Delica Canada | Mitsubishi Van Club

Here's an update on where I'm at:

Compression was very low (around 40) on one of the cylinders. I asked my mechanic to look into it and what he found was that cylinders 2 & 3 are heavily scored and he is suggesting a replacement engine will be cheaper than trying to repair it.

Unfortuately I only was able to speak to him briefly so I didn't have time to ask him what he thinks happenned (i.e. did something cause it to overheat and cause the damage, or was there something wrong with the engine that caused the overheating).

Sigh.

As to a replacement engine, I am considering one of the new Hyundai 4D56-T if the price isn't too much higher than a rebuilt one. However I remember reading a thread from about a year ago where Mardy was suggesting replacing with a 2008-2010 Mitsubishi Pajero & Mitsubishi Strada engine. The good: newer, 130HP instead of 92HP. The bad: no veg and some wiring ECU changes. I will consider that as well, but does anyone know anyone who's tried it? In theory it might be a good fit for me, but I would really like to hear from someone with some practical experience with the switch.

Not the way I wanted to start my ownership of a Delica, but the rest of the Delica looks good so it seems to be worth the investment.

Thanks,

Andrew

Sorry to hear that news...

I would still like to know what happened....especially to make sure external problem that may have caused the failure to be identified...such as a bad cooling system, turbo failure, injection problem, or ??? So you do not blow a new motor.

1. Used engines for me are over priced without any warranty it will blow up as well.

2. New motor good option as long as COOLING SYSTEM, OIL COOLER problems dealt with. Also you will have trouble finding a home for the intercooler if that is giving the HP numbers. Also not DIY ecu wiring could get expensive (I do all my own work so not sure about cost of major refix).

3. Rebuild of the current motor? Basic 4 cylinder rebuild should not be that much? Downside is injector pump, turbo, injectors may also need rebuild to compete. Still need to address cooling, oil cooling issues.

4. 4th option is a swap to 4G series gas motor. Bolt up to the existing motor mounts bell housing and good HP versions available (turbo versions too) at wrecking yards around your neighbourhood. Down fall is no longer diesel motor and ECU wiring. Cooling system still needs inspected. Advantage you can go fast fast fast....

Was this a private sale, dealer sale, or private import.

I would do my Ontario Inspection prior to starting any work, even if you need to re-inspect after the motor is replace/rebuilt...

Option 1: My advice would be to contact Sabir at Maximum Overdrive and have a turnkey engine crate shipped to you. The brand new engines he has are being used in L300's for the past year with no issues and good compression. Drop it in, set and drive away.

Patty's rig with one of Sabir's drop in new 4D56T's is happy running on the sunshine coast in and around mountains.

http://www.delica.ca/forum/1991-mitsubi ... -9398.html

Take the old one and part it out. IP, turbo, alternator, etc... or keep as spare parts down the road.

This will be your least expensive option in the long run and the best for longevity.

Option 2: You're next option is to get a bare engine crate shipped to you and you bolt on your accessories (IP/Turbo,etc...) this will be cheaper initially than a turn key engine but you run the risk of the added cost of an injection pump rebuild/turbo rebuild down the road which would put your cost above the 1st option.

Option 3: Have your current engine rebuilt. This may or may not cost more than the first two options.

Option 4: Drop in a different engine.

If this were my L300 and I was keeping it for life, I would inquire into a CRD 4D46T from Japan but then you're looking at a very rough estimate of two to three times the cost of Option 1.

Cheers

thedjjack wrote:Sorry to hear that news...
I would still like to know what happened....especially to make sure external problem that may have caused the failure to be identified...such as a bad cooling system, turbo failure, injection problem, or ??? So you do not blow a new motor.

Good point. I was planning on finding out in any case, but I definitely only want to go through this once. No repeat performances allowed!

thedjjack wrote:2. New motor good option as long as COOLING SYSTEM, OIL COOLER problems dealt with. Also you will have trouble finding a home for the intercooler if that is giving the HP numbers. Also not DIY ecu wiring could get expensive (I do all my own work so not sure about cost of major refix).

Not too worried about the wiring. I put a whole new wiring harness in my '79 LandCruiser. A lot of work, but easy enough for me if I've got sufficient documentation.

thedjjack wrote:3. Rebuild of the current motor? Basic 4 cylinder rebuild should not be that much? Downside is injector pump, turbo, injectors may also need rebuild to compete. Still need to address cooling, oil cooling issues.

That's what I thought. I figured a rebuild would potentially be cheaper (not just purchase price, but no need to pay to ship an engine). But that being said, I'm pretty sure the turbo needs work as well ...

thedjjack wrote:4. 4th option is a swap to 4G series gas motor. Bolt up to the existing motor mounts bell housing and good HP versions available (turbo versions too) at wrecking yards around your neighbourhood. Down fall is no longer diesel motor and ECU wiring. Cooling system still needs inspected. Advantage you can go fast fast fast....

Thought about that, but not my first choice. For me fuel economy trumps speed. Though a vehicle that warms up faster is a bonus in winter ...

thedjjack wrote:Was this a private sale, dealer sale, or private import.
I would do my Ontario Inspection prior to starting any work, even if you need to re-inspect after the motor is replace/rebuilt...

Private sale. And I will definitely be checking it out fully before I invest more.

Thanks for the thoughts.

jfarsang wrote:Option 1: My advice would be to contact Sabir at Maximum Overdrive and have a turnkey engine crate shipped to you. The brand new engines he has are being used in L300's for the past year with no issues and good compression. Drop it in, set and drive away.

Is it truly "drop in"? No changes required?

jfarsang wrote:Option 2: You're next option is to get a bare engine crate shipped to you and you bolt on your accessories (IP/Turbo,etc...) this will be cheaper initially than a turn key engine but you run the risk of the added cost of an injection pump rebuild/turbo rebuild down the road which would put your cost above the 1st option.

I had thought of this, but I will pass on this option. If I'm going for a new engine, I'll replace the whole thing. I prefer to "do it once; do it right". It doesn't always work out that way, but certainly what I strive for.

jfarsang wrote:If this were my L300 and I was keeping it for life, I would inquire into a CRD 4D46T from Japan but then you're looking at a very rough estimate of two to three times the cost of Option 1.

Are you sure on that? The reason I ask is that the quick search I did showed the price (without shipping) to be about the same. Now of course I'd be shipping from further, but it shouldn't be twice the cost of the engine ... should it? Or are you saying 2-3 times the cost for the other pieces/changes?

BTW, I'm assuming the 4D46T is the 130HP engine I referred to above. Please correct me if I've missed the mark.

The main questions I will need to answer before going that route are:
1) Cost/Shipping
2) How much additional work (wiring/ECU, etc.) needs to be done
3) Will this cause any problems for my automatic transmission (wouldn't want to put in a stronger engine only to blow the tranny)
4) How hard will it be to get parts to do ongoing servicing. There seems to be a lot of support in Canada for the 4D56T, but I'm guessing parts for the CRD 4D46T will be harder to come by.

This is why I would love to find someone who's done it before.

Thanks again to everyone who has responded. It is really appreciated.

Andrew

abeere wrote:1) Cost/Shipping
That's the added expense
2) How much additional work (wiring/ECU, etc.) needs to be done
unknown. definition = project. Paying someone to do a project $$$. DIY = time.
3) Will this cause any problems for my automatic transmission (wouldn't want to put in a stronger engine only to blow the tranny)
No. The trans is overkill for a 4cyl. Montero guys in the states have it mated to V6-V8's.
4) How hard will it be to get parts to do ongoing servicing. There seems to be a lot of support in Canada for the 4D56T, but I'm guessing parts for the CRD 4D46T will be harder to come by.
You'll need to import parts but I would rather have that engine in there.

If you are doing the engine swap and wiring yourself, you will save a few thousand.

If can DIY, then I wouldn't hesitate to drop in the CRD unless you want to run wvo. Then keeping the IDI 4D56T is the way to go and just tweak it a little.

Yes, the crated engine from Maximum Overdrive is a simply drop in replacement plug and play so to speak.

You would still need to set the timing and break in the new engine before driving it 'normally'.