Tim M

Today we did a bit of interior work:


Next is to pull the carpet for a car wash clean with Simple Green:


Another minor surprise...:


Popped some pads in place (basic street Stoptechs):



We also nearly completed the rear suspension...she tried her hand at torquing the axle nut...bit difficult with her sub 100 pound frame (min torque is 144!):


Cylinder head news...shop is open and possibly complete end of next week! Nothing fancy, just a skim and assembly with all new components.

Tim M

Wrapping up the other side:

Front caliper - fun watching her figure out which way to 'tighten' it:


Complete:


And the rear:


Out with the old spray painted/holed inner fender:


Good shot of the factory brake duct - some effort back in 1998:


And located waterpump hardware:


And finally installing a new power steering pulley - quite a bit of heft to this pulley for some reason...:


Cylinder head will take another week...

Tim M

A turning point for us today...carpet has been removed!

Assistant learning again what leverage is - "Try turning the wrench perpendicular to the bolt" (it was an aftermarket eyelet for the 5 point harness):


Popping the scuff plates:


Believe the keyless locking box:


And finally success! Rewarding her with more cleaning - vacuum! Very impressed at the lack of any changes/damage from the previous owners!:


Love working on this generation of Japanese cars...all the interior panels popped of with minimal fuss and not a single clip/joint was broken!

We will do a good scrub of the carpet (auto wash?) and reinstall along with the rest of the interior...possibly in a week or two - progress!

Tim M

Another fun package arrived - individual coil on plug system.


The shop mentioned a ignition coil/spark problem may have caused the engine failure so logical for an upgrade since the cost of new OEM coils equals this reasonably priced plug and play system.

Tim M

Success - complete cylinder arrival. Complete with GSC (beehive springs/locks/Ti retainers), Manley (std size valves), and OEM seals. We hope for 8000 rpm capability:


Even received a good sport gift of family wurst!:


I almost felt honored to part ways with near 400 euro for the cleaning, valve/seat grind, and assembly along with .1 mm decking.

Tim M

Not much this weekend as school work and Scouts dominates...

Final cleaning pass of the seats:


Even on stands, it looks good in our opinion. :grin:

Tim M

In preparation for another visit to the machine shop to verify our bearing clearances we prep'd the rods and block with installed bearings and torqued fasteners.

Had to rig up a makeshift vise for the rod clamping - cardboard and large c-clamp worked. The new ARP 2000 bolts required 25 foot/pound setting...plus 42 degrees angle. Did that three times with ARP assembly lube...:


The 'most-expensive-tool-in-the-garage' made it piece of cake - worked on keeping that pulling arm straight and using the entire body to make the number.

Next was the block...liked the 4G63 'girdle' main cap design - popped the OEM Mitsubishi standard bearings in place - careful not to shed the backing as they snap into place:


And the block:


Lubing the new OEM main bolt hardware with engine oil as per the manual:



And going thru the motions of 25 NM setting plus 90 degrees:


And putting her (light) weight to use...but I had to take over when going for the 90 degree twist - fun to watch her try though!


Loaded and back to the machine shop...to find out that our mains are 0.00276 in and rods are 0.0035...both are too much! (0.0020-0.0025 is preferred). So another set of full bearings are required and associated 2-3 week delay - but at least we confirmed our concern!

Tim M

Some new inner liner hardware...because it was inexpensive and it was crusty...:


And things are getting serious...


A generous German friend was dropped of one of the last logistics issues. Glad we didn't have to purchase one!

Tim M

Additional assistance on the forums pointed us to ACL who makes an oversize rod bearing that is just right for our application! Bringing the spec to 0.0025 for the rods and with the larger OEM size on the mains - 0.0023. Orders placed...another 2 weeks.

We did take advantage of the warmest day we have had (supposed to hit 65!)...headed to the car wash to blast the original carpeting with Simple Green, car wash soap, and a bit of pressure:


Emptied the bottle and soaked it a bit with light soap:


Then struggled a bit to rinse so the Jazz came to the rescue with the sloped front end/windshield...made for the perfect angled draining platform. The covering gets quite heavy when fully ladden of moisture!

Home with 10 hours of drying in the sun/breeze:


Success!:

Tim M

The car is famous! Just got our Grassroots Motorsport issue in the mail...Pretty awesome!


Close up:


Made a little lady smile with surprise! She then stated she charges $5 for autographs...j/k.

Seriously, nice they do this for folks...guess the pressure is on to complete!

Tim M

Finally got a bit of time on the car this weekend...but first few part arrivals:

Fresh dipstick:


Evo 9 oil filter adapter - because it is clean and will support larger oil cooler lines (compared to the V which used one size smaller):


Also, because we can temporarily eliminate the oil cooler for initial start/break in...an oil related failure on this engine will foul the pan/cooler again (we don't trust our engine building skills that much!):


A battery relocation kit - will swap the engine air intake with the battery position front to back - common for Evos as the battery will be behind the air cleaner allowing wind blast to feed the air filter instead of the battery:


Finally the engine bearings arrived (rod and mains). Will give us much closer to optimum for long life:


Some rear mud guard replacement...let her figure it out:


And install - easy with those guns! Bolts into plastic are a bit finicky:


Love those calipers...

We are ready to paint the block...just need 60 degree temps to get there...then clean and assemble! Easier said that done...

Tim M

We are getting closer...we hit 60 degrees so out came the block, tape, and spray paint!

Chemical rinse:


Taping:


Tape trimming:


Finally, pull the trigger:


Result of waiting time in between coats...little ladies...


Ready for final clean and assembly!


Although, it seems little of the block is visible once installed...but it sure looks nice now!

Tim M

Scouts is absorbing all of our time (Eagle Scout project for the brother!)...but the interior is nearly complete...love Mitsubishi (or Japanese cars) packaging. Super easy, but with little hands, takes a bit longer:

Only discrepancy with carpet - a bit of wear (will be covered by a mat):


Leading center console:


and


Rear part of the console:


Bolting down the seats:


And we pulled the passenger side window seals...finish is aged a bit:

Tim M

Project delays...due to life. But coming back online!

Few parts arrived...cleaning brushes for the final block suds:


Some plastigauge...mainly to demonstrate its use, but also give us a warm fuzzy on the bearings (the first package when lost in the mail!):


And my favorite tire...exact same as the STI - BFG Rival 1.5's in same size (245/40-17)...hope they fit. Tirerack discounted price by $50 a piece!:

Tim M

Also, had the friendly machine shop 'hot tank' the original oil pan:


We will likely start with this pan and upgrade to one with 'trap doors' to avoid any issue with oil starvation...at a later date. The money tree is getting thin!

Also had the shop measure our Mahle pistons...piston to wall clearance works out to be .05 mm = .002 inch. Seems a bit tight, but that is what the piston calls for.