A pair of (potentially absurd) projects - fiat X11/9 & old Dodge Neon content

Ive been offered an early Neon that has a partially completed 2.4 swap for the irresistible price of almost free. I'm considering buying this crap can, making it drivable, rally crossing it until I'm bored with it, then sourcing a solid Fiat X1/9 to swap the Dodge 2.4 & 5-speed into. This progressed past just the kinda dumb daydream stage yesterday, when an acquaintance in San Diego emailed me to offer me a non-running, never-rusted X1/9 for $500. I'd be into it for $1500 with trucking to Massachusetts ... What's the GRM Braintrust have to say?

Absolutely do it. I'm not even that good a mechanic and I think that's a great idea.

I assume that shoehorning a 2.4 into an X-1/9 will involve cutting torches and Sawzalls.

Look for someone that has done this swap and completed it. By complete, I mean more than a test drive. Actually drove it a good bit. Pick his brain.

I'm not saying don't do it, just that being a pioneer is time consuming, frustrating, and expensive.

I'm looking forward to the build thread.

In reply to jstein77:

Probably. The all-knowing Internet (simple google search) listed the 2.4 Dodge and various Honda engines as "simple and proven x/1-9 swaps." That being said, I've attempted a few "simple and proven" swaps that have turned into engineering projects, so how this will go is anybody's guess

Do it! You could also turbo it for more grinz.

Would the Talon/Eclipse motor fit better, although that is 2.0 (you might be able to use just the head and manifolds on a 2.4L to reverse the intake if needed).

A Megasquirt would simplify and open up any engine control issue.

You had me at nearly free 2.4 early neon

jstein77 wrote: I assume that shoehorning a 2.4 into an X-1/9 will involve cutting torches and Sawzalls.

Nope. The older SOHC 2.5 fit, barely. The water pump hit a frame rail (so an electric water pump would be needed or the frame rail sectioned) and the transmission needing a bit more clearance for the control arm.

The 2.4 has a water pump built into the block and the dual cam head leaves more room at the top of the engine bay so the engine cover can work as normal.

Control arms are simple C-channel steel and fairly easily reconfigured/improved as necessary.

Fiat axles fit into Chrylser inner CV joints. Possibly negating custom axles. Though using the Neon uprights and stock axles might improve reliability and parts sourcing.

Been down this road before and scrapped the project before completion. Very doable with less fab work than one initially imagines.

In reply to bentwrench:

I wouldn't as it would put the exhaust ahead of the engine, next to the stock fuel tank. Would make routing shift cables, coolant hoses and other stuff more difficult, etc.

This is awesome! You guys are mapping out all the tricky parts of the swap. Thanks! I think I'm going to go for it!

Just to make it more stupid:

https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/200x-classifieds/neon-srt4-acr-cheap-in-nw-ct-hit-by-deer/109740/page1/

In reply to Stefan (Not Bruce):

That's a cool option! I emailed the seller to find out if it's an SRT or an ACR. I'm no expert, but I don't think it can be both. Thanks for the lead!

In reply to M030:

Yes, it can be both an SRT and an ACR. Good luck!

X2 here. This sounds like a great plan!

Duke wrote: Absolutely do it. I'm not even that good a mechanic and I think that's a great idea.

You can do the swap with the Neon parts and swap the SRT4 parts into the Neon.

Then once you've had your fun with the Neon, put the SRT into the Exxie and go for "Ludicrous Speed"

"put the SRT into the Exxie and go for "Ludicrous Speed" FTW!

Go for it . My buddy took a 2.2 turbo II out of a Dodge Daytona and put in a 79 X1/9 and it was awesome. took it to a lot of autox events and it was a Corvette better.

In reply to RCRX19:

Do you know how different the old 2.2 turbo engines and the newer Neon engines are, physically? Was the 2.2 a relatively straightforward swap? the 2.2 or 2.5 Dodge thing seems to have been done by a lot of people, but the Neon swap is seemingly less common. Any idea why?

The bore centers and head bolt patterns are the same. The bellhousing patterns are fairly close.

The 2.0/2.4 are much more compact with the block mounted water pump driven by the timing belt and the front mounted starter.

The 2.2/2.5 was a little more common just due to their availability compared to the Neon drivetrains before the Honda swap kits became available.

I'm more than slightly skeptical on the non rusty fiat

jstein77 wrote: I assume that shoehorning a 2.4 into an X-1/9 will involve cutting torches and Sawzalls.

I've seen K24-engined X1/9s... it's not really all that involved in the hacking sense.

For reference here's a fairly complete K24 build thread over on Xweb: http://xwebforums.org/showthread.php?t=26774

Even with the midwest swap kit it seems like there is quite a bit of cutting to be done. I wonder if the Neon DOHC motor would be a better fit?

From what I've read the new Abarth motor doesn't fit all that well in the engine bay due to turbo placement.

mblommel wrote: For reference here's a fairly complete K24 build thread over on Xweb: http://xwebforums.org/showthread.php?t=26774

And that, boys and girls is what dreams are made of. Lovely.

In reply to wheelsmithy:

Thanks! Now I'm pretty excited about this project. The big scary factor is buying the X11/9 from across the country without seeing it in person first. Getting one from San Diego does seem like the best shot at a rust-free one, though.

The question becomes: at the end of the day, assuming the Fiat really is rust-free and the hundred-hour swap goes slick, how much better will the resulting Dodge-powered Fiat be than a $3-5000 MR2?