What can and cannot be done to the 4g eclipse

[stangcobra]

Hey everyone.
Recently I have noticed a massive influx of new members, and this is a great thing as more and more people are becoming interested in their eclipses. However the issue is that a lot of these people have very lofty aspirations, like engine swaps or turbos or custom fabrication or something like that. As a result I decided to make this thread to attempt to educate these new members on what can and cannot be done to our cars.

1. Engine swaps:
Basically these cannot be done. Our cars are not civics or 240s, we have a very limited aftermarket scene, and cars that are really only designed to handle two engines, the 4g69 and the 6g75. Asking to swap in any other engine will require tons of custom fabrication, remounting of driveshafts etc, ensuring that these new parts actually fit, and dealing with weight issues that come with new engines. As far as I know there has only been one successful swap into the 4g, but for the life of me cannot find out who did it. So the tl;dr in this section is that engine swaps are basically impossible with our platform. I say basically because I'm sure that someone with a lot of mechanical experience and all of the necessary tools could do it, but it would be ludicrously expensive, and probably not worth it in the long run. So if you are a new member looking to gain power, and are not some kind of rocket scientist an engine swap will not work for you.

2. Forced Induction
Forced induction is the other main issue I see with new members, everyone seems to think that they can slap a turbo kit on the car and make it go fast. The problem is that there is no turbo kit for our cars, except for RIPPmods supercharger kit for the gt, and even that is not just bolt on. If you are seriously looking to run turbo there are a number of threads dealing with the issue, but much like an engine swap this will be extremely expensive, and you will risk blowing your motor. If you know what you are doing and this is not your first modified car it is doable, and there are many members here who have boosted (Joey, Dejected,Elem,etc...) who are willing to help, but know that this will not be easy, and that a turbo or supercharger setup requires more than just a blower.

3. Tuning/chips
Yet again guys, if you haven't figured this out by now our car is not the easiest thing to work on, however a good tune will be one of the most beneficial things you can do to your car, with some members seeing gains of up to 25whp with a good one! The problem here lies in the fact that tuning our cars is hard, and that there is only one solution, the AEM f/ic and brianj's harness. This setup can be ordered from RRE and is a great deal in terms of the gains it gives you. Anything else you see that claims to offer power gains from tuning the ecu is bullshit, and many of the "performance chips" on the market can actually be incredibly dangerous, advancing ignition timing to the point where your motor can blow. So if you want to tune the car its the AEM f/ic or nothing. Also don't think that you can tune the car yourself. If it is your first time working on a car you need a professional to tune it, at least until you can learn how to do it right, as a wrong tune can make you lose power, or worse blow your engine.

So if anyone has any questions about what you can and can't do please post here, or if anyone wants to point out any glaring flaws that I made do that too.

[DustinH]

Theres a guy on here doing a 6g75 swap right now. It can be done it just requires alot of time, work, and money. Which alot of people dont have to throw on just a stock engine to replace the already stock 4g69.

[DustinH]

I like this, Keep adding to it. The thing is though the new members arent going to read this.. They can even read the rules that are made a sticky.

[joeyb]

you can put a blower on your car just fine...problem is you need the AEM F/IC, wideband o2 sensor, a new clutch, long tube headers, a big cat-back, the stiffy, and engine roll-stops, as well.
if you go above 7 - 8 lbs. well then you'll need larger injectors, a fuel pump, tires, all other bushing upgrades, an LSD, sway bars, coilovers, new valve package, pistons, rods, - basically a fully built engine.
then there is a long list of "recommended" stuff, as well. if you add that kind of power to your car (blower or tubro) then you basically have to "up" the class of the car on every other component - drive train, suspension, tuning, fuel delivery, etc.
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

[stangcobra]

Exactly what I meant joey, what I was getting at is its not just putting a turbo on the car, its all the other stuff that goes with it

[joeyb]

^oh no I was agreeing with you bro. trying to add to your argument.

[stangcobra]

Ahh aight

[rgv4]

You can just slap on nitrous i have the full bolt on running with the 75 shot as the dd UNTUNED and the 100 shot at the track UNTUNED. so far no failures.

[BudFireBird]

I have a 4g gt that iv done some work to. Been tryin to dig up my papers from when I dynoed it at ABLEracing. They done most of the work. I'm pretty sure it was runnin 260 somethin to the wheel. Or was it 270... anyways that was with an cold air intake, a magnaflow cat back, and an apexi power programer. In the past year I have put in long tube headers from ripp and it threw a check engine light and it feels like iv lost a bit of power now. Havnt dynoed it yet... would like to see the numbers now but as results show some mods don't agree with others... much research is needed with these cars

[executive]

power programmer on a 4g?

[stangcobra]

The headers should theoretically increase power, but you need to get a new tune when you add a new mod otherwise the AFR will be off

[pat_08GT_Spyder]

Originally Posted by executive

power programmer on a 4g?

the yellow one on eBay with flowers on it...
comes with an official "you just got raped" certificate, and a can of lube for when you realised you just wasted your money on something that doesnt work

[tripplediamonds23]

just throwing this out there, but isnt hackerish (micheal i think) working on a software for the ecu that would work with a tactrix cable and a laptop. I guess that could be an alternative to the FIC, or maybe something to go along with it.

[pat_08GT_Spyder]

indeed... i believe it's in beta-testing phase now... it's coming, just need to be patient

[stangcobra]

Yeah, and of course I'll update this when thats out, after I buy my reflash of course

[Pureredgt]

sooooo sir what you are saying is i cant put on my 5 turbos, 3 superchargers and 4 bottles of nos for a grand total of 5000 hp lol

[stangcobra]

Nah I'm saying the exact opposite, you can put them on, but only with duct tape and VTEC stickers

[Pureredgt]

lmao

[Pureredgt]

lol

[Clovisman]

The easiest way to get this car up to 500HP is to sell it and buy a car that has aftermarket support, or has 500HP off the showroom floor , it'll cost the same either way.

Don't get me wrong, I love my car, but there are easier cars to mod to that potential.

[monnewbie3]

Originally Posted by pat_08GT_Spyder

indeed... i believe it's in beta-testing phase now... it's coming, just need to be patient

Correct.

He connected the tactrix cable to my car and was able to read the codes from my ECU on to the Laptop, basically meaning he can load whatever maps are needed.

Last I heard they're trying to get the encryption and licensing figured out.

-M

[PearlGreenNMean]

Lol headers... What a joke. >.> I just installed headers on a 87 corvette... Ffs that ran smooth as a babies ass...