more info, please read the information available through these links,
Wikipedia article on internal combustion engines.
Howstuffworks article on car engines.
The head of an engine is the top section which contains the camshaft, valves and all the supporting material needed.
This is what the head looks like. This is from an LS1 motor.
Here is the lancer head courtesy of Road Race Motorsports (RRM).
The block of an engine is the bottom section which contains the pistons and the crankshaft.
This is an example of a block (not sure what motor it’s from).
-----Air to fuel ratio and detonation-----
When people talk about AF ratio, they are talking about the air to fuel ratio. As an example, an AF ratio of 10:1 means that for every 10 units of air, there is 1 unit of fuel. What fuel ratio is ideal depends on the application. For reference, the stoichiometric ratio for gasoline is 14.7:1 and this is the ideal ratio for the complete combustion of gasoline. You do not want this in the motor at all times however!
As a general rule, NA motors want to run on the lean side (meaning a higher AF ratio) while turbos want to run rich (a lower AF ratio). This is because fuel is also a coolant in a motor. Running richer reduces the intake charge temperature, reducing the likelihood of detonation. This increases fuel consumption and is why some cars shoot flames out of their exhaust systems.
Detonation is a nightmare for tuners. It is as nice a thing as the name suggests, it is when the air:fuel mixture ignites and detonates prematurely in the engine (ie. at the wrong time in the cycle) which puts strain on the pistons and the rods. If it is severe enough and occurs at the wrong time, it can cause the motor to literally destroy itself.
-----Timing-----
There are two types of timing, cam timing and ignition timing. While both can be modified, most people just deal with ignition timing as it is the easiest to do using various piggyback or standalone ECUs. Cam timing is modifiable using adjustable cam gears.
Cam timing refers to the relationship between the rotation of the cam (and thus the opening and closing of the valves) and the crankshaft (and thus pistons). By modifying the cam position, it’s possible to change the power characteristics of the motor. Care needs to be taken though as if the position is changed too drastically, you can completely destroy the motor (imagine what would happen if the valves and the pistons collided).
Ignition timing refers to when the spark plugs go off in the engine cycle. Correct ignition timing is extremely important to the proper functioning of a motor. Advancing the timing means you are making the spark plug go off earlier, retarding the timing means you are making the spark plug go off later. Both of these are in reference to the top-dead center (TDC) position of the piston. Setting the timing too advanced can lead to detonation and a lose in power, retarding the timing can lose power and is very inefficient.
-----Powerband-----
The term powerband refers to the correlation between engine power (measured as horsepower or torque) and RPM. This is what you see when you look at a dyno graph. People normally break a powerband into various parts such as the lower powerband, mid powerband and upper powerband. This is based on what RPM range is being discussed.
Here is an example of a lancer powerband.
Here is a more indepth definition of powerband courtesy of Wikipedia.
With that out of the way on to the mods!
-----Naturally Aspirated-----
A lot of the mods here can be used with forced induction. Those that cannot will be indicated.
This is generally where most new owners start, they want a little more power for cheap. Unfortunately when it comes to Lancers there is more emphasis on the little part than the cheap part. Don’t expect major gains this way, I went this way and netted a very small increase (5 hp increase and 3 ft-lb torque loss). This was with close to $5000 in the car. More information is available here. It is important to decide early how far you want to go with the car and whether you want forced induction or not. With lancers, it’s go big or go home; if you think you can make a slow car fast with $1000, you’re being delusional.
-----Intake-----
All intakes are the same, there I said it. I don’t mean to step on people’s toes but it’s true. If you like a specific cold air intake (CAI), get that, if you like a specific short ram intake (SRI) get that and if you want to make your own using a mass air flow sensor (MAF/MAS) adapter and a filter, go nuts. This is more of a cosmetic mod as all you really get is more noise. Yes this makes the car seem faster but it actually isn’t. As an example, Import Tuner testing found gains of roughly 2 whp and 2 ft-lbs with the Buschur SRI (as seen here). Some good manufacturers are AEM, Injen and RRM. When you go turbo, your intake is replaced.
Here is an example of an intake (most look something like this).
-----Exhaust-----
As with the intake, this is a cosmetic mod. Get whichever one you like the best. This is important, the one you like the best not what some nerds on the internet think. The stock diameter is around 1.5” give or take a bit. Generally the max you want to go to is 2.25” but if you are turboed you could go to 2.5”. If you go with a large exhaust on an NA motor you’ll notice a drop in low-end torque. This is because of backpressure. Essentially backpressure helps the motor to work properly and not over exhale itself (imagine how fast water moves through a standard hose and through a sewer pipe). Greddy, magnaflow, JIC and eBay (yes eBay) are all good sources for an exhaust. Alternatively, you can get one made for you at an exhaust shop using whatever muffler you want. This is often the best solution as it is cheaper than a name brand exhaust but offers the same gains.
More information can be found here as well.
This shows what an exhaust system generally looks like.
-----Header-----
Say it with me, header, a lancer has only one. This is a good mod but be prepared for a louder car especially if you have an exhaust system. When I say loud I mean loud as in people can hear you coming from blocks away (no I am not kidding). It is designed to aid mainly in the mid to upper RPM range. RRM, RPW, OBX and Kamikaze all make a decent header. The best is RPW because it is a long-tube header. This means more low-end power in theory but some people have observed different results. It is also the most expensive so the decision is yours. If you go with RRM’s turbo kit, this can be used in place of a turbo manifold utilizing an up-pipe, down-pipe system. Otherwise it is replaced.
RRM’s header
-----Throttle body-----
The stock throttle body is 52 mm. Currently the only manufacturer that has these readily available is RRM. They bore it out by 5 mm (making it 57 mm) and flute it to 65 mm at one specific portion. I would not recommend doing it yourself as you have to get a new butterfly valve as well. It is designed to aid in throttle response.
The lancer throttle body looks very similar to this one. Notice the butterfly valve in the middle.
Here is the stock throttle body compared to the bored out RRM throttle body.
-----Intake Manifold-----
This is also bored to match the throttle body. As before the best source is RRM or you can do it yourself/get it done. This is also designed to aid throttle response. Alternatively you can use the 4G93 manifold. It is supposedly better but there are no hard facts to base that on so take it with a grain of salt.
This particular manifold is from a Honda and appears to be a truly aftermarket model rather than a modified stock unit.
Here is the RRM intake manifold (powdercoated in a very nice red that looks fantastic under the hood for you show guys).
For a comparison between the 4G93 and the 4G94 intake manifold, look here.
-----Fuel Rail-----
This is simply a bored out stock fuel rail. Again RRM is the best source or you can do it yourself/get it done. It is designed to remove some of the hesitation seen with the stock rail by allowing more fuel to be present at any moment in time.
No picture for this cause it just looks like a metal tube.
-----Lightweight Crank Pulley-----
If you’ve ever felt the stock pulley you’ll notice it’s heavy. By replacing it with a lighter unit you help to reduce how much weight the motor has to spin. This doesn’t make power persay but it allows the motor to use what it has more effectively. RRM makes one but you can find them on Ebay as well.
Here’s a general example. Most cars have very similar looking pulleys since there’s no point in reinventing the wheel when they serve such a basic function.
-----Pistons-----
As far as pistons go you have a few options. You can get forged pistons with the same compression as stock (9.5:1) or you can get a different compression ratio. If you plan on staying NA (permanently) you want to go with a higher compression ratio, ideally 10.5:1 or higher. How high you can go depends on what octane you are willing to run and how much tuning you’ll do/get done. For these you can go Wiseco, Ross or get a set from RRM or RPW. These can make power if you change the compression but at the very least they allow the motor to handle more power.
Pistons normally look like this.
-----Rods-----
Rods are what link the pistons to the crankshaft. Since these are a weak part of the motor, you’ll want to upgrade them if you plan on going in deep. Pauter and Crower are currently your only options that I know of. They do not make power but allow the motor to handle more power without going boom (or snap).
An example of Pauter rods.
-----Camshaft-----
The camshaft is responsible for opening and closing the valves in the engine. For a cam upgrade there are a few options. RPW is by far the best source as they make turbo and NA specific cams meaning you get the most out of it. RRM makes a universal cam but because of this generalization it will not make the most power. Alternatively you can get a custom regrind from a shop/company. Depending on how aggressive the cam is you may need to upgrade the valvetrain (valve springs, retainers, valves, etc.), the cam gear (available from Fidanza or RPW) and get some sort of ECU for tuning. If you get an NA cam, you cannot use it with a turbo motor and vice versa.
Most vendors that sell cams order them in different stages (ie. stage 1, stage 2, etc.) This refers to how aggressive the cam profile is. If you have a daily driver and just want a little more power without needing a variety of other parts (like the previously mentioned valvetrain upgrades or intake and exhaust modifications) or tuning, a stage 1 cam is probably best. If you’re looking for more power and already have or are willing to do more engine modifications and tuning, a stage 2 cam would work. Generally, stage 3 and up are for people who race their cars (and I mean real racing, not once or twice a year at a local parking lot) and need maximum power in the upper region of the powerband.
It is very important to select the right cam for a variety of reasons. Driveability is a major one, the more aggressive the cam, the more loopy and rough the idle will be which makes for a bad daily driver. This relates to another problem, where in the powerband the cam is beneficial. A very aggressive cam will typically sacrifice low-end grunt for high-end power, making it difficult to drive in relaxed fashion. To help understand this, imagine driving a car in stop and go traffic that only made power at 10000 RPM. A lesser discussed problem is efficiency, a more aggressive cam only works properly if you supply it with everything it needs. If you bolt a stage 4 cam to a stock engine, A. it probably won’t even run, B. if it does run, it could ultimately damage the motor and C. if it does run and the motor doesn’t break, you’ll be making less power than stock because the motor will be highly inefficient. Something else to consider, two cams with identical specs (lift and duration) may not perform the same. Think of lift and duration as being equivalent to the height and the weight of a person. Sure it will give you a general idea of what that person looks like but it won’t tell you the details.
For those unfamiliar with how a camshaft works, here is an excellent explanation.
-----Ported and Polished head-----
This is a pricey mod no matter how you cut it. RRM offers a professionally P & P head but it costs an arm and a leg, same goes for RPW. Alternatively you can get it done at a machine shop/race shop but this will mean being without your car for some time.
Last edited by ambystom01; Mar 1, 2008 at 08:54 PM.
Aug 1, 2007, 06:42 PM
#2
-----Nitrous-----
It isn’t NOS, it’s nitrous (or more specifically dinitrogen monoxide). On lancers this is generally regarded as a no-no, people have blown motors on as little as a 50 shot. This is on a stock motor though. With upgraded rods and pistons you could probably use it but whether it’s worth spending several thousands just to have a red button is up to you.
At the moment that is all the NA mods I can think of. Something to keep in mind is that the lancer is not a Honda, it won’t rev to 9000 RPM and make 200 hp NA, at best you’ll make 150 realistically.
For all the mods that apply, the gains will be greater on a motor with forced induction (great segway eh?).
-----Forced Induction-----
-----Basics of forced induction-----
-----Turbocharger-----
A turbocharger is an exhaust driven air compressor. What this means it is uses the exhaust gases to drive an air compressor, compressing the air. Since they use exhaust gases to do their work, turbos are extremely hot. By compressing the air, you can get more oxygen into the engine which means more power (in some cases a lot more power). The problem with this though is as you compress the air, you increase the temperature. As mentioned earlier, detonation is a big problem for motors. One cause of detonation is simply temperature, if the air is hot enough, it’ll ignite without a spark. Due to this, people have come up with creative ways to cool the intake charge. One method that most people are pretty familiar with is using an intercooler. An intercooler is a radiator for the intake, its sole purpose is to reduce the temperature so as to reduce the chances of detonation. Air travels from the intake, to the turbocharger, then through the intercooler and finally into the engine.
Alternatively you can inject methanol or water into the motor. I won’t bother going farther than this since I haven’t heard of anyone using this on the 4G94 and it’s definitely overkill for most situations.
Other important aspects of a turbocharged vehicle are the wastegate and the blow-off valve. A wastegate is a valve that keeps the turbo spinning at the desired rate to achieve the desired boost pressure. If left to their own devices, turbochargers would simply spin faster and faster as the revs went up. This would be catastrophic to a motor as the boost pressure would just keep going up and up and eventually the motor would fail. In order to prevent this, the wastegate releases or diverts exhaust gases away from the turbo so it’ll only spin to a preset speed. The purpose of the blow-off valve (or BOV to the kids) is to release the pressurized air when necessary. This means when the throttle plate is closed. Obviously the air has no where to go so it would simply backup potentially damaging the turbo. This is referred to as compressor surge. There are two types of blow-off valves, recirculating valves (also called diverter valves) and atmospheric valves. Recirculating valves redirect the air back into the intake stream further upstream. Atmospheric valves release the pressurized air into the atmosphere. This can lead to major problems because of the MAF. Essentially the car does not get the amount of air it is suspecting, throwing off the AF ratio.
-----Boost threshold and turbo lag-----
Despite the relatively simple nature of these concepts, a lot of people get them confused. Boost threshold refers to the RPM at which a turbo spools and boost is experienced while turbo lag refers to the time difference between hitting the gas pedal and actually noticing acceleration. To measure turbo lag, you obviously need to be past boost threshold, if you slam the gas at 1000 RPM, you are not experiencing lag.
-----Turbo trim and A/R-----
Turbo trim is essentially a measure of how large the turbo. A higher trim value generally means more lag but more power potential while a lower trim means less lag but a lower power potential. This is not absolute however.
For more info, see this FAQ.
A/R (or Area/Radius Ratio) works more or less the same.
-----Supercharger-----
A supercharger is a belt driven air compressor. Rather than use exhaust gases to do its job, it is actually attached to the engine. An advantage to this is the supercharger will only spin as fast as the motor allows it to reducing if not eliminating the chances of overboost. Response is also better than with turbochargers. A problem however is that this puts strain on the motor reducing overall power compared to a turbocharger (which essentially uses waste to work). This isn’t a big deal for most people and with most applications but if you use too big of a supercharger you can actually end up with a car that won’t run at all. The superchargers you see in race cars require hundreds of horsepower just to get moving.
More information is available from Howstuffworks here.
-----Premade Lancer kits-----
The premier source for a full turbo kit is RRM. If you want a turbo kit, go with them. RPW does offer one but they are also in Australia and are not complete. For some this might not be a big deal but for most of us it means the difference between boosting in a few weeks versus a few months. For the 2002-2003 lancer, RRM used a up-pipe, down-pipe system. They also used a fuel management unit to increase the fuel pressure thus allowing the motor to have the necessary fuel. For the 2004-2006 lancer, they made a turbo manifold. They also began using a 5th injector because of the returnless fuel system. This injector is controlled by their piggyback ECU. You have three options as far as the turbo goes, a T-25, T-28 and a 16G. Which one is right for you depends on your budget and what you want out of the car. The T-25 is the smallest turbo and thus the cheapest. It also has the fastest spool time but it will max out quicker. The T-28 and 16G are about equal in terms of spool time and potential.
For a supercharger you’re only option is RIPP. They no longer make a kit for the lancer but you might be able to find one floating around on here or on ebay.
With forced induction, the motor really comes alive. 200 hp is easy and 300 hp has and can be done. If you want the most out of your motor, this is the only option. Something to keep in mind, slapping a turbo kit on an econobox will not make it a performance car. Manufacturers spend millions developing their performance cars for a reason, they simply feel different from other cars. If you have these grand aspirations of turning your lancer into a STi/Evo equivalent, you need to get off the drugs.
Whether it's a heavily modified NA or a forced induction system, you may need to modify the stock fuel system to compensate. This can mean a new fuel pump (Walbro), new injectors, extra injectors, a new fuel management system or a fuel pressure regulator among other possibilities. I won't go into details as if you've gotten to this point, you should be able to do the research yourself or ask a more knowledgeable shop what to do.
-----Custom Kits-----
Yes it is possible to make your own kit. If you need to ask, you are not ready in my opinion. Here is a list of what you’ll need though.
Turbo
Turbo manifold
Fuel system upgrade (injectors, pump, FMU, etc.)
Wastegate
BOV
Intercooler
Intercooler and intake piping
Oil (and water) lines and fittings
Hoses, clamps and other bits and pieces
A general tip for those considering forced induction, a little goes a long way. The lancer motor is not designed to be turboed and has a relatively high compression which means you see decent gains for a given amount of boost pressure. It also means the motor cannot handle high amounts of boost without some serious modifications, namely new pistons, new rods, decompression gasket, etc. As a general rule, 10 PSI is about the max you should be shooting for without any modifications. This is with a 16G or a T-28 intercooled turbo. Some people say the motor can handle 12 PSI but whether it’s worth the risk is up to you. Above this point the pistons and the rods become a problem and should be replaced. Here is a good thread discussing the maximum pressure that can be run with a 16G setup.
-----Fuel Injectors-----
Fuel injectors are what deliver the fuel to your engine (unless of course you have the elusive carbureted lancer). They are attached to the intake manifold and sit between the plenum and the engine itself. They are fed by the fuel rail. Unless you are making significant power, you do not need to worry about replacing these. I assure you, an intake and exhaust do not increase the engine power enough to require new injectors. Generally speaking, only a turboed motor needs new injectors and even then only if it's running a decent amount of boost.
If you upgrade the injectors, you will need a tune. This isn't a recommendation, it is a requirement. You car was designed to use the stock injectors thus if you don't tune it, it will use way more fuel than necessary which could make it run horribly or simply not run at all. You need to change the fuel trim in order to take into account the larger capacity of the injectors. Most piggyback systems will allow you (or your tuner) to do this.
The stock injectors are 240 cc. Here is a list (thanks Drucea) of other injectors that work in the lancer,
87.5 RX7 high impedence=460cc
93+ Non turbo supra=315cc
00+ celica gts=310cc
90-96 300zx TT=370cc
97+ Honda Prelude VTEC=280cc
02-03 Impreza=440cc
-----Motor Swap-----
Remember when I said a lancer isn’t a Honda? Nowhere is this more apparent than when the topic of engine swapping comes up. Currently only two swaps have been done, one went to a 4G63 out of an evo (here) and the other went to a 4G64 out of an eclipse (here). The 4G63 swap was not easy and cost a small fortune, the 4G64 swap is easier. Whether it is worth it is up to you. There are other swaps out there. RPW seems to be the company to consult if you’re interested in doing a motor swap. If you want information on an AWD swap, you’re out of luck. Currently no one has done an AWD swap with a lancer although it has been done in the mirage world.
-----Electronic engine modifications-----
This category encompasses things like grounding kits, spark plugs, voltage stabilizers, etc. These are not mods to do if you want to make noticeable power. You will not gain power changing your plugs unless something is wrong with the engine or the plugs you are replacing are old and not functioning correctly. Grounding kits are a waste of time as with voltage stabilizers. Do not get tricked by all the advertisements, they are the snake oil of the automotive world.
-----Tuning-----
I’ll start off by saying do not try to tune your car unless you know exactly what you are doing or don’t mind having to buy a new motor to learn. If you are unsure, leave it to the professionals. Despite what some people seem to think, professional tuners are not just people with more experience, they are often people who have actual training or certification to work with a variety of systems and are capable of getting the most out of an engine. Tuning is both a science and an art form and the difference between a good tuner and a great tuner is a lot like the difference between a good driver and a great driver in that it’s found in the details and often not learnable.
With that disclaimer out of the way, you’ll need a few things before you tune. First off, you need something to actually tune with. You have a lot of options as far as this goes and which is right for you depends on your budget and what you actually need to do. Just a few examples are the Apexi S-AFC, the RRM piggyback, the Greddy Emanage, the Haltech Interceptor and the AEM EMS. I’ve tried to order the units in order of complexity. The Apexi is by far the simplest and can only change the AF ratio. For the average person this is fine. The RRM piggyback is very similar but it can also be made to adjust timing if you buy the upgrade. A great thing about the RRM piggyback is it comes preloaded with a decent map to start with or to use flat out. This means if you don’t want to tune but want the advantages of a modified fuel map, you can just hookup the RRM piggyback and go. None of the other units have this convenience. The Greddy Emanage allows you to change the AF ratio and timing. The newer versions have lots of neat features that could be useful or just unnecessary complications but the choice is up to you. I’m not very familiar with the Haltech Interceptor but from what I’ve gathered it’s very similar to the Emanage. The AEM EMS is the by far the best unit on the list but it’s also the most complicated and the most expensive (by a large margin). Unlike all the other ECUs discussed, it is not a piggyback computer but a full standalone engine management unit meaning it replaces the stock ECU altogether. It has the greatest flexibility and is the unit you need if you want to get every ounce of power of the car. For the average person though it is beyond overkill (basically using a nuclear missile to kill some ants) and not even worth considering. Most if not all of the mentioned ECUs can also datalog allowing you to compare data under different conditions.
Tuning is pointless if you can’t see what you’re doing so you also need a wideband AF gauge/monitor at minimum (these are also called wideband O2 sensors). These are not the gauges you see in most civics (which are narrowband O2 gauges for those who want to know), they don’t simply have some nice colors that sweep constantly but rather display a specific number, namely the AF ratio of your motor at that exact moment. Remember when I talked about AF ratio? Well this is where it applies. Once you know what the AF ratio is, you can optimize it with the tuning device you have. There are quite a few options as far as an AF gauge is concerned. AEM makes a basic but straightforward unit for those who only need to know what the AF ratio is and want to display it in a gauge format. Zeitronix has a very good unit that can be expanded to display exhaust gas temperature (EGT) and boost as well for those who are turboed. It can also datalog for those people that need that function. Innovate produces a similar wideband with a lot of extra features. Which is the one to go for is up to you.
Some other things you may need for tuning are a laptop (for datalogging and changing the tune), other gauges (depending on your application) and a dyno.
The basic idea behind tuning is to figure out what the base tune is and change it accordingly. This means running the car on a dyno or on a sparsely used road, datalogging the information, viewing the information, and fiddling with the ECU to achieve a more desired number. This can be very time consuming depending on your goal. It’s important to go in small steps to ensure you don’t cause damage to the motor. As an example, if you do a pull and find that the base AF ratio is 10:1 (very rich), you would reduce the amount of fuel slightly and do another pull. I won’t go further than this since you can write a book on tuning alone (hell this section is pretty big and it barely scratches the surface).
-----Suspension-----
When it comes to the suspension, you can pretty much change or add everything you want or need. Something to consider is as with everything, you get what you pay for. You’re not going to have race car handling with 200$ springs. If you want the most out of the car, you have to be willing to spend big bucks. Slamming the car to the ground isn’t a good idea, what is most important in handling is getting the suspension to work together. This means springs that don’t overload the struts and struts that don’t hold the car stiff in situations where some softness would be beneficial. This is why manufacturers spend hours upon hours and millions of dollars testing their cars at places like the Nurburgring.
-----Some useful terms when it comes to the suspension-----
-----Oversteer-----
This basically means the car pushes towards the center of the turn, it’s what you see when a rear-wheel drive car like a viper takes a corner and stamps the gas. It’s a good thing for racing since the car effectively makes the corner for you but very few manufacturers make a car do it from the factory because it’s also the most dangerous handling characteristic, if you don’t know it’s coming or go too far the car can simply spin out. Upgrading the rear sway bar is a simple way to make a lancer oversteer more than it does from the factory.
-----Understeer-----
This is what you feel on a stock car. The car pushes towards the outside of the corner. While it’s annoying, it’s safer since if you take a corner too fast, you’ll just go wide.
-----Dampening-----
How stiff the struts are or rather how much they will cushion a bump.
First up let’s address the springs and struts. You have two options here, just springs (and struts) or full-blown coilovers.
An excellent article on suspension is available here
. It describes things like camber, toe, caster and other more complex subjects.
If you want to know everything about automotive suspension, the Car Bible is the place to go.
-----Springs-----
In my opinion, these are purely cosmetic. They lower the car thus lowering the center of gravity and all aftermarket springs are stiffer than their OEM counterparts. In theory this should lead to a more performance oriented ride however, remember when I said all the suspension need to work together? Well the stiffer springs and the lower ride put more stress on the stock struts which leads to a bumpier and less performance oriented ride. Eventually the stock struts will blow at which point you’ll be worse off than you were with a stock car. Now I’m sure you’re thinking “well that’s lame, why didn’t Mitsubishi make stronger struts?” Well the simple answer is because the lancer is an economy car, it’s meant to get you from point A to point B as cheaply as possible. Some reputable manufacturers of springs are Tein, Progress, H & R and Eibach. Note that the ES and OZ/Ralliart use different springs.
Everyone has seen a spring, didn’t you have a slinky as a kid?
It isn’t NOS, it’s nitrous (or more specifically dinitrogen monoxide). On lancers this is generally regarded as a no-no, people have blown motors on as little as a 50 shot. This is on a stock motor though. With upgraded rods and pistons you could probably use it but whether it’s worth spending several thousands just to have a red button is up to you.
At the moment that is all the NA mods I can think of. Something to keep in mind is that the lancer is not a Honda, it won’t rev to 9000 RPM and make 200 hp NA, at best you’ll make 150 realistically.
For all the mods that apply, the gains will be greater on a motor with forced induction (great segway eh?).
-----Forced Induction-----
-----Basics of forced induction-----
-----Turbocharger-----
A turbocharger is an exhaust driven air compressor. What this means it is uses the exhaust gases to drive an air compressor, compressing the air. Since they use exhaust gases to do their work, turbos are extremely hot. By compressing the air, you can get more oxygen into the engine which means more power (in some cases a lot more power). The problem with this though is as you compress the air, you increase the temperature. As mentioned earlier, detonation is a big problem for motors. One cause of detonation is simply temperature, if the air is hot enough, it’ll ignite without a spark. Due to this, people have come up with creative ways to cool the intake charge. One method that most people are pretty familiar with is using an intercooler. An intercooler is a radiator for the intake, its sole purpose is to reduce the temperature so as to reduce the chances of detonation. Air travels from the intake, to the turbocharger, then through the intercooler and finally into the engine.
Alternatively you can inject methanol or water into the motor. I won’t bother going farther than this since I haven’t heard of anyone using this on the 4G94 and it’s definitely overkill for most situations.
Other important aspects of a turbocharged vehicle are the wastegate and the blow-off valve. A wastegate is a valve that keeps the turbo spinning at the desired rate to achieve the desired boost pressure. If left to their own devices, turbochargers would simply spin faster and faster as the revs went up. This would be catastrophic to a motor as the boost pressure would just keep going up and up and eventually the motor would fail. In order to prevent this, the wastegate releases or diverts exhaust gases away from the turbo so it’ll only spin to a preset speed. The purpose of the blow-off valve (or BOV to the kids) is to release the pressurized air when necessary. This means when the throttle plate is closed. Obviously the air has no where to go so it would simply backup potentially damaging the turbo. This is referred to as compressor surge. There are two types of blow-off valves, recirculating valves (also called diverter valves) and atmospheric valves. Recirculating valves redirect the air back into the intake stream further upstream. Atmospheric valves release the pressurized air into the atmosphere. This can lead to major problems because of the MAF. Essentially the car does not get the amount of air it is suspecting, throwing off the AF ratio.
-----Boost threshold and turbo lag-----
Despite the relatively simple nature of these concepts, a lot of people get them confused. Boost threshold refers to the RPM at which a turbo spools and boost is experienced while turbo lag refers to the time difference between hitting the gas pedal and actually noticing acceleration. To measure turbo lag, you obviously need to be past boost threshold, if you slam the gas at 1000 RPM, you are not experiencing lag.
-----Turbo trim and A/R-----
Turbo trim is essentially a measure of how large the turbo. A higher trim value generally means more lag but more power potential while a lower trim means less lag but a lower power potential. This is not absolute however.
For more info, see this FAQ.
A/R (or Area/Radius Ratio) works more or less the same.
-----Supercharger-----
A supercharger is a belt driven air compressor. Rather than use exhaust gases to do its job, it is actually attached to the engine. An advantage to this is the supercharger will only spin as fast as the motor allows it to reducing if not eliminating the chances of overboost. Response is also better than with turbochargers. A problem however is that this puts strain on the motor reducing overall power compared to a turbocharger (which essentially uses waste to work). This isn’t a big deal for most people and with most applications but if you use too big of a supercharger you can actually end up with a car that won’t run at all. The superchargers you see in race cars require hundreds of horsepower just to get moving.
More information is available from Howstuffworks here.
-----Premade Lancer kits-----
The premier source for a full turbo kit is RRM. If you want a turbo kit, go with them. RPW does offer one but they are also in Australia and are not complete. For some this might not be a big deal but for most of us it means the difference between boosting in a few weeks versus a few months. For the 2002-2003 lancer, RRM used a up-pipe, down-pipe system. They also used a fuel management unit to increase the fuel pressure thus allowing the motor to have the necessary fuel. For the 2004-2006 lancer, they made a turbo manifold. They also began using a 5th injector because of the returnless fuel system. This injector is controlled by their piggyback ECU. You have three options as far as the turbo goes, a T-25, T-28 and a 16G. Which one is right for you depends on your budget and what you want out of the car. The T-25 is the smallest turbo and thus the cheapest. It also has the fastest spool time but it will max out quicker. The T-28 and 16G are about equal in terms of spool time and potential.
For a supercharger you’re only option is RIPP. They no longer make a kit for the lancer but you might be able to find one floating around on here or on ebay.
With forced induction, the motor really comes alive. 200 hp is easy and 300 hp has and can be done. If you want the most out of your motor, this is the only option. Something to keep in mind, slapping a turbo kit on an econobox will not make it a performance car. Manufacturers spend millions developing their performance cars for a reason, they simply feel different from other cars. If you have these grand aspirations of turning your lancer into a STi/Evo equivalent, you need to get off the drugs.
Whether it's a heavily modified NA or a forced induction system, you may need to modify the stock fuel system to compensate. This can mean a new fuel pump (Walbro), new injectors, extra injectors, a new fuel management system or a fuel pressure regulator among other possibilities. I won't go into details as if you've gotten to this point, you should be able to do the research yourself or ask a more knowledgeable shop what to do.
-----Custom Kits-----
Yes it is possible to make your own kit. If you need to ask, you are not ready in my opinion. Here is a list of what you’ll need though.
Turbo
Turbo manifold
Fuel system upgrade (injectors, pump, FMU, etc.)
Wastegate
BOV
Intercooler
Intercooler and intake piping
Oil (and water) lines and fittings
Hoses, clamps and other bits and pieces
A general tip for those considering forced induction, a little goes a long way. The lancer motor is not designed to be turboed and has a relatively high compression which means you see decent gains for a given amount of boost pressure. It also means the motor cannot handle high amounts of boost without some serious modifications, namely new pistons, new rods, decompression gasket, etc. As a general rule, 10 PSI is about the max you should be shooting for without any modifications. This is with a 16G or a T-28 intercooled turbo. Some people say the motor can handle 12 PSI but whether it’s worth the risk is up to you. Above this point the pistons and the rods become a problem and should be replaced. Here is a good thread discussing the maximum pressure that can be run with a 16G setup.
-----Fuel Injectors-----
Fuel injectors are what deliver the fuel to your engine (unless of course you have the elusive carbureted lancer). They are attached to the intake manifold and sit between the plenum and the engine itself. They are fed by the fuel rail. Unless you are making significant power, you do not need to worry about replacing these. I assure you, an intake and exhaust do not increase the engine power enough to require new injectors. Generally speaking, only a turboed motor needs new injectors and even then only if it's running a decent amount of boost.
If you upgrade the injectors, you will need a tune. This isn't a recommendation, it is a requirement. You car was designed to use the stock injectors thus if you don't tune it, it will use way more fuel than necessary which could make it run horribly or simply not run at all. You need to change the fuel trim in order to take into account the larger capacity of the injectors. Most piggyback systems will allow you (or your tuner) to do this.
The stock injectors are 240 cc. Here is a list (thanks Drucea) of other injectors that work in the lancer,
87.5 RX7 high impedence=460cc
93+ Non turbo supra=315cc
00+ celica gts=310cc
90-96 300zx TT=370cc
97+ Honda Prelude VTEC=280cc
02-03 Impreza=440cc
-----Motor Swap-----
Remember when I said a lancer isn’t a Honda? Nowhere is this more apparent than when the topic of engine swapping comes up. Currently only two swaps have been done, one went to a 4G63 out of an evo (here) and the other went to a 4G64 out of an eclipse (here). The 4G63 swap was not easy and cost a small fortune, the 4G64 swap is easier. Whether it is worth it is up to you. There are other swaps out there. RPW seems to be the company to consult if you’re interested in doing a motor swap. If you want information on an AWD swap, you’re out of luck. Currently no one has done an AWD swap with a lancer although it has been done in the mirage world.
-----Electronic engine modifications-----
This category encompasses things like grounding kits, spark plugs, voltage stabilizers, etc. These are not mods to do if you want to make noticeable power. You will not gain power changing your plugs unless something is wrong with the engine or the plugs you are replacing are old and not functioning correctly. Grounding kits are a waste of time as with voltage stabilizers. Do not get tricked by all the advertisements, they are the snake oil of the automotive world.
-----Tuning-----
I’ll start off by saying do not try to tune your car unless you know exactly what you are doing or don’t mind having to buy a new motor to learn. If you are unsure, leave it to the professionals. Despite what some people seem to think, professional tuners are not just people with more experience, they are often people who have actual training or certification to work with a variety of systems and are capable of getting the most out of an engine. Tuning is both a science and an art form and the difference between a good tuner and a great tuner is a lot like the difference between a good driver and a great driver in that it’s found in the details and often not learnable.
With that disclaimer out of the way, you’ll need a few things before you tune. First off, you need something to actually tune with. You have a lot of options as far as this goes and which is right for you depends on your budget and what you actually need to do. Just a few examples are the Apexi S-AFC, the RRM piggyback, the Greddy Emanage, the Haltech Interceptor and the AEM EMS. I’ve tried to order the units in order of complexity. The Apexi is by far the simplest and can only change the AF ratio. For the average person this is fine. The RRM piggyback is very similar but it can also be made to adjust timing if you buy the upgrade. A great thing about the RRM piggyback is it comes preloaded with a decent map to start with or to use flat out. This means if you don’t want to tune but want the advantages of a modified fuel map, you can just hookup the RRM piggyback and go. None of the other units have this convenience. The Greddy Emanage allows you to change the AF ratio and timing. The newer versions have lots of neat features that could be useful or just unnecessary complications but the choice is up to you. I’m not very familiar with the Haltech Interceptor but from what I’ve gathered it’s very similar to the Emanage. The AEM EMS is the by far the best unit on the list but it’s also the most complicated and the most expensive (by a large margin). Unlike all the other ECUs discussed, it is not a piggyback computer but a full standalone engine management unit meaning it replaces the stock ECU altogether. It has the greatest flexibility and is the unit you need if you want to get every ounce of power of the car. For the average person though it is beyond overkill (basically using a nuclear missile to kill some ants) and not even worth considering. Most if not all of the mentioned ECUs can also datalog allowing you to compare data under different conditions.
Tuning is pointless if you can’t see what you’re doing so you also need a wideband AF gauge/monitor at minimum (these are also called wideband O2 sensors). These are not the gauges you see in most civics (which are narrowband O2 gauges for those who want to know), they don’t simply have some nice colors that sweep constantly but rather display a specific number, namely the AF ratio of your motor at that exact moment. Remember when I talked about AF ratio? Well this is where it applies. Once you know what the AF ratio is, you can optimize it with the tuning device you have. There are quite a few options as far as an AF gauge is concerned. AEM makes a basic but straightforward unit for those who only need to know what the AF ratio is and want to display it in a gauge format. Zeitronix has a very good unit that can be expanded to display exhaust gas temperature (EGT) and boost as well for those who are turboed. It can also datalog for those people that need that function. Innovate produces a similar wideband with a lot of extra features. Which is the one to go for is up to you.
Some other things you may need for tuning are a laptop (for datalogging and changing the tune), other gauges (depending on your application) and a dyno.
The basic idea behind tuning is to figure out what the base tune is and change it accordingly. This means running the car on a dyno or on a sparsely used road, datalogging the information, viewing the information, and fiddling with the ECU to achieve a more desired number. This can be very time consuming depending on your goal. It’s important to go in small steps to ensure you don’t cause damage to the motor. As an example, if you do a pull and find that the base AF ratio is 10:1 (very rich), you would reduce the amount of fuel slightly and do another pull. I won’t go further than this since you can write a book on tuning alone (hell this section is pretty big and it barely scratches the surface).
-----Suspension-----
When it comes to the suspension, you can pretty much change or add everything you want or need. Something to consider is as with everything, you get what you pay for. You’re not going to have race car handling with 200$ springs. If you want the most out of the car, you have to be willing to spend big bucks. Slamming the car to the ground isn’t a good idea, what is most important in handling is getting the suspension to work together. This means springs that don’t overload the struts and struts that don’t hold the car stiff in situations where some softness would be beneficial. This is why manufacturers spend hours upon hours and millions of dollars testing their cars at places like the Nurburgring.
-----Some useful terms when it comes to the suspension-----
-----Oversteer-----
This basically means the car pushes towards the center of the turn, it’s what you see when a rear-wheel drive car like a viper takes a corner and stamps the gas. It’s a good thing for racing since the car effectively makes the corner for you but very few manufacturers make a car do it from the factory because it’s also the most dangerous handling characteristic, if you don’t know it’s coming or go too far the car can simply spin out. Upgrading the rear sway bar is a simple way to make a lancer oversteer more than it does from the factory.
-----Understeer-----
This is what you feel on a stock car. The car pushes towards the outside of the corner. While it’s annoying, it’s safer since if you take a corner too fast, you’ll just go wide.
-----Dampening-----
How stiff the struts are or rather how much they will cushion a bump.
First up let’s address the springs and struts. You have two options here, just springs (and struts) or full-blown coilovers.
An excellent article on suspension is available here
. It describes things like camber, toe, caster and other more complex subjects.
If you want to know everything about automotive suspension, the Car Bible is the place to go.
-----Springs-----
In my opinion, these are purely cosmetic. They lower the car thus lowering the center of gravity and all aftermarket springs are stiffer than their OEM counterparts. In theory this should lead to a more performance oriented ride however, remember when I said all the suspension need to work together? Well the stiffer springs and the lower ride put more stress on the stock struts which leads to a bumpier and less performance oriented ride. Eventually the stock struts will blow at which point you’ll be worse off than you were with a stock car. Now I’m sure you’re thinking “well that’s lame, why didn’t Mitsubishi make stronger struts?” Well the simple answer is because the lancer is an economy car, it’s meant to get you from point A to point B as cheaply as possible. Some reputable manufacturers of springs are Tein, Progress, H & R and Eibach. Note that the ES and OZ/Ralliart use different springs.
Everyone has seen a spring, didn’t you have a slinky as a kid?
Last edited by ambystom01; Sep 10, 2008 at 12:44 PM.
Dec 14, 2007, 10:03 PM
#3
-----Struts-----
Currently there are only two strut options out there, stock and KYB GR-2s. The KYB GR-2s are not a performance strut, they will not increase handling ability nor will they withstand the stresses of lowering springs (although they may last longer than stock).
For cross referencing purposes, OZ struts will fit on an ES as long as you use the OZ front top strut mounts. Similarly the Ralliart struts will fit the OZ but without any modifications needed (and thus they will fit the ES with the OZ/Ralliart front top strut mounts). Only the evo front struts will fit, the rears are different.
-----Coilovers-----
These are the caviar of suspension modifications. They are matched struts and springs and they usually come with other features like ride height adjustability, dampening adjustability, upper pillowball mounts and/or camber plates. If you want to be able to lower your car in the summer and raise it in the winter, these are for you. If you want to compete in autocross or track events, these are for you. If you want a properly working suspension, these are for you. The coil sleeves you see on Ebay for 80$ are not coilovers and are only made for ricers, done. Tein, Ksport, JIC, NEX and Megan all make various coilover kits for the lancer, deciding which one is for you is your job. Something to keep in mind, the ride quality will go down significantly when you install coilovers. I found the ride to be flat-out ridiculous at times. This is not a universal property of coilovers but rather a property of entry level coilovers. Because of the limited market and the nature of the lancer, manufacturers are not going to spend thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours tuning their coilover kit, selecting the ideal strut size and valving, spring strength, etc., if they did you’d be paying double if not triple the price.
Proper coilovers should look like this (these are Bilsteins which are very proper coilovers). You can see the adjustable spring perches, the dampening adjustability knobs on the top and the metal top plates.
These are what the crappy ebay coil sleeves look like. If someone tries to sell you these, kick them in the groin and run away. Notice how they are effectively just a spring with a bolt attached to allow you to compress them.
-----Sway Bar-----
Currently only an aftermarket rear sway bar is available. It is made by Progress and RRM sells it. The purpose of this mod is to replace the crappy stock unit (if you have on OZ) or add one that wasn’t there from the factory (ES guys). It’s a good idea to replace the stock perches at the same time as they have a tendency to snap. This mod is a real winner in my book, it is noticeable from the minute you have it installed (at least if you take a corner within that minute). It causes the car to oversteer more into a corner leading to a more neutral feeling since the car naturally understeers from the factory. It does this by basically linking the two sides together and causing them to move up and down together as one unit. There are bushings available for the front sway bar from Deyeme.
The bars for the lancer look a bit like this.
-----Strut Bar-----
There are front and rear strut bars available. RRM is a major manufacturer of these. They both do the same job, they link their respective struts together. In theory this acts to stiffen the car up thus reducing the flex you see in hard corners. However, given the location of the struts on a lancer (close to the firewall in the front, close to the back seat in the rear) how much these work is debatable. If you like them, get them, if not, you won’t exactly be missing them.
Here’s the rear strut bar from RRM.
-----Lower Tie Bar-----
This is a small bar that links the control arms together. RRM makes one. Some people love them, others think they’re useless. I’ll leave it at that.
-----Wheels and Tires-----
There are plenty of wheel FAQs out there so I’ll only touch on this briefly. If you care about performance, you don’t want big rims especially on a car as underpowered as the lancer, you want small and light rims. Now you might ask “why small rims, I thought weight was all that mattered”. While it’s true that weight is important (don’t say that to your girlfriend) diameter plays a role too (you definitely don’t want her saying that about you). To understand this, imagine lifting a 5 lb weight. Which is easier, lifting the weight when your hand is at your chest or when it’s as outstretched as possible? The same goes for your car, it works best when the weight is as close to the hub as possible. See the other FAQ for info on what wheel sizes fit and what tire sizes you need for them to fit.
For reference, here’s the bolt patterns for various lancer models:
2003-2005 ES 4 x 100
2003-2006 OZ and LS, 2006 ES 4 x 114.3
Here's Lancerman's thread on wheel offset.
As far as tires are concerned, you want to buy the best tires you can afford and ones most suited to the job at hand. This means if you want tires that stick like glue during the summer, buy dedicated summer tires. If you want great traction in the winter, buy winter tires. As Tirerack says, tires are like shoes, you need to use the right ones for the conditions. You can have the best suspension the world but it doesn’t mean squat if you don’t have the tires to handle it. Some people like the idea of an AWD conversion in order to increase grip but AWD cannot perform miracles. For a clear example of this, ask the Evo or STI drivers who crashed because they tried to use their dedicated stock summer tires during the winter. If you’re interested in buying tires and want to see how they compare to others in their class, consult The Tire Rack.
The Car Bible has everything you could ever want to know on wheels and tires.
-----Brakes-----
Brakes are the most important part of the car, don’t skimp on them unless you have a death wish (or your parents are related). Here is an incredible article on brakes (once again by the Car Bible).
-----Pads-----
These are what stop the car. You want to buy the best you can afford. This means 60-100$ for a set that only last 1-2 years. Sure you could get the ones with a lifetime warranty on them but they won’t stop very well and they’ll eat up your rotors. The reason they have a lifetime warranty is because they are made of a very hard compound. Like tires a softer compound means a sticker surface. Axxis, Porterfield, EBC and Hawk all make great brakes. RRM is just one possible source for these.
-----Rotors-----
These are what the caliper presses the pads against. You can get stock replacements, slotted, drilled or both. Slotted means slots are cut into the metal. Drilled means holes are drilled through the rotor. Both techniques serve the same purpose, to cool the rotor and allow hot gases to escape. These hot gases form at the pad-rotor junction and can act as a cushion that leads to a less responsive brake feel. Heat can cause the brake pads to fail as they basically glaze over and melt. With all that in mind, you don’t need either. Unless you are hurtling down a track at 100 mph and slamming on the brakes you aren’t getting the brakes hot enough to fade. If you want some cool looking rotors though, go with slotted. Drilled rotors are known to crack under stress especially on a car with tiny rotors like the lancer has. RRM offers some quality rotors but you can also get some from Tirerack.com.
This is what a rotor looks like.
-----Stainless Steel Brake Lines-----
If you’ve looked at the brakes you’ve seen the brake lines, they are simply rubber tubes that carry the brake fluid to the caliper. You can replace these with stainless steel lines. The basic idea behind this is the stock lines can change shape since they are rubber and this can contribute to a mushy pedal feel. Obviously stainless steel doesn’t change shape easily thus you don’t get the mushy feel. They can help with the brake feel but don’t expect them to make the brakes perfect. RRM offers them but you may be able to find them elsewhere as well.
-----Big Brake Kit-----
I’m sure everyone has seen those gigantic rotors behind gigantic rims and thought “damn I want those too”. Well I hate to be the bringer of bad news but you don’t need them. The purpose of gigantic brakes are to prevent brake fade (remember I mentioned that earlier?) by basically creating a larger surface. They are designed for race cars. Yes they look cool but they won’t make you stop faster on the street in fact they’ll make you stop slower because they cool the pads. Like tires brake pads want enough heat to soften them up but not enough to melt them. Go too far either way and you’ll reduce their ability to function. Wilwood, Brembo and RPW all offer kits. If you need them, you won’t be reading this.
The Wilwoods look this and they are certainly very shiny and nice.
-----Rear Disc Conversion-----
The lancer comes stock with rear drums. They are ugly, you know it and I know it. However, you don’t need to replace them. The majority (75% or more) of your braking is done by the front discs. As ugly as they are the rear drums are more than capable of handling the remaining 25%. If you want to upgrade them, RPW has a kit.
There are also various bushing kits available for different parts of the suspension. If you want them, get them, but unless you’ve done everything else they won’t do much.
-----Drivetrain-----
In this section we’ll take a look at upgrading the components that help put the power to the ground. This means the transmission and things related to the transmission. If you have an auto, none of this applies to you. Disappointed? Well that’s what you get for being a little guuurl.
For an easy to understand explanation on how a transmission works, look at this Howstuffworks article .
Here is a similar article on automatic transmissions.
For information on everything to do with the transmission, go here.
-----Clutch-----
The clutch is what takes the energy from the engine and transfers it to the transmission. It’s composed of a pressure plate and a clutch disk. Both are modified when you go to an aftermarket kit. A stronger pressure plate is used to push harder against the flywheel which increases how much horsepower the clutch can take before it fails. This also results in a stiffer pedal feel. A different clutch plate is used to handle more power. How far you need to go is dependent on much power you plan on making and how you plan on using the car. You don’t need a 300 lb pressure plate if you’re just going to bolt on an intake and an exhaust system, however if you plan on turboing the car and going to the drag strip it’s probably a good idea. ACT, Clutchmasters and WORKS all make good kits and have varying stages.
Here’s how the clutch and flywheel are arranged.
-----Lightened Flywheel-----
A lightened flywheel serves the same purpose as a lightened crank pulley, it acts to reduce the amount of weight the motor has to spin. This particular mod makes the car rev up easier. This can make daily driving a bit more difficult. Fidanza and WORKS are two sources for this.
-----Underhood/Shifter Linkage Bushings-----
These replace the stock rubber bushings with harder plastic or metal bushings. This reduces much of the sloppiness found in the stock shifter. If you like to drive stick, this is a worthwhile mod. Kartboy makes a great set but you can find others at Lancershop.com. The bushings made for the evo fit the lancer.
The kartboy bushings look like this. The ones I had were bright green which made them that much better.
-----Short Shifter-----
This is pretty straightforward, it’s just a shorter shifter that reduces the throw and the height of the shifter. B & M, Perrin, Kartboy, Lancershop.com and Ebay are all great sources. Any kit made for a 5-speed evo works for the lancer.
This is the Perrin unit.
-----Shifter Base Bushings-----
If you take apart the center console (as you would if installing a short shifter) you’ll see the base bushings. These replace those pieces with harder plastic or metal units. It’s one of those mods that you might as well do while doing the shifter but it won’t make a noticeable difference so the decision is up to you. Energy Suspension, Kartboy and Lancershop.com all offer packages.
-----Automatic to Manual Conversion-----
Yes it can be done. If you have to ask what you need you haven’t done enough research.
-----Interior and Exterior-----
Alright that’s all the mechanical stuff out of the way. All that’s left is the cosmetic aspects namely the interior and the exterior. For both of these it’s purely opinion, if you like neon lights and a giant wing, go nuts, if you like JDM, get JDM stuff, whatever you think looks good is possible. There’s no point in making thread after thread asking what looks good as it’s a subjective matter, it’s like asking what the best color is or who the hottest chick in the world is.
For the interior, some companies you may want to know about are Recaro, Sparco, Corbeau and Bride. All the manufacturers make racing seats. Sure you can buy seats from Pepboys but you can also buy your prescription drugs in an alley, neither are good ideas. The big companies I mentioned spend millions ensuring their seats can survive a major crash and are found in pretty much all aspects of racing, Pepboys only makes seats that look racey. Like brakes, you don’t want to skimp on seats.
I’ll touch on the subject of harnesses and harness bars briefly since I feel it’s an important aspect of the tuning community. DO NOT USE A HARNESS BAR AND HARNESSES ON THE STREET!!!!! Again, DO NOT USE A HARNESS BAR AND HARNESSES ON THE STREET!!!! Get the point, good. Harness bars are not safe for use in any situation where the chance of a rollover is relatively high (ie. higher than 0). Now you might say “well why do people make them?” Simple answer, because they like money and they know idiots will buy anything they make. People sell oxygen and bottled tap water, never gauge the worth of a product by the fact people make it. Now on to the explanation for why I’m so touchy about this subject (and no it’s not sand in my vagina, I keep it very clean thank you very much). A harness bar acts to hold the harnesses in place. This is fine, it’s doing what it was designed to do. The harness is generally run through the seat effectively meaning the harness bar is holding the seat up too, again as it should. There are two big problems associated with this system though. First off, in the case of a rollover, the harness bar provides no additional protection and actually stops the stock system from working properly. The stock system is designed to be able to move to cope with an accident. This means if the roof collapses (as it would in a rollover), the seats can go back or sideways to make roof. If the harness bar is holding them up this isn’t possible and the roof just comes down on your head, at best doing serious damage, at worst, snapping you in half and killing you. The other problem is that with a bar behind your head you’re at risk of hitting your head and smashing it in like a watermelon against well a metal bar. There are other problems associated with harnesses (namely 4-points) but I would hope the risk of death is enough to dissuade you.
Realistically there is no way to run harnesses on the street. If you want to deal with the rollover risk, you need a rollbar/rollcage. However, both of these items add metal bars in the cab which stop you from carrying passengers in the back seat and require you to wear a helmet at all times. The padding you see in race cars is meant to shield a helmeted head against impact, not a bare head. Even with a helmet on you could easily get concussed, without on you could leave a mess for the paramedics.
If you want more holding power, get a CG-Lock. It’s a device that holds the seatbelt tighter, holding you in place. It’s safe, cheap and effective, there.
If you just want the harnesses for shows, go nuts.
As for the rest of the interior, the sky is the limit. You can wrap everything in carbon fiber or fiberglass, paint it, add speakers, add gauges, whatever you want.
For the exterior, there are a number of body kits out there. I don’t care which one you want, only you can make that decision. RRM, Accolade and Kaminari make kits for different years. Take a look at them if you want a kit. RRM also has other exterior goodies so check them out too.
Currently there are only two strut options out there, stock and KYB GR-2s. The KYB GR-2s are not a performance strut, they will not increase handling ability nor will they withstand the stresses of lowering springs (although they may last longer than stock).
For cross referencing purposes, OZ struts will fit on an ES as long as you use the OZ front top strut mounts. Similarly the Ralliart struts will fit the OZ but without any modifications needed (and thus they will fit the ES with the OZ/Ralliart front top strut mounts). Only the evo front struts will fit, the rears are different.
-----Coilovers-----
These are the caviar of suspension modifications. They are matched struts and springs and they usually come with other features like ride height adjustability, dampening adjustability, upper pillowball mounts and/or camber plates. If you want to be able to lower your car in the summer and raise it in the winter, these are for you. If you want to compete in autocross or track events, these are for you. If you want a properly working suspension, these are for you. The coil sleeves you see on Ebay for 80$ are not coilovers and are only made for ricers, done. Tein, Ksport, JIC, NEX and Megan all make various coilover kits for the lancer, deciding which one is for you is your job. Something to keep in mind, the ride quality will go down significantly when you install coilovers. I found the ride to be flat-out ridiculous at times. This is not a universal property of coilovers but rather a property of entry level coilovers. Because of the limited market and the nature of the lancer, manufacturers are not going to spend thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours tuning their coilover kit, selecting the ideal strut size and valving, spring strength, etc., if they did you’d be paying double if not triple the price.
Proper coilovers should look like this (these are Bilsteins which are very proper coilovers). You can see the adjustable spring perches, the dampening adjustability knobs on the top and the metal top plates.
These are what the crappy ebay coil sleeves look like. If someone tries to sell you these, kick them in the groin and run away. Notice how they are effectively just a spring with a bolt attached to allow you to compress them.
-----Sway Bar-----
Currently only an aftermarket rear sway bar is available. It is made by Progress and RRM sells it. The purpose of this mod is to replace the crappy stock unit (if you have on OZ) or add one that wasn’t there from the factory (ES guys). It’s a good idea to replace the stock perches at the same time as they have a tendency to snap. This mod is a real winner in my book, it is noticeable from the minute you have it installed (at least if you take a corner within that minute). It causes the car to oversteer more into a corner leading to a more neutral feeling since the car naturally understeers from the factory. It does this by basically linking the two sides together and causing them to move up and down together as one unit. There are bushings available for the front sway bar from Deyeme.
The bars for the lancer look a bit like this.
-----Strut Bar-----
There are front and rear strut bars available. RRM is a major manufacturer of these. They both do the same job, they link their respective struts together. In theory this acts to stiffen the car up thus reducing the flex you see in hard corners. However, given the location of the struts on a lancer (close to the firewall in the front, close to the back seat in the rear) how much these work is debatable. If you like them, get them, if not, you won’t exactly be missing them.
Here’s the rear strut bar from RRM.
-----Lower Tie Bar-----
This is a small bar that links the control arms together. RRM makes one. Some people love them, others think they’re useless. I’ll leave it at that.
-----Wheels and Tires-----
There are plenty of wheel FAQs out there so I’ll only touch on this briefly. If you care about performance, you don’t want big rims especially on a car as underpowered as the lancer, you want small and light rims. Now you might ask “why small rims, I thought weight was all that mattered”. While it’s true that weight is important (don’t say that to your girlfriend) diameter plays a role too (you definitely don’t want her saying that about you). To understand this, imagine lifting a 5 lb weight. Which is easier, lifting the weight when your hand is at your chest or when it’s as outstretched as possible? The same goes for your car, it works best when the weight is as close to the hub as possible. See the other FAQ for info on what wheel sizes fit and what tire sizes you need for them to fit.
For reference, here’s the bolt patterns for various lancer models:
2003-2005 ES 4 x 100
2003-2006 OZ and LS, 2006 ES 4 x 114.3
Here's Lancerman's thread on wheel offset.
As far as tires are concerned, you want to buy the best tires you can afford and ones most suited to the job at hand. This means if you want tires that stick like glue during the summer, buy dedicated summer tires. If you want great traction in the winter, buy winter tires. As Tirerack says, tires are like shoes, you need to use the right ones for the conditions. You can have the best suspension the world but it doesn’t mean squat if you don’t have the tires to handle it. Some people like the idea of an AWD conversion in order to increase grip but AWD cannot perform miracles. For a clear example of this, ask the Evo or STI drivers who crashed because they tried to use their dedicated stock summer tires during the winter. If you’re interested in buying tires and want to see how they compare to others in their class, consult The Tire Rack.
The Car Bible has everything you could ever want to know on wheels and tires.
-----Brakes-----
Brakes are the most important part of the car, don’t skimp on them unless you have a death wish (or your parents are related). Here is an incredible article on brakes (once again by the Car Bible).
-----Pads-----
These are what stop the car. You want to buy the best you can afford. This means 60-100$ for a set that only last 1-2 years. Sure you could get the ones with a lifetime warranty on them but they won’t stop very well and they’ll eat up your rotors. The reason they have a lifetime warranty is because they are made of a very hard compound. Like tires a softer compound means a sticker surface. Axxis, Porterfield, EBC and Hawk all make great brakes. RRM is just one possible source for these.
-----Rotors-----
These are what the caliper presses the pads against. You can get stock replacements, slotted, drilled or both. Slotted means slots are cut into the metal. Drilled means holes are drilled through the rotor. Both techniques serve the same purpose, to cool the rotor and allow hot gases to escape. These hot gases form at the pad-rotor junction and can act as a cushion that leads to a less responsive brake feel. Heat can cause the brake pads to fail as they basically glaze over and melt. With all that in mind, you don’t need either. Unless you are hurtling down a track at 100 mph and slamming on the brakes you aren’t getting the brakes hot enough to fade. If you want some cool looking rotors though, go with slotted. Drilled rotors are known to crack under stress especially on a car with tiny rotors like the lancer has. RRM offers some quality rotors but you can also get some from Tirerack.com.
This is what a rotor looks like.
-----Stainless Steel Brake Lines-----
If you’ve looked at the brakes you’ve seen the brake lines, they are simply rubber tubes that carry the brake fluid to the caliper. You can replace these with stainless steel lines. The basic idea behind this is the stock lines can change shape since they are rubber and this can contribute to a mushy pedal feel. Obviously stainless steel doesn’t change shape easily thus you don’t get the mushy feel. They can help with the brake feel but don’t expect them to make the brakes perfect. RRM offers them but you may be able to find them elsewhere as well.
-----Big Brake Kit-----
I’m sure everyone has seen those gigantic rotors behind gigantic rims and thought “damn I want those too”. Well I hate to be the bringer of bad news but you don’t need them. The purpose of gigantic brakes are to prevent brake fade (remember I mentioned that earlier?) by basically creating a larger surface. They are designed for race cars. Yes they look cool but they won’t make you stop faster on the street in fact they’ll make you stop slower because they cool the pads. Like tires brake pads want enough heat to soften them up but not enough to melt them. Go too far either way and you’ll reduce their ability to function. Wilwood, Brembo and RPW all offer kits. If you need them, you won’t be reading this.
The Wilwoods look this and they are certainly very shiny and nice.
-----Rear Disc Conversion-----
The lancer comes stock with rear drums. They are ugly, you know it and I know it. However, you don’t need to replace them. The majority (75% or more) of your braking is done by the front discs. As ugly as they are the rear drums are more than capable of handling the remaining 25%. If you want to upgrade them, RPW has a kit.
There are also various bushing kits available for different parts of the suspension. If you want them, get them, but unless you’ve done everything else they won’t do much.
-----Drivetrain-----
In this section we’ll take a look at upgrading the components that help put the power to the ground. This means the transmission and things related to the transmission. If you have an auto, none of this applies to you. Disappointed? Well that’s what you get for being a little guuurl.
For an easy to understand explanation on how a transmission works, look at this Howstuffworks article .
Here is a similar article on automatic transmissions.
For information on everything to do with the transmission, go here.
-----Clutch-----
The clutch is what takes the energy from the engine and transfers it to the transmission. It’s composed of a pressure plate and a clutch disk. Both are modified when you go to an aftermarket kit. A stronger pressure plate is used to push harder against the flywheel which increases how much horsepower the clutch can take before it fails. This also results in a stiffer pedal feel. A different clutch plate is used to handle more power. How far you need to go is dependent on much power you plan on making and how you plan on using the car. You don’t need a 300 lb pressure plate if you’re just going to bolt on an intake and an exhaust system, however if you plan on turboing the car and going to the drag strip it’s probably a good idea. ACT, Clutchmasters and WORKS all make good kits and have varying stages.
Here’s how the clutch and flywheel are arranged.
-----Lightened Flywheel-----
A lightened flywheel serves the same purpose as a lightened crank pulley, it acts to reduce the amount of weight the motor has to spin. This particular mod makes the car rev up easier. This can make daily driving a bit more difficult. Fidanza and WORKS are two sources for this.
-----Underhood/Shifter Linkage Bushings-----
These replace the stock rubber bushings with harder plastic or metal bushings. This reduces much of the sloppiness found in the stock shifter. If you like to drive stick, this is a worthwhile mod. Kartboy makes a great set but you can find others at Lancershop.com. The bushings made for the evo fit the lancer.
The kartboy bushings look like this. The ones I had were bright green which made them that much better.
-----Short Shifter-----
This is pretty straightforward, it’s just a shorter shifter that reduces the throw and the height of the shifter. B & M, Perrin, Kartboy, Lancershop.com and Ebay are all great sources. Any kit made for a 5-speed evo works for the lancer.
This is the Perrin unit.
-----Shifter Base Bushings-----
If you take apart the center console (as you would if installing a short shifter) you’ll see the base bushings. These replace those pieces with harder plastic or metal units. It’s one of those mods that you might as well do while doing the shifter but it won’t make a noticeable difference so the decision is up to you. Energy Suspension, Kartboy and Lancershop.com all offer packages.
-----Automatic to Manual Conversion-----
Yes it can be done. If you have to ask what you need you haven’t done enough research.
-----Interior and Exterior-----
Alright that’s all the mechanical stuff out of the way. All that’s left is the cosmetic aspects namely the interior and the exterior. For both of these it’s purely opinion, if you like neon lights and a giant wing, go nuts, if you like JDM, get JDM stuff, whatever you think looks good is possible. There’s no point in making thread after thread asking what looks good as it’s a subjective matter, it’s like asking what the best color is or who the hottest chick in the world is.
For the interior, some companies you may want to know about are Recaro, Sparco, Corbeau and Bride. All the manufacturers make racing seats. Sure you can buy seats from Pepboys but you can also buy your prescription drugs in an alley, neither are good ideas. The big companies I mentioned spend millions ensuring their seats can survive a major crash and are found in pretty much all aspects of racing, Pepboys only makes seats that look racey. Like brakes, you don’t want to skimp on seats.
I’ll touch on the subject of harnesses and harness bars briefly since I feel it’s an important aspect of the tuning community. DO NOT USE A HARNESS BAR AND HARNESSES ON THE STREET!!!!! Again, DO NOT USE A HARNESS BAR AND HARNESSES ON THE STREET!!!! Get the point, good. Harness bars are not safe for use in any situation where the chance of a rollover is relatively high (ie. higher than 0). Now you might say “well why do people make them?” Simple answer, because they like money and they know idiots will buy anything they make. People sell oxygen and bottled tap water, never gauge the worth of a product by the fact people make it. Now on to the explanation for why I’m so touchy about this subject (and no it’s not sand in my vagina, I keep it very clean thank you very much). A harness bar acts to hold the harnesses in place. This is fine, it’s doing what it was designed to do. The harness is generally run through the seat effectively meaning the harness bar is holding the seat up too, again as it should. There are two big problems associated with this system though. First off, in the case of a rollover, the harness bar provides no additional protection and actually stops the stock system from working properly. The stock system is designed to be able to move to cope with an accident. This means if the roof collapses (as it would in a rollover), the seats can go back or sideways to make roof. If the harness bar is holding them up this isn’t possible and the roof just comes down on your head, at best doing serious damage, at worst, snapping you in half and killing you. The other problem is that with a bar behind your head you’re at risk of hitting your head and smashing it in like a watermelon against well a metal bar. There are other problems associated with harnesses (namely 4-points) but I would hope the risk of death is enough to dissuade you.
Realistically there is no way to run harnesses on the street. If you want to deal with the rollover risk, you need a rollbar/rollcage. However, both of these items add metal bars in the cab which stop you from carrying passengers in the back seat and require you to wear a helmet at all times. The padding you see in race cars is meant to shield a helmeted head against impact, not a bare head. Even with a helmet on you could easily get concussed, without on you could leave a mess for the paramedics.
If you want more holding power, get a CG-Lock. It’s a device that holds the seatbelt tighter, holding you in place. It’s safe, cheap and effective, there.
If you just want the harnesses for shows, go nuts.
As for the rest of the interior, the sky is the limit. You can wrap everything in carbon fiber or fiberglass, paint it, add speakers, add gauges, whatever you want.
For the exterior, there are a number of body kits out there. I don’t care which one you want, only you can make that decision. RRM, Accolade and Kaminari make kits for different years. Take a look at them if you want a kit. RRM also has other exterior goodies so check them out too.
Last edited by ambystom01; Mar 1, 2008 at 08:47 PM.
Jan 20, 2008, 01:29 PM
#4
-----Compatibility with other cars-----
The lancer shares some aspects with other cars. This means you can source parts from them or use parts made for them. I’ve already mentioned a few in their respective sections but I’ll just make a list of other ones you might want to know.
The 4G94 head is the same as the 4G93 head. This means a cam made for the 4G93 will fit the 4G94. Cam gear is in the same boat.
The clutch from a 4G93 also fits a 4G94 but you’ll need a 4G94 throw-out bearing.
The suspension from the lancer is the same as the ralliart, if you want to swap them go ahead but make sure you get the top mounts with it.
The evo front struts work on the lancer but the rears are completely different so don’t even bother.
As far as the exterior is concerned, the 2004-2006 lancer is the same as the ralliart. Only the front doors, roof, glass, spoiler and trunk from the evo will fit the 2002-2003 lancer. You cannot swap bumpers without buying a lot more parts so don’t ask.
All the lancers (base, ralliart and evo) share the same interior for the most part. This means you can put the seats and steering wheel from the evo in a lancer among other parts like the gauges, dash, door cards, etc. The rear seats from the evo are slightly different and require modification to fit.
-----Useless modifications-----
Here we have a list of mods that are a waste of time and should be banished to hell. Do not under any circumstances buy these or accept them as gifts.
Power chips/resistors
Tornados and variants on the same theme
Magnetic fuel lines
-----Suggested Upgrade paths-----
With all this in mind, we can create some templates to follow when modifying a lancer. For those people that are just skimming this FAQ, this is the part to read.
-----Small budget tuner (maximum of 2000$)-----
For someone who just wants to do a few mods to their lancer, performance is basically a waste of time. You’ll need at least double the above budget to make any difference in that regard so this path is oriented more towards making the car more fun to drive, better looking, and better handling.
Kartboy shifter bushings
Short shifter
RRM SRI
Catback exhaust of your choice
Aftermarket rims
Tires
Light exterior mods of your choice
Light interior mods of your choice
All of the above should come in well under 2000$ if you buy smart (ie. don’t spend 800$ on a catback exhaust).
-----Moderate budget tuner (maximum of 5000$)-----
With a budget of 5000$, you have to ask whether you want speed, handling, looks or a combination of all three.
-----Speed-----
RRM 16G Turbo kit
Catback exhaust of your choice
Tires
Clutch
With this setup the car will be very fast in a straight line (relative to stock) but it won’t be the best handling car and it’ll look stock.
-----Handling-----
Coilovers
High performance tires
Lightweight aftermarket rims
Front and rear strut bars
Rear sway bar
Lightweight battery
Professional alignment
While it may seem strange that this system costs the same as the Speed setup outlined above, keep in mind it makes various assumptions. The big one is that you buy everything new. Secondly it assumes you’ll buy the best or nearly the best available products. Tires and rims alone will cost 2000$ because of this.
-----Looks-----
Whatever you want. Body kits with a quality paint job can cost well over 2000$.
-----A combination of all three-----
It’s possible to combine all three setups if you buy used. A used turbo kit can be obtained for 2000$ leaving 3000$ for the suspension and any body modifications you want to make.
-----High budget tuner (5000$+)-----
If you’re in this group, I’m not gonna help your rich ***.
-----Lancer Vendors-----
Here is a list of vendors that sell products that fit the lancer.
Road Race Motorsports (RRM)- Sells almost everything you could want for your car
Works - Sells a variety of parts
Racing Performance Works (RPW)- Essentially the Australian version of RRM, makes some things RRM doesn’t have but costs an arm and a leg
Speed Corps- Sells a lot of good products, offers custom services for engine work, often cheaper than other vendors
Accolade– Manufacturers body kits, recently became a distributor of RPW products
RallySportDirect.com- Useful for getting things like bushings, shift knobs and other interior pieces, does not sell parts directly made for the lancer but certain evo parts fit
3n1motorsports.com
Pro Street Online
The Tire Rack
Subydude.com- Sells Rota rims at great prices
The lancer shares some aspects with other cars. This means you can source parts from them or use parts made for them. I’ve already mentioned a few in their respective sections but I’ll just make a list of other ones you might want to know.
The 4G94 head is the same as the 4G93 head. This means a cam made for the 4G93 will fit the 4G94. Cam gear is in the same boat.
The clutch from a 4G93 also fits a 4G94 but you’ll need a 4G94 throw-out bearing.
The suspension from the lancer is the same as the ralliart, if you want to swap them go ahead but make sure you get the top mounts with it.
The evo front struts work on the lancer but the rears are completely different so don’t even bother.
As far as the exterior is concerned, the 2004-2006 lancer is the same as the ralliart. Only the front doors, roof, glass, spoiler and trunk from the evo will fit the 2002-2003 lancer. You cannot swap bumpers without buying a lot more parts so don’t ask.
All the lancers (base, ralliart and evo) share the same interior for the most part. This means you can put the seats and steering wheel from the evo in a lancer among other parts like the gauges, dash, door cards, etc. The rear seats from the evo are slightly different and require modification to fit.
-----Useless modifications-----
Here we have a list of mods that are a waste of time and should be banished to hell. Do not under any circumstances buy these or accept them as gifts.
Power chips/resistors
Tornados and variants on the same theme
Magnetic fuel lines
-----Suggested Upgrade paths-----
With all this in mind, we can create some templates to follow when modifying a lancer. For those people that are just skimming this FAQ, this is the part to read.
-----Small budget tuner (maximum of 2000$)-----
For someone who just wants to do a few mods to their lancer, performance is basically a waste of time. You’ll need at least double the above budget to make any difference in that regard so this path is oriented more towards making the car more fun to drive, better looking, and better handling.
Kartboy shifter bushings
Short shifter
RRM SRI
Catback exhaust of your choice
Aftermarket rims
Tires
Light exterior mods of your choice
Light interior mods of your choice
All of the above should come in well under 2000$ if you buy smart (ie. don’t spend 800$ on a catback exhaust).
-----Moderate budget tuner (maximum of 5000$)-----
With a budget of 5000$, you have to ask whether you want speed, handling, looks or a combination of all three.
-----Speed-----
RRM 16G Turbo kit
Catback exhaust of your choice
Tires
Clutch
With this setup the car will be very fast in a straight line (relative to stock) but it won’t be the best handling car and it’ll look stock.
-----Handling-----
Coilovers
High performance tires
Lightweight aftermarket rims
Front and rear strut bars
Rear sway bar
Lightweight battery
Professional alignment
While it may seem strange that this system costs the same as the Speed setup outlined above, keep in mind it makes various assumptions. The big one is that you buy everything new. Secondly it assumes you’ll buy the best or nearly the best available products. Tires and rims alone will cost 2000$ because of this.
-----Looks-----
Whatever you want. Body kits with a quality paint job can cost well over 2000$.
-----A combination of all three-----
It’s possible to combine all three setups if you buy used. A used turbo kit can be obtained for 2000$ leaving 3000$ for the suspension and any body modifications you want to make.
-----High budget tuner (5000$+)-----
If you’re in this group, I’m not gonna help your rich ***.
-----Lancer Vendors-----
Here is a list of vendors that sell products that fit the lancer.
Road Race Motorsports (RRM)- Sells almost everything you could want for your car
Works - Sells a variety of parts
Racing Performance Works (RPW)- Essentially the Australian version of RRM, makes some things RRM doesn’t have but costs an arm and a leg
Speed Corps- Sells a lot of good products, offers custom services for engine work, often cheaper than other vendors
Accolade– Manufacturers body kits, recently became a distributor of RPW products
RallySportDirect.com- Useful for getting things like bushings, shift knobs and other interior pieces, does not sell parts directly made for the lancer but certain evo parts fit
3n1motorsports.com
Pro Street Online
The Tire Rack
Subydude.com- Sells Rota rims at great prices
Last edited by Blacksheepdj; Jan 20, 2008 at 01:34 PM.
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