As some may have seen, I blew my engine a few months back, which can be seen here: https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/ev...es-inside.html

I've spent the last few months pouring through the mounds of information on here, and am at a point where I need to get to get this thing back on the road, as it's my DD. I'm looking to order parts in ASAP and would appreciate any input you guys can give.

So, a little info on what I'm after. Obviously, I wasn't planning to rebuild right now, but since I don't really have a choice, I'd like to do it right and make some gains along the way. I'm not looking for insane power, at least at the moment, but do want a reliable platform that will be a good foundation for future upgrades. I don't have endless funds, so I need to be budget conscious, but at the same time don't want to have any regrets down the road. Basically I want to build this right and avoid the need to tear it apart again, and upgrade external components when I can.

As I mentioned, this is my DD, and it has never seen a track or a drag strip, though I may do a little of both in the future. I'm really looking for a great street car with a boatload of torque and am not really concerned about revs. And of course, reliability and longevity are important.

As my 63 block is toast (large gouge in the cylinder wall), I decided to go the 4g64 route which will support my "street car" goals. I plan to keep the stock VIII turbo for now, which should spool before I even start the car , with plans to upgrade later (Hopefully the spring). I realize that it'll run out of steam pretty quickly and will be very inefficient, but it should still make for some fun street driving in the meantime. I may consider picking up a cheap IX turbo if I can find one, and am looking for opinions on if this would be worthwhile.

The car right now has the following, which was all installed by the previous owner:
- HKS intake (ugh... I think this has to go)
- U&LICP (HKS I think)
- HKS EVC II EBC @ 21 psi
- Walbro 255
- 3" DP
- Stock exhaust (previous owner put back to stock due to nasty drone in the aftermarket one he had)
- ACT HDSD clutch (solid hub street disc, good to ~500ft/lbs)
- ACT prolite flywheel

That's about it.... pretty basic stuff. This is all running on 91 oct, as that's all that's available up here in PEI, Canada . No plans for E85 to show up here any time soon .

For the build, I've been planning on the following. (I'll post up a full parts list a little later when I have more time.)

- 4G64 block. At the shop now for hottank, +.020 boring, decking and oil squirters.
- 2.4 LR internals
- Stock 4g64 crank, polished & uncut.
- 156mm H-beams (maybe Manley, for cost. Thinking about I-beams so I'm good for whatever I want to make in the future)
- 87mm stroker pistons. (Still looking into which, but most likely Manley or Wiseco. More on this below)
- Balance shaft eliminator kit (OEM stubby shaft & block off plate, block off bearings)
- ACL race bearings
- ARP main studs
- Head (current head, which has about 110K miles)
- 3 angle valve job and porting. (Getting a great deal, so figured why not)
- GSC S2 cams (Bigger cams seem to be a must for 2.4 builds, but is it overkill right now with the stock turbo?)
- Springs (Needed if I go with the S2. Beehive seems to be the way to go. Would I be ok with cheaper options like Supertech or Crower?)
- Supertech valve guides & seals
- Supertech valves (Thinking of this just due to high mileage on the head. Again, is this overkill?)
- TopLine lifters. (Fairly cheap and more of a "while I'm in here" kind of thing)
- ARP studs
- OEM 4G64 Head Gasket
- Adjustable Cam Gears (AEM?)
- Stock Intake Manifold / TB - ported & coated
- Stock Exhaust Manifold - ported
- Turbo - Stock for now. May go with 10.5 hotside or even a full IX turbo. May be a while before I can upgrade the turbo, so would like something a little better than the VIII turbo but don't want to spend much $$ right now.
- Meagan 02 housing
- wideband O2 of some sort, obviously (Need to research a little more)
- EVO IX BOV
- IC - Was thinking of leaving this until I upgrade the turbo, but knowing that the stocker will be blowing some majorly hot air, is this wise?
- Injectors ??? Should probably be ok with stock for now, but not sure on this one. Opinions?
- FluidAmpr - Getting mixed info on the necessity of this... Not sure if I'll go with it, but probably a good idea for bearing life?
- Other Misc. - New Oil pump, Water pump adapter (water pump has only 20-30K on it), '02 Galant timing belt, new pulleys, new wires, complete gasket kit, new oil seals, injector o-rings, EGR removal plate, throttle body shaft seals, motor mounts, shifter bushings, blah blah blah....
- Oh, and AFR & OIL PRESSURE GAUGES!!!!! (I think these should be the first mod anyone does. )

The major questions I have left are:

- Compression??? I was thinking about sticking to 9:1 or so. (I'll have to wait and see how much is taken off of the deck and head before I know what dish size I'm looing for, but with a little off of both, a 21 cc dish should get me to about 9.2 and a 24 cc to around 8.9) Should I be going even lower with only 91 oct available? Also, I seem to recall reading that there are off the shelf pistons available now for a LR build, but I'm having a hard time finding any. Checked Wiseco and Manley catalogs and didn't see anything. Are all LR builds still using custom pistons? Also, does the profile of the piston change based on rod length? I see mention using the 4G63 .080 overbore stroker pistons meant for a 150mm rod. No problems throwing these on a 156mm rod?

- Long Rod - I'm a little hesitant in bringing this up, as I know it's been beaten to death on here, but I'm still not sure if I'll go LR or not. The theory all seems sound, but it also seems like a lot of the experienced builders on here have not seen any practical realization of the theoretical benefits. Ideally I'd like to go LR, as there doesn't really seem to be a downside, but I'm finding that the availabilty of the 87mm stroker pistons and possibly the cost are outweighing the minimal benefits. I do want this to last as long as possible, so the reduce side loading seems like a great thing, but again, there's lots of anicdotal evidence that suggests the difference in wall wear is negligible. If anybody has some advice specific to my situation, I'd love to hear it, but I don;t want to turn this into an extension of the LR debate.

- Turbo - Is it idiotic to stick with the stock turbo? Is it worth my while to upgrade to a IX turbo for the short term, or even long term as I'm not really after top HP numbers? Perhaps with the thought of eventually sending the IX off to FP at a later time? Should I just bite the bullet and go with another stock frame turbo right now (probably not going to happen)? The new HKS turbo that came out a little while ago seems interesting (stock spool, better top end), but I have not looked into it very deeply.

- Parts - Anything I'm forgetting? Anything I should drop?

- Drivetrain - I wish I would have sent my TC and transmission out to get rebuilt while the car has been sitting there, but unfortunately I didn't. Due to $$, I'd like to put this off for a while, but I'm not sure how long it will last with the new power plant. I know it's impossible to know exactly what I'll be making and how the drivetrain will hold up, but would anybody be worried about breaking things in the short term with this build?

I realize this isn't the most ground breaking or exciting build, but it should be interesting to see the response of the stock turbo on the 2.4. I plan to include lots of pretty pictures when parts start arriving and during the build, so hopefully they will keep some interest. I've been amazed at the amount of great info on here (and some, not so great) and by the willingness of people on here to help. I am still pretty much a newb to all of this and still learning a ton every time I log on, but I think I've done my homework and with a little help from people here, and careful attention to detail I can end up with an extremely fun EVO.

And sorry for the long post, but I didn't want to leave anything out. Looking forward to comments. Thanks!

 

Wow... 82 views and not a single comment. I guess I bored everybody with my long post....

I guess my questions above are kind of scattered, but I'd really like to get opinions on a few things before I continue... I'd appreciate any input.

- Compression? For 91 oct, is around 9.2:1 going to give me problems with detonation?

- Injectors. Advice on if keeping stock for now will have issues?

- Turbo - Just keep the 8 until next year sometime when I can upgrade properly, or go with a 9 if I can find one cheap for the short term?

- Off the shelf option for doing a long rod? I swear I read that there was, but I can't find the info again.

And, just for kicks, a few random pics...

My hideaway... not ideal but it will do..


Before....


Out with the old...



Some ugly pics....




Getting back from the trip to the salvage yard... Had to get an entire engine from an '04 Eclipse, as options are very limited around here. Not bad for $600 though. I may even make a few bucks back by selling the head, etc...


Now, how do I get this out of the Murano since I've returned the shop crane? Maybe I can just bolt it to the engine stand and wheel it out? ummm... not quite...


And tilting the stand was a no go as it was hitting the exhaust on the Murano. If I could only lower the Murano somehow.... aha! tires!.... And success!



Challenge #1 complete... (a minor victory)

Eclipse parts anyone?

 

Looks good. You should be able to make a couple bucks selling your extra parts.

The 9.2 CR is okay for 91 octane, you shouldn't have any issues as long as the tune is quality this time!

The I beams would be better for you, obviously if you plan to make good power down the road. You are really going to be running that stock turbo out of its efficiency range with a 2.4L. I would highly suggest investing in a used Red or Black. Something with a higher flow rate. If you do run that turbo expect to have really high intake air temps, so you should get a very efficient FMIC. Don't want it just turning into a hot air dryer and ruining all the decent power you can make.

Popular WBO2 choices are the AEM and the Zeitronix. The Zeitronix is nice because its entirely integrated in a loggable unit, but it is also costly. I use the AEM in my glove box and have boost, WBO2, and oil pressure. Those are the main gauges you want after a built, just to keep an eye on things.

I have always been a fan of ECU boost and WBO2 logging, so you can log boost and your AFRs all through the OBDII port with a Tactrix cable.

Good luck. Keep me in the loop

 

Thanks for the advice, buchnerj. Will check out the WBO2s you mention. I'm planning to switch to ECU controlled boost down the road. Was never a big fan of the EVC II. Already had the stepper motor go on my first one.

I will definitely give the I-beams some more consideration. Problem is I've had to really step back and give myself a reality check on what I can afford right now. I'm getting laid off after 10 years at my job at the end of Dec., so I have a very nice severance package coming then, but I just can't wait that long to get it back on the road. Same deal with the turbo. Maybe a visit to my friendly neighborhood loan officer is in order, just to get me through until then.

Good to know I'm not completely off base with my CR.

Oh, and I'm reconsidering my long rod route. I'm just not sure that the benefits are worth the extra cost and wait time. Would also open up my piston/rod choices some too. Man, I don't think I'm ever going to get these parts ordered.

 

Man that first post was killer long LOL. Compression i would stick to your 9:2 9:1 you will be fine with that higher compression is really for higher oct. Injectors i would got to at least 1000cc and call it a day. remember they can always be scaled. A stock turbo is just plain not enough and stupid on a 2.4 build. At least get a HTA Green and have some really fun with the 2.4 if you have to put it off till next year so be it. GET MANLEY I BEAM RODS do it once and be done with it

The long rod i believe the piston have to be custom order Best i have seen is Wescio HD i know because mikey and Nickie have LR motors. I have a std 2.4 i truely dont see the point in LR2.4 unless you want to rev higher then perfect sense. Not like your making more power. The wideband get a AEM and call it the oil pressure and boost got AEM as well. You cant use a 4g64 headgasket btw since you mentioned it in your first post. You need to either get power enterprise 87mm or AMS custom HG. you also mentioned getting all random stuff GET A NEW WATERPUMP PERIOD. All built motor should get a fluidmapr no true excuse extra insurance is a must when spending this much money. Of course you need to upgrade your intercooler to at least 3.5" and complete exhaust system to a 3" NO excuse to not have then done first.

Also just want to point out there is no truely cheap as heck motor build things will always come up and cost more money or something did not install right etc. so dont think you are going to spend 2500-3000 and be suited and booted is all.

Im speaking from experience as i have a 2.4 building wrapping up

 

Yeah, I tend to get the verbal diarrhea at times... lol

I'll definitely not be going above 9.2. I'm actually probably now going with the Manley 8.5:1.

I'll be doing injectors for sure, but was hoping to put them off for a month or two. Not the best timing financially so I'm just trying to get it back on the road ASAP and then complete the build when my $$ comes in.

Same deal as injectors. Will be doing but probably in a couple of months.

Point taken. Why reduce the entire engines potential for a few hundred bucks.

I think I've decided to just go the std 2.4 route.

Even if the pump was brand new last year? maybe 20K on it now?

Right. I guess the stock pulley are no longer effective as they are tuned for the harmonics of the stock internals which have now changed?

Will be doing these as well. IC may have to wait for the new turbo though. Any recommendations on a good, quiet exhaust? There are no emissions tests up here , so I'll be going with a test pipe.

Yes, my delusions of getting the build done for that price range faded quite a while ago. Right around the time I hit the SUM button in excel.

Thanks for the help.

 

new water pump for new motor PERIOD no excuses. Fluidampr is in this same category protect your investment of money. As for exhaust go listin on youtube for them and how they sound. The invidia N1 is quiet . testpipe yes please.

 

A man of conviction...

Been browsing youtube and will check out the N1. Been doing so much research over the last few months that my head is spinning. Still lots of fun but a lot to absorb.

 

least your reading and research and attempting to get some verifications for your finding and not just buying random parts first then asking later

 

I'm currently in the same boat for 2.4 pistons. Ross quoted me $712 for a set but I will probably end up going with the Wiseco HDs for 9.2:1.

 

nice

 

I just ordered wisecos 9:1 1400hd pistons and they were very affordable from MAP. Talk to Nick or Nate there. I went with their ultimate duty billet steel rods rather than the manley, were a little cheaper and their shop car is already making 1053 awhp with them and no issues.

I agree with Rock, do the water and oil pumps, and fluidampr...
c'mon, do you re-use a condom on a new lay??

Rob

 

Nice one right here im happy to see so many good 2.4 builds going on. I just hope everybody realizes how expensive it could get but thats what any full build comes with the terriroty

 

Good luck with it man

 

from my test on strokes engine, the last one i built was with cp piston and the comp was 195 . for the turbo, my customer had evo 9 with 20g. it was very fast spooling! for street use is was perfect. no turbo lack at all.. the problem was that as the boost comes faster, it makes more hp at middle rpms and a lot of tq wich is good to kit the gas and diappear! but you need a good clutch to keep that tq at the wheel, not at the spining flywheel.. i love stroke engines with small turbos! these is not intended to get good 1/4 miles number, but at the street is very impresive how fast it boost!