4g32 Vs 2.6 Astron in LC lancer

[Leeroy]

If my budget is $750 should I spend it on modding the 4g32 or just buy an astron 2.6?
Will $750 get me a decent astron engine and box?
What are the pro's and con's?

Or is there an easier "bolt in" motor I can drop into the lancer? SR20 perhaps?

[geezer101]

There is no substitute for CC's. No matter how much money you throw at the G32B, it will not perform like a stock 4G54 2.6L. I think the G32B does what it does amicably and is an easy engine to work on. But in my opinion the 2.6 is a heavy engine to jam in the front of an LC, why not take a look at a G62B or G63B (1.8/2.0 litre). They are physically very similar in appearance to the 1.6 but will give you a noticeable improvement in torque and HP, and won't require the level of mods to fit a different engine design like the SR20 (no gearbox adapting mods or custom engine mounts etc...) Mitsu has a good selection of engines to choose from and most are a straight forward procedure to install. I had a crazy idea of pulling the drivetrain out of a 2 litre L300 express van, jamming it into an LC hatch and building a custom mount for the remote shifter assembly, touring car style!

[r20bear]

I have begun my journey with this



Custom engine mounts and speedo cable,
Gearbox crossmember requires very little to accommodate the t50 and it looks (fingers crossed) like it will bolt up at correct length
Tailshaft - t50 gearbox yoke

R

[75wagon]

For $750, its going to be tight with the 2.6. To engineer it costs between $400 and $800 (so mates that have had cars engineered tell me).

Best way is probably to buy a Sigma or Scorpion with the 2.6 5 speed manual off ebay or somewhere, strip it out, and sell the parts you don't want or need off to other members to make the whole thing a bit cheaper for you.

For an 2.6 into LC, the best thing to buy would be a GH Scorpion 5 speed.
It already comes with the Jap box (not the borg warner), has the correct shifter location and the right front struts/brakes.

It should be pretty easy to find a rusty car somewhere for bugger all on ebay or something?

Don't forget, 2.6 means larger front brakes struts, so most (read almost all) 13 inch wheels wont fit anymore, so depending on what wheels you're running it may or may not be another thing to add to the price of the conversion?

[Leeroy]

a 4g63 would be awesome, If i could get it for under $750..
I have just under 6 months registration, in that time It would be good to purchase a bigger motor and box, start working on it so that when my LC is off the road I can drop the new motor in and start to get it running. Whether or not I turn it into a track car/street car (drifting) later on is another thing, but an engine conversion is a must as the 4g32 just doesn't have enough power.

Do I need to upgrade all the running gear if I upgrade to a 4g63?
Im taking it that engineers certificate is unavoidable..

[geezer101]

The stock diff will hold up unless your idea of driving is dumping the clutch from a standing start every time (the diff in my LB was still good even after the previous owner caned it til the right spring snapped). You shouldn't need to mess with a custom tail shaft either, but take heed with the warning on upgrading your brakes from 75wagon. The stock brakes are not bad on hauling up the lightweight LC, but if you're planning on pushing it hard they'll overheat pretty soon. If you do 90% of the work yourself and can find a donor wreck, $750 is do-able. Need to factor in - engine + gearbox (unless the engine is a bolt in swap), keeping it carbied (EFI will soon ramp up build cost), brakes (not just getting the assemblies but new pads and maybe hoses too) and an exhaust system (the old one won't work with a bigger/different engine, but if you are stripping a wreck you can get the exhaust off it and get it modded to fit the LC)

[Superscan811]

For the engine, well I'm biased for the 4G54. A lot of cheap and easy upgrades and a relatively simple EFI option if you want to do that later.

As 75wagon said, get a donor 2.6L, 5 speed GE/GH Scorpion and you would have almost everything you need, engine, gearbox and front struts/brakes.

As a bonus, the GE Scorpion diff center is the same as the lancer (disc rear end as well) but the GH diff is bigger and a fair bit stronger, if you wanted to modify it later.

Another option is the Starion struts/brakes. They are the same diameter as the later Scorpions and the later sigmas, but they're vented and much less susceptible to brake fade.

Food for thought.


Cheers.

[orangelancer]

little thread hi jack here but i was thinking of a starion break conversion for my lc who on this site has done it i want to ask a few questions.