2008 Lancer CJ VRX - Build thread

[Avenir]

No currently not.... although I will most likely continue going from here and give it a tune when all is ready. Get the proper stats then, im okay with that.

Not changing TB, 4b12 is good enough and problems arise, even if you change it to a larger one its not much of an increase. Extractors are a yes, but considering I want 4-2-1 I have looked around and been told that they aren't as good as 4-1 but still I dont know for sure. Cams and injectors can stay the same, not trying to make a race car just prioritise perf over fuel economy on the stock motor.

Yeah he uses a Injen hot air intake. Same same really, and his didnt even have any shielding just straight pod filter right next to the headers. But nonetheless I am happy with my SRI so don't really want to fuss on it anymore.

[bumblebee]

You might want to check the diameter of the 4b1x TB and the 4G69TB and the 6B31 TB

As it's not just the diameter you need to be concerned with , a hint is
C
S
A

[Avenir]

BUILD UPDATE

So I have a fair few of the parts now, its all going on in about 2 weeks time after the front end rebuild which is paid for!
Already installed/updated:
- K&N 69-6544TS SRI with RA snorkel
- OEM Lancer car seats
- OEM Lancer floor mats (really makes the car feel new again)
- Mitsubishi cup holder insert coasters (just a small touch)
- New Bosch Windscreen wipers (picked these up ad hoc as my other ones were pretty bad)

New Items/Yet to be installed in 2 weeks:
- OEM Scuff plates (all doors)
- OEM VRX badge replacement (not a huge fan of debadging... gotta own the trim)
- Aftermarket Slimline black weathershields (all doors)
- Fiberglass matte black middle lip (connects the 2 VRX pods together on front bumper)
- Carbon Fiber door handle covers
- Plastidip front grille to match matte black lip
- Black out rims (OEM 18 inch alloys, couldn't commit to $1000+ for cool new rims.. stocks look good)
- Brand new set of Falken tyres (Birthday gift from the parents)

Some small new essentials - (Brother works at Bursons, got $350 of maintenance/car care items for $150)
- Meguiars Wash & Wax
- Mag Monster wheel cleaner
- Tire shine
- CRC Mass Air Flow cleaner (actually picked this up from one of bumblebee's posts about a book on exhausts! MAF has never been cleaned and I have travelled interstate, 40,000+kms, and changed the intake so should be useful I think!)
- Then some cleaning supplies as I havent had any - make sure the car looks good from now on..

Items being delivered:
- Torque solutions short shifter (was on sale, should be good addition to everyday shifting...)
- B Blox Platinum Limited Edition Shift knob (really keen for this, big & heavy & looks great)

Thats IT! All of these items will be installed/used on the lancer in approx 12 or so days after the front end rebuild... It's honestly going to be a different car after all of that, as well as the usual servicing on top when I take it home... Look, feel and drive different.

I'll most likely combine some CRC Throttle body cleaner too with the MAF cleaner to make sure all the airways are good, my TB wasnt very clean when I changed the intake and I have noticed it can fluctuate at idle sometimes so we will see!

Next Parts/Cosmetics:
- 4-1 Headers (most likely start of next year)
- Catback exhaust with an upgraded high flow cat (most likely end of year as I go back to full time work)
- XYZ coilovers (Not sure ETA on these but next year for sure)
- Aftermarket Dash mat (Dash is in really good nic so wanna keep it that way)
- VLAND Taillights (love the look of these, but all in due time I spose)
- OEM Fuel Door (If I can find one a reasonable price. Love the look but not a fan of spending $250)
- Finally a rear diffuser from bodykit kingdom, side skirt extensions from bodykit kingdom and a polyurethane front lip (help protect the fiberglass middle lip atm)

I estimate I can save for these by probably May/June next year. Then move onto another project! Probably back to computers

I'll post the final product in due time
Avenir

[bumblebee]

Might want to check the torque solutions short shifter is for an right hand drive and not a left hand drive USA model

The TB will always be dirty unless you remove the EGR
It will always gum up and cause erratic idle

B Blox hear knob is magic , weight is about 500 gram , OEM is about 300

So some investigating on
Cross
Sectional
Area

Be very careful with hot wire MAF sensor
Damage that and your in a world of trouble

[Avenir]

I brought it from Prospeed in Australia so I should be good, they had others there that clearly said USA too

Fair enough, Is EGR delete worth it? What exactly will it benefit?? Cleaning both the MAF and TB will become just some extra servicing so should be clean most times!!

Yeah man I'm keen, thanks for the heads up on B blox. I usually like to go OEM but they looked quite good.

Yeah you can get a TB thats 3mm larger in diameter off RPW but ill leave it for now I think. Really gotta get that exhaust! Car is too quiet atm lol

MAF is pretty much a baby ill look after it. Usually overcautious with electronics, as I work in I.T anyhow!

[bumblebee]

When cleaning the TB
Do not ever under any circumstances press on the butterfly with your fingers, anyone else fingers or anything else while the butterfly is under spring tension
It's pretty easy to bend it

When reinstall the MAF
Absolutely make sure you don't damage the O ring
I went to the extreme of putting a small bead of silicon around where the MAF and the tube join on the air box so it won't suck air down past the MAF and run lean

The problem with USA shifter is they are bent at the correct angle for left hand drive and the incorrect angle for a right hand drive
So be prepared to send it back for a refund

[lancerdarryl]

Be wary of using a short shifter they are hard on the synchros

[Avenir]

Finished up all the parts today! Car is looking and running better than ever. Had a few miss-haps though....

Fresh new oil, oil filter, coolant and fuel was put in over a couple days ago. Decided to run some 98 into the lancer to help clean the engine out instead of injector cleaner, on my long drive home from a small holiday. Chucked the weather shields, scuff plates, new badge and carbon fibre print door handles on just 2 days ago, and today finished cleaning the MAF and Throttle body and finished it off adding in the short shifter...

What a ride.. some of this stuff was so easy (majority everything BUT today's work..) All the stick ons were simple, and the servicing a piece of cake. Cleaning the MAF was very easy, especially as my MAF is centrally located right at the front of the SRI, gave it a few squirts and left it to dry for 25 before putting it back in. Then the throttle body was a pain, as taking out the SRI is dicky. But nonetheless cleaned it dry, and apologies bumblebee but the father and I opened up the butterfly valve and cleaned around that too. The can said so, but I was still pretty weary about it lol.

Plugging it all back in seemed like it was all okay until I realised I never plugged the MAF back in and ran the car for a drive down the street without any MAF connected. Installed, but not connected..... just a FYI it works, but idles on 2500rpm and doesn't go above 4000k ahaha Biggest mistake of my life, just didn't want to short it out when plugging it back in with MAF cleaner on it. After plugging it back in the car ran fine. Just with a CEL light which eventually went away after the engine cooled down. REALLY funny thing was when I had the MAF not connected, the car reported a service notice that wasn't clearable, but the ASC was gone! Couldn't turn it on (Even though it is always suppose to be on.) How the hell the ASC is connected to the MAF in anyway I have no idea.

We thought we would have issues with the short shifter, but funnily enough no. It installed fine and changes smooth as butter. Just a smaller but more direct lancer shifter. Nothing crazy but its nice to drive with for sure. Darryl I have heard on and off about this, as long as I am shifting as I regularly would it shouldn't be much different only when fast shifting, is what I have been told. We will see how long it lasts... LAST thing to install for this little stint is the new B Blox shift knob that I have waiting at my house. Oh I might have forgotten to mention the entire front end was fixed and paint touched up all over the car, that was a nice touch I was luckily to steal couldn't be happier. Pics tomorrow

NEXT UPGRADES:

NEW EXHAUST, with the induction sound and the car looking good, driving exceptional, it's gotta sound exceptional too.

HEADERS, most likely 4-1 headers as that's all RPW have in stock/backorder and SUPERCIRCUIT never got back to me on their 4-2-1.

PAINT RIMS, rims look good, but the silver is just eye gouging for a dark car like mine.

COILOVERS, Yeah when your own dad says that the lancer struts/shockers drive as well as his 1971 VG Valiant you know they are a bit fucked. Definitely gotta get these changed soon.

ECU TUNE, One day get this, if there is anybody still doing them. Its probably been a long time since Merlin has. Does he need to do them in person?...

Couple more smaller things I'll add over time. But these are the major parts I am working towards.

Long live the lancer.
Avenir.

[bumblebee]

Running the car without the MAF plugged in is not a good idea
Runs horribly lean
Opening the butterfly with the spring tension on it is far from a good idea also , the butterfly plate is not as strong as you think
Just cos the can said to do it and you can do it , doesn't make it a jolly good idea to do so.
Have a read thru the NA section about tuning remote , it can be done , you will need a tactrix open port, get a genuine one , there is links for that also in the NA section of this forum.
By the sounds of it you don't have a decent tool to read the ECU codes , this should be part of your tool kit.
https://www.obdlink.com/products/obdlink-lx/
I have one of these , and use it with my android phone and works a treat

[Avenir]

No clearly not it runs horribly horrible... It would have just been guessing all of the intake and matching it with previous driving patterns and probably the exhaust gases at the cat. But its fine now..

Yeah probably not but I most likely won't clean the TB again. Just not worth the heartache of ripping everything out. I'll have to see if I can get a tactrix down the line when she's all finished. I had a look at that, the OBD tool looks kinda handy, but will have to be down the line as well hahah, slightly expensive car is now becoming expensive.... or I just need to be more patient. I have an android phone too so should work well.

Have you gotten yours tuned? When was it tuned? How long did it take?

[bumblebee]

Started tuning my car about 4 or 5 years ago , and it's on an going perpetual event as I keep finding out new thing and trying it out and gradually improving it over time.
Having said that , you can get an ECU tune done remotely say with merlin.tuning@gmail.com and have it done via email and sorted out in a matter of days

[awood]

Nice work Avenir , well done.
Good learning experiences.

[Avenir]

I might still try merlin when the lancer is all ready to go. Should be sooner then I thought I reckon (more on that later).
Cheers awood! Hopefully it'll all be something special when its finally finished

So a few things...
Heres the final product of last weeks stint, and now onto bigger and better things hopefully! Before she was only half a car but definitely feels more like a complete package now, and you guys never saw the damage It had and I drove around with for months ahaha...









Next... I was pretty adamant on getting an exhaust in about 2 weeks on my birthday, it lines up well when I go home too. But I ran into some roadblocks. RPW have a cat back that I was willing to get which was made by XForce and to my knowledge they don't sell their single exit cat back anymore, so RPW have the last I thought, but after attempting to purchase one they said they don't ship Xforce parts interstate, with the advent of covid its pretty much impossible to get this exhaust system. So thats scrapped. The only other ones I have found for a reasonable price are a proper Magnaflow catback for 2.4l lancers or another Xforce but is only compatible with 2012-2015 lancers.. DOES ANYBODY KNOW IF AN EXHAUST FOR 2012-2015 LANCER FIT A 2008 2.4l VRX? I cant find any answers for this also. Sort of unsure where to lead with it. I know I want a catback because its fairly easy without going full custom.

Lastly, With the idea of upgrading again in 2 weeks gone, I think I have made the decision to upgrade again at christmas instead.... I can save for many more parts in this 6 week timeframe and have a lot more to do after all of it. Like how I have done last week.. I am thinking:
4-1 Extractors, Catback Exhaust, and a few bodykit changes (side skirt extensions + rear diffuser. Also yes I know its starting to become a ricer, but I am far from one lol). Once these last performance changes are done, I might think about a tune after that and give merlin a message.

Got a few nice drives of my mum's BMW Z4 3.0l I6 roadster with about square on 200kw spec with a lighter chassis then the lancer. I probably wouldnt have a license if I owned it lol... German engineering at its finest.

Avenir.

[bumblebee]

Please read the NA performance section of this forum it will answer the questions you have asked about exhaust , well, mostly.
As for the 4b12 / 4b11 interchangeably , that depends how the muffler is situated, some have the muffler run inline with the driver , others the muffler runs parallel to the bumper across the rear.
It might pay you to read up about exhaust from a text book as well , the books are listed in the NA performance section of this forum

[Avenir]

So quick update:

- I have some VLAND smoked out Black Tailights coming in the mail any day now.. got them on sale.

- I may have scored a lancer oem alloy fuel door for 50$.... someone must have been listening because it came out of no where the day I randomly checked ebay. So excited for that one. Especially since they are like 250$ from America.

- Trying to save for an exhaust at the moment, they are all so bloody expensive, (if you want a proper cat back) and really bloody hard to find in stock. Hopefully before Christmas I can get it done.

Also contemplating the idea of taking my 6 stack cd head unit out, and getting an OEM touch screen gps head unit from Mitsubishi. I have found a guy who sells them 200$. Are they a direct replacement? Wiring etc? My car is just a bit before that time of lancers with the infotainment systems.

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