987687

My 96 with 2.2 and 3.90 final drive 5speed had more pep accelerating. Forget final drive for a moment... With the 3.90 5speed 2nd gear topped out at maybe 50, first at around 25 or so? With the auto first tops out around 35 and 2nd at 60. So that means with the 5speed it would accelerate faster because it needed to go through more gears to get to the same speed. Meaning it was in the powerband more often. Then forget acceleration once the auto shifts into third, hello brick wall. 3rd tops out around 100, it's slow as hell. I'll take a 3.90 5speed any day. That means normal acceleration with the auto it's revving higher, then shifting to a lower not as efficient RPM to get up to speed. The 4.44 doesn't mean anything besides it's better than the auto with the 4.11, and even that has different gear ratios, it has shorter gears to help make up for the longer final drive.

Where did you get the button? I'll take a measurement today and see what I can find.

Actually, the 96 outback with 2.2 has a 4.11 final drive with the 0.78 5th gear, and the GT/OBW/fozzy automatic has the 4.44 final drive.

How do you calculate?

I don't think mine have that either. I'll have to double check. No idea what year my ea81 is, but judging by the momentary ticking after it hasn't been started for a while, it's hydro.

I got this steering wheel a few years ago off a local board member (thanks bratman!). I made a custom copper ring thing so there's a wire for a horn, but I didn't get a button with it. The only other wheel I've ever seen on a subaru like this was his brat, but that one was a smaller button. It had an S on it. Does anyone know where to get a button for this? Or a place if I get a measurement of the opening, where I can order a generic one?

I wouldn't try to weld up the extra holes. There's too much of a chance you're going to warp the rim doing that. To get it hot enough for decent penetration, it's going to warp.

If you swap ea82 front brakes, won't the ea81 wheels not clear anymore?

My 96 5mt got about that. I just figured the auto will be lower because it's an auto. Plugs and wires are new within the last year. Only thing I haven't touched is the o2, so maybe I'll replace that. It doesn't throw a code, but that doesn't mean it's not tired and responding slowly or whatever.

Interesting about testing the fuel in a bottle with water. Never heard of that, I'll have to give it a go! I really doubt it's the knock sensor. When I got the car, the service records showed a new knock sensor just 1500 miles before I got it. So it probably has 35k miles on it now and only 2 years old. When I swapped it to my current engine I cleaned up where it mounts to the block. And checked the sensor, the wire is fine and it's not cracked.

I installed the current engine probably 3 months ago. I made sure I didn't have any vac leaks, fresh air filter, clean MAF, etc. The car is about as peppy as you could expect from a 2.2 auto, it's as fast as other ones. I doubt it has an exhaust restriction. Last year I did three tranny fluid changes with a couple days of driving in between, then I changed the filter and did a 4th. Made sure to use all the positions of the gearselect, etc. It's currently at the correct level with a nice red color. It also leaks a bit (from probably more than one place...). So It gets about 1 fresh qt a month. Front diff got fresh gear oil around the same time, still the same nice color as it was when I changed it. The rear diff has 56k miles on it with synthetic. So that's nice and fresh.

Tire pressures are fine, fuel filter is fine, I've eradicated all fuel leaks.

I have a 98 LGT limited with a 2.2 swap, automatic transmission, and 245k miles on it. It gets around 24mpg, I live in rural nowhere. I make very few stops, but most of the roads are 45-60mph and hilly. So lots of shifting up and downhills, TQ in and out of lock, curves, etc. I was talking to someone who said 25 is unacceptably low for my car with these driving conditions, but I've always just accepted it as somewhat normal. Even if I'm on a long highway road trip (interstate driving), it still gets right around 25. I've always just accepted this is what you get with an old auto tranny car... but is this too low? (and yes, my odometer reads correctly, I have stock size tires, and I know how to do math) If everyone thinks it's too low I'll start checking O2 sensors, etc.

If your car has an automatic transmission, you'll want to get one with EGR.

Drove it, and it made me smile! I've done so much work lately. It's just nice to drive it around I bet you all know the feeling.

Where it's clearanced for the bolts that hold the block halves?

Call machine shops and ask them. They're all different.

Should have specified, 2.5 blocks.

maybe 25d parts. It has dual cam and the stupid bucket shims like the 25d. But the dual cam system doesn't work the same as the 25d one does.

People say you can use the STi gaskets on the ej25D because they're a higher quality MLS gasket that's less likely to blow. Esp. for the franken motor.

I have no idea what this is, but my 96 5mt used to do that. I've never ever heard of anyone else having that issue. When driving in 15mph school zones (which I did every week day for almost 2 years), it would jump around. It started randomly one day, and almost a year and a half later, it randomly stopped. Never caused an issue otherwise, over about 15 or 20 it would work normally. It's been a long time, and I've never heard another account of it.

They top is a turbo, bottom is an SC. Both completely awesome!

My god it turns high RPMs with the auto 5speed swap it :cool: I wish my speedometer worked though....

Do you have a link to said thread? That would be interesting to see.

From that linked site, the stock block they show is NOT a turbo block like they suggest. Turbo blocks are semi-closed deck, which seems to be adequate for turbo use with nice high boost. The turbo engines have crappy pistons and eat those, but they don't blow headgaskets like the NA ones do, because they're semi-closed deck. That's an interesting comparison. It would be really interesting to have an ej18 lined up there too. Probably bigger and beefier like you suggest. There have been some people who've put turbos on them with some crazy high boost, and they held it.