1998 Evolution V GSR: Classroom

[Solar]

Those are some fancy looking calipers for sure, and a new oil pump and dipstick too, you’re definitely not cutting corners. I wonder what company actually makes those Mitsubishi bearings ?

[Tim_M]

Bearings: Good question. The rods bearings are ACL (an Australian company)...the mains are OEM Mitsubishi (made by who?)

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!

[Solar]

Looking good Tim, your helper is kicking butt Very nice tape and paint job too.

What is the rocks pic ? (am I just old ? Lol)

I’m assuming you two are good to build the engine ? Are you going to use Plastigage to check the rod and main bearing clearance ? I ask because I’m not sure if engine builders use that anymore, been a long time since I built a engine.

[AScoda]

Your sock game is strong!

[Tim_M]

Brian: The 'rock' garden borders a row of freshly picked flowers...passing the time of a younger mind. :-) We are confident the specs are correct (assuming no misboxing of bearings!), but yes were did order some plastigauge...waiting 4 weeks now...Amazon.de states "Package may be lost...you may request a refund." Great.

AScoda: She has some character!

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.

[Solar]

Was starting to wonder where you were, yup life does happen, though hope all is well.

Love to see that Plastigage is still in use, its a bit time consuming, but it works. Sounds like you have a lot of automotive specialty shops in your area to help out, I always wondered how things differed over there compared to here. Are they hard to find, do they work on all brands, are there any language barriers ? Just thinking it must be a bit of a different culture, or is automotive culture/love universal ?

I don't think anyone can do a major car project with in budget, there's always something that un-expectantly comes up, you forget, or just under estimate. Though on the plus side, when the money gets thin, that means the project is probably going to be done soon. I'm still putting out small "fires" on the 240, just ordered some other OEM parts I tracked down, it never ends....

[CaptainSquirts]

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.

From research, the only oil pan that actually helps with oil starvation on hard right hand corners, especially on corner exits. Is racefabs oil pan, which you just send your oil pan and add and baffle and some things.

But my Brembos are done also and would be curious to see how yours brembos clear will do with tracks days on them.

Also i want that SpoolinUp Coil cop but my current plugs seem fine so not sure if it’s worth the cost.

[Tim_M]

Brian - Scouts is the word of the last 6 weeks. Eagle Scout project, Order of the Arrow camp outs, and now scuba diving and white water rafting...all these activities were on hold until vaccination and German laws...until now. Another three weekends and summer will be here...for a break.

German shops: yup, challenge with the language barrier. I've been fortunate to have a German friend who comes to translate/break the ice. The alignment shop owner speaks great english so no issue other than 1.5 hour drive round trip. The machine shop is really a motorcycle shop...so we will see how the Mitsubishi fares...They have a form of Autozone, but it has very little in the salesroom...mainly a cheaper repair facility. Honestly, I see very little do it yourself stuff going on here. Stuttgart is a bit higher with Bosch / BMW / Mercedes dominating the big businesses so possibly why I only see nice cars on the road - a sea of black, gray, white sedans everywhere.

Daniel: your comments sometime ago were taken to heart. We looked at the Moroso, but will likely settle on the Racefab offering. Sending our pan to New Zealand seems a bit drastic and the price is crazy, but if you want the 4G63 to stay in one piece - seems like one of only a few options. Can't believe it comes to this... They do require a specific pan to modify - won't accept our old pan, but seem high quality in the end.

Some work today!

Engine building facility:



Squaring rings:



Looking for .018 gap...:



Disappointing ring grinder:



Piston ring gap complete:



Discussing next step with piston/rod assemling - test fitting:

[Solar]

Very interesting to hear how the car culture differs from here, I was thinking that Germany would have a lot of petrol heads and parts stores, being its such a industrialized country with a heavy automobile culture. Gotta give you extra props for taking on this kind of job with a culture barrier

The engine block and deck is looking good. Whats wrong with the ring grinder, or are you bummed you had to grind rings ?

[Tim_M]

Brian: German rules...my understanding is every modification you do to a car must be certified and annotated on the registration carried with the car. They frequently set up check points and stop all cars for inspections. Passed one tonight. They even have task forces that will detect illegal mods and cars are impounded if not 'TUV'd'. Modifications become very expensive with the extra paperwork and regulated upgrades... I'd guess this has a negative impact on the typical enthusiast. Lots of regulations here...mask wear is still mandatory and restrictions is still in effect for travel. Florida would be real nice right now...

Exciting package arrived from...Australia via Seattle to avoid the 30% customs fee in Germany! New airbox and turbo inlet from ATP:

Unboxing:



Ready for install...we will have to measure for a sizeable K+N filter:



Test fit...clean setup!

[Jamie]

...every modification you do to a car must be certified and annotated on the registration carried with the car.

How do they do that for cars registered to U.S. folks assigned over there? Sam's registration and title was just a slip of paper that doubled as his fuel ration "card".

[Tim_M]

US folks have Status of Force Agreement - the registrations are different among other things. Some benefits...although far from diplomatic immunity...

[Jamie]

US folks have Status of Force Agreement - the registrations are different among other things. Some benefits...although far from diplomatic immunity...

Yes...we'd all be driving much faster if the SOFA conferred immunity....

[Tim_M]

Jamie: I will have to scan a copy of the previous registration of the Evo...even the non-stock tire size is listed!

School is out and I got a half a day with the little lady...

Mounted up the Rivals - a bit better than 235 / 6 year old snow tires:



They even let my assistant do the balance - high tech machine makes it tough to error:



Then to the cylinder case - final cleaning - suds...oil passages and cylinder scrub:





Put my decades old air reservoir to use with 100 psi of free air:



And then my secret weapon (air tank empties quick!) of the hair dryer until the block is nice and hot:



More than a couple war wounds:



None on the assistant!

[Loren]

No job is complete without a blood sacrifice. She needs to learn that.

[Tim_M]

Loren: as long it is mine...got to keep it positive! We've found even the XS Mechanics gloves are too big...

Few minutes on the Evo...popped the new window seals in after cleaning/waxing:





And interior is 95% so in went the new floor mats - a nice splash of color:

[Solar]

Looking good Tim ! Pretty cool that they let your helper pound/stick on the wheel weights, I bet she is the only one in her group of friends that has done that !

My favorite part of bringing a car back to life is installing pretty new trim and painted shiny pieces. Though I enjoy the satisfaction of wrenching and getting a rough running engine smooth again, I much more prefer fixing the bits that you can see when you drive the car. When I was in high school I only waxed the hood my Impala because thats the only thing I could see when I drove it.

[lddavis91]

And interior is 95% so in went the new floor mats - a nice splash of color:

Do you have to register the floor mats with ze gestapo as well?