So you want to do a Subaru Engine Swap?

Brett Proctor · Dec 21, 2015

Kafer bar
http://www.sterlingkitcars.com/members_n_forums/other-technical-issues/1189-diy-kafer-bar.html

Exhaust
http://www.sterlingkitcars.com/memb...ls-see-our-projects/353-sterling-s009-79.html

islandman · Dec 21, 2015

Thanks Brett, those are both useful reference points and have been duly filed *thumbs up*

I just missed out on an auction for a Subaru Legacy 2.0L with only 58K miles. It had had an accident and all panels along the passenger side had been scraped against something, probably a wall. The interior was great, engine very clean etc.. I was very frustrated to find the auction site needed me to send two proof of address to complete registration to bid. Needless to say the paperwork wasn't done before the action ended 1 hour later. The car went for only GBP 170, I missed out on a real bargain! .*thumbs down*

Brett Proctor · Dec 22, 2015

islandman said:
Thanks Brett, those are both useful reference points and have been duly filed *thumbs up*

I just missed out on an auction for a Subaru Legacy 2.0L with only 58K miles. It had had an accident and all panels along the passenger side had been scraped against something, probably a wall. The interior was great, engine very clean etc.. I was very frustrated to find the auction site needed me to send two proof of address to complete registration to bid. Needless to say the paperwork wasn't done before the action ended 1 hour later. The car went for only GBP 170, I missed out on a real bargain! .*thumbs down*

Maybe it was a good thing that you missed out on it.

In my opinion not all EJ series engines are a good choice.

Subaru made changes to their cars halfway through the year. When I go to the dealer for parts they don't care what year or model the engine is from they want the VIN number.

ydeardorff · Dec 24, 2015

Yeah the dealerships nowadays cant see past their own systems. Ive found better luck going to subaru specialists...
As far as the EJ series engines, that compromises most subaru engines out ther aside from the 6 cylinder ones.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subaru_EJ_engine

Brett Proctor · Dec 24, 2015

ydeardorff said:
As far as the EJ series engines, that compromises most subaru engines out ther aside from the 6 cylinder ones.

OK just call me stupid but could you translate that for me into laymens terms

ydeardorff · Dec 25, 2015

If memory serves,...
All subaru 4 cylinder engines from 1989 - 2010 were EJ series engines. In 2011 the new FB 4 cylinder engines were produced fixing the 100K mile head gasket problem of the EJ series engines.

Brett Proctor · Dec 25, 2015

ydeardorff said:
If memory serves,...
All subaru 4 cylinder engines from 1989 - 2010 were EJ series engines. In 2011 the new FB 4 cylinder engines were produced fixing the 100K mile head gasket problem of the EJ series engines.

We're not on the same page here Yaughn *laugh*

My comments were more directed at the technology change through the years.

Stuff like different Valve Train setups,Change in Emissions, Different Intakes stuff like that.

When going through the junk yards I see those changes when looking for parts. Something as small as a change in coil design I've seen which results in a change in the engine wiring harness.

As far as the head gasket issue, as far as I'm concerned if you rebuilt the engine or at least replaced the head gasket thats no longer an issue. Its well documented that the head gasket that Subaru used was a poor design and when replaced with the new style that problem goes away.
Even if you buy a JDM engine with low miles it would be a good idea to replace the head gasket with the new style if you got an engine from that era
Ive read that when the head gasket is replaced with the new style the engine is good for 200k-300k miles

Peter · Dec 25, 2015

Used to have problems on a certain engine that was forever blowing head gaskets even after skimming, genuine and after-market didn't make any difference, so made a solid one from 2mm copper sheet and annealed it, end of problem.

islandman · Dec 25, 2015

Brett Proctor said:
Ive read that when the head gasket is replaced with the new style the engine is good for 200k-300k miles

Its been a while since I attempted to by a used car in the UK, and having been scouring the Subaru adverts for the last couple of weeks you seem to be spot on!

I have seen so many Subaru ads for cars still running with 150K (the norm) and some for 223K, 283K etc.. I was amazed. It even got me thinking that if I chose a car that had already done 100K there would still be more than enough life in the engine for the lifetime of my Nova given the mileage it will be driven

islandman · Jan 1, 2016

CANbus....uh oh

OK, so I think I have found an ideal donor car (or so I thought).

I have hopefully secured a 2006 Subaru Legacy R 2.0L Tourer (Estate), first registered in December 2006. Obviously its a UK model. It produces 162 bhp and has done 90,000 miles.

Now I was kind of happy with this until I started reading about the CANbus versus older cars without it. My plans was to use the entire loom, dashboard (hopefully), steering column and gauge cluster at a minimum. So I thought that would make my life simple.

I have now started to read that the CANbus equipped cars use the signal from the ABS as the Vehicle Speed Sensor. Obviously I won't have ABS and hence no sensor inputs etc..

I can't find definitive information on whether the Subaru Legacy had the CANbus system introduced in 2007 or 2006...

Any help, ideas or thoughts.......am I screwed by going for a later motor?

islandman · Jan 1, 2016

may have found a solution Subarugears

Even if I don't know whether I need it or not yet still can't find if the UK 06 Legacy uses CAN Bus-confused*

Brett Proctor · Jan 1, 2016

islandman said:
may have found a solution Subarugears

Even if I don't know whether I need it or not yet still can't find if the UK 06 Legacy uses CAN Bus-confused*

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subaru
New technology

Since the 2005 model year, Subaru has adopted the CAN bus technology for the USA and Canada markets. Starting in the 2007 model year, all Subaru vehicles use the CAN technology.[citation needed] Typically, two CAN-buses are used on vehicles: a high-speed CAN running at 500 kbit/s for powertrain communication, and a low-speed CAN running at 12

Doesn't say for the UK models.

You could see if this site has the service manual for it
https://techinfo.subaru.com/account/subscribe/form.html

Or contact a dealer in the UK and ask them. The service dept should know.

am I screwed by going for a later motor?

I guess you need to ask yourself how complicated you want to make it and do you want those extra bells and whistles

I did some research before I decided on an engine.
It took a while before one came along, but I knew what model and year(s) I was looking for.

Also something I've mentioned before is the amount of wiring that is used to connect all those systems together along with the relays and sensors.

islandman · Jan 1, 2016

Brett Proctor said:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subaru
New technology

Since the 2005 model year, Subaru has adopted the CAN bus technology for the USA and Canada markets. Starting in the 2007 model year, all Subaru vehicles use the CAN technology.[citation needed] Typically, two CAN-buses are used on vehicles: a high-speed CAN running at 500 kbit/s for powertrain communication, and a low-speed CAN running at 12

Doesn't say for the UK models.

You could see if this site has the service manual for it
https://techinfo.subaru.com/account/subscribe/form.html

Or contact a dealer in the UK and ask them. The service dept should know.

I guess you need to ask yourself how complicated you want to make it and do you want those extra bells and whistles

I did some research before I decided on an engine.
It took a while before one came along, but I knew what model and year(s) I was looking for.

Also something I've mentioned before is the amount of wiring that is used to connect all those systems together along with the relays and sensors.

Yes I had already researched as much as I could on the web before I posted, I saw the Wiki entries but as you say it doesn't give clarity on the UK models. The problem is now I have bid on the item and can't retract it.

Does anyone know what this item is circled in the picture below. It doesn't appear on other engines I have looked at :

ydeardorff · Jan 2, 2016

There are many reasons why going for a pre-05 electrical system is important.
I chose an 03 wiring system mated to an 05 motor. Hence no immobilized BS.
The difference is only 4 wires at the engine connectors.
This can be a lot simpler if you modify your search criteria. Look for 04 and earlier models.
Somethings may be different for the UK models. So find out when immobilized systems were put in place. Then look for the years prior.
If your getting the entire car , everything will match and work together just fine.

islandman · Jan 2, 2016

ydeardorff said:
There are many reasons why going for a pre-05 electrical system is important.
I chose an 03 wiring system mated to an 05 motor. Hence no immobilized BS.
The difference is only 4 wires at the engine connectors.
This can be a lot simpler if you modify your search criteria. Look for 04 and earlier models.
Somethings may be different for the UK models. So find out when immobilized systems were put in place. Then look for the years prior.
If your getting the entire car , everything will match and work together just fine.

I'm not so worried about the immobilizer aspect, because as you say everything will come from the same donor car. I'm more worried about systems that I don't use impacting the rest of the car working fine. Plus whether I can get a modified dash to fit as I believe I will need to use all of the controls for the various components (AC Controls, Radio, etc..) to stand a chance of things working

Brett Proctor · Jan 2, 2016

islandman said:
Yes I had already researched as much as I could on the web before I posted, I saw the Wiki entries but as you say it doesn't give clarity on the UK models. The problem is now I have bid on the item and can't retract it.

Does anyone know what this item is circled in the picture below. It doesn't appear on other engines I have looked at :

I believe that is what is called a secondary air pump used for the emission system.
Personally I would stay away from the years that had that. Also take notice on how high that intake sits plus all the plumbing around it.

islandman · Jan 2, 2016

Well done, looks like you are spot on. After some quick research it seems these can be removed and the ports into the head blocked off as they are only used for a few minutes after start-up. But as you say the other plumbing looks more also.

Its a shame as I really liked the look of the dash gauge cluster and dashboard that I was going to try and reuse.

islandman · Jan 2, 2016

Brett, Can you post a couple of photos of the opening of your engine bay deck as I'm trying to get a perspective on how much needs to be cut away for access. Also have you made a new engine cover yet?

pretty please

Brett Proctor · Jan 2, 2016

islandman said:
Brett, Can you post a couple of photos of the opening of your engine bay deck as I'm trying to get a perspective on how much needs to be cut away for access. Also have you made a new engine cover yet?

pretty please

Give me about 20 minutes and I'll get some pictures posted and no I haven't made a cover yet

Brett Proctor · Jan 2, 2016

Let me know if you need more or something at a different angle. Wire rod in some of the pictures was to try and give you an idea of clearance but I don't think it worked out to well.
Coil just clears the rod and the intake tube is out of a 90's era EJ22 subaru and it sits just a little higher than the rod

Engine is factory OEM the only thing that was omitted was the power steering pump but I've been toying with the idea of adding power steering so that maybe put back on. Nothing was added or removed(except for the ps)

Engine is a 1998 EJ25D DOHC out of a Legacy outback Bolted to a type1 transaxle