Donor car suggestions.

[Lsguy]

HP vs $$ is V8 swap. 302 is the way to go. sounds like you have already started understanding how very in depth this is getting keeping a jap turbo setup. To the point, you cant beat the cost, reliability, power and pure enjoyment of a good old fashion v8 swap.

10 years ago I would've agreed with you, but I'm tired of doing V8 swaps and am looking for something different. Turbo manifold to fit my stock 2.4 8V head is on its way from Australia. Let's see what we can make happen with this setup.

I am open to suggestions on what turbo to use with this manifold.

[dash]

and won't beat the extra weight either.
Replace an aluminium headed four, with an all iron 8 ? No thank you. 1UZ, different story
What happens to the ride and handling ? Who makes V8-MMax lowering springs ? etc...
A v8 is a hard sell to a turbo-head
Doesn't take a whole lot for a mitsu turbo 4 to go monster, especially the DSM 2.0
Sits in these trucks like a natural.... and parts compatability makes it hard to resist the all-mitsu union
My last donor DSM (a turbo plymouth Laser with bad turbo) cost a whopping $500
Not as simple as boosting the 2.4sohc, but by no means is the DSM swap 'very in depth', imo.

[Lsguy]

and won't beat the extra weight either.
Replace an aluminium headed four, with an all iron 8 ? No thank you. 1UZ, different story
What happens to the ride and handling ? Who makes V8-MMax lowering springs ? etc...
A v8 is a hard sell to a turbo-head
Doesn't take a whole lot for a mitsu turbo 4 to go monster, especially the DSM 2.0
Sits in these trucks like a natural.... and parts compatability makes it hard to resist the all-mitsu union
My last donor DSM (a turbo plymouth Laser with bad turbo) cost a whopping $500
Not as simple as boosting the 2.4sohc, but by no means is the DSM swap 'very in depth', imo.

Right, well I was having one hell of a time deciding how I wanted to go about this project. But now the turbo manifold for the 8V is already on its way, so no turning back. Good or bad I am committed to this route now, so it's time to figure out how to piece this thing together.

Manifold is on the way
Looks like I need some 450 injectors, possibly an upgraded throttle body, new intake? Not sure
Still figuring out how I want to go about putting an ECM in this, not sure which one would work best with the least modification
Down pipe is easy, I'll just pick up a universal kit, piece it together, cut and weld.
Intercooler seems easy to mount and run lines
From what I see everybody likes running the Big 16G on these, not sure if it will require modding to the exhaust manifold or not
Possible coil pack upgrade, I've seen mention of it, haven't researched this in depth yet
Will probably have to pick up an o2 housing for a turbo setup. Not sure about this, but it seems fairly simple
How to go about running the oil lines is a concern to me, not sure what would be the easiest way to do this yet
Upgraded fuel pump with a new regulator
Boost guage

This are most of my concerns right now for doing this swap. If I am missing anything, please let me know so I can add it and research.

I am hoping to boost 9-10 lbs without doing internal engine work, should be fun. After the swap is finished I will be sourcing another 2.4L from a mighty max to build up on my engine stand. Once the kinks of the swap are ironed out and I am comfortable with the setup, I'll throw in the forged engine with the bigger valves etc and see if we can't reliably bring that boost up a bit.

One step at a time.