dtownmikebrown Posted April 30, 2014 Report Share Posted April 30, 2014 Hi everyone. I've been posting around the forums for a little while now and I never made a proper Intro thread, so here it goes... I'm Mike. I'm an automobile/motorsports enthusiast from Lansing, MI. I've been doing autocross and HPDE events for a few years now, and I've been learning a lot about DIY vehicle maintenance and repair along the way. During the winter I had been looking for a unique car with some tuning potential that I could take to shows and racing events. I have a BMW E36 coupe that I love, but I've squeezed about as much performance potential out of it as I'm likely to get without going crazy with mods and ruining the daily drivability. Back in mid-March I made a post mentioning my interest in the Starion on a local racing club page. As it turned out, a fellow member had one sitting in his barn just a few miles from me that met all my requirements: Mitsubishi, wide-body turbo, 5-speed manual. On the downside, it wasn't running, the fuel tank/pump came separately, it had no rear calipers or brake fluid, and it had been sitting around like that since 2009. I knew it would take some work, but the price was right. A few weeks later it was in my garage. http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c331/dtownmikebrown/Starion/1617603_10203390393866015_903502166_o.jpg My initial goal was to get it running well enough to be reasonably sure I could make it across town and back for a spring car show set for 4/19. The car still wasn't (and isn't) running or looking like I want it to, but I still made it! It was the only Starquest out of 700+ entrants, and it definitely garnered some attention. That afternoon someone in a red Chrysler product showed up and made me do a double-take, but it was only a Daytona. http://scontent-a-ord.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/t1.0-9/p320x320/1017438_10201322513779765_3462145714037788679_n.jpg Right now my plan for it is to get it running as well as I can in stock configuration before I start thinking about mods or cosmetic work. Most recently I sent out the fuel injectors to be cleaned and flow tested and I'm waiting on the results. In the meantime I replaced the ignition coil after I saw how weak the spark was. I've already tested, fixed, and replaced a lot of other fuel delivery and ignition components. If the problem wasn't either the secondary injector or the ignition coil I'll be surprised. However, I just hooked up an LED to the diagnostic port in the glovebox and it's blinking at me 1x for O2 and 5x for TPS. The fun never stops. Anyway, the site has been a great resource so far and I'm looking forward to chatting with everyone and sharing more of my Starquest experiences in the coming months. Cheers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R-R-Quest Posted April 30, 2014 Report Share Posted April 30, 2014 Welcome, Mike. That is one big basement-garage setup you have. Enough room for an FC too! Must be nice. -Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtownmikebrown Posted April 30, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 30, 2014 Welcome, Mike. That is one big basement-garage setup you have. Enough room for an FC too! Must be nice. Thanks. The garage is actually a separate unit with a loft that I split with my roommate. The FC is his future 24 Hours of LeMons project. Here's what it looked like before it descended into 80's Japanese sports car madness. http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c331/dtownmikebrown/bfa83c82-9b97-4a8f-80b3-7c707830abc5.jpg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarlosFley Posted April 30, 2014 Report Share Posted April 30, 2014 Sweet. Welcome. Btw, where'd you send your injectors to, and if you don't mind, how much was it? I'd be Interested in doing that to mine as mine was sitting for 10 years lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NikoFab Posted April 30, 2014 Report Share Posted April 30, 2014 Welcome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freebird Posted April 30, 2014 Report Share Posted April 30, 2014 welcome aboard. My first was a starion also.They are getting harder to find then the conquest's.If you have questions or need something you can always PM me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtownmikebrown Posted May 1, 2014 Author Report Share Posted May 1, 2014 (edited) Sweet. Welcome. Btw, where'd you send your injectors to, and if you don't mind, how much was it? I'd be Interested in doing that to mine as mine was sitting for 10 years lol I am getting mine done through injector-rehab.com. You can take a look at their prices, but there are a few other mail-in places that offer similar service that you might also wanna look into. They came highly recommended from a friend who used them in the past. I was more interested in the flow rate and spray testing, but I figured it couldn't hurt to have them do their fancy ultrasonic cleaning routine since they were already being sent in. You can also do basic cleaning and testing yourself for a few bucks if you've got access to a compressor. It's not the most safe or sophisticated, but can still give you an idea for whether or not the injector is really leaky or clogged. Just don't forget your eye protection if you go that route. Edited May 1, 2014 by dtownmikebrown Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TexasQuest Posted May 1, 2014 Report Share Posted May 1, 2014 Welcome. Nice to see an experienced wrencher that understands maintenance before modifications. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
93 GSX TURBO Posted May 1, 2014 Report Share Posted May 1, 2014 (edited) Sweet. Welcome. Btw, where'd you send your injectors to, and if you don't mind, how much was it? I'd be Interested in doing that to mine as mine was sitting for 10 years lol If you don't have access to a compressor, herse the way I tested/cleaned my injectors. I used a chefmate flavor injector from target, Chevron fuel injector cleaner, about an inch of 5/16 hose and a AAA battery. I know its not as good as ultrasonic cleaning but it helps. Sorry to thread jack. Nice Starion. Nothing better than a barn find. http://i724.photobucket.com/albums/ww244/partsturbo/Mobile%20Uploads/th_trim6881A4C8-5016-42F1-A440-E8031B5BED70_zps6fce2227.jpg http://s724.photobuc...ce2227.mp4.html Edited May 1, 2014 by 93 GSX TURBO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtownmikebrown Posted May 1, 2014 Author Report Share Posted May 1, 2014 Sorry to thread jack. Not at all. That's a clever way to do it. I saw a post on here a while ago where someone rigged up a continuous system with a 5gal gas can, a fuel pump, in-line filter, and a radio shack pulse generator. He loaded up the can with a 50:50 mix of gas and seafoam and just left it running. Said he was able to use that method to revive dead injectors that couldn't be helped by the ultrasonic cleaning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DMNDSTAR87 Posted May 2, 2014 Report Share Posted May 2, 2014 welcome bro----87's are the best in case you were unaware---gig out Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
87redcat Posted May 5, 2014 Report Share Posted May 5, 2014 Glad to have you aboard. Dont forget to get those 25+ years of corrosion cleaned up on all the relays and fuse links around the battery. Not to mention all the ground points. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtownmikebrown Posted May 21, 2014 Author Report Share Posted May 21, 2014 Been meaning to post this... http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c331/dtownmikebrown/Starion/injectors.jpg Looks like my cleaning and testing method wasn't so bad. The blue bars are before and the purple ones are after. Still a little bit of an improvement, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markhansenconquest Posted May 21, 2014 Report Share Posted May 21, 2014 (edited) run lucas oil threw gas for a few tanks of gas....clean out tank and lines.........I thought the ohms were 2 to 3 ohms to be good??? 1.5 on injector 2......... Edited May 22, 2014 by markhansenconquest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ionstar Posted June 3, 2014 Report Share Posted June 3, 2014 Alllright! Nice find definitely awesome rides Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bills89quest Posted June 3, 2014 Report Share Posted June 3, 2014 just curious why is the 87 starion the best year? I have an 89 Conquest SHP is that the best year for them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtownmikebrown Posted June 3, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 3, 2014 Uggh. I went to replace the leaky exhaust manifold gasket and I found a crack in the manifold. Then I broke off one of the studs inside the head. I thought drilling out the old stud and re-tapping the thread would be a fairly easy process, but apparently it's even easier to screw it up. I think I bungled it pretty bad. I'm afraid that if I take off the head now it's going to turn into a big, expensive "while I'm at it" job. I was already planning on building the engine, but I kinda wanted to wait until the summer was over. just curious why is the 87 starion the best year? I have an 89 Conquest SHP is that the best year for them?DMNDSTAR87 and I own 87's. Therefore, 87 is the best year. In all seriousness, I think that in 89 with SHP is probably the best you can do for a starquest in stock form. run lucas oil threw gas for a few tanks of gas....clean out tank and lines.........I thought the ohms were 2 to 3 ohms to be good??? 1.5 on injector 2......... Good question. I'm not sure what's going on there. When I tested it myself I remember it reading just under 3Ω. I'll have to check it again before I hook everything back up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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