im looking to build my 420a up to a stage 2 or 3. i dont know if i want to buid it myself or just buy a long block. i would like to find and look at all my options and crunch some numbers to see what would be best for me. so if anyone has any cool sites with good deals or just something for me to consider please throw it at me. but i do need a block. i also want to stay n/a. sorry i am new to this forum so if i make any mistakes please point me in the right direction. thanks

Originally posted by buriedfriend
im looking to build my 420a up to a stage 2 or 3. i dont know if i want to buid it myself or just buy a long block. i would like to find and look at all my options and crunch some numbers to see what would be best for me. so if anyone has any cool sites with good deals or just something for me to consider please throw it at me. but i do need a block. i also want to stay n/a. sorry i am new to this forum so if i make any mistakes please point me in the right direction. thanks

First off welcome to the site.

Secondly, please familiarize yourself with our layout, learn to use the search function and take a look around the wiki.

Now to get to your question, there is no stage 2 or stage 3, this isn't some srt4 package. You can get a block from a junkyard out of eclipses/talons/avengers/neons of the 95-99 years. Some blocks have slight differences, but will work for building, just search to find out specifics on a block before purchasing. You can also find parts for sale in our BST section, but note you can't post there because there is a minimum post amount, you can however pm anyone you want about parts.

If you want to purchase an already built block, then two options are concept illusions and howell automotive, both are very slow, but they are two of the few vendors that support the 420a aftermarket. If you want to stay NA and are building for performance, search for bullettdsm. Pretty much read through anything he's posted in the wiki and in threads about his setup as he is the expert/record holder for NA performance.

Also, not sure of your experience/knowledge, but for NA performance, you can also look into a 2.4L swap out of the cloud cars (stratus/cirrus/etc.)

What cs said^^^^

here's a little extra...

(and I found almost all this out doing searches on this board and spending several sleepless nights reading it all)

I'm in a similar position. I'm rebuilding and my block is trash. So, from one newb to another, I'll try to shorten your learning curve so you can get a little more sleep than I have recently!

<<Hopefully other members will read this and correct me if I'm wrong.>>

You can use the short block from any Neon, DOHC (VIN "Y") or SOHC (VIN "C"), from 95-99. You'll just need your cylinder head or another eclipse/talon (and I think Avenger works too). The SOHC short block will just result in lower compression due to the pistons used in that motor. The DOHC short block has the same pistons as your car, so nothing will change.

If you are just going to get a neon block to rebuild then the compression issue is probably moot because you'll probably be putting new pistons in it anyway. However, the crank's main bearing differ between the '95s and '96-'99s. So, keep that in mind. From what I've read in the old posts, I guess there have been some problems sourcing bearings for those blocks. But, I'm finding that there are '95 specific bearings available.

Like this set for example:
1995-DODGE-NEON-2-0-DOHC-16V-MAIN-ROD-BEARINGS-SET-420A

You'll find a great discussion on the topic here:

http://forums.2gnt.com/dcboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=5&topic_id=106390&mesg_id=106390&listing_type=search

I got that from the search function. You'll find a lot of good stuff through there. You gotta dig through a bunch of BS most of the time, but eventually you'll hit pay dirt!

hey guys thanks so much. u r already a big help. i belong to a couple other forums and the search engines suck. so i guess it never crossed my mind that this site had a good search to use. and i kinda knew that u could use neon block just not which ones so that is a big help. but i noticed that slow boy has short blocks that are stage 1and 2 if i remember right thats where the stages came from. they also have stage one and 2 heads for it. but their short block are pricey but it might b cheaper in the long run. i just got to figure out what the big difference is between eagle rods and crower rods. besides about 300 bucks. but thanks again guys.

Those stages are just for what they sell, not a rule of thumb or anything like that.

Not everyone sells "staged" parts.

Not trying to be a dick, i'm just clarifying that you should clarify (and you did) so nobody looks at you squinty-eyed trying to get what you're saying.