AdventureSubaru

Pretty good video on youtube for the swap. he does it with the motor in the car. I prefer to pull it. It's an involved job but nothing terrible. Be sure to get the heads resurfaced by a machinist and use Subaru OEM head gaskets.

Check to see if the new link is blown now.

I try to take people at their word, so I was assured by the seller that the motor ran fine - no issues. He had bought the car as a donor for the transmission after it had been in a light side collision and sold it to me. My own fault if he pulled a fast one. Would be the second time i've been taken on a Subaru motor, but I'd like to think that most folks aren't such trying to make a buck off of me by selling bad motors as good ones. Subaru crowd in particular. I don't have a leak down kit, but if the other options turn no results, I'll find one. I did not swap crank and cam pulleys. I thought it was 2003 that they changed and that 99 and 2000 should be the same. Did a different swap on a friends car a couple weeks ago putting a 99 Impreza 2.5 into a 2002 outback and it has been fine without swapped pulleys. Maybe different between the Ej22 and EJ25? Good lead in that thread. I had just thought of the injector. I just swapped that out with one from the EJ22. Again no change. Figured it was worth eliminating since it was an easy option. Going to check timing next. Shouldn't I be getting cam or crank sensor codes if timing or pulleys were the issue? Or would the car need to run longer before codes would be thrown?

As the title states. Put an EJ25 from a 2000 Outback into a 99 Impreza OBS replacing the Ej22 in there that had a rod knock. Both Phase 2 motors. The only differences being dual port for the EJ25 which I swapped the y-pipe and the Ej25 has a plug where the vac hose for the cruise control runs so for now I just plugged the cruise vac hose as well. Started up after a little cranking and starts every time afterwards. After running for about 60 seconds I get the flashing check engine light which is P0304 Cylinder 4 misfire on the scanner. Luckily the old EJ22 was running fine so I can swap parts to check. swapped #4 plug wire and reset the code. No change. Swapped #4 spark plug and reset the code. No change. Swapped the coil and reset the code. No change. Next step I guess is to check timing to see if it maybe jumped? Other thoughts of what to try? Spark plug looked well used but not overly dirty. No oil in the plug tube. No external leakage of the head gaskets.

If the car is running well and doesn't have significant rust. (A bit behind the rear wheels is typical for an east coast car) then the $2800 price tag is actually a pretty good deal for the car. As mentioned, a longer more thorough test drive and some time looking over all fluids etc. will give you a pretty good idea if it's been well maintained or not. At $2800 you can't expect perfection, but nor are there any guarantees. Used cars just need some work every once in a while. But those a good motors and these are stout cars. I'd take a neglected subaru over a well maintained Kia any day. Just better design and tougher cars. If/when you do purchase it, just be very diligent during your trip especially since the car will still be "new" to you. Keep an eye on your temperature gauge regularly. Check oil levels when you stop for gas. Check coolant in the mornings when the engine is cold. Those extra checks can tip you off to little issues before they become big issues. But to answer the original question - without seeing this specific car. Would a $2800. 03 Outback with the H6 and 236k on it be a dependable cross country vehicle. YES. Do good research and inspection on it. But if it doesn't give you good reason to doubt it, it's a good option.

99 and 2000 transmissions were both Phase 2. At least any with delayed forward engagement. 99 was the year it all changed. I know 99 foresters and Imprezas were phase 2. Some legacies and Outbacks came with phase 1 motors so maybe some still had phase 1 transmissions.

Avoid the 98 model year as it had the motor with prolific head gasket issues. 99-04 were far improved and especially if you can confirm head gaskets were done once, you should be in god shape. 05+ was better. Personally I haven't viewed the head gasket issue as "resolved" until 2010 models. All three of those vehicles are good candidates on paper. Do your homework and look it over thoroughly to check all fluids. I have bought subarus in excess of 300,000 miles with no hesitation and driven them cross country with no doubts. I've also walked away from cars with only 50k if they appear like they've been neglected or abused/raced. The 03 models will have much higher parts availability and lower price tags in case repairs are ever needed. But all are low enough on miles that they should last you a long time. Remember to do a full timing belt kit at 100-110k

Not much else to do if you're sure it's head gaskets. My recommendation would be a good used motor over the head gaskets on this one. These motors aren't known to fail often. You can probably spend about the same amount with a good used motor with lower miles and spend less time wrenching. Out here they can be readily found for $500-$900. Swap is identical in process to any of the Ej motors. Just a tighter fit. Do spark plugs, wires and valve cover gaskets either way whether fixing this motor or putting a used one in as they're a pain with the motor installed. The transmissions are similar if not identical 4EATs as the other subarus of the era. I think I see a slightly higher fail rate for those with the EZ30 motor. I suspect this isn't a defect in the transmission but simply that the trans is under more stress with a higher HP motor and these higher HP cars lend themselves more to being driven by types who wont be very gentle drivers and thus shorter lifespan. If this car has been driven under good responsible driving habits, I would have no worries about the transmission life. 218k should still have plenty of miles left if maintained. As a temporary "band aid" - blue devil seems to be the one thing that will "fix" a leaking subaru head gasket for a time. Not a long term solution but will buy you time to find a good replacement motor or get the $$$/parts together to fix.

I feel like this thing is long overdue for an update? Anything new or collecting dust?

The fix is dependent on the issue. What's wrong with the transmission? TransX fixes the 99 and 2000 delayed forward engagement issue. Not useful for much else in subarus. Lucas is about the best band aid for slippage but not generally a permanent fix. Most of the time if a trans is just being "goofy" clunking/hard shifts or bouncing between gears/not engaging/trying multiple times before engaging, the first step is changing the fluid as described.

Textbook behavior would be this - With the engine warmed, look inside the coolant reservoir. If you see bubbles coming up from the bottom, it's head gaskets. If nothing, rev the engine a little bit and see if it pushes bubbles out. Same cause, less leak. Good chance it's head gaskets. If so the preferred method is to find a good 95-98 EJ22 motor (90-94 work as well with a 95-98 Intake manifold) and swap it in. With a bit of shopping you can find a good motor for $200-$300 and it takes about a day to swap it in. Or pay a shop the labor to do it. It's a little less horsepower but a far more reliable motor that you would have in there for much less $$$ than replacing the head gaskets in that Ej25. Where are you located? If that's Morgantown Pennsylvania you're about 20-30 minutes from one of the best Subaru shops in the country.

No check engine codes? First thoughts are MAF sensor, loose/broken vac hose, fuel pump

I wouldn't expect the manifold to make a difference. Plug it together and drive. The EJ22 and EJ18 manifolds are nearly the same anyway.

Learned that the hard way myself. It's mentioned in a number of threads but not often enough. Flywheels are the same but the flex plates and torque converters differ.

Sounds like it was blocked injectors or gunk in throttle body/IACV. Seafoam is marvelous stuff.

Yup. The driveway/garage test of some starter fluid sprayed down the throttle body or carb will answer some questions. I expect you're likely to get a Vroom! and then the engine quits. Time for a new fuel pump.

Make sure all the idlers and pulleys and tensioner are replaced. They usually fail before the belt does so swapping just the belt defeats the purpose. If leakage is happening cam and crank seals are a good idea. If not, just do the timing kit and drive.

Looks good. But yeah, gotta tuck that exhaust.

My method is to gently turn the motor by hand. If it hangs up somewhere, back it up and re-time. If you can go a full revolution (2 for the crank sprocket) and all the timing marks align again, you're good to go. And yes, ignore the marks on the belt.

I have a JDM EJ20 SOHC in a 2000 Outback sedan. Good motor. As I recall it's only 10 hp less than the Ej25. (Half the downgrade of the 90s EJ22 swaps) I drive a 2000 Outback wagon with a Ej25 and 5 speed daily. The limited has great pickup and acceleration with the automatic. Only place I notice any difference is on the steepest of hills the power lags just a little faster than the Ej25. (Lets be honest, neither motor is a powerhouse in a full size car) But the EJ20 is otherwise no different and folks seem to have good luck with those JDM motors. Install is easy. Swap the crank pulley and drivers side cam pulley from the original motor so the computer recognizes it. And swap the original intake manifold, sensors and wiring over. Japanese stuff is all different.

EJ25D is the older dual overhead cam motor. You forester would have a single overhead cam. That's why Lstevens was confused. They would have only been in 99 legacy and outbacks but not a 99 forester.

Foresters had swapped to the SOHC motors in 99 along with Impreza while most outbacks still carried the DOHC motor. Hence different part numbers And yes. There were two different timing belts for the SOHC Ej25s. Found this thread while swapping an Impreza motor into an outback. http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/topic/90803-new-timing-belt-delivered-important-information-inclosed/ Sounds like you should be using the B304 (13028-AA181) part vs the 307 for legacy and most outbacks. Although it sounds more like a difference of shape than tooth count.

How many miles? If you have no check engine light the most likely culprits are failing plug wires/plugs, Mass Air Flow sensor, and fuel pump/filter, TPS. (Am I assuming correctly that there's no check engine light?

Yes. Will fit into 1999-2004 Imprezas. You will probably want to swap intake manifold over. I just did the reverse and put a 99 EJ25 SOHC Impreza motor into a 2002 Outback. Wiring was a little different with MAF vs MAP sensors which is why you should swap intake manifold if crossing one to another. Would be pretty much drop in for 2000-2004 Legacy and Outback and Baja through 05. 1999-04 Foresters Possibly some other 05s and newer. A handful of 1999 Legacies and Outbacks got these motors as well. If it came with a Phase II motor (EJ25 SOHC) it is compatible. If it came with the DOHC it is generally not considered compatible although it has been done. In order to fit one into a 98 and earlier you would have to adapt the intake manifold in some way as a bunch of the wiring, throttle body, etc. changed and wont swap between the two. At that point it usually becomes easier to just find a 1990-1998 motor and be done with it. So the easy answer is anything 2000-2004 with a handful of 99s. (Excluding the stuff that came with an EZ30 which would be a lot of rewiring.) The other curveball is that 03 (I think) and newer you would want to swap the crank pulley and drivers side cam pulley from the original motor onto the newer one. TIming marks on the back are different so the computer wont understand the previous ones. Same thing as JDM swaps.

Ha! That devolved quickly. Punctuation aside... 1. Nice sidewall plug. 2. I hope you're not driving that tire on-road. Or at least not at speed of more than about 30 mph. I know folks have done sidewall plugs and patches in a pinch but over time or at highway speeds, that's a ticking time bomb. Any other progress on this build?