Numbchux

I looked into this this winter.....we had a MNSubaru club member who was living in Japan, and was regularly shipping over cool JDM stuff (mostly grills, wings, fog light covers and wheels). So I had him research EJ D/R trannies, and he came up completely empty handed......

I'm quite certain it could be done. but, as mentioned, EJ series cars are MUUUUUCH heavier. and, you'd have to use an EA trans, which means custom driveshaft, linkage, FWD imp axles, etc. the EA81 is a great engine, but I really don't think it'd be worth the effort.

normally, I trust anything SJR makes.....But my experience has led me to believe differently. I ran about 1.5" of suspension on the front of my AA lifted wagon, and I burned through many axles, almost always inner DOJs and on the freeway. whereas I was also running 2" of suspension in the rear, and didn't have a problem (as long as you don't count the weekend I was running a bit more than 3" and broke 2 rear axles in 2 days)

it's really not. I've done 2 early OBD II harnesses now (one '96 imp EJ22, and another '97 EG33). They're really not any more than the OBD I, all the same wires are there, except it's more important that they're all hooked up (VSS, neutral switch, etc.). only real difference is the location of the plugs on the engine. the OBD I plugs are over next to the battery, which makes it easier to line up with the EA car. but the OBD II ones are certainly do-able. BUT, remember that starting in 1997, ALL subaru engines are interference. so, a little more power, but IF your tbelt breaks you risk substantial engine damage. yes, my '96 imp bulkhead harness would match up to a '96 legacy 2.2 engine harness. wire colors are different, but locations are the same. not sure what 2L you might be referring to. the only 2.0s in the US are WRX turbo ones, starting in 2002. while bolting one up to the trans is exactly the same, you're opening a whole different can of worms with every other aspect of the project. you can get an entire donor car (I'd HIGHLY recommend this!!! you have a better idea of the condition of the motor, and you know you'll have everything) for less than 700 (around here, rusted out but strong running first gen legacies go for 2-300....). if the motor already runs, I wouldn't bother rebuilding. but, while it's out, I'd do: valve cover gaskets (and grommets) tbelt main and cam seals water pump maybe reseal the oil pan (EJs don't use a gasket from the factory....just RTV, but you can get a gasket from any auto parts store. either way works well) and all coolant hoses anything else would be overkill and unnecessary cost (again, assuming you've got a strong running motor, which is virtually impossible to test unless you have the whole donor car).

suspension lift on a subaru means broken CV axles. get yourself a body lift, and SJR makes some really high-quality ones. as for the wheels, they will have a large impact on what kind of tires you can get for what price. do some tire research before you get new wheels.

the internals between an EA82 5MT and the early EJ 5MTs are virtually identical. plenty strong. But I would upgrade from the 4-speed. if you're going to be offroading it, you'll want the dual range and true 4WD from an EA82-series trans, otherwise if it's mostly for street use, just use the EJ AWD 5-speed. although, if using an EJ or EA82t trans, you'll run into axle spline issues. as for the harness, IIRC a new one from subaru is $700 or so . but you may find something used, heck, I've got a '96 impreza Lx 2.2 bulkhead harness here that's without a home. was going to put it into an XT here in MN, but that project fell through.

yes, guys have welded up the viscous center diff (a guy in the Twin Cities did it and pulled his front axles.....RWD impreza!). but you can't run that on the street.

^his '86 RX trans is PT4WD (assuming it's actually an '86 trans, I believe the '87 would be FT4WD). yes, the legacy tranny will be 50/50, assuming that the amount of resistance on all 4 wheels is the same. BUT, if you're offroad, and you have way more traction in the rear than the front (for example), the center diff will slip some, and won't send all the power to the rear. it's far from an open diff, so it will still send quite a bit of power to where it needs to be, but not all of it, and if you're in a hairy situation it definitely might not be enough. and yea, an XT6 clutch is plenty to hold EJ22e power. so, unless you're expecting a lot more power, don't sweat the clutch.

what are you planning on doing with it? if you'll be wheeling it at all, you'll want the locking center diff instead of the LSD. I like my RX lo range for around town, but only because I also have FT4WD. also, the EA82 and EJ trannies are different lengths. so if you use the EJ trans you'll have to have your driveshaft modified again.

why are you asking us? it's your car. I prefer them mounted out.....but that's on my cars.

well, I deliver pizzas in my car. so 400 miles or so a week, all at under 40mph, in town, lots of stopping and going, up and down the hills here in Duluth. and, the car is so damn fun, it tends to spend quite a bit of time at WOT.....but I usually get low 20s. with the short EA82t gearing (RX trans), I get the best mileage at 55-60. took our String Quartet up the north shore for a gig, about a 2 hour drive one way, all at 60mph. and got about 30mpg!

video! a clip of the stumblebee (yellow XJ) on Ski Jump, a clip of the zuk on the same trail, and 2 of it on the log staircase.

no.....a 258 (4.2l) block with the stock 4.0l head (fuel injection!).

http://www.mnsubaru.com

Rota's aren't exactly a light wheel :-\ 19lbs each. but just having 215/45r17 Kumho Ecstas on there makes it handle awesome. and when I was switching them on this spring, I intentionally compared them to my winter wheels/tires, and they're pretty similar. I will be finding lighter wheels for my VictoRacers to run while autoXing

Long story short.....me and my buddy piled into his stock (+31" BFG A/Ts, disconnected sway bar) '89 toy Pickup this last Saturday, and went up to the Iron Range OHV Recreational Area with the North Shore Wheelers for an awesome day of wheeling. unfortunately, we live in the midwest, so we made it through one obstacle, and this happened (and no, I'm not talking about the body): so, we wound up riding with one of the other members. on much more difficult trails than I ever would have tried with a stock yota (or anything with less than 2 solid axles ) pictures here: http://s26.photobucket.com/albums/c108/Numbchux/NSW%20Opener%202008/ favorites: zuki + log staircase - front shocks = XJ + D44 front + ford 9" rear + rear spool + 33" swampers + steep rocky hill climb = oh, and if you didn't notice the carnage on the truck......here's a close-up:

^ that would be the idle air control valve. I'm throwing the same code......

an inch and a half ride height difference isn't going to shift the static weight distribution that much. and the rear doesn't need to slide any more than stock

^ yep, could be. also, I forget if the ECU uses the IAC at all once the engine is up to temp. but you might try pulling it off and cleaning it up.

he's definitely not the first to put some big sexxy wheels on an EA82......this pic is from last fall, but I put these wheels back on about a week ago: lookin good russ!

haven't had a neutral switch hooked up for 30k miles. never happened. just hooked up the VSS last fall (about 15k before that). again, never happened. noticed no difference in the way it ran after the VSS, it just stopped throwing the code. checked the codes? I'd start there. also, what's your exhaust/intake setup? have either changed since you first got it running? if the ECU learns one setup, you can have problems if you change it and don't reset the ECU to relearn. I had a few issues when I changed out my exhaust setup, then I reset the ECU and it got better. what was the EJ donor vehicle?

key word: supposedly. I don't think anyone's really pushed the EA82 trannies that hard. There's one member here that's got an STi EJ257 with a PT4WD D/R trans, but he hasn't posted enough about how well it's held up, and now the car is for sale. But, reddevil (search any subaru forum......) was putting out about 300awhp on his stock '90 legacy 5MT. which has similar internals. something that he says probably helped is stock rotating mass, don't get lightweight pulleys or flywheel. as for the rear suspension. seriously don't bother. the suspension design changed SOOOOOO much from the EA82 stuff to EJ. the amount of fabrication would be insane. you'd be better off building an Ariel Atom from scratch it's been discussed in detail before, search around the retrofitting section for some of the more extreme swap threads. you can use the WRX front stuff, and the rear brakes can be modified to bolt up the EA82 trailing arms. and the stuff that WJM discovered and subardave documented about using Tein Flex coilovers for a new legacy on an EA82. and I've found about using Miata stuff for KYB AGXs. there are all kinds of options. but it's not for the faint of heart!

depends on your definition of nice handling. yea, my car handled awesome on brand-new pavement. but it was so stiff, that the slightest irregularity in the pavement meant you'd loose traction. not to mention, it rode like an old truck. and yes, cutting coils is terrible for handling. when you heat the spring, it changes the temperament of the steel, and usually softens the spring. from my experience the last few months. as far as the alignment/handling relationship is concerned, the back seems to really like being at stock 4WD height. my car has a wicked rake right now (stock WRX springs on FWD legacy struts in the front, Monroe shocks for a subaru in the rear with 12" long 250lb/in eibach springs, riding at least as tall as stock), but handles amazingly. and I don't even have my rear sway bar in yet (waiting on poly bushings....). of course, it helps that I'm on 215/45r17 Kumho Ecstas......but even on snow tires, it was quite nice. cliff notes......lowering an EA82 = cosmetic mod only.

IMHO, don't get an EJ20K. They're expensive, and really not all that interesting. save yourself some money (and time.....OBD I) with an EJ20G (older jdm 2.0t). Or, go all out, do it right and get a wrecked USDM '02-'05 WRX (can be had for ~$5k, a good chunk of that will be made back when selling off other parts). if you go USDM, you'll have the ability for openECU/enginuity tuning, lots of aftermarket support etc. In my experience (I've only been involved to some extent in about 10 EJ20t swaps into GC/GF/BD/BG subarus), anything in between is a waste of time and money. if you're looking into EJ20Gs, look up Garage Tuning or East Coast Swappers, both can easily be found on RS25. they're probably your best source, as you'll be sure to get everything you need (they do subaru swaps....they'll know exactly what you need).

needs moar duck tape