4 Banger Performance??

[Lizey]

im sick and tired of driving my dead stock 2.5 4 cylinder Plymouth Acclaim! when i try to run it hard it sounds like a pissed-off weed whacker! what can i do to this thing for reasonably cheap that would get me a bit better performance and maybe even make it sound better?

[Silver R/T]

Believe me you don't want to throw more money at it, it's just a beater. Just change oil in it and other necessary maintenance and call it good.

[Sweet T]

Put a tow bar on it and hook it up to a Charger.

[Cooter]

Want more power? tired of drivin' an 'ol 4 Cyl.?

Save pennies and dimes while drivin' 'ol said pos, and buy bigger '66-'74 Charger with V8 engine....Problem solved...

[LeadfootBob]

It IS a pissed off weed wacker... Sling a turbo on it, hope it doesn't blow up and enjoy the smoky FWD-burnouts... Or do what Cooter says. Four bangers are usually called commuter cars in these circles. Cheap, boring but good on gas. The last part is the vital one.

[Charger RT]

so down on 4 cylinders here. I like my two 4 cylinders. 30 mpg and 15 psi. both are R/T's too.

turbo is the way to go. They still made them in 92 but harnesses and computers are harder to find then older turbo setups. Using older wiring set ups in 92 and up can be a bit of a challange with the body electronics used in 92 and up. But it can be done. There are a few TIII spirits in 92 computers and harnesses are hard to find not to mention a TIII head
Tim

[HITMAN 149]

Put a tow bar on it and hook it up to a Charger.

HAHAHAHAHA LMFAOOOOO
SORRRRRY I COULDN'T RESIST!!!

[TylerCharger69]

I used to have a 2.2 plymouth reliant K...(dont slap me....it was free)  It was nothing but a big POS disposable car and i wouldn't recommend spending any money on 2.2  or 2.5 engines...not even the daytona turbos....the camshaft bearings.....well...there are none.  The casting is all that is there, so if you have cam journal blow-by.....you are screwed.

[Charger RT]

I used to have a 2.2 plymouth reliant K...(dont slap me....it was free)  It was nothing but a big POS disposable car and i wouldn't recommend spending any money on 2.2  or 2.5 engines...not even the daytona turbos....the camshaft bearings.....well...there are none.  The casting is all that is there, so if you have cam journal blow-by.....you are screwed.

I had an 84 reliant by far not a POS. It was a great little car. I bought it with a 100k on it and my wife drove it every where. I gave it to a friend when my family grew and I bought a mopar mini van. We had it for 8 years.

If done right a 2.2 or 2.5 8 valve turbo can run real good. Unlike some foreign stuff a 2.2/2.5 make some good torque. And as HP goes up the torque goes right with it. People take them to 250 to 350 HP quite easy and the common block engines are quite strong. I have 2 of the rare 16 valve twin cam turbo 2.2. out of the factory they made 224HP and 217 torque. People take these very easily to 400 to 450 HP with a stock long block.

As far as no cam bearings yes you are right there are none. But unless something was done wrong to the engine it usually is not a problem. Too tight of a timing belt is bad for the journals and cam. There is a fix for scored journals line bore the head and there are inserts if you know where to look for them. But heads are plentiful and cheap. Now the 16 valve stuff I have are far from cheap when they show up.
Tim