Before the sport compact car community was given the tire-melting insanity that is the Dodge SRT-4, there was the Dodge Spirit R/T. A mere 1,399 of them were built during an incredibly short two years of production-1,208 in 1991 and 191 in 1992. Anyone lucky enough to own one of these beasts is blessed with much of the same performance that has made the turbo Neon so famous today.
Based on the Spirit ES Turbo, the Spirit R/T flaunted beefier suspension and four-wheel disc brakes. But as can be imagined, the biggest upgrade took place in the power department. Dodge crammed a motor designated the TIII under the hood-a 2.2-liter, 16-valve, DOHC, turbocharged and intercooled inline-4 that ran factory fresh at 11-pounds of boost. The net result was a whopping 224 horsepower at 6000 rpm and 217 lb-ft of torque at 2800 rpm. Weighing in at a little over 3,200 pounds, this little sedan clocked in 0-60 times of less than 6 seconds, and the quarter-mile blinked by in the mid-14 second range-all stock and on street tires. Who says the Neon SRT-4 was an original idea?
The owner of this particular Spirit is Wallace White, co-owner of Lone Wolf Performance. A self-proclaimed "Dodge-a-holic," Wallace also owns a 1985 Omni GLH which he is currently building for drag racing. Sponsored by FWD Performance, Wallace is hoping the TIII-powered dragster will net a sub 9-second quarter-mile.
Although quarter-mile passes under 9 secs are a very, very good thing, Wallace has two kids, making livable around town transportation a necessity. The requirements Wallace set forth for the family hauler included four doors, decent fuel economy, good reliability, and a sleeper demeanor. And of course, being a car guy, it had to perform. The Spirit R/T fits the bill nicely.
Not satisfied with mid-14s, Wallace started to build his car as most enthusiasts do-by helping it breathe. Uncorking the exhaust with a 2.5-inch mandrel-bent system and replacing the stock paper filter with a K&N drop in yielded mild improvements. Magnecor plug wires supplemented the increased airflow with a hotter spark to the tune of about 20 extra ponies. The TIII was huffing and puffing better, so Wallace decided to address getting that power to the ground with Eibach Pro-kit springs and KYB shocks.
The mild upgrades certainly helped a little, but it wasn't what Wallace was looking for. One phone call to FWD Performance and he had his hands on a recalibrated ECU, larger injectors, and a Super 70 turbo (basically the stock turbo with a Buick Grand National compressor), raising boost to 18 pounds. Taking the R/T to the track, Wallace saw a 14.02 e.t. Much improved, but "something wasn't right."
Purchasing a data scanner, it was revealed the TIII was pulling spark advance from "32 degrees to low single digits from a knock sensor that was generating voltage high enough to power a small city," according to Wallace. After pulling the sensor to make sure it wasn't hearing a phantom noise, Wallace's fears were confirmed when he heard the sound of the turbo four "knocking" on heaven's door, so to speak.
Any further inquiries would have sent the motor on that last long power stroke home, but thankfully no damage was evident. At this point, Wallace was fed up with compromises and dove in wallet first.
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