Ej22 Questions

[firstgenwagon]

Hey I have a 1990 Legacy L Wagon and I was just wondering if theres a parts list or what parts would be needed to turbo it (with an intercooler if possible). Would it be more beneficial to just keep searching for an EJ20t or could I get some power out of an EJ22t? Its going to stay as a grocery getter for now, so Im not looking to get any insane numbers.

Heres what Im starting with:

[asc_up]

Personally, I'd import an EJ20G from Japan. They usually have less than 40k miles on them and come stock with at least 220hp. Most of the auctions I see on e-bay also have the manual transmission with them and complete wiring harness.

In my eyes, that's the easier and 'safer' way to go. You will have a semi-new engine and newer transmission; instead of an 18 year old turbo'd NA engine and old transmission that might not be able to hold the power output you want. Plus you'd have to invest in some sort of engine management.

That's just my opinion. The whole setup can be had for $1,200 shipped to your door.

[keirnna]

They usually have less than 40k miles on them.

This is a giant lie/myth. I have seen one Impreza in over 5 years in Japan with only 40,000 miles on it. Every other one had over 70,000. My V4 STI has 257,000 KM on it and it is 5-6 years newer than the first Imprezas that rolled off the line. I would never believe anyone that tried to sell me a swap with only 40,000 miles on it because they are totally full of shit 90% of the time.

I do agree that an EJ20G is a good swap to go for and I wouldn't put more than a $1500 into such an old wagon. I would upgrade to 02+ WRX coilpacks when you do the swap as outlined here: http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthr ... ?t=1192028

If you are mechanically savvy you could also turbo your car by swapping heads to lower your CR to a more turbo ratio. I have a friend who is doing that with great results in his Impreza. If you are not up for swapping head gaskets it might be something you don't want to mess with.

[skid542]

Welcome to the BBS.

If you really want to convert over to a turbo setup you are stepping into a pretty large project. This has been covered very indepth both on the BBS message board and also on the main LegacyCentral.org website. You can find a detailed parts list and 'walkthrough' that a gentleman named Josh, Legacy777, wrote up.

To give you a start though you're looking at of course the turbo, the exhuast from the headers all the way back. You will also need a turbo cross-member as your NA will not allow the up-pipe to clear. You will have to pull the motor in order to get to it and change it out.

You won't need full piggyback/standalone EM if you're running low boost. There are several people here who've gone down the same path as you - search for posts by Doug Vincet has he has lots of history boosting the NA motor. You will have a higher than ideal compression ratio with this setup, but it is doable at low boost levels. You will also have to address your injector size but a simple swap would take care of that.

Your drivetrain will be a concern. If you're running with a 5spd you'll probably be in pretty good shape with a new clutch. If you've got an auto... you might be flirting with danger as it'll burn up the clutch packs a bit quicker, particularly on a car that already has some miles.

If you have medium mechanical skills you can pull this off, just be patient.

Hope this gives you a good start. If you're serious about this, do a lot of reading up/asking questions as there is a wealth of info to be had around here.

*shameless plug* I'm currently in the process of parting out a 92' turbo so if you really want to go this route, I have the exhuast, turbo, crossmember, fuel rails, injectors, etc.

[firstgenwagon]

Yeah the general consensus seems to be towards the EJ20, but I also forgot to mention that this car was FREE (got it from mother, who upgraded to a forester). It has only 77k orig miles and the auto trans was rebuilt less than 5000 miles ago by a trans shop. (I know, I know, the auto trans has got to go). Not to mention that I know the history of this engine, and know it hasn't been beaten on.

I've never done a head swap on one of these boxer engines, but I have done them on 4cyl VW engines. Is it terribly difficult? Do they make some sort of Bentley or Hayes manual for the first gen cars? I'm sure with a writeup or technote I could pull it off. What sort of CR should I be aiming for with a turbo?

Whats the recommended standalone? MSnS-e? Is there something better out there?

Side question, if I make the swap to Synthetic oil in it what would you recommend?

[asc_up]

The head swap is pretty straightforward. Granted, the heads are on the sides of the engine, instead of the top like a VW, so it can be a little more of a hassle. I went out and bought a Haynes and Chilton manual for this car, because there seem to be discrepancies between the two and if one seems wrong, I turn to the other.

For standalones you have quite a few options.but if you want to go the cheaper way you'd be able to get away with using a Perfect Power 6 for a piggyback.

And on your side question, I use Mobil 1 Full Synthetic.

[Arctic Assassian]

if you want to go the cheaper route, you buy a megasquirtand make it your self, then tune with that. forget brand names, if cheap's your game, megasquirt is the only way.

[keirnna]

if you want to go the cheaper route, you buy a megasquirtand make it your self, then tune with that. forget brand names, if cheap's your game, megasquirt is the only way.

Have you ever used a megasquirt? I haven't heard good things from anyone who has and had prior experience with anything that didn't suck balls.

[keirnna]

I also like the PP6 for this.

[BXSS]

Funny, I did a turbo conversion to my OBS when I got it 4 years back & the first thing that went was 2nd gear on the 5spd tranny.
I think a freshly rebuilt auto with a external air-air tranny cooler plumbed inline with the cooler in the Rad should hold up to low N/A conversion boost levels fine.

My buddy fabbed custom up/dn pipes for me to use on the stock NA "y" pipe on my single port OBS.
If your car is dual port you can use a turbo manifold + up/dn pipes on a notched or turbo x-member with a VF11 (nice N/A friendly base boost level of 5psi + instant spool).
I bet Blackbart has all of that stuff lying around.

I can't think of any PI sohc heads that will lower compression of a 2.2l, but DOHC EJ20G big c-chamber heads will drop the CR ALOT.

That wagon actually looks pretty straight & will probably come back to life if it were buffed with some sort of LIGHT-CUT compound / foam pad & @ 77K it is probably one of the lowest milage ones around.

[keirnna]

How do you guys manage the oil return hardline?

[BXSS]

Oil Feed can done by tapping the rear oil journal, "T'ing" the oil pressure switch up front, or "T'ing" a line from an external oil cooler like I did.

Oil drain can be done by tapping the oil pan on PI cars, or tapping the V-cover on PII cars.

I routed coolant to the turbo by connecting the turbo (in) to the t-body coolant line (out) & going out of the turbo to where the t-body hose was originally connected.

You could also probably retrofit the OEM ej22t Oil/coolant feed / drain onto ej22e heads, but I have not done this so can't say for sure.