Just bought a '91 Eagle Talon that may as well be a rolling chassis with engine parts. This thing is about as junked out as a car can be other than the fact that the body is in decent shape. I'm looking to rebuild and restore but have no clue where to start. I am an avid tuner and know just about everything there is to know about Ford and Hyundai (my previous projects) but nothing about the Talon. The model I have is the Turbo and that's about the extent of my knowledge. I'm just looking for some information so if any of you can help it'd be greatly appreciated.

Hello Adam!
It's tough to tell you where to start, not knowing exactly what kind of condition everything is in.

Assuming it's not running right, I would personally start with the engine. The weak link on these engines is the timing belt, and beware, it is a zero valve clearance engine, so if it breaks or jumps too far out of time, the consequences can be quite expensive. That's probably the very first thing you'll want to take a look at.

I own a 1992 Talon, non turbo. If you have questions along the way regarding basic engine stuff, I can probably help. If you have turbo related questions, there are others who post here who can help you out.

Good luck to you!

Mark

Thank you for the info Mark. The engine itself is in pieces for the most part and I have managed to find a couple of DSM tuning sites that have said more or less the same thing about the timing belt. I'll be completely removing the motor and tranny here shortly for rebuild. Mostly what I'm looking for is some good retailers or wholesalers that I can get the performance parts from. Not too sure about this motor in general but I imagine it's a lot like any other motor I've rebuilt in the past so I'm mostly looking for cams, cam gears, pulleys etc... the basic stuff. Also, if you know of any place where I can get the technical specs on the motor and tranny that'd be awesome. Thanks again for your reply!

Adam;
I'm sure others will chime in here with links to sites where you can find performance parts. As far as the cam, cam sprockets, and pulleys are concerned, you may be better off sticking with stock items. The timing belt sprockets are fine as they are, the pulleys and tensioner for the timing belt are very well made stock items, and you can find them at just about any auto parts store.

Going with a stock cam (actually cams) is probably the best idea too, since you will me manipulating airflow through the engine via the turbo and boost settings. Most everything I've read regarding increasing performance on TSI Talons centers around the intake (including turbo) and the exhaust.

Haynes makes a manual for your year Talon, which I have, and it does give all of the engine specs that you will need. As far as the trans goes, the book doesn't give a lot of information, I'll have to check it when I get home. It does have schematics of the trans and basic clutch, pressure plate, etc..stuff, but it doesn't get much more involved than that.

Sorry I couldn't be more help reqarding links to performance parts sites. My Talon is my transportation to work car, and I put a lot of miles on it, so my focus has been on extending it's life, not getting the most HP out of it.

Mark