Titan_Omega Posted February 16, 2014 Share Posted February 16, 2014 I'm curious to learn about this car. It's a 2 door impreza that needs new valve cover gaskets and a new ignition switch. Has near 250,000 miles on it. I picked it up for $400. What I'm wanting to know is. From what I've been reading it's an amazing car. Really reliable and built like a tank. Is all of that true and how much life is left in this engine? And when the engine dose decide to give up on life, can a sti motor of the same generation be dropped into it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmdew Posted February 16, 2014 Share Posted February 16, 2014 Life will be determined by how it was maintained. Over 300K is often obtained. It would be a lot of work and Money to try to drop in a Turbo motor. It can be done but the price would far out way the benefits, IMHO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbolt1003 Posted February 16, 2014 Share Posted February 16, 2014 I picked up my 95 Impreza wagon (3) years ago with only 85,000 miles and aside from maintenance issues which were neglected by the previous owner, the car is a joy to drive each day. I've done the entire timing belt kit, new valve cover gaskets, plugs, wires, cam and crank seals and water pump. More recent service were HLA's. I put a set of Dunlop WinterMaxx snows on her and I'm amazed at where this car can go. I thought my Expedition was decent in snow...the Impreza puts the truck to shame. I'd say you found a decent little car there. Keep up on the maintenance and you'll be rewarded with a long lasting car. As lmdew mentioned, 300k isn't an unrealistic number. The early 2.2 engines are bulletproof, from what others have said. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Titan_Omega Posted February 16, 2014 Author Share Posted February 16, 2014 Life will be determined by how it was maintained. Over 300K is often obtained. It would be a lot of work and Money to try to drop in a Turbo motor. It can be done but the price would far out way the benefits, IMHO. What dose IMHO mean and what would be the cost wouldn't it pretty much drop right in and the harness and ECU? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmdew Posted February 17, 2014 Share Posted February 17, 2014 In my Humble Opinion IMHO. Yes the engine will bolt right up, but the trans and drive line is not built for the increased torque. To change the harness you need to pull the complete dash out, and then the STI harness will not plug into the dash connectors so you have to wire each circuit individually. If you want an STI, save your money and buy one. It can be done but the costs is high! Go over to www.nasioc.com and search there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Titan_Omega Posted February 17, 2014 Author Share Posted February 17, 2014 Oh okay well then I'll just leave that engine in it I suppose but is there anything for this car to improve performance I've been looking for just that and I can't seem to find much. If there is a version this car that was turbocharged or some simple tune I can do please let me know. And I'll take a look into that site. I would like to car to be a little faster cause to be quite frank it's kinda gutless. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairtax4me Posted February 17, 2014 Share Posted February 17, 2014 Are you sure it has a 2.2? The early Impreza 2 door usually has the 1.8. Look at the top of the block just behind the alternator at the EJ casting. The number after EJ corresponds to engine size. A set of cams is a cheap quick option for extra oomph on the bottom end. Combine with stuff like intake/exhaust and you get maybe 10-15 extra ponies overall. Biggest power improvement with the least cost would be to drop in a N/A 2.5 or build a Frankenmotor. (2.5 block with 2.2 heads) about $1,0p0-1,500 and you gain 30-50 Hp and torque. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Titan_Omega Posted February 17, 2014 Author Share Posted February 17, 2014 I'm 100% sure it's a 2.2. Where should I go to look for parts for this car.? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fairtax4me Posted February 17, 2014 Share Posted February 17, 2014 For cams get in touch with Delta Camshaft. Deltacam.com We have a member here who makes custom headers for both single port and dual port heads. His website is InfernoFab.com There are other options out there like eBay for intake/exhaust stuff. Andy'sautosport.com has a bunch of stuff. Check places like NASIOC for links to other bolt-on performance parts. Where to get general replacement parts kinda depends on what you need. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted February 17, 2014 Share Posted February 17, 2014 it will always be slow and give meager 0-60 times and quarter mile times. to that end it's not worth modifying except as a learning experience or to play with. if you're in it for the experience or novelty then by all means, tear it up but if you actually want a fast car then i would learn to enjoy this one for what it is - a high mileage reliable mongrel. if you bought a $400 car because money is tight i wouldn't put a dime into performance. use this car to make good financial decisions and get a lot of cheap, reliable miles (which it's easily capable of) - then save and set yourself up for making a different purchase in the future that's maybe more to your liking. but - i'm an oddball when it comes to finances so please ignore this suggestion. most of it's ability to be reliable will depend on prior ownership/maintenance - assuming it's in good shape it could easily go a lot more miles if fluids are properly maintained and it's never run hot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Titan_Omega Posted February 18, 2014 Author Share Posted February 18, 2014 I have plenty of money rebuilding a bmw and a 351c for a 68 fastback. So money isn't really an issue I got the car cause its safer for snow but a little more hp is all I'm really looking for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtdash Posted February 20, 2014 Share Posted February 20, 2014 (edited) HI, The '95 was the cross-over year for Subies...the 2.2 in yours will be an OBD-II car and could easily, IMHO, be swapped to an EJ25D - '96-'99 from a Legacy Outback/GT or '98 Impreza RS or Forester (the DOHC, not SOHC engines). But you'll quickly read on here and elsewhere that they have the INfamous head gasket issue, so you'd need to address that. The Ej25D should be plug-n-play w/your '95, since your EJ22 is a common swap for the EJ25D's that have died...you're just going the opposite direction....It would give you an extra 30HP/Torque, which in that 2-door coupe will wake it up a bit. If you still want to look into a turbo, I'd spend some time on the RS25.com and NASIOC site as there are a ton of Build Threads on just this swap. Many buy the front clip from a JDM importer and swap all of it into their US car....but of course the JDM are RH drive so that's a Gotcha. GL. TD Edited February 20, 2014 by wtdash Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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