Live4Redline's DE-Evolution G4JS Budget Build

- The Worlds First KIA Powered Evolution!

Disclaimer:

You may not like or approve of the following build but whats done is done so enjoy the write up and here's hoping you learn something or at the very least, enjoy the read.



The Over View:

So what I have here is a 2003 Evolution VIII GSR Shell that i bought and built back up and tossed a Stock G4JS 2.4L factory 10.0:1 Compression Full Motor swap at it, instead of your traditional 4G63T. What i ended up with is a 2.4L high compression stroker motor with no head work or bottom end work that with the proper tune and right amount of boost is gonna be capable of making some half way decent power for a budget that will come in right under the price of a set of decent cams. Now i may not recommend this if you have a good and running motor or deep pockets but if your like me, a long time junk yard mechanic who likes to do **** just because they can, then have at it.



The Explanation:

• Because i can!

The History:

Originally the plan was to build and boost a 4G64 motor to toss in a light weight 1999 Mitsubishi Mirage Coupe. The whole project to include the car was on a $2000 budget and was inspired to knock a few dicks in the dirt for some good ol classic sleeper action. I bought the Mirage for $600, looked for weeks for a usable 4G64 with no luck till i found a low mileage G4JS in a Kia Optima at the local junk yard and said what the hell. Cleaned everything up, did some modifications that ill list further down in the thread and started to look into transmission options. Unfortunately the Mirage manual trans i had was not going to work no matter what any thread posted in other forums will tell you so i turned to the 3rd Gen Eclipse 5 speed trans. But unfortunately again this particular transmission is about the hardest and most over price Mitsubishi transmission on the market. Its easier to get a legit evo 4 awd trans in the USA then one of these rare buets that only came in a 3rd Gen Eclipse 4 cylinder car during Mitsubishi's first push to delete the manual transmission from its market. So i opted to try and make a G4JS trans work and bought a cheap one for about $550 shipped (at this point the cheapest 4G64 trans i had found was running nearly $1200 shipped). Turned out after allot of fighting and contemplating the G4JS trans wouldn't work and was highly discouraged and put the whole project on hold for a year or two with a completed G4JS Motor sitting on a motor stand under a cover. And then after i bought and sold a few cars and played around with this Evo 9 of mine i picked the project back up and started looking for a better shell until i stumbled upon a stripped down and completely gutted 2003 Lancer Evolution VIII GSR that a guy had posted up locally. Four thousand dollars later i had a motor on a stand and a shell that needed allot of work.



The Shell:

Its a 2003 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VIII GSR shell with an original 46k miles still in great shape if you never mind all the missing items. I got it from a local guy for a few thousand bucks and has turned out to be a great choice for my project.

When i bought the shell it was missing allot of stuff that had been stolen and sold off but thanks to some smart searching on eBay, Craigslist and allot of threads from guys here on EvoM i have been able to piece this thing back together with out dropping a small fortune.

Missing items included things like... HID Headlights, Passenger Side Front Fender, 9 lut nuts, tail lights, rear bumper cover, rear bumper reflectors, antana, front bumper lip, drivers front door window bracket, drivers front door window motor, drivers front door lock, drivers front door panel, drivers front door control box, Recaro front seats, triangle dash piece, center dash trim, clock assembly, radio, radio brackets, hvac and lines, drivers front pillar, drivers under dash trim, center console, arm rest, shift boot, shift knob, trunk carpet, trunk board, battery, ecu, complete motor, turbo setup, intercooler, radiator, piping, hoses, lines, transmission, transfer case, front and rear axles, random Brembo hardware, brake cylinder, clutch line, rear end and all hardware, and some additional ect.



The Motor:

• G4JS Stock Block with factory 10.0:1 Compression
• G4JS Stock Head
• 4G63 Stock Valve Train
• 4G63 Stock Cams
• 4G63 Stock Intake Manifold
• 4G63 Stock Evo Turbo Setup

The Swap:

Surprisingly enough there's allot of similarities in the 4G63/64 Sirius II motors to the G4JS Sirius II motor but there are just as many differences. What i did here is ran with a completely stock G4JS block, stock G4JS head with stock Evo valve train. I went with a modified Evo oil pan with modified oil pick up tube so i could use a stock turbo oil return line but i would advise others to use the G4JS oil pan and just tap it for a return. Will need to use an Evo intake manifold and throttle body with stock Evo manifold and full turbo setup. The real trick to this whole setup is the limitation of everything on the timing side of the G4JS. You will be required to use all G4JS belts, pulleys, front face covers, pumps, gaskets, seals and accessories. Nothing on the timing side is even close or similar to the Evo Sirius II motor. You will also need to use the Evo lower + upper motor mount and the lower will require some modifications in order to made to work (mostly just allot of grinding so that it will clear the G4JS front face cover). As for the cams you will need to use the G4JS Cam gears bolted to a set of Evo cams with an Evo cam reluctor. The G4JS cam sensor and sensor cap can be used but i opted out and just tossed a random Mitsubishi sensor in instead. The G4JS crank reluctor and crank sensor work fine but you will need a Mitsubishi water temperature sensor and ether swap in an evo knock sensor or take the time to repin it to a Mitsubishi or Kia connector like i did.

Things you may not know...

• The G4JS head actually flows more CFM then the Evo head does. Its a DOHC NA motor so it makes since and just bolting one up is a free port job upgrade.
• The G4JS pistons much like the evo's come dished and valve cut unlike the 4G64 which has a flat top piston that just cries laziness. So if you had to make a very silly choice between a set of stock G4JS pistons and the 4G64 pistons, the G4JS wins hands down.
• The inner workings of the head to include valves, springs, retainers and ect. are all interchangeable but are not made of the same strength or materials as the stuff that comes in the evo heads. I would advise anyone whos doing the swap and plans to turbo to use at a minimum of stock Evo valve springs and retainers and while your in there make sure you have a set of Evo Cams with reluctor because your gonna need them also.
• The G4JS has a larger diameter water pump and possibly higher flow then the 4G63/64 pumps as well and you will need to make sure you have that rear water pipe off the G4JS because none of the water system components are interchangeable.
• The G4JS Intake Manifold also has longer runners and a higher CFM flow rate then the Evo manifold but unfortunately will not fit in the engine bay with out uneasy modifications to the firewall and deletion of the upper front strut tower bar. The Evo throttle body is still a better option and will mount to both manifolds.

The How To List:

A parts list, a picture library and list of modifications needed to repeat what i have done here...

<<< COMING SOON >>>



The Results:

As of right now she is officially RUNNING and awaiting tune and dyno results. I wanted to ensure it was running before i posted an official build thread.

<<< MORE TO COME SOON >>>



Future Plans:

As of right now i plan to crank the boost up and see what kind of numbers i can turn out until she pops. I've gotten a lot of criticism saying that its not going to be able to handle the boost levels i'm shooting for but I'm optimistic. If all else fails i have a couple more Evo 4G63 blocks and an 4G64 block i can build or toss in it later if the worst happens. Right now everything is stock just to get the project running but in the near future i am planning on tossing on a new turbo setup, some cams, and maybe some E85 and shoot for the stars.

 

Picture Library:


<<< More Pictures to Come! >>>

Initial Start Up Video...


















<<< More Pictures to Come! >>>

 

Reserved for future notes...

 

You've been busy since the last time I saw you.

 

^ Ya I get bored sometimes and stuff just happens, lol. Next time your in the area, hit me up man.

I did take her out for an easy pre-tune test drive today and I'm definitely happy with the results so far.

 

how do you know the kia head flows more???

 

i assume the g4js tranny didnt work in the mirage because of the shifter levels on the trany, correct?

 

Flow testing. If i get the chance ill try and find the results. If i remember correctly there was an 8-14 CFM difference between the two heads.

The quick version of why...
- first off it is not hydraulic so that complicates things.
- the cabling and fork system are completely different and would require a large amount of fabbing
- the diff is not interchangeable, the G4JS trans uses a plastic ring style seat for the diff that cant be modded to work.
- none interchangeable diff means you cant use Mitsubishi axles and the cups and knuckles on the G4JS do not match up, so you cant even fake it by making your own custom axles (half G4JS and half Mitsubishi). Edit Add: From my experiences i think the best way to make the 4G64 Trans work in a mirage is to go the same route as the lancer guy did... swap in a mirage diff and use the axles that came with your car.

 

Okay yeah that would be great if you could get those. Not doubting you but I like cold hard facts.

 

I like the ingenuity!

Now go trade it in at the dealership! hahahaha, kidding....

 

^^^
+1

 

well that's just sucks...any differences between the Evo and G4JS flywheel? The G4JS one kinda looks like a DSM style one or is it a dual mass version?

 

Nice Im still debating on picking up a Evo shell and putting my 6A in it.

 

Did you find the flow chart by chance?

 

Added...
Initial Start Up Video...