4g61t.org

So long story short I haven't been able to sell my SRT-4 drivetrain. People keep backing out..

I have the whole car still available so I'm just crunching some thoughts to use what I have instead of selling it and getting (actually piecing together as much as possible from parts bins if I can't find a donor car or drop $ that I shouldn't be spending on a fresh longblock) to do a 4g63 swap in my Colt. The engine/tranny is on the wrong side, mounts will need to be fabbed which seems like it isn't a huge problem since the SRT-4's bolt up to the chassis anyway I can actually unbolt them and adapt them over to the Colt. If the front track is too wide for the car, a typical neon tranny can fit making the front track narrower. It would seem ten times easier installing the engine the other way and adapting a Mitsubishi transmission but the engines I think spin the opposite directions anyway

I need to think of all the cons to doing this. Yes I need to do some measurements and cross measurements. But here are the engine bays I'm dealing with:



into this:



Seems roomy enough? I wouldn't even need to use the Neon's crossmember because the Colt's suspension/steering rack/knuckles are out of the way and not mounted to a crossmember at all. The Colt has manual steering (power steering pump delete!). I'm wondering if the extra weight will make it hard to turn the car.

Only thing I'm thinking is a custom oil pan and Colt crossmember running from back to front of the bay or just to use the channel for the hot side intercooler pipe on the SRT motor for a custom tube crossmember. Then relocate the intercooler piping.. Or to think even easier than that and tie the transmission bobble/dogbone to the crossmember mount on the rear of the Colt and mount the front motor mount to the rad support on the Colt -of course with all the proper bracing/tubing/reinforcement. As far as halfshafts and hubs I think that would be the hardest part. Mostly because I haven't thought into it yet. Maybe the lengths won't be far off? Ordering custom halfshafts maybe or finding ones that will fit.

I've seen it swapped into a civic where the engine is on the other side originally as well so I figured it would be more fitting anyway to put it in a Colt. The Neon's engine bay is actually more cramped and smaller in my opinion so it would leave some wide open space in the Colt.

As far as anyone is getting to about power, the engine is not in stock form and is about 300 horsepower with the E1 turbo setup and flash as it sits, probably more in torque. I'm only giving modest numbers since its most likely more than that. The other pro to it is I will have LSD as well being it is an 05 and nothing is going to break like a typical DSM does. There's a ton of aftermarket support as well so its not a bad decision for an alternative engine swap. The Colt is also lighter than any Neon, even 1st gen so it could be very interesting.

It all well could be just me rambling late night and blasphemy talking out my rear end, but isn't it a "Dodge" anyway?

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-1988 Dodge Colt Hatchback - G15b w/ KM200
-1998 Neon R/T Coupe Hahn Stage II
-2014 Subaru BRZ Limited

Blasphemy is stupid. I think it would be a pretty interesting swap, I say go for it if you think you can pull it off.

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91 GSX - 511fwhp and 352 lb/ft 25psi 110 octane, 7.68 @ 95.9mph 1/8th 21psi 91 octane, 11.93 @ 112.9mph, 117.7mph best trap speed, 20psi 91 octane
98 Volvo S70 T5 - DD

http://www.facebook.com/captaintonus

get a earlier colt/mirage (early/mid 80s). or a geo metro..they have the engine on the pass side also just like the srt.. that would be a nice swap.

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Steve 89 colt 2.3 stroker stock top end. evo3@20 psi 13.489@99.30mph 3/10 2012
On drag radials.auto trans.launching @ 5 psi and no traction thru 2nd.

Go for it if you have the time/money/energy. It's a pita to do the regular swap, it'll take a lot to do this one. Might need to have custom axles made too.

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Had a:
1991 Eagle Summit ES Hatchback - 4g15 12v 5spd
1991 Dodge Colt -4g15 12v 4spd
Have a:
1978 Oldsmobile Cutlass - 468BBO TH350
Round 3:
1990 Dodge Colt-4G63T 5spd

Well the early 80's Colt is the same body as mine. Mine is just a refresh. If someone can drop it in a civic then it would be much easier dropping into a Colt. The wiring work would be like swapping a 4g63 over anyway. All it is is fitment I think and the axles.

EDIT: Just looked up halfshaft length info and the Colt turbo and SRT-4's are pretty much the same length, both halfs total for each car roughly add up to 44 inches with the SRT-4's actually coming in shorter. Now the size of the differential housing is another story but same lengths can be good news!

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-1988 Dodge Colt Hatchback - G15b w/ KM200
-1998 Neon R/T Coupe Hahn Stage II
-2014 Subaru BRZ Limited

its been a few years, but i put one to test fit in a 3rd gen and it wasnt going to work

Save yourself the headache and just put a 4g63 in it. The srt4 motor is much more like the 420a in 2g's and the amount of fab work to put the srt4 motor in a nt 2g is a lot! After all the work, you'd still have FW-fail and wouldn't be able to go awd if you ever wanted to.

Swap it in a older 90s neon

Quite honesty I don't think a few of you are understanding where I'm coming from. I've had SRT-4 swapped 1st gen neons and its like having two SRT-4's when I already have the real thing sitting in my garage to begin with. It messes up the handling dynamics of the car because of all the extra weight, also it likes to tear up the rad support and strut towers in those cars. That's why I just have a turbo 2.0 in my neon. Its still a blast to drive around corners.

If I were to try and shoehorn the engine into a Colt, well our cars aren't the best in handling either (most likely due to the lack of parts dissipating over the past 20+ years) and are just meant to be pocket rockets from the get go. I'm just trying to make due with the engine I have on tap. Not buy another vehicle to put it in. The best I can do is bite the bullet eventually when I get the $ and sell it or try and trade it (fat chance) for a 4g63 that isn't neglected to death. Then I will be like every other person around with a 4g63 Colt. I'm only posting this to see what cons I haven't thought of yet, including from you guys, if I were to swap it.

Yeah I wouldn't be able to go AWD either. The 1st/2nd gen is different as far as rear suspension goes compared to the 3rd gen. For me to go AWD I would have to get the whole rear half off of a newer CSM, install it so that it lines up right/rides like a factory car with the struts and then hack it again for an AWD rear end. The only other possible thing that I was thinking is to use an old AWD wagon's (not a Vista's) rear end, which would seem like it would work because it has that same traling arm type separate shock/strut suspension that I do and houses a rear end.. I honestly think that is more work than trying to shoe in an SRT-4 engine/trans.

ANYWAY, Interestingly enough the Colt tire to tire is wider than an SRT-4. After doing a few eye'd up measurements with a tape measure to figure out some ground clearance the only thing roadblocking the swap is the transmission tunnel, if you want to even call it that.. The driver frame rail just needs to be cut below for the transmission to fit through, basically needs to be a mirror image of the opposite side. The transmission mount would also have to be shimmed up approximately two inches for it to have the same ground clearance as the G15b that's in there now. Another idea would to just be cutting the SRT-4's rail out and integrating the shape to that side without disturbing the strut tower and the rest of the rail to the front of the car. That's the only clearance issue I've found as far as it not fitting in the bay which doesn't seem like a big deal to me.

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-1988 Dodge Colt Hatchback - G15b w/ KM200
-1998 Neon R/T Coupe Hahn Stage II
-2014 Subaru BRZ Limited

Now I sound crazy, but if it won't fit for a FWD application, it might just fit RWD a bit easier. It bolts up to the Supra R154 transmission with a Jeep liberty bellhousing. The only thing that is in the way is the steering rack and getting a driveshaft.

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-1988 Dodge Colt Hatchback - G15b w/ KM200
-1998 Neon R/T Coupe Hahn Stage II
-2014 Subaru BRZ Limited

PUT IT IN A 1st Gen Neon! You can pick those up sometimes cheaper than CSM's. They look sexier too. Just uncloud the headlights! Seam weld the 1st gen and adapt the suspension for better handling.

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4g61t.org
4g61t.com

I already have a 1st gen neon but it's a 2.0 turbo and its faster than an SRT-4 as it sits now. I've had SRT swapped 1st gens too. I just wanted to try something different with what I have. I might as well try and sell the engine again though since I have 3 cars already, I don't need another and don't want to part with the Colt. I want to restore the Colt which doesn't take much, just a paint job.

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-1988 Dodge Colt Hatchback - G15b w/ KM200
-1998 Neon R/T Coupe Hahn Stage II
-2014 Subaru BRZ Limited

That's pretty interesting! What would you use for a rear-end though?

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91 GSX - 511fwhp and 352 lb/ft 25psi 110 octane, 7.68 @ 95.9mph 1/8th 21psi 91 octane, 11.93 @ 112.9mph, 117.7mph best trap speed, 20psi 91 octane
98 Volvo S70 T5 - DD

http://www.facebook.com/captaintonus

I was thinking about using the C10 4wd Colt wagon rear suspension since its the same separate shock/strut as mine (even if I were to go AWD I would try this) and using a DSM rear end with LSD and keeping the rear independant instead of using say a Supra's/Conquest's heavyyy solid axle. I would aslo think about making a better reinforcement and mustache bar for the rear end as well. Yeah the custom driveshaft comes into play, but its only lengths and splines that need to be matched up.. Its not really that hard to figure out, its getting the stuff to do it.

P.S. the R154 Supra trans was duplicated by GM and is now in the Chevy Colorado and Solstice/Sky turbos.

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-1988 Dodge Colt Hatchback - G15b w/ KM200
-1998 Neon R/T Coupe Hahn Stage II
-2014 Subaru BRZ Limited

Starions/Conquests are IRS, as far as I knew. I wouldn't want to trust a stock DSM rear-diff to handle 100% of the power going to it.
I know this. The AE5, or whatever. They're supposedly stronger, too.

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91 GSX - 511fwhp and 352 lb/ft 25psi 110 octane, 7.68 @ 95.9mph 1/8th 21psi 91 octane, 11.93 @ 112.9mph, 117.7mph best trap speed, 20psi 91 octane
98 Volvo S70 T5 - DD

http://www.facebook.com/captaintonus