Guys please change my mind...I'm seriously thinking about going with a 4G63. HRC says that with a stage 1 (which will be here soon) my motor will run very safely and I shouldn't have any problems, but then I come on this board and all I see is that the 420A MUST be rebuilt ASAP or you're screwed. The problem is that I still need my Thermal exhaust and all the other goodies like a EGT, a few body mods =), etc. before I can really work on getting that money for the rebuild. So will pushing 5 psi on a daily driven car be worth the hassle? Or should I start looking at a GS-T?

It all comes down to regular maintainance and not going boost crazy. If your are intercooled, or even non-intercooled, running at 4-5 psi, the motor will last you for a long while. Always keep your eye on your EGT gauge. Some guys here have ran 8 psi for over a year and still going strong, and 'most' that have blown engines are due to driver error. I think one of the members here accidentally pushed 20 psi on stock internals for a super split second, and they are fine. Just keep it maintained and don't go boost crazy on stock internals. Having boost is a HUGE responsibility, take care of it and you can expect it to last a long time.

well when your car is turbo it's a finely tuned racing machine bwahaha. You gotta take care of it and feed it properly so it'll grow up to be nice and strong. Don't worry about it as long as there's oil in it and you periodically check for stpuid shit to happen like bolts popping out, manifold gaskets blowing, and watching your gauges when you drive you shouldn't have any problems. My car has been autoxed, track drifting, highway battling, and other good stuff since I"ve been turboe'd and the biggest problem I"ve had lately is the exhuast manifold gasket. Turbo is the shit man!

Turbo IS THE SHIT :thumbsup

In my personal experience, I really wanted the piece of mind that came with a factory turbo car. I always had a fear in the back of my mind that I was going to blow the engine in my GS. The fact that the ECU can't retard more than 15 degrees, it has 9.6:1 compression, and really no fail-safes is what did it for me. If I wanted to spend the money on MSD and other equipment that would have helped in that area, I would have kept my car. (also, if it were AWD :)) But I could better use that stuff on mods that would help "boost" performance on a 4g63.


But it really is up to you. The top end on the turbo 420a is awesome. You just need to have the knowledge and understanding when it comes to taking care of a car that was not meant for boost. (of course, any DSM needs constant attention...not just turbo'd non-turbos.)

"DSMs....making average people Mechanics since 1989"

the fact is that any turbo car is going to take more abuse than the same car not turbo'd. that being said it's not all you hear on this board that they must be rebuilt asap. The rebuild comes in when you become a boost junkie (like me) and just have to up the boost. If you want to go over a certin psi (depending on the kit you buy) that is when the internal upgrades are needed. if you go with the hann kit they let you upgrade in stages. so you could get a stage 2 kit and then do your body mods and then come back and upgrade later to stage 5 if you want. Or you can go the star route get a stage 2 kit and make your own stages above that. it's all up to you but you do have to be smart about it you can't just slap it on there and never look back. you have to watch and monitor things on your ride just like you do now. besides that i'm usually to the side of get to your power goals then make it pretty. because if you go back under the hood alot after it looks pretty, your asking to drop a wrench and scratch up that nice paint. so basicly it's up to you but you don't have to rebuild before turbo. i have a star stage 2 running 8lbs at 93,000 miles and i have no blow by, no hg leakes and no manifold problems. the condition it's in when you turbo has alot to do with it too. not trying to sound like a dick but don't run to a gst looking to get away from problems because they have them too.

Hey Kirby. I was in the same situation as you were. I had 92,000 miles and I was running 8psi. I hate to say it but your time is running out. It will happen. I never over boosted or had egt's over 1600 but my engine finally gave up on me. Actually it was the headgasket that gave out. I havent got a chance to see what the pistons look like yet but I will know later this week if there was any piston damage. I think that if I ran 5 psi on my same set up it might have lasted a bit longer but who knows. Anyone that turbos their car will eventually go to stage 3 or sell their car wether its their choice or not. A time will come when you are forced to make the decision to sell the car or rebuild. Most rebuild because after spending so much time and effrt on your car you dont want to sell it. And after the rebuild it is a whole different car. I cant wait untill mine is finished!

I used to love it when I first had it..the power was on tap and the pull was awesome. Now after about a year it seems my car has gotten slower..especially after I put the intercooler on!! It's not that I got used to it it's just something is up with my car that's making it slow and I'm getting tired of analyzing, researching and figuring it out. I mean yes I know that is a part of tuning but I at least wanna get the car up to a normal level. Can anyone relate?

Alvin

The answer to this question is going to be very subjective. In terms of peace of mind, the 4G63 will at least give you that. Plus, upgrading will be much easier on the factory turbo cars. In terms of owning a turbo car, it will always require constant maintenance, especially if you race with it. On the other hand, with the 4G63, you sometimes have to worry about crank walk, which when it happens, could be as costly, if not more, than a 420A with rebuilt internals--no crank walk. Right now, tuning the 420A is pretty young, so there's going to be a lot of trial and error, but I'm sure it won't be a mystery forever!

I think one of the members here accidentally
>pushed 20 psi on stock internals for a super split second,
>and they are fine.

that was me. 1st day i was turbod, mbc installed, but was tightned down all the way. would have gone higher, but i let off right away. was right around 20lbs, stage 1, stock everything, oops, lol.

since then, ive been running 8.5lbs w/ fmic, sfmu, 30lb injectors. i always have that paranoia in the back of my head...but its so nice to pull on my friend in his S2000 with my "pos avenger" lol. hopefully ill have most of my CC's paid off (or close) this summer, so then ill have the option of a rebuild if something goes, vs. jst letting the car sit till i can afford a rebuild.

but for every 1 rebuild, theres prolly 5,6 or 7+ others who have been running trouble free for long periods of time. im going on 7 months now ***knock on wood*** and ive had all kinds of overboosting in the first 3-4months :(. for me, that paranioa would be there no matter what i drove tho.

Alrighty then. I'm going to turbo my RS. But I have a feeling that I'll be posting here a lot more after I install it...

thats cool we are here to help