I need more powerrrrrr! (NA stuff)

[coffeeman885]

I am wanting to do an engine swap in my car but do to logistical factors and a school that is sucking my bank account dry, it looks like it will be awhile. I know I can go through the back log of posts and piece everything that I need to know together but I am kinda lazy these days so... What can I do that is not too expensive and not too invasive that will give me any noticeable power gains in my EJ22? So far I have added a kartboy crank pulley and put on a magnaflow muffler (Jesus did that surprise me, I was bored and just wanted a little sound out of the car - the throttle response difference was insane though. I now see where people get off saying, "yeah, that exhaust added like 15 horsepower.") I wasn't that concerned with the power issue until one of the guys I race with let me make a run in his 99% stock 2.5RS. I was 13 seconds faster on the course - WTF! So... school me in the ways of the horsepower voodoo. I know somebody has to know some.

(Oh and before anybody says it - I know that my wagon weighs more than his RS coupe. I can't drop weight because I would have to bump up a class and get raped even harder.)

[kimokalihi]

You're really not going to unleash any noticeable amount of power from cheap mods on that engine. It's not a powerful engine. It's old technology. Your best bet would be cams probably. But you said your bank account is low and cams are not cheap. Cheap and power just don't fit together. If they did, the car would come from the factory with those cheap power mods.

So either spend a lot of dough or get used to NA powered subaru. You're road racing? I would highly recommend handling upgrades instead of engine upgrades. Anything that's going to allow you to take corners with less braking will keep your speed up and your times down. Try new struts with stiffer springs and stiffer swaybar. You want a cheap upgrade? 20mm 2002 WRX wagon front swaybar. 50% stiffer than your stock bar. Then get a whiteline 20mm rear bar for $175 and you'll notice the difference right away. Buy good tires (not cheap but it will help your times a lot).

[coffeeman885]

I'm rallycrossing. I am running no rear sway which seems to be about where I want it for oversteer. I changed the struts to GR-2s and I am going to be getting Koni Yellows... sometime (friend is apparently a dealer). I am still looking for a good option for springs. I definitely want to upgrade my brakes but I can't really go anywhere until I start running on 15" wheels (I am on my 14's that I ran on my Neon. I have new tires and I am going to get a season out of them before I spring for new wheels and tires.) I might get some biteier (new word) pads like HPS or HP Plus but that is it for now on brakes. I assumed there wasn't much I could do but I thought I would ask before I gave up on the engine.

[evolutionmovement]

The wagon should be able to handle well. The balance is near 50/50—better than the sedan. I used to be able to pirouette the rear around the nose braking hard to a slow corner without needing much opposite lock to catch it. That's what the gas is for. But I also have fwd, which turned out to be preferable to awd to me since I got better mileage and near stock turbo acceleration. Very rarely missed the extra traction.

[soobrdad02]

I may not have asked for the info, but thanks for the knowledge Kimo!

[coffeeman885]

Looking at some pictures from this weekend I definitely need new springs. I had so much body roll it was ridiculous. I did however get 4th on Sat and 3rd on Sun so I think that the brake and suspension upgrades would be what I need to get to the top. If I hadn't nailed that cone (and I mean nailed it they had to hold start to go find it after I went through) I would probably have had first on Sun - it was pretty close.

Edit: I think I found my power upgrade - EG33. There is a guy I race with that runs a swap and after talking to him I think that is going to happen.

[Baddog]

EG33 is a beast of a motor. With some slight work it is a powerhouse. EFI Logics has an EG33 swapped RS2.5 with 317WHP 287WTQ. You're walking into stage 2 STI territory right there.

Even in stock form it packs a punch. Also get a hold of Delta Cams in Washington. They make cam regrinds that are *cheap* for what they are. With an EJ22 you can make some power out of them just not a lot without spending the money. So if you know what you're getting into then you won't be dissapointed. Sadly the Subaru world is all about boost. *shrug*