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First car, Engine swap

Nbgorman

Nbgorman

Member
Hello, I am the lucky 15 year old owner of my mothers 1996 Dodge Avenger, it currently is running the stock, 420a 2.0 L engine and 5 speed manual transmission. I am wondering, would it be possible to swap the current (seized) engine which has 147,000 miles on it, with a Honda k20a 2.0 L engine while still being able to keep the transmission and alike stock, seeing as it has 40 more hp strait off the line, VTEC, more torque, and well it being a honda engine. Sooo I am wondering with a budget of a tad bit over a grand ($1023) what should I do. Should I pull the stock 420A, fix it, then modify it, OR could I get a nice used k20A for under $1000? I am interested to hear your feedback, thank you.
 
The answer is yes, anything is possible if you have enough money.

Personally I wouldn't waste the time and money. The Honda brand does have a cult following, but that in and of itself isn't enough to pour tons of time, money and effort into all of the custom fabrication work that would be necessary to make it all work. And an age where a car's Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) is inside the engine's control computer, the legal obstacles to making the grafted-on Honda motor in a Chrysler car street legal and insurable might be insurmountable.

Since you're 15 I'm guessing that this will be the first of many cars that you'll own and drive. Or maybe not in this case. With a budget of only $1000 you may have a hard time repairing or replacing the existing motor. You may be better off just taking the car to auction, getting what you can for it as a parts car and using the proceeds to buy another car. A car that's in working condition. Don't fall into the trap of "it's mine, so I gotta keep it"!

How about getting some advice from a local mechanic who can check the car out and give you an estimate of what it would cost to keep it?
 
Speed Daemon said:
The answer is yes, anything is possible if you have enough money.

Personally I wouldn't waste the time and money. The Honda brand does have a cult following, but that in and of itself isn't enough to pour tons of time, money and effort into all of the custom fabrication work that would be necessary to make it all work. And an age where a car's Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) is inside the engine's control computer, the legal obstacles to making the grafted-on Honda motor in a Chrysler car street legal and insurable might be insurmountable.

Since you're 15 I'm guessing that this will be the first of many cars that you'll own and drive. Or maybe not in this case. With a budget of only $1000 you may have a hard time repairing or replacing the existing motor. You may be better off just taking the car to auction, getting what you can for it as a parts car and using the proceeds to buy another car. A car that's in working condition. Don't fall into the trap of "it's mine, so I gotta keep it"!

How about getting some advice from a local mechanic who can check the car out and give you an estimate of what it would cost to keep it?
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Well based on how the engine died, it seems like blown crank bearings, I wont know until I wrench the motor out BUT if it is the crank bearing then it should be a cheap fix, a couple hundred dollars, and I didnt think that I would be able to replace the motor for less than a grand. just thought I would ask.
 
Don't those cars have Mitsubishi engines? I don't think you'd have much luck getting a Honda engine to mate up with your transmission, but it would probably be possible to find a running salvage yard engine for less than a grand, especially if you are doing the labor yourself. Unless you just want the experience of tearing it down and rebuilding it yourself.
 
Get online and go to car-part.com find a local salvage yard that has the engine find out how much for a working used engine. Once you have the price you can see what kind of budget you have to work with to get it installed. See if you realistically have enough. If not find out how much you can sell the salvage for and add it to your budget to buy a used car.
 
Did a quick check for your engine since I don't know where you are I checked in Virginia and the avg price of $750 for a working "a" grade Engine you still need to install it.
 
Nbgorman said:
Well based on how the engine died, it seems like blown crank bearings, I wont know until I wrench the motor out BUT if it is the crank bearing then it should be a cheap fix, a couple hundred dollars, and I didnt think that I would be able to replace the motor for less than a grand. just thought I would ask.
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It could be a spun bearing, or it could be hydrolocked and beyond repair. You won't know until you get it out and open it up.

If you have the facilities and know-how to do the work yourself, then you can save yourself the expense of much of the labor, if you stick to the original engine and transmission. Don't forget that your time and effort is worth something! Now if it's an easy fix, you have a good car and a fresh motor that's based on a seasoned block. That's inexpensive, long-lasting and gives you more choices.

I get the feeling that you want something more performance-oriented. While it's not impossible to turn a basic economy car into a performance car, it's not very cost effective. So if you get the car into a condition where you can sell or trade it, you can then find yourself a more suitable performance platform to start with.

No doubt you've seen cases of cars that started out as $2000 beaters, and after tens of thousands of dollars of parts and countless hours of blood, sweat, toil and tears have been transformed into one-of-a-kind custom rides. That's nice, but just don't expect to sell a car like that for anything close to what you put into it!

My advice to you is to let others make the rookie mistakes, and be wise with your resources. Remember that while it's technically possible to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear, it's not the smartest way to achieve a goal. Choose the smarter way. :)
 
Speed Daemon said:
It could be a spun bearing, or it could be hydrolocked and beyond repair. You won't know until you get it out and open it up.

If you have the facilities and know-how to do the work yourself, then you can save yourself the expense of much of the labor, if you stick to the original engine and transmission. Don't forget that your time and effort is worth something! Now if it's an easy fix, you have a good car and a fresh motor that's based on a seasoned block. That's inexpensive, long-lasting and gives you more choices.

I get the feeling that you want something more performance-oriented. While it's not impossible to turn a basic economy car into a performance car, it's not very cost effective. So if you get the car into a condition where you can sell or trade it, you can then find yourself a more suitable performance platform to start with.

No doubt you've seen cases of cars that started out as $2000 beaters, and after tens of thousands of dollars of parts and countless hours of blood, sweat, toil and tears have been transformed into one-of-a-kind custom rides. That's nice, but just don't expect to sell a car like that for anything close to what you put into it!

My advice to you is to let others make the rookie mistakes, and be wise with your resources. Remember that while it's technically possible to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear, it's not the smartest way to achieve a goal. Choose the smarter way. :)
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Thank you, I always say, "What ever money you put into a car, expect to get less than half of it back" and thats the way it works, all I want to do is squeeze a few more ponies out of the old girl, I will take that into consideration, thank you :)
 
Don't get me wrong, I am all for throwing giant wads of cash into a black hole, in the interest of building a fire-breathing monster that, face it will only be out of your life when you wrap it around a tree. :D I think that red-blooded American male should endeavor to take such a vision quest, so they may be well-rounded citizens in their old age...or whatever excuse works. ;)

It's my mission in life to see that it's done on a rear wheel drive platform, as God intended. Using the emergency brake to make a car spin does not impress girls. OTOH lighting up your back tires going around a corner, that impresses everyone who still has their body and soul still connected. :burnout:
 
Why you are looking to swap your Dodge engine with Honda, it is not compatible with this engine for your car design. You should check some Dodge engine to swap your current one.

You can check hiperformer.com/engines/dodge-avenger-used_engines-x_2127.html online car dealer inventory to find cheaper used engine for your Dodge vehicle within 1500 $.
It real worth this engine with high performance output.
 
If your car has the two litre Mitsubishi engine, the 2.6 litre Mitsubishi engine should be a much easier swap, if there's enough room in the engine bay.
 
As an owner of the same Daimler Chrysler 420A in the Chrysler Eagle Talon body, I say do not do it. It'll end up costing you twice what you have now with modifying the engine mounts, electronics, certain mechanical parts such as drive axles and/or wheel hubs. Its not worth it. Your best bet, if you already have the tools for it would be to open it up so that you know for sure what is wrong (at minimal expense by doing it yourself), and fixing it with possible budgetable upgrades, or pulling the engine and getting another one as a drop in replacement.
 
Do yourself a favor. Go to a junkyard and get a used motor. Junkyards are usually well stocked with Chrysler crap. $1000 will get you a running motor and you will have some change left for misc parts you will need when changing engines, like gaskets, hoses etc.

Speed is correct about engine swapping. You can do most anything with money except buying off an inspection station. Most states test emissions, and most of them use your car's computer for emission equipment status. So as long as you have a car made after 1996, you can bet on an emission/OBDII test and no way to cheat it. As for using a Honda engine, good luck. You need a complete Honda engine and transmission (can't use Honda engine on a Chrysler transaxle, good luck retrofitting that one LOL) but I wouldn't waste a VTEC on an Avenger ;)
 
general eclect said:
If your car has the two litre Mitsubishi engine, the 2.6 litre Mitsubishi engine should be a much easier swap, if there's enough room in the engine bay.
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:rofl: you don't want this engine, esp from an American car. I've never seen such a poorly designed engine paired with an even more poorly engineered Mikuni carburetor. I don't know how Chrysler got away with using them for 6 years... Have you ever worked on one of these? :rolleyes:
 
Spec2nirvash said:
Do yourself a favor. Go to a junkyard and get a used motor. Junkyards are usually well stocked with Chrysler crap. $1000 will get you a running motor and you will have some change left for misc parts you will need when changing engines, like gaskets, hoses etc.

Speed is correct about engine swapping. You can do most anything with money except buying off an inspection station. Most states test emissions, and most of them use your car's computer for emission equipment status. So as long as you have a car made after 1996, you can bet on an emission/OBDII test and no way to cheat it. As for using a Honda engine, good luck. You need a complete Honda engine and transmission (can't use Honda engine on a Chrysler transaxle, good luck retrofitting that one LOL) but I wouldn't waste a VTEC on an Avenger ;)
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Firstly, you cant reuse gaskets, they are single use only, Second Ohio is not an emissions state, I can do pretty much whatever with my car as long as it is safe and legal. Third, as I have gotten down to the block of the 420A I wouldnt want another engine, the 420A is squeezing a shit ton of its available power out of it, light weight cam gears, clean and VERY good stock port matching. I wouldnt want another engine, with as well as this is made.
 
1989 - 1993 Nissan 240sx with an sr20det swap is a $3000 13 second missle. The k20 and the h22 are the only Honda engines I personally would build, but not after I built my first SR lol.
 
I'm sure it wouldn't be too much of an issue for OP, but swapping out a 420A for a 4G63 isn't a simple drop-and-swap. The two engines have different mounting points just to start so swapping is quite a considerable process. Biggest difference us that they are mounted on opposite sides of the engine bay so that leaves quite a bit to be modified.
 
Good old DSM and the 4g63's. Thats an old topic I miss talking about...indeed it would be some heavy fabrication for the OP to drop one of those classics in his car. However I think it would be pretty sweet to see something like that, especially if he went all out with say a gsx model and made it truly AWD. If he decides to do so just make sure you get a 1st gen 4g63 with the 4 bolt main so the crank bearings don't walk on you. Some of the quickest cars around here in central fla are well tuned 4g63's. A guy not to far away has an old starion I see every now and again, makes me feel all tingly inside hearing his BOV lol
 
ZeroGeined said:
I'm sure it wouldn't be too much of an issue for OP, but swapping out a 420A for a 4G63 isn't a simple drop-and-swap. The two engines have different mounting points just to start so swapping is quite a considerable process. Biggest difference us that they are mounted on opposite sides of the engine bay so that leaves quite a bit to be modified.
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Thank you for that great lesson on location of engines. As a guy who has no idea where engines are located it is greatly appreciated. I really have no idea what I speak of, clearly, since I mention DSM era and 4g63T Or maybe he should just go for the 6g72 but then you just may find fault with that to.

I'm sure you would also say taking a 1966 Ford Mustang Fastback giving it independent rear suspension and putting a 5.0L in it would be too much work too. But it's been done by an idiot kid in the 1990s and I was very happy with my work.
 
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