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Engine Swap & Turbo - 97 GT


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Hey everyone, just wanting to get some ideas from y'all.

 

So far I've had my car for 4 months and I love it, but its SO slow. Nothing has been done to it because I haven't had the money and the know-how. But I've been trying to learn, so here's my question. I want to turbo my car, but I don't know if my current engine is the best option for me to use. I have the 2.5L EJ20 (I think).

 

1) How well can my current engine handle a turbo

2) If it can, what turbo would you recommend and should I rebuild it first

3) If not, what engine should I swap it with and again what turbo

 

Thanks guys

 

P.S.

Like I said, I've been trying to learn more about my car/cars in general. Do you guys have any recommendations that can help me learn these types of things? Books, videos, etc. (only 17 so options are limited for now) Thanks guys!

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For the books, I use the hanyes subaru legacy and outback from 1990-1999. Has complete tear down information on the car.

 

The engine can withstand the turbo but it would be strongly advised to rebuild the engine. I saw a forum about someone taking the same engines we have (I have 1997 Subaru Legacy GT sedan) which is the ej25d and slapping on a turbo with it. The did completely forged internals on the engine which allowed to get more horses out of the engine. You do have a choice at this point though. You can either rebuild your engine and slap a turbo OR if you want to go the slightly easier route which you can get more power out of it. You can do a jdm swap to a j20 2 stage turbo. 2 stage allows for one small turbo for off the line and then the second for the power band. Both routes do take time and money. But those are some options for you! I personally want to do the 2stage swap on my lgt.

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For the books, I use the hanyes subaru legacy and outback from 1990-1999. Has complete tear down information on the car.

 

The engine can withstand the turbo but it would be strongly advised to rebuild the engine. I saw a forum about someone taking the same engines we have (I have 1997 Subaru Legacy GT sedan) which is the ej25d and slapping on a turbo with it. The did completely forged internals on the engine which allowed to get more horses out of the engine. You do have a choice at this point though. You can either rebuild your engine and slap a turbo OR if you want to go the slightly easier route which you can get more power out of it. You can do a jdm swap to a j20 2 stage turbo. 2 stage allows for one small turbo for off the line and then the second for the power band. Both routes do take time and money. But those are some options for you! I personally want to do the 2stage swap on my lgt.

Thanks man! The 2 stage swap definitely sounds more up my alley, it will take me a while since I'm going to be doing a lot of cosmetic stuff to my car as well, its pretty rough. (new paint job, new rims, coilovers or lowering springs) and a lot of small things that add up. Like I'm getting a new grill with the red JDM logo on it which i think is sweet. do you have a rough idea on how much both of these would cost?

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The ej25d rebuild with forged internals is going to be very pricey. I have found the 2 stage turbo engine for like $900. That's just the engine and you will need the wiring harness for it. I found a 2 stage full swap for $1,600. It included the engine, wiring harness, ecm, tranny, and cross member.
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EJ22D Version 1 - EJ25D heads + EJ22E/1 block (14.5cc pistons) = EJ22D V1: N/A w/ EJ222 headgaskets yields 9.3:1cr, but EJ22T head gasket yields 8:5.1.

 

EJ22D Version 2 - EJ25D heads + EJ22E/2 block (12cc pistons) = EJ22D V2: N/A w/EJ222 head gaskets yields 9.6:1cr, but EJ22T head gasket yields 8.8:1.

 

EJ22D Version 3 - EJ25D heads + EJ221/2/3 block (3.5cc pistons) = EJ22D V3: N/A w/EJ222 head gasket yields 10.3:1cr, but EJ22T head gasket yields 9.8:1.

 

EJ22D Version 4 - EJ25D heads + EJ22T block (28cc pistons) = EJ22D V4: EJ222 head gasket yields 7.8:1cr, but EJ22T head gasket yields 7.4:1cr.

 

There are only FOUR EJ22D variants that can be achieved with 97-99 EJ25D heads and all of the EJ22 blocks in combination form. All 97-99 heads have a 46.6cc (rounded up to 47) clover chamber, and all EJ22's have a 97mm bore, 75mm stroke. There are ways to achieve power with the stock parts. You just have to know which parts to put together.

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The ej25d rebuild with forged internals is going to be very pricey. I have found the 2 stage turbo engine for like $900. That's just the engine and you will need the wiring harness for it. I found a 2 stage full swap for $1,600. It included the engine, wiring harness, ecm, tranny, and cross member.

 

Where would I look for something like that?

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Putting a turbo on your current engine is a horrible idea, even if you rebuild it. It was not made for it. The twin turbo EJ20 JDM engines will not fit a LHD car.

 

If you want a turbo car, sell yours and buy a wrx or 4th gen LGT. Completing a turbo swap in these cars is not an easy task. Wiring harness needs to be merged, sub frame needs to be swapped, transmission needs to be swapped to be reliable and then the engine needs to be swapped. It can easily cost upwards of $5k.

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Putting a turbo on your current engine is a horrible idea, even if you rebuild it. It was not made for it. The twin turbo EJ20 JDM engines will not fit a LHD car.

 

If you want a turbo car, sell yours and buy a wrx or 4th gen LGT. Completing a turbo swap in these cars is not an easy task. Wiring harness needs to be merged, sub frame needs to be swapped, transmission needs to be swapped to be reliable and then the engine needs to be swapped. It can easily cost upwards of $5k.

 

But it is possible? I love my car and really don't want another one. Plus I cant afford to get a 4th gen legacy (only really want a wagon). So if it is going to cost upwards of 5k do you have any ideas of easier ways to get more power with a swap? different engine, turbos, etc?

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Hi

Please search on here and google "Subaru turbo swap" and "turbo NA Subaru" for info.

You'll keep busy reading for a few weeks /months/years.

 

And you may figure out its not worth it or you're even more willing to try.

 

Gl

Td

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And you may figure out its not worth it or you're even more willing to try.

 

ive done all the reading, and now im waffling between a turbo swap or a H6 swap. then a turbo. or two. or a supercharger. id buy a wrx or sti if i liked their body styles as much as i do the 2nd gen wagons, but i dont. so, i will end up throwing money at one of my 2nd gens eventually, just because i enjoy driving them. and i would really enjoy driving them much faster.

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The EJ20tt twin turbo swap is a horrible idea. You would basically need a whole donor car to make it feasible. There are numerous wiring changes, a complicated rat's nest of vacuum lines feeding into a large box that you would need to also acquire. And there is the so called 'valley of death' when one turbo stops and the other starts to kick in. You would need to convert the dash to lhd and swap firewalls, stereing lines, ac lines, etc. Not worth all the work and headache for the worst turbo engine subaru produced. If you have to have it, but a JDM GT-b from Canada, cut it in half to transport it across the border, and then swap everything over into your wagon.

 

Simplest route is to buy a WRX and swap everything over into your car and pay iwire $700-900 to merge your harness. Make sure you rebuild the engine first though and hope you don't spin a bearing since your donor wrx will most likely have been beat on and about to pop.

 

Or you can search NA turbo swap as wtdash suggested. It is possible to install a td04, xt tmic, modify a wrx exhaust to fit, rrfpr, mbc, tap the heads for oil and coolant lines to the turbo, and run 5-6 psi of boost for a while until your head gaskets blow. A phase 1 low compression na ej22 would be a good choice for a cheap block to turbo. This will be the cheapest route and will probably only set you back $2-3k for a janky setup if you're lucky.

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ive done all the reading, .

 

NO offense, but you've not done your reading if you're asking these questions. How do I know? Because everytyhing you've described has been done b4 on one or another Subaru or other sites/forums, and $5K is not that much to spend on it.

 

 

GL,

TDf

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NO offense, but you've not done your reading if you're asking these questions. How do I know? Because everytyhing you've described has been done b4 on one or another Subaru or other sites/forums, and $5K is not that much to spend on it.

 

 

GL,

TDf

 

none taken. i didnt actually ask any questions, just stated that i couldnt decide which way i wanted to go. i know the downfalls of both sides (as well as the payoffs), but at the end of the day i havent decided if i would be happier with a sti swapped legacy or a H6 swapped legacy. mebbe you thought i was the OP or another poster?

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Sometimes I think I want to swap my legacy but not sure I want to put the time and money into it yet. I do love the body style though and dont think I will sell it at least anytime soon so someday I might. I think I would do the donor STI route and swap the whole drivetrain.
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Here's the thing. . . you will never increase the value of that car significantly no matter what you do to it, so before you move forward with a turbo swap, accept the fact that you're throwing money down a rat hole on a car that's worth $3500 tops.

 

I have seen WRX swapped 1st gen Outbacks for sale complete for that price. . and it was up for sale for months.

 

They're just too old, too common, and too ugly to be taken seriously as a swap candidate.

 

Buy an RS coupe or an old BRAT if you want a good swap project that might actually accrue some value when complete.

 

Or don't. It's your money.

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Seriously consider not doing a swap as all of the previous points against doing it are very valid. They can be incredibly difficult and time consuming and in the end you may end up with a very unreliable vehicle. I would highly recommend importing a JDM Gen 2 instead, but I believe the U.S. requires the vehicle to be 25 years or older before import (it's 15 years here in Canada). The 2 stage sequential turbos are also a bit of a let down due to the "Valley of Death" (crossover point of the turbos). It can be dialed out to a point, but it will always be there. A single turbo NA engine would be much easier to install and come with less expense and time required.
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just buy my car.

 

Its a 03 Wrx (40,000m) powered 99 GT Limited Sedan(173k,000), swap done at I-Speed which later transitioned into Crawford performance, swap done in 2004 and going completely strong. Cryo treated Built tranny with JDM gears and an STI LSD Diff in the rear I am a mechanic but looking to build something cheaper and pay my student loans. was going to do a turbo swap and do some tuning but shouldn't have more power than I ca deal with to be honest. Currently stock turbo (TD04) port and polished with a stage 2 dyno tune. Always Synthetic everything in this car and have changed all fluids. only <15,000 KMS in my 3 years of ownership, but as I was studying Automotive Service Technology at Sait Polytechnic it was a practice vehicle for a bunch of general maintenance and I currently just finished redoing a lot of the suspension.

 

The problem with being a student and having a car like this is I couldn't afford the fuel costs vs my Toyota and insuring two cars wasn't an option. I don't want to sell it, but if I do can pay my student loans clear which is probably the smarter choice. If anyone is interested send me a PM. We would need to follow the rules of the forum of course. the Canadian Dollar is doing so bad right now or else I would only focus on a local sale I am asking 6500

 

Lots not mentioned. But of course 3" up and down pipe with a custom exhaust. (Borla muffler, Vibrant ultra quiet resonator and Hi flow kittie)

sounds amazing.

 

http://i1155.photobucket.com/albums/p552/Taylor_Jay1/20140314_154927_zps309e5ae2.jpg

 

http://i1155.photobucket.com/albums/p552/Taylor_Jay1/Screenshot_2014-11-26-11-34-58-2_zpsqngifzvb.png

Yes if you buy this car you will be unstoppable as well. Although after typing all this I might have to keep her :(

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