[mrhalfwitt]

Ok guys, this build thread will take us into the winter. I'm at the gathering stage right now. I'll need as much help as I can get from those of you that have done it before.

First off... The blueprint....

What I'm looking for is somewhere in the ball park of 250-300 HP to the wheels. The car is going to be daily driven so I don't want anything to aggressive.
The car is currently automatic and I want to switch it to manual. After it's all said and done I want a good hi-way cruiser and auto cross car.

The build....

I acquired a 2008 2.4 non turbo PT Cruiser engine, as of right now the only part i have other than my 1990 Plymouth Horizon.

I am going to be using my Megasquirt 2 PCB V3.0 so I have engine management under control.

I'll go more into detail about the engine build in a bit.

What I need help with right now is what trans to use, and mounting it all in the car. When the day comes that i'm going to go through with this swap I only want the car down for a month tops.

 

[mrhalfwitt]

I'm looking at this manifold...

2.2 2.5 16V TURBO DODGE HYBRID INTAKE MANIFOLD KIT | eBay

 

[mrhalfwitt]

From my searches it looks like I'll have to mod the front and rear mount. No big deal so far. I still need to learn what trans to use.

 

[mrhalfwitt]

Another question is with the axles and wheel hubs, do they need to be changed?

 

[mrhalfwitt]

I was just reading about removing the balance shafts, the only answer i CAN'T find is if i have to re-balance the rotating assembly. Is it just a simple cut the chain and it's good?

The whole controversy over a baffle in the pan or gutting the B/S case and putting it back in and blocking off the oil port i'll make my mind up on but will everything need to be re-balanced?

And more about the engine build, I was going to go with stock PT Cruiser turbo pistons 10 over. My question is what is the cc difference in the combustion chamber, and or what is the difference between the turbo head and my non turbo head? And are the stock pistons good for my target HP range?

 

[mrhalfwitt]

History on this engine I have...

It came from a 2008 PT Cruiser I swapped out at work and there was no core charge so i took it home. Number 4 cylinder was low on compression "90 psi" hence the reason i want to go 10 over on the pistons. As for the head i'll pressure check it and change what ever needs to be fixed. I have no clue if the rings are bad or if something is wrong with the head. Either way I NEED to change the pistons. I did get 120 psi on a wet compression check so i'm suspecting the rings are bad.

 

[Naturaltravesty]

im doing the same thing..i removed the whole balance assembly.. and from what ive heard from people it as easy as removing it and plugging one oil hole

 

[mrhalfwitt]

im doing the same thing..i removed the whole balance assembly.. and from what ive heard from people it as easy as removing it and plugging one oil hole

What are you going to do for pistons? I cant seem to find any dished pistons for the 2.4l anywhere. From what I'm reading even the srt4 has domed pistons.

 

[mrhalfwitt]

What is the difference between a srt4 crankshaft and the pt cruiser crankshaft? I was told the srt4 has all forged internals stock... Is that true?

 

[The Pope]

What is the difference between a srt4 crankshaft and the pt cruiser crankshaft? I was told the srt4 has all forged internals stock... Is that true?

nope, same short block. 94-02 2.4 turbo has a forged crank and forged Mahle pistons, the same basically as a T3 engine. The SRT 4 is a cast crank engine 03 up

 

[mrhalfwitt]

nope, same short block. 94-02 2.4 turbo has a forged crank and forged Mahle pistons, the same basically as a T3 engine. The SRT 4 is a cast crank engine 03 up

What is the easiest way to spot a forged crank?

 

[94GTC]

The cast cranks have a narrow parting line and the forged cranks have a wider rougher line/area.

 

[mrhalfwitt]

L00K what I just got!

 

[turbot11]

Nice! With motor/trans??

 

[mrhalfwitt]

Yup!

 

[94GTC]

You just solved most issues, as far as trans, axles and such. You will want to upgrade the fmic.

 

[mrhalfwitt]

You just solved most issues, as far as trans, axles and such. You will want to upgrade the fmic.

I know how bad ass this srt4 swap would be in the horizon, buttt i got this car with a clear and free title..... I'm half way tempted to just fix it, stick the horizon in the garage and keep gathering parts. The srt4 has super nice interior and i know a good body guy!

 

[mrhalfwitt]

I'm going to go through with it anyhow. Where can I find info about what i need to do to mount the engine and trans?

 

[JT84]

I'm going to go through with it anyhow. Where can I find info about what i need to do to mount the engine and trans?

from everything I have read so far I have come to the conclusion that:

the stock turbo 2.4 pistons can handle up to around 400 WHP.
if you use an 01-02 block you don't have to do any grinding to get the starter to fit.
the block is compatible with the 03 up heads as well as the 95-00 heads(which I believe 95-99 have +1mm valves).
you can use earlier blocks but they don't go both ways with the heads.
you can use any TD trans, the best ones are A568, A523. and they bolt right to the block. ( I think you have to drill holes in the flywheel for the clutch, but i am not sure as I haven't found much on that subject yet)
you will have to get custom intake manifold and turbo exhaust header.
you can use the stock ECM as long as you get the dizzy adapter for the back of the head and a custom calibration.
you can buy custom mounts from a guy that had some laser cut specifically for Lbodys from here he has other items that might help this along as well.

I am in the gathering stage for a 2.4 swap in my 87 charger and have done a lot of searching and I think if I get everything I need before hand I can have my vehicle down for only a week tops. with the amount of other people that have done the swap there is plenty out there to learn what works and what doesn't.

 

[mrhalfwitt]

from everything I have read so far I have come to the conclusion that:

the stock turbo 2.4 pistons can handle up to around 400 WHP.
if you use an 01-02 block you don't have to do any grinding to get the starter to fit.
the block is compatible with the 03 up heads as well as the 95-00 heads(which I believe 95-99 have +1mm valves).
you can use earlier blocks but they don't go both ways with the heads.
you can use any TD trans, the best ones are A568, A523. and they bolt right to the block. ( I think you have to drill holes in the flywheel for the clutch, but i am not sure as I haven't found much on that subject yet)
you will have to get custom intake manifold and turbo exhaust header.
you can use the stock ECM as long as you get the dizzy adapter for the back of the head and a custom calibration.
you can buy custom mounts from a guy that had some laser cut specifically for Lbodys from here he has other items that might help this along as well.

I am in the gathering stage for a 2.4 swap in my 87 charger and have done a lot of searching and I think if I get everything I need before hand I can have my vehicle down for only a week tops. with the amount of other people that have done the swap there is plenty out there to learn what works and what doesn't.

My situation is different. The srt4 was a 2004, the block and trans both got broken in the wreck. The spare block i have is from a 2008 pt cruiser.

I have been eyeballing the mounts and intake manifold on ebay.

As for the ecu, i'm just going to use the megasquirt system.
I'm also thinking about rebuilding this 08 pt cruiser engine i have and later on boost that.

I do need to focus on the trans and clutch. I have to go local junk yard hoping and see what is available to me locally.