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TIPS, tricks, and other oddities for the How to Section

curtis

Well-known member
Joined
May 4, 2003
Messages
11,892
Location
Clarksville TN
Ok this is from another thread and the info below was linked to a website that may not always be there and I considered it good info. I'll add to this later when I have time. So if you have a tip or trick not listed here, list it using easy to follow instructions, part numbers when available and a good format with pictures when you can, since the sites pictures are kind of fishy right now may need to wait on that. After it runs for a while the management can place it in the How to Section.....Please no disinformation or BS that don't work. Thanks


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Tips

Under Construction



This page will be a collection of miscellaneous tips that I happen to have. There will be part numbers, FAQs, advice, and anything else that comes to mind that I feel might possibly benefit someone else. Alot of good info gets posted to the various mailing lists and digests, but its sometimes difficult to find. All tips that I cannot confirm will be marked as such and original poster (if possible) noted. As I accumulate more and more "tips", they'll get better organized.



AWS blockoff fittings:

You need two of 14x1.5mm to -6AN adapters Earls' PN#991954 and two -6AN caps. You need two of each to block the two nipples. (un-confirmed, courtesy of Andre Santoso) Of course, AWS is a good thing, contrary to what the drag racing Galant guys say. If you want to see for yourself, disconnect the power cylinder tie rod ends and zip tie them loosely out of the way (two bolts, 5minutes). Now go for a drive and notice the gobs of understeer your car now has. Makes you want to remove the AWS completely doesn't it?



Clutch fluid reservoir:

1g Talons/Eclipses/Lasers AWDs ( or TELs from here forward) use a much taller reservoir than the Galants and should be able to be easily swapped (cap and band clamp on bottom of reservoir are identical). As soon as I do it myself, this tip will be updated. P/N for 1g TEL AWD reservoir is MB555136.

Update: Did it and it worked like I thought it would. Now clutch bleeding is a little bit easier.



Clutch slave cylinder:

91 GVR4 and 2gs use a larger bore clutch release cylinder than the 92 GVR4s and 1g turbos(20.64 vs 19.05mm). This means that clutch pedal movment for the 91 GVR4 will be softer and require more pedal travel to disengage than the 92 GVR4s. This should be a simple upgrade for anyone having clutch release problems. As soon as I do it myself, this tip will be updated. P/N for 1g turbo clutch release cylinder is MD733623. I have not yet been able to establish if the clutch master cylinders are different since both have different part numbers do to the different clutch fluid reservoirs. The shop manual also doesn't mention clutch master cylinder inside diameter for GVR4s or 2gs.

Update: Did it and even with a CFDF, clutch releases as far up from the floor as I want.



Mitsubishi factory 180F (82C) deg thermostat:

A fellow GVR4 guy tracked down the P/N for this factory, cooler than stock, thermostat. Emissions, driveability, and gas mileage will suffer, but you'll be able to run more boost on the street. Use some judgement. P/N is MD997607. I bought two just in case they stop producing these.



Mitsubishi Metal Head Gasket:

These were made by Mitsu for use in engines where block and head have been milled and the deck height is off. They are 4 layer, 1.2mm thick (another source says 1.7mm, I'll measure when I get one). P/N is MD349347. Cost should be around $75 from the dealer.

Update: Just got one today and measured it. It came out between 0.057in - 0.064in depending on where on the gasket its measured. Whereas, a used stock graphite one measured at 0.049in - 0.050in. Not much difference, especially since the metal head gasket hasn't been used yet.



Balance Shaft Eliminator Kit

These are factory parts from the 4g61 which was almost the same as the 4g63 with one of the differences being that it didn't have balance shafts. The cheap way to do this is to simply remove the bearings with holes in them and turn them 90 degs so that the holes aren't lined up with the galleys. This will work just fine. But if you really want to be sure, buy the ones from the 4g61 without the holes in them. For the holes left in the cover, use a freeze plug or the factory part. As for the oil pump shaft, you can always saw off the balance shaft section or you can buy the stub shaft piece that the 4g61s use. Interestingly, Ralliart took the rear balance shaft and turned it round on a lathe to give the oil pump gears more support rather than removing that section for their race cars.

* Bearing - MD103722
* Bearing - MD040597
* Cap - MD092785
* Shaft - MD098626



Non Cruise Throttle Cables

For those who don't use the cruise control, this is a good mod to make some more space in the engine compartment. It also makes for a noticeably better throttle response since the cable motion doesn't go through a couple cables and pulleys. For GVR4s and 1gs, the PN is MB539465. Cost is around $30 from dealer.



3000GT SL calipers:

Yes, these calipers have pistons about 1mm bigger than stock GVR4 or stock AWD TEL (about 42 vs 43mms). However, finding a seal kit that fits these tends to be somewhat difficult since there are many more 42mm piston calipers than 43mm piston calipers. Talk to a parts supplier that actually has a clue. As to effect, I noticed no increase in braking performance, and a horrible mushiness that is impossible to bleed out. This is a mod that has good intentions and and a negative effect. However, if you replace the stock master cylinder with a larger one from a 3000GT VR4 (1in vs 17/16ths in), you'll get your hard brake pedal back and maybe notice the better braking. By looking at the VR4 master cylinder, it seems like the strut tower needs to be notched to allow one of the brake lines to fit. This is because the stock MC has brake lines exiting from the top, whereas the VR4 MC has one coming out of the top, and the other coming out of the side closest to the fender. I'll update this tip when I personally install the VR4 MC.



Brake pads:

* Pagid Fast Road: used in both front and rear, bought by previous owner so I don't where these can be purchased. Good initial bite, better than stock fade resistance, little dust, little rotor wear. All in all, these are good stock replacement pads for people who don't really do a lot of hard braking, turn after turn, and for those who don't do high speed (100+) braking.
* Nippon: used in both front and rear, purchased from many auto parts places. Great initial bite, better than stock fade resistance, little dust, little rotor wear. I'm pretty certain that Nippon makes the original equipment pads so they were chosen for a reason. From my experience, these pads can handle more abuse than the Pagids. But they're still not suitable for lots of abuse. I'd recommend these pads to all non-hardcore DSMers.
* Advance Auto Parts Silver: used in front, purchased from Advance Auto Parts. Good initial bite, similiar to stock fade resistance (maybe slightly worse), little dust, little rotor wear. The only redeeming qualities of these pads are their price and the fact that they have a Lifetime Warantee. These pads are for normal person street use and no more.
* Hawk HP Street: used in front, purchased from Hawk, RRE, and Carbotech Engineering. Great initial bite, more than stock fade resistance, little dust, little rotor wear. These are high performance street pads in name only. They trick you with their good bite and decent fade resistance but as soon as you actually give them a good workout, they go out on you. I've never faded a set of pads this bad before and after they are faded, they never work as well as when they are new. Granted, they are cheap (~$60), but do not expect these pads to be worthwhile at all.
* Porterfield R4S: used in front, available direct from Porterfield, RRE, and more. Great initial bite, excellent fade resistance, more than stock dust, more than stock rotor wear. These are great pads that will suit any hardcore DSMer in anything but a race situation. The only downside is their exorbitant price (~$120).
* Carbotech Panthers: used in front, available from Carbotech Engineering. Great initial bite, awesome fade resistance, much more than stock dust, more than stock rotor wear. These pads bite, then they get hot, and they bite even more, then you abuse them, and they bite so hard you won't believe it. These are true race pads that are useable on the street only if you don't mind the price (~$120), the need to clean the wheels every week, and a little bit of noise. But if you can handle the tradeoffs, these are by far the best pads I've ever used on any car.

My final recommendations:

1. Average DSMer who drives faster than the usual person on the street, but doesn't work the brakes very hard: Nippon pads front and rear
2. Hardcore DSMer who drives fast and brakes hard, from both high speeds and frequently: Porterfield R4S
3. Super Hardcore DSMer who drives fast, brakes hard, and sees the road as his own personal road course. Also has no desire to change pads when racing: Carbotech Panthers

If you think you fit between either of these 3 categories, pick the number bigger rather than smaller.



Brake Fluids:

* DOT2: 374F dry minimum - obsolete brake fluid
* DOT3: 401F dry minimum, 284F wet minimum
* DOT4: 446F dry minimum, 311F wet minimum
* DOT5 (silicone based): 500F dry minimum, 356F wet minimum
* Valvoline High Performance SynPower: 513F dry, 333F wet
* Ford Heavy Duty DOT3: 550F dry, 290F wet
* Castrol SRF: 590F dry, 518F wet
* Castrol GT LMA DOT4: 446F dry, 311F wet
* ATE Super Blue (blue) and ATE TYP 200 (amber): 536F dry, 392F wet, metal container
* ATE SL: 500F dry, 329F wet
* Motul Racing 600: 585F dry, 421F wet
* Motul DOT5.1: 509F dry, 365F wet
* Stainless Steel Brakes: 570F dry
* AP Racing 550: 550F dry, 284F wet - no longer available
* AP Racing 551: 527F dry, 302F wet - supercedes 550
* AP Racing 600: 590F dry, 410F wet
* AP Racing DOT 5.1: 500F dry, 356F wet
* Wilwood Hi Temp 570: 570F dry. 284F wet
* Wilwood EXP 600 Plus: 626F dry, 417F wet
* NEO Super DOT: 610F dry, 421F wet
* Performance Friction Z-Rated DOT3: 550F dry, 284F wet



Crower/HKS Camshaft Specifications:

* HKS 264 - 240/241 @ 010, 214/214 @ 020, 187/186 @ 050 (in degrees, intake is listed first)
* Crower 64412 - 242/240 @ 010, 216/216 @ 020, 188/188 @ 050 (in degrees, intake is listed first)
* HKS 272 - 237/237 @ 010, 222/222 @ 020, 195/195 @ 050 (in degrees, intake is listed first)
* Crower 64413 - 241/241 @ 010, 226/225 @ 020, 198/195 @ 050 (in degrees, intake is listed first)

Info is via Jim Booker who sent an email to Crower asking for info and posted that email to the NWDSM list.



Valvespring Specifications:

P/N Type OD/ID (in) Installed Height Installed Pressure Open Height Open Pressure Coil Bind Rate Wire Diameter
Crower

68190
Single 1.085/0.790 1.600in

1.560in

1.500in

1.400in
59lbs

70lbs

85lbs

110lbs
1.200in

1.100in

1.000in

0.950in
168lbs

190lbs

220lbs

238lbs
.910in 270lb/in 0.162in
Mitsubishi

MD139243
Single 1.575in 66lbs

Of course the Crowers are about $100 for the whole set of 16, whereas the stock Mitsu springs are about $160, making this mainly a point of price.



Miscellaneous Info:

* GVR4 chassis designation: E39A
* DSM (TEL 1g - except popups, 2g, and GVR4) headlight bulbs: 9005 for highbeam, 9006 for lowbeam
* 1g 16x6 honeycomb Laser wheel weight: 18lbs
* 1g 16x6 swirl Talon wheel weight: 20lbs
* 1g 16x6 steel wheel weight: 25lbs
* ACE Alloy Veloce 17x7.5 wheel weight: 19lbs
* R&S Racing 16x9 wheel weight: 14lbs
* Borbet Type T 16x7.5 wheel weight: 19lbs
* 91 Galant VR4 "wagon" 15x6 wheel weight: 16.5lbs (courtesy of Jim)
* 92 Galant VR4 5 spoke 15x6 wheel weight: 16lbs (courtesy of Jim)



Part numbers for little cheap fixes:

* Clutch and brake pedal pads: new pads grip a whole bunch more than old worn out ones, MB193884 (~$1)
* Oil filler cap gasket: old ones get hard and don't seal well, MD103148 (~$1)
* 1g door weatherstrips at bottom of window on outside: the paint on these tends to crack and fade, and are quite cheap to replace, MB517813(left) MB517814(right) (~$12)
* 1g dual DIN (two holes, not one big one): upgraded to a single DIN radio and want the factory piece? MB522080 (~$15) If anybody knows the part number for the pocket that fits in the bottom, let me know.
* Galant dual DIN (two holes, not one big one): upgraded to a single DIN and want the factory piece? MB716801 (~$8)
* Galant "VR4" emblem for rear: surprisingly, the dealership still carries these, MB567337 (~$10)



DSM Spring Info:

I've done some research into the different springs used in 1gs and Galants from the factory. All of this info can be found in the various shop manuals, but I've coalesced it into an easily read format. This info is good for people who want to put springs from another model car into their's as a cheap upgrade. A 2g owner could probably do the same thing if they researched Avengers, Sebrings, etc.



Model Front Spring Length (in) Front Spring Rate (lb/in) Rear Spring Length (in) Rear Spring Rate (lb/in)
1g FWD 1.8 12.9 (M/T)

13.2 (A/T)
123 13.25 112
1g FWD 2.0 12.4 (M/T)

12.7 (A/T)
134 12.46 128.8
1g FWD 2.0T 12.7 (M/T)

12.9 (A/T)
134 12.46 128.8
1g AWD 12.9 (M/T)

13.1 (A/T)
146 13.1 140
Galant FWD SOHC 14.1 (M/T)

14.4 (A/T)
112 13.48 (High Line, 1989)

13.76 (High Line, 1990+)

13.76 (Premium, 1989)

14.04 (Premium, 1990+)
117.6
Galant FWD DOHC 14.8 (M/T)

14.8 (M/T)
112 14.04 117.6
Galant AWD 2.0 13.9 (M/T)

14.2 (A/T)
134 15.3 112
Galant AWD 2.0T 14.2 134 15.3 112



Note(1): All front springs are same diameter regardless of drivetrain, engine, or model. The same applies to the rear springs.

Note(2): Galant ECS springs are quirky (strange spring rates and sizes) and I'd recommend not using them, therefore they are not listed.



2g Lifters/Oil Filters:

The old HLAs (hydraulic lash adjusters) have a smaller orifice in the top that tends to get clogged over time(P/N MD337687). The newer ones have a much larger hole in the top that really helps eliminate tapping (P/N MD377054). The newer ones were used by Mitsu starting around 97 build date. This applies to Stealths and 3000GTs since they use the same HLAs.

Some people believe that a better oil filter can help eliminate tapping as well. These people say that one with an anti-drainback valve is the way to go. I can't confirm this or not, but I can mention which ones have these as well as recommend a couple oil filters. First is the factory Mitsubishi filter (P/N MD031805) and are about $4.50 from your local dealer. Second is the Purolator PureOne filter (P/N PL10193) and are about $6.50 from your local PepBoys. Third is Nippon brand (P/N MD031805) and can be bought from an auto parts reseller for about $3.50. By comparing these to the factory Mitsubishi filters, I happen to think that these are OEM, just a different color and a little cheaper. So far my experience with Nippon parts has been very positive. Each of these three filters has a visible oil anti-drainback valve.

Update: Compared Nippon to stock Mitsu filter and noticed that they are indeed slightly different. They have a different number of oil return holes and different gasket design but both appear to be equal quality. I'll update again if I cut both apart.

Update: Found a Bosch oil filter P/N 72142 but it doesn't seem to be of very good quality.

Another way to keep the HLAs from tapping is to make sure the oil passageways in the head and the lifters are kept clean. An engine flush at every oil change can help with this although its debatable whether or not this could potentially cause damage (could cause loose oil crud to clog up bearing holes). Do some research to form your own opinion. I now flush at every oil change. If you're really hardcore, there are four allen plugs on each end of the head that can be removed and a pipe cleaner run through to make sure they aren't crusted up with burnt oil. Also, removing the lifters and simply cleaning them out can sometimes be as effective as installing new ones. Use diesel or some other kind of parts cleaner and pump them until fluid coming out is clean.



Bumpstops:

If for some reason you don't want to spend the $13 a piece for factory bumpstops (which adds up quickly when you multiply by 4), Energy Suspension makes some nice replacements. The rear shock shafts are 1/2in diameter and use ES P/N 9-6111 and can be bought from Summit Racing for about $5 a pair. The front shock shafts are 7/8in diameter and use ES P/N 4-6103 and can be bought from Summit Racing for about $9 a pair. The only problem is that they are pretty stiff and not as progressive as the stock ones. Because of this, I recommend using them in the rear for all applications since the rear almost never bottoms out. However, in the front, if you do alot of hardcore racing where the bumpstops are in constant use and required to be part of the progressive suspension, I wouldn't recommend them. But for regular street driving where the only time you hit front bumpstops is when you hit that big dip in the freeway, they're a very cheap alternative. These bumpstops, being polyurethane, will also never crumble and break down like the stock ones either.



Knock Sensor:

The knock sensor (KS) is a small microphone that listens for detonation in a certain frequency at certain times in the combustion cycle. If you want to learn more, read the factory service manual. However, there are a couple bits of info I've learned that might help someone. First of all, if the ECU to KS circuit is broken for whatever reason (not connected, internally broken, bad contact, bad wiring), the ECU will make sure that you don't get enough timing to cause any knock related damage. This will show up as a knock count of 40 every time you get on the throttle and timing will stay at about 10-12, which of course makes the car feel normal under part throttle, but upon rapid throttle transients and full throttle actuation, timing will be pulled and the car will feel like it has no power. Don't let this happen for too long as the high EGTs from running low timing can weaken the head gasket. Personal experience here.

Second, when the KS gets old, the goey stuff in the back starts to leak out (perhaps by heat or vibration over time). My cheap solution is to clean out the back with a shop solvent and fill with blue or black silicone. Cheap but functional fix.

Having difficulty getting the KS out? Come on now. Disconnect your battery so you don't accidentally ground out your wrench on the starter, then reach your arm in there with an adjustable wrench and give it hell. No need to disconnect or remove anything else. When reinstalling, make sure threads are clean (use wire brush), thread it in by hand, and give it a little turn with the adjustable after its hand tight. Don't make it too tight, just a little beyond snug. P/N is MD141510 and cost about $75 from local Mitsu dealer.



Frequently asked DSM formulas and conversions:

* 1 bar = 14.5037 psi
* 1 atm = 14.695 psi
* 1 kg/cm^2 = 14.22 psi
 

Regarding the claim that "emissions, driveability, and gas mileage will suffer" when using a 180 degree thermostat...I have used a 180 degree thermostat in almost every car I have ever owned and never had a single problem with emissions, drivability, or gas mileage. Using a thermostat that is too cool can prevent the computer from going into closed loop operation, but 180 is not too cool.
 

solidviper89

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 19, 2004
Messages
759
Location
Mission/ San Antonio, Texas
I agree, when I upgraded from old stock/stuck thermostat my gas mileage was unaffected but my temps were nice and low /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif and I don't have to worry about emissions I live in South Texas /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 

prove_it

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 3, 2008
Messages
4,201
Location
Sioux Falls, SD
It's not like you can't just swap out your thermostat when you go test anyway.
 

Rausch

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 21, 2004
Messages
12,049
Location
Cleveland, OH
Missed a DOT brake fluid spec:
DOT 5.1 270°C (518°F) Dry 191°C (375°F) Wet

The DOT numbers are the minimum requirements for each fluid category. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
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