In defense of the 4B11T

"Nick Has an Exocet" (nickallain)
06/13/2019 at 00:10 • Filed to: evo, lancer, 4b11t, engines

Following one of the most popular tuner engines of all time is hard. What came after the RB26? The Barra? The SR20? Exactly. So following the 4G63 was a tough job.

But here’s the thing about the 4B11T - it’s always been in the wrong car. If it had been born into the Evo 9, it would have been a legend. But instead, it ended up in the Evo X. If you put it in the 3,285 lb Evo 9, it would be a monster. In the 3,527 lb Evo X, no one gives it credit for how special it is. It addresses several shortcomings of the 4G63, makes more power, and does it less weight and more reliability.

Despite being based on the Mitsubishi version of the World Engine (a loose Mitsubishi-Chrysler-Hyundai engine sharing partnership), the 4B11T only made it into two vehicles:

2007-2016 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution

2008-2015 Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart

And that’s a shame. It has an aluminum block, semi-closed deck, continuous variable valve timing on BOTH intake and exhaust cams, a faster spooling turbo, and a timing chain - all for 23lbs LESS than the 4G63. It also has fully floating pistons and a direct-acting valvetrain, which means it could meet NVH without the need of a heavy and power-sucking balance shaft.

All that leads up to a significant advantage in area under the power curve.

The entire article from Road Race Engineering (circa 2010) is great. I highly recommend it if you want a deeper technical dive.

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Is this the ultimate version of the World Engine?

Now this is an interesting question. The “World Engine” is actually still around. So the 4B11T’s cousins can be found in the Kia Stinger and i30n/Veloster N. In those applications, it makes 247-271HP and have had a series of serious issues. In the EvoX, it made 290HP in stock form and could handle considerably more without imploding/exploding thanks to a really bang-up job by Mitsubishi to sure up most potential failure points. I would say that to date, it’s arguably the ultimate version of the World Engine and while it was too late to win 90s/00's rally championships, it’s a really stout engine that deserves more praise than it gets.

My #1 Gripe

That plastic engine cover. C’mon...

DISCUSSION (7)

and 100 more > Nick Has an Exocet
06/13/2019 at 02:55

The Jeep Patriot had the 2 .4l version of the World Engine, and it was the least problematic part of the vehicle.

I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker > Nick Has an Exocet
06/13/2019 at 10:34

Speaking of the Theta, why doesn’t it get tuned more aggressively? They seem pretty stout and are certainly reliable in stock form. Is it just because, Genesis and Stinger aside, they come in pretty meh cars? If anything, to me that would mean a healthy supply of junkyard bits to slap on.

Nick Has an Exocet > I like cars: Jim Spanfeller is one ugly motherfucker
06/13/2019 at 11:18

Yeah, I think that’s a big part of it. The community has just never been there. The other issue is that the meh cars are fwd and the packaging really keeps things from being cross compatible.

There was some backlash in the Genesis coupe world about Hyundai not really understanding how to encourage Motorsport use.

dogisbadob > Nick Has an Exocet
06/13/2019 at 14:50

Then just pull it off :o)

The Caliber SR T4 was advertised as 285 hp, but was found to have 28 0 at the wheels, which makes it really around 330 hp

Nick Has an Exocet > dogisbadob
06/13/2019 at 19:51

Yeah that engine was very under-rated. This one is rated just about right but you can get 20hp with a tune. +35hp with a tune and boost pill ($18). The tune requires a $2 00 cable but + 35HP for <$250 is great.

Manwich - now Keto-Friendly > and 100 more
06/14/2019 at 18:06

What was the most problematic part?

and 100 more > Manwich - now Keto-Friendly
06/15/2019 at 09:57

That would be a tossup between the front lower control arms (which would often wear out by about 40k miles, starting from new), or the transmission (CVTs were almost all trash and unservicable, and the manuals weren’t much better).

Some folks had wiring issues, or sunroof drain clogs that would back up. I had an issue where the motor that controls the intake runner tumble valve motor would stop working, which didn’t affect the operation of the car, but wouldn’t allow you to pass an emissions test without getting it fixed, which required taking it to a dealership to register the new part to the vehicle; but often the dealership wouldn’t honor the work if you replaced the motor yourself, and required that they replace the entire intake manifold themselves.