Hey there,
I have recently purchased a fwd cordia running an evo 3 engine. I believe it is currently putting out roughly 200kw atw which is obviously causing more then a little wheel spin on take off. It is also only pushing 8 pounds of boost so there is more potential in the engine, just not as fwd.
I was having a bit of a look around regarding 4wd conversions and from what i hear it is a challenge but is also doable. I have also looked at topics on 4wd cordias, factory and from what I hear it is a fairly anchient system that also cant take much more then the fwd box.
While searching trademe(nz) I have come across someone selling a rally car. In his auction he said he could sell the car with parts for a 4wd conversion.
He says fitting a 5 speed evo gearbox is doable and what needs to be done is as follows:
-Biggest problem is rear end. This can be resolved by using another cars subframe (his suggestion, a skyline)
-To get transfer box to clear front subframe you may need evo subframe
-To fit evo gearbox the front chassis rail needs to be cut out a bit (Can you certify something like this in NZ for road use?)
My question is, is this actually a viable option for my car and what sort of budget would be required. I am willing to spend a reasonable amount of money into the car, however i am not going to go crazy with it.
I figure it would be a great modification to the car and will bring out the full potential it has but whether it is possible or not is a whole other story!
Any feedback would be great! (also on the side, what is a strong gearbox replacement for the cordia that is fwd? could always be another option)

If you can come across the original 4wd parts.

Honestly... Just spend the coin and get the gearbox/transfer case and rear diff beefed up, and use original parts. Otherwise its not gonna be much of a cordia after that. Nor will it probally see the road again without HUGE amounts of $$$ spent on it.

So the 4wd factory system could be beefed up enough to take a decent amount of power without issues? as it stands a lot has been changed on it already. Its still going to have the stylings of a cordia. I dont think it is any less a cordia if it was converted to 4wd using non cordia parts then using cordia parts?
Has anybody done a similar conversion like this before or would i be going into a conversion in the dark?
I would be curious to know what sort of costs would come up before completely writing it off. I do figure it would cost a lot though and I am sure you are right but still would be good to know before completely disregarding it.
Cheers for quick response

The problem with the EVO box is you'll have to gusset the drivers side chassis rail due to the box is 20mm too wide.

The 4WD cordia drivetrain was never designed for huge power output, the original parts would suffer under a VR4 for instance, but the floor plan between a FWD and 4WD cordia are completely different.

Oh ok. I was under the impression that the floorplans were the same on both fwd and 4wd?
Are there stronger fwd boxes that can be fairly easily put in? failing that how much stronger can you actually make a box on a budget? I have seen that you can strengthen them but realistically how much more strength you get out of it?
Also does anyone in auckland know a good place to take it to strengthen the box up without paying a small fortune?
Cheers

Is that Ben's (I think that was his name) old car in your DP?

Used to have the plates GODGVN (I think?)

Just looked at your avatar...........is that you Brad?

Thats right Brad was the name I was thinking! Not ben..

Na bought it off a guy that had owned it for three weeks and I assume had bought off brad if thats who owned it. came from palmy

A vr4 4wd cordia would be the ultimate. But converting a fwd to 4wd would probably send you broke. If you could start with a 4wd chassis that would be different. Of course they could be a myth. You see photos of 4wd cordias but never any photos of the underside of a cordia 4wd chassis that show how it houses the tailshaft, diff. etc.

I would have thought the underside is exactly the same, I can't see them building an entirely different floorpan for the 4wd when the FWD has a tunnel for the tailshaft (4wd) or the exhaust (FWD). Wouldn't it just be a simple case of getting a rear sub-frame from a gsr and welding it on, then bolting a gsr diff in and using the tailshaft aswell... The exhaust on the 4wd runs a different way than the FWD to cater for the diff being in the floor pan turret.

The evo box as far as I can tell isn't much different size wise than the cordia 5 speed, wouldn't the transfer case dimensions be the only real issue?

Here is a thread that sheds some light on this. If gooch could confirm what was needed to bolt in the AWD box from the galant that'd be awesome

http://cordiapower.com/forum/viewtopic. ... 9&start=20

Also here it actually says the original cordia 4wd ran an independent rear; http://www.gsrcyborgclub.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=4137

Attached is a photo of the assembly used on the 4wd from factory,

The floor pan is different as the petrol tank is mounted under the rear seat in the 4WD, FWD versions have the tank where the rear diff would be.

Not too mention the "gusset" in the firewall for the transfer case to clear the body.