AdventureSubaru

Crank and cam seals are known for leaking at this age. Easy to replace while you're in there. On youtube Miles Fox has a good video on replacing these on an EJ22. I second the JB weld with a new key. Make sure that crank bolt is good and tight and you should be fine. Keep a close eye on it for a while. If it fails you wont be any worse off.

yup. And you can swap between the two. An EGR intake manifold on a non egr motor works fine but will throw a check engine light by itself. Splice the EGR tube to the IACV hose and no check engine light. An EGR motor with a non EGR intake just needs the EGR port on the back of the drivers side head capped. You can weld the old hose end shut, cut and cap the tube or there's a part number out there for an oil drain plug of the same thread count that screws in. Just adds an extra step anytime you switch them. But not difficult. i've done them both ways.

All 3 will be at 12 o clock. Depending on tension/belt stretch I've lined them up with the drivers cam pulley just slightly past (maybe 1 or 2 mm) as releasing the tensioner brings it back a tad. Take some pics if you're unsure, we can confirm, but if all 3 don't come to the 12 o clock then it's off.

http://www.rs25.com/forums/f105/t154453-diy-sohc-timing-belt-change-w-pics.html Should get you going.

Hash marks correspond to the notched marks on the timing covers for the cams. (block for the crank) They will be at 12 o'clock. The cam pulleys each have double the teeth of the crank sprocket so you may need to rotate further until all three hash marks are at 12 o'clock.

Welcome. And yes, very helpful and well informed crowd here.

Why in the world would you do this in the first place? Like sticking a fork in an electric socket wondering what might happen. trying to see a sheared clutch disc first hand? Wanting the challenge of a scavenger hunt for increasingly rare EJ22T parts? not trying to kick you while your down, but thrashing and abusing cars like this has a predictable outcome. If we all had a dollar for every otherwise nice WRX we've seen kids quickly destroy because they watch too many fast a furious movies.... Check timing, hopefully this is a simple fix and you'll be kind to your vehicle after this.

If you already have an EJ22 in there then shopping by year is not as important since you can run any 1990-98 EJ22 with your intake manifold. All things being equal I like the 90-96 EJ22s since they are non interference, the timing belt stuff can be stretched/risked more. Worst that would happen is a roadside timing job. I carry spares and have run without timing covers in the past to make it a 15 minute fix in case. 97 and 98 motors are just as reliable but you need to be religious about timing components because if one goes, so do your valves. These also switched away from hydraulic lash adjusters so they aren't usually as tappy on cold starts as the early motors. So depending what you buy - if it's a 90-96 go ahead and re-use the timing stuff. 97-98 get new stuff.

http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/topic/159902-1990-2004-ej18-ej22-ej25-diy-complete-engine-remove-and-reinstall-guide/?hl=%2Bcomplete+%2Bremove+%2Breinstall for the how to stuff if it helps.

What year is the motor you are dropping in there?

Easiest route would be a type of hi flow muffler. Somewhere between stock and a fart can. My experience with Subarus is the more opened up the exhaust is the more gutless the car becomes. The fast & furious movies and such led everyone to believe bigger exhausts = faster cars. I've experienced the opposite with Subies.

far simpler to just run the 98 canister hoses to the front mounted canister. Done it a few times. Not even sure you can splice those two. I think you'd need a 98 coil.

And am I reading this right? Replaced the rings because you didn't do the timing belt correctly?

For Subaru get NGK wires. I've found ebay to be a bit cheaper than rockauto.

around here the SOHC EJ20 is a phase 2 motor. (For 99 and above only) The electronics are different between the two and the intake manifolds can't be swapped. Unless there was an EJ20 Phase 1 offered in Africa, it probably does not fit. The EJ22 is a very easy motor to do the head gaskets on. Head resurfacing is not necessary. Just clean all the gasket material off and follow the torque sequence. If your motor has only been run hot, not fried, redlined for prolonged time or seized from overheating, the easiest and cheapest fix is to just replace the head gaskets and drive. You can re-use the head bolts. You can re-use the intake and exhaust manifold gaskets if you are careful and they are in good condition. here in the states I can do a head gasket job on one for about $50. You dont even have to take the valve covers off. A timing kit is recommended at this time though unless you know it's rather new. http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/topic/159902-1990-2004-ej18-ej22-ej25-diy-complete-engine-remove-and-reinstall-guide/?hl=%2Bcomplete+%2Bremove+%2Breinstall here's about everything to know. The only "special" tools are a 12 point 14mm socket for the head bolts, and a torque wrench. Pull the motor. Remove intake manifold. Remove timing covers and belt. 12 14mm head bolts and it's all apart waiting to be cleaned and put back together. Simple job.

There's a big gray area in there. You can pull the timing covers and look by the cam seals to see if the plastic started melting. Sure sign that the engine should be done. I got one once that had melted both and seized, Partly for kicks and partly to move the car until I got a replacement motor to drop in, I did get it running again. These EJ22s take a lot more abuse than the later EJ25s. If you're up for a little gamble, you can probably buy the short shopping list of 2 head gaskets, intake and exhaust manifold gaskets and be on the road for less than $100. Might last 100 miles or 100,000+ (I've also gotten away with being careful with existing intake and exhaust gaskets and re-using them. at your own risk but repeating that job is easy) As mentioned, a PicknPull or similar motor is another good option. Sometimes an equal gamble. Or car-part.com to at least get a 90 day warranty. From what you described - if it was me - I've had good luck in just fixing and driving them again. Done several EJ22s with failed head gaskets and at least one of them was run quite hot. I've not had one fail since. But that's just me. That could just be luck. And I'm also not bothered by the prospect of having to rip it all apart again. It's fun for me most of the time. Other's will live with a sense of dread not knowing what may happen with a questionable motor. So take it for what it's worth. I'd fix it, drive it and see what happens. If it fails later, you're out some time and $100 but you now know first hand how to swap a motor and do head gaskets on a Subaru.

As I see it, there's usually no reason to get past the heads. As soon as you've gotten to the point of tearing down the block, it ceases to be worth it, both in cost and reliability. The relatively long life of most of these motors makes a used short block a very dependable option and it's both cheaper, takes less time, and (unless you're GD or someone like him) probably going to live as long. Lockett - Take GDs advice to heart here. The man does this for a living and has been doing so for a long time and has a great rep. See his post count? That's an awful lot of free, and very well informed, advice that he didn't have to give to any of us. As mentioned, it's a great learning project, but you better have a plan B. Especially if you aren't replacing your rod bearings, you wont be driving that motor for long, even if you do get it running smooth. You'll start hearing the knocking sound just in time for it to punch a hole through the top of the block right behind the engine stamp. When you can get a good EJ22 for 300-500 and have clear skies ahead for a long time, not sure why you would want to be a glutton for punishment.

It being a DOHC you're so much better off with a good Ej22 anyway. Easy way is one from an automatic transmission car so EGR all matches and wont throw a check engine light. Any motor that's been run until is seizes is a gamble. A subaru motor abused in such a way is either scrap metal or a boat anchor.

If the wires are old I'd replace them anyway. they are good preventative maintenance. All those codes at once would more likely be coil. I've got some coils laying around too. They aren't a real common fail point so a good used one is usually the way to go. let us know the year/engine or part number of your coil and one of us can probably set you up.

The axles can't handle that much lift without the accompanying body lift as well. 2 inches is about the max. Trailing arms would be fine inside of 2 inches depending on tire size. I don't think the spring perches allow for a big enough tire to rub though after 2 inches of lift.

Yeah. If it is pushing exhaust gasses into the coolant and bubbling into the overflow it can only be head gaskets. The fix part is subjective. You need to answer the question of just how hot it got. If it was a temp gauge climbing a couple times but not redlining, you are probably okay. If it hit the redline for a short time, you can roll the dice and probably be alright in a phase 1 2.2. If it ran in the red for a while, you probably want a new motor. If it didn't go too crazy with the heat, the good news is these are pretty easy to do head gaskets on. Here's my remove and reinstall guide and one of Miles Fox's videos for torquing procedures. http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/topic/159902-1990-2004-ej18-ej22-ej25-diy-complete-engine-remove-and-reinstall-guide/?hl=%2Bcomplete+%2Bremove+%2Breinstall I've done them in about 8 hours. Phase 1 EJ22 is the only motor in which you can get away with not resurfacing the heads. Just clean them up very well with light grit sandpaper. Others will say to resurface them. It certainly wont hurt. I've done probably 8-10 ej22 head gasket jobs without resurfacing and no repeat failures. You'll need a 12 point 14mm socket and a torque wrench (I've been just fine with the one from harbor freight) Use Felpro head gaskets as they are made by subaru. $25. each. the head gasket DIY job by itself is a $50. job. But now is the time for a water pump since yours is in question, and timing kit if due. it takes a day - two if it's your first probably. But it's a cheap job and no one part of the sequence is really that difficult. So many of us on here have done several or hundreds of these that we can coach you through it if you need anything or hit any snags. I tell folks that if they can do their own brake pads, they can follow the instructions to do a motor swap/head gaskets on these Subarus

What year/model is your car? No subaru motor takes well to overheating. If it was that bad, you were probably asking for trouble by trying to fix that motor rather than replace it from the start. You've probably got cooked rod bearings in there and posibly cracked head. If it's the 96-99 DOHC EJ25 then as mentioned, finding a good 95-98 Ej22 and replacing it usually lands you with many more reliable miles for the buck than replacing the 2.5 - these early 2.5s were known for their head gasket failures and weak rod bearings. Not a terrible motor, but next to the 2.2 of those years often did not live half as long. If it's the newer SOHC Ej25 then find another one of same generation. The JDM EJ20 SOHC motors can be had cheap and aren't bad. But they are a step down in HP and require a tad more cobbling together to drop it in. car-part.com is a good place to start hunting.

Looks great. Well done.

That's what I had to do on my old Impreza. I cut a square out of the top with a cutting disc and clamped it with vice grips.

We do have a lot of members on here in that region. I'd grab the tools and head over if you were in my neck of the woods. Try and get a handle on what's going on. After it's cooled, check coolant levels, start it up, check for leaks, Check circulation to suggest a blocked radiator or bad thermostat. you can gut the thermostat and run it open short term to get you home if need be. Once you're sure it's full and burped look for air bubbles flowing into the coolant reservoir to tell you head gaskets failed. Any issue that is not head gaskets is only a couple minutes to a couple hours to fix. Easier for someone to come help if they know the job they're headed for.