Starting a new project
 

I have an 03 oz rally bone stock with high miles but still drives nice and without problems for now. Wondering about not only maintaining my car for years to come but where to start as far as upgrades if u have any suggestions please let me know thanks.

If you are serious about upgrading the car, one of the most cost effective options is swapping in the 4G69 which opens up far more opportunities as far as performance is concerned than sticking with the 4G94. I did this swap and I was pleased with the results. Naturally aspirated my car is close to as quick as what you'd get out of turbocharging the 4G94.

Thanks for the the suggestion what are the prices for a decent 4g69 and getting it swapped in cuz all tuned up I'm not skilled enough to do this myself...

• 4G69 motor maybe $1,000ish from an auto recycler.
• 4G69 transmission (im selling one), $500-600ish
• ECM - $50
• engine harness - $100-150
• throttle pedal assembly - $50
• alternator - $50-150
• axles - $100ish each
• intermediary shaft - $50-100
• timing belt kit - $300ish maybe (if you want new)
• passenger side upper mount, $30-60ish
• p/s pump prob $100ish, bit more for all the lines
• MAF - $50ish

All in all, probably around $3k for the full swap if you get parts used (which for most stuff is just fine).

EDIT: that doesn't include labor though

3k is quite a bit to drop on my car not out of the question tho.. thanks again for the info it's a lot of help but I'd have to wait till next summer not only to save the cash up but also another harsh Wisconsin get closer every day.. Another question I plan on dropping some money into her before snowfall nothing crazy tho what would be some smart things to do?? Thanks again

For 3k plus labor you can find 05/06 lancer with that engine stock and not go thru the hassle of the swap. It honestly would not be worth the money for only 160 area hp. A simple turbo kit with a good tune would get you near 200hp and if you piece it together right you can do it for about $1500 to $1800. A more cost effective swap would be the 4g64 out of eclipse and galants. 400to500 for the motor tranny for about 400 aswell. All you gotta do is have the lancer differential swapped into the eclipse tranny and u can use your stock axles. 50 bucks for a custom motor mount on the passenger side. About 60 bucks for a ecu. Engine harness is only 2 wire difference so u can use your stock one. Thats only about $1000 you can buy extra upgrades like a cam. Cam gear. Intake exhaust headers. And still be around 1500 and have the same power or more with a good tune. For half the price still

To be fair, I think your figures assume being able to find really good deals on used parts, whereas mine assume what you may generally expect to pay.

Leave the timing kit out of it. Just get the belt. Use the stock pump. $40. MAF - pull one off a car at a pick and pull or something. $20. Axles at $100 each? Could also be much cheaper - $60 a piece. Alternator? $150 is the cost for a new one. I've pulled used alternators for $30. A lot of these parts if you find a car to pull from would be a mere fraction of the figures I posted.

$3k is if you act now and want to move fast. I'm sure you could cut this in half if you hunted for great deals or pulled parts off wrecked cars yourself.

• 4G69 engine, maybe $1,000ish from an auto recycler. Low: $750, high $1200 when i say these prices i'm talking the COMPLETE engine
• 4G69 transmission (im selling one), $500-600ish - Low $400, high $600
• ECM - $50 - $50
• engine harness - $100-150 - low $100, high $200
• throttle pedal assembly - $50
• alternator - $50-150, quite possibly less if used
• axles - $100ish each - $60 a pop, $120
• intermediary shaft - $50-100 - $50 if pulled, maybe less as it's obscure
• timing belt kit - $300ish maybe (if you want new) - just get the belt. leave everything else. $40
• passenger side upper mount, $30-60ish
• p/s pump prob $100ish, bit more for all the lines - could be less. $75 -- or just get the pulleys, same goes for alt
• MAF - $50ish, or less if pulled

Just like that, you're at $1,700. You can save even more beyond this if you simply source the 5-rib pulleys for all of the ancillary components that way you don't need to replace any of them (alt, P/S, AC)

A good tune should be $300 to $600 as well (whether you turbo or not)

If it's power you want and you're on a tight budget, the turbo is the best bet. $1.5k is possible, but it will be difficult to find some of the parts used. You may end up needing to buy RRM's manifold which is $500 (which makes the $1.5k to $1.8k far less realistic), or just hope that one pops up for sale somewhere. Fabricating one custom would be just as much if not more than this so that's out of the question (unless this is a skill you or a friend have).

+1
Also, that would be 200whp and at only around 10-11psi.
If a swap is what you want, I would also do the 4g64 swap. There are some really good build threads on doing it. You can even probably use your stock ecu since you can flash a evo rom on it. (Manual transmission only).
The motor and tranny can be found at a lot of salvage yards and as far as building that motor, a lot of evo guys use it as well. So you would have plenty of tech support If you have questions, and you would have more parts available

So let me get this straight because I feel some of this information is idealistic. A complete 4G64 engine with everything needed for a swap is going to cost you $400?

I am not discouraging the 4G64 swap, but I think in the real world the whole process is going to take more than $1.5-$1.8k.

If you're only doing a 4g64 swap, then you would be around $1500. A guy on the forum spent $1500 for the entire swap and went to DOHC. He didn't turbo it or anything and this is doing the work yourself. If you're going to pay anyone to do a swap for you, doesn't matter what motor is going in, it will be expensive.

I personally think a turbo is the cheapest most effective way to get power. But if you have goals of 300whp+ in a dd, then you might as well start with the swap. It's a matter of preference, I like the 64 over the 69 but both are decent platforms. If I already had 69, I'd just build it. But if I'm doing a swap, I'd go with the 64 just because it has more options and more people to seek for knowledge for big gains.

If $1,500 is the magic number, just turbo the thing. That is realistic - just find a cheap 14B and some used components - it'll work. Only variable as I see it is finding an exhaust manifold. Rest is easy and won't cost much.

Can't argue with your last point. The 64 has been built and tested to death. The 4G69, definitely not as much.

I think you could do the 69 swap for $1.5-$1.8k, but you'll need to find some great deals. Just as you would need to find great deals if you are hoping to do the 64 for that price. I'm seeing used 64 bare blocks going for $400. People know what you can do with a 64. They aren't going to give it away. I don't think you're going to get the complete engine for that price.

EDIT: Bear in mind I live in Canada where anything to do with cars (or...anything lol) is going to be more expensive, including used parts from recyclers..

That makes more sense ive herd in canada its harder to come by. Im in south florida and parts are rediculously plentiful and cheap. I went to the junk yard last week and saw atleast 35+ 4g64 engines ready to be pulled all 100 complete and the yard charges 400 for the full motor. Trannys are 300 and i found atleast 10 of those motors had 5speed trannys. So depending on where you live determines what you pay really.

That is very cheap for a full engine assembly. The 4G64 is less popular where I live than the 4G69, too.

Advice to OP is take from this thread the different options you have and see what prices you can get. That will help you best determine what is the best option for you. The turbo project might require more new parts than either of the engine ones, and some of the turbo parts will be more difficult to find.