Awd Magna Can Be Sports Car?

[seriousmagnaman]

Hey Guys,
Just brought myself a shiny red awd magna vrx 2004. I have been reading thru endless post about them, but there a some grey areas, that i would like cleared up. I'll break it down into different headings, i want people who own or worked on these cars that actually know what their talking about.
The car is a daily driver, so i dont want to turn it into something i cant live with every day eg harsh ride.

BRAKES - The Brakes now have a good feel to them but they fade quick. I would like them to stop better and be more fade resistant lets face it Brakes are one of the best safety features. what would you recommend?
Evo Brakes bolt (change Rim Size)?
DBA 4000's slotted on front and rear?
how do these two option compare?
which is better slotted, drilled or drilled and slotted?

WHEELS/TYRES SIZE - The standard Wheel and Tyre size (215 60r16) feel really comfortable rolls into corners. dont mind losing bit of comfort for more grip. I would like more grip, response and less body roll.
With Evo Brembos ill have to get wheels that will fit over them- what would you recommend that will be legal, poke out guards or hit on rear control arm? Are the Brembos worth the extra hassle?
Just upgrading discs and pads- which size would give the best handling and grip 16, 17, 18 etc x 7, 8 and offests
(keep in mind if any suspension upgrades)?
If i could see pics of wheels on your tl give me some ideas what looks goods

SUSPENSION - Like i said before the car does roll into corners i thinks partly to do they big tyre size. I not really sure which is the big contributing factor the tyre size or if the suspension is soft (im more incline to go with tyres) please any advice would be great?
Which is the best combo springs and shock?
I have heard conflicting opinions about lovell, boge, dobs and kings.
does the sway bar need upgrading and what benefits do they have, front and rear? Do they actually provide more grip or just a feeling?

POWER More POWER!!!! (yes Clarkson) Its a good engine, but i feel its lacking in power it takes a bit to get this heavy car moving. i would like more power and torque especially down low (i do drive the car hard but i dont thrash it never has it been red lined) and more response.
Ok i have heard the 6g75 is the way to go,
is there anything else that i can do to make it better advancing cams, twin fuel rail, fuel pressure regulator etc
I like the exhaust on it but is there any area hat with improve it? extractors.
And tuning the car SKR seems to be one to do it but its to far away for me.
Anything while the 6g75 is out should i upgrade before fitting it?
Is there any reputable places in the Toowoomba/Brisbane area that KNOWS WHAT THEY ARE DOING?
Are there any shops in this area/or anyone that i can talk to for info?

look guys any advice would be great, even in area that i have missed
thanks

[jarod]

I would suggest new rotors and some quality pads. I will be running slotted/dimpled rotors on my awd, these are an aggressive rotor and.will chew through your pads quicker though.While your at it bleed all the old (probably factory) brake fluid with a better aftermarket option. These brakes are essentially the ralliart magna ones and are a decent factory brake system.

As for wheels and suspension, buy the best you can afford. I would think that your suspension is standard and we'll past its use by date. I am about to run a Sachs/dobinsons combo on my awd.I personally won't be looking into tyres as much as my car is just a daily, it's awd so there is plenty of grip there. get a 17 or 18 inch tyre that's about 235 wide with low profile in a reputable brand and I would think you'd be having a much better ride in terms of grip.

I personally wouldn't modify a 6g74.. Just go straight to a 6g75 and be done with it. Even your best n/a mods to the 6g74 would be outdone by a stock 6g75....and much cheaper I would suggest

After all this you will have a fairly decent cruiser. Short of a manual transmission and forced induction there isn't much else to do..
My 2c

[GoodOldJohno]

Can an AWD Magna even had a manual transmission without a whole bunch of fabricating?

Seeing as MMAL never built a manual AWD from the factory

[Wiggles]

Yes, there are 2 cars currently running manual boxes and another box from the first awd manual sitting at mitsfix

[Oldf4g]

it has too may doors to be a sportscar

[idandavid]

too heavy imo

[Oggy]

Hi & congrats on the new car.

I had a 2003 TJ AWD for 4.5 years and loved it.
Handling:
IMO Mitsubishi have the AWD in these setup very well. I'm now in a Subaru and I don't think the diffs are as well sorted as the Magna.

But, I too noticed sloppy handling.
My first upgrade was a front strut brace. This improved turn-in response. It was very noticeable on roundabouts where you make 3 direction changes in quick succession and I scored one for $150.
A nice bit of bling which, on my car, actually made a difference. Some people are dubious of strut braces making any difference, so your mileage may vary.

My next upgrade was 18x7 wheels with 235/40/18 Kumho KU31 tyres. Tyres aren't the absolute best for grip, but aren't too expensive and a lot better than "cheap" tyres.
These improved steering response and grip further. For me, the thinner sidewall made no difference in ride comfort - my factory Sports suspension was always a little harsh.

Last handling mod was coilover suspension. These were cheap Kido brand (group buy on these forums) from memory $800 delivered.
I only ever installed the front. DIY but was too lazy to tackle the rear.
I set them up about 1.5 to 2" lower than the factory Sports setup (which is 10mm lower than Exec/Verada). This gave me the stance I wanted and still plenty of clearance.
The best thing about these is that the ride wasn't much harsher, but handling improved out of sight - a tight left hand corner at the lights used to always see me into the middle lane, or 3rd lane if I accelerated hard. Now I could turn into the corner more aggressively, 10kph faster, and the car would come out of the corner in the first lane. I was quite surprised and very stoked with the handling on rails effect.

If you're interested in Coilovers, I recommend reading Skappers thread. He did a lot more research, testing and tuning on his, so is a good place for info.

Next on the list might have been an uprated rear sway bar... but then I decided to get more power instead.

Brakes:
My fronts needed replacing so I opted for DBA 4000 series slotted rotors with Bendix "4x4 compound" metallic pads.
I never noticed brake fade with the original brakes or the DBA 4000s. I'm a hoon and drive too fast and aggressive too often, but no brake fade ever.
IMO, the brakes aren't as effective as they could be, but at least mine were consistent.

Power:
I was considering visiting Mal in Victoria for a 3.8 engine upgrade. IMO this could be the most cost effective option, especially if your engine is nearing major service time.
I was even tempted to get Mal to put in a manual transmission, but that was more $ than I was willing to spend, although not a lot more if the auto trans was to need repairing.

Instead I bought a Subaru Forester with 160kW at the wheels.

Enjoy your AWD, they're tops!

[khn47]

I think there's an awd manual magna floating around our forums, madmagna did it I believe, he's your go to 6g75 guy and also does manual conversions and lots of other specialized magna stuff

[ADM]

@ Seriousmagnaman, what you list pretty much describes everything I've done to my KJ Verada AWD except for the manual conversion.
I'm replacing the DBA4000 rotors & calipers with the Brembos next year. (In the process of rebuilding & repainting the Brembos).
Is it a sports car? At 1630ish kgs, I don't know about that, but it handles terrific, rides well, goes harder (wider powerband - thanks to a 6G75 fully serviced & running a 98 RON ECU flash) and is now capable of making a decent account of itself at the dragstrip.

IMO The main issue with stock AWD models, is the bogging down from standstill and a relative lack of responsiveness in low down acceleration compared to a FWD 3.5 TJ Magna.
You can blame 130kgs of extra weight & zero wheel slip courtesy of the AWD system & the extra power losses associated with it.
Really, the only way to properly rectify this is to either go forced induction, an aggressive N/A rebuild of the 6G74 or do a 6G75 swap and ECU re-flash.
Headers/extractors, better Y-pipe and sports rear muffer (VRX, Lukey LR2779 or any decent straight through muffler) are a must do, even if you choose to retain the stock motor.
As for 6G75 swaps in Brisbane try forum member crackajnr:
https://www.aussiemagna.com/forums/member.php?u=5945

He's done some of these swaps now, or if you are further south perhaps TTR in Springwood - "IF" they are still doing 6G75 conversions that is. I got mine done there but the owner indicated that he was moving away from doing conversions.
Alternatively you could get a prepped 6G75 ready to install into a magna from Mal @ Mitsfix & see if he'll freight a motor to your mechanic.

[Skapper]

Any car can be a sports car - the limit is your budget... and the law of course.

Same answer for power - how much money do you have? How long do you want the engine to last? I agree with most comments here - 6G75 should keep you happy. Get some headers and a tune as well for bonus points.

Suspension - sharper handling vs comfort, you can't have both. But buy good tyres first and see how that works out for you.

I run coilovers and a larger rear bar, corner weighted, and I still get some roll in the front it's just the characteristic of the car - all that weight out front. I'm looking at experimenting with the battery and washer bottle locations to get that weight off the front - I'll keep you posted. I'm also kicking around the idea of a larger front bar, but need to research it more.

Reduce weight otherwise as best you can - if you don't need it, get it out of the car. How far you take that is up to you, just be safe/smart about it.

Brakes - start with good pads before shelling out for expensive rotors. I'm running QFM pads and they're great, none of the fade you're talking about. But, your mileage may vary. Use the tippy to for engine brake.