92 Legacy Turbo aiming for 300hp

[VilleV]

Hi I'm new to these cars, actually I've never driven a boxer before however now to my question I'm about to go and look at a 92 legacy Turbo in satin black, and I was thinking of boosting it up to about 300hp what will I have to do? any reply's thankful
/Viktor

[kimokalihi]

A LOT. 04 STI packs 300hp at the crank and it's got a 2.5L engine, much bigger turbo, DOHC heads that flow much more air than your SOHC heads, 525cc injectors vs 370cc (I think) and OBD2. Not to mention if you get up to those numbers you're going to break gears so you'll need the STI 6spd swap. All in all you'd probably be best off buying a WRX instead. You won't have 300hp but you will save a lot of hassle trying to get there and probably money too in the long run. To swap the STI drivetrain and powertrain into your car would run you probably $9K along with the dash and ECU and harness.

You can get 220hp at the crank on the EJ22T with a bigger turbo, 440cc or 525cc injectors, DOHC head swap, 3" exhaust and a Rob Tuned ECU. Guessing around $1,200ish.

[MikeyMeyagi]

You can get 220hp at the crank on the EJ22T with a bigger turbo, 440cc or 525cc injectors, DOHC head swap, 3" exhaust and a Rob Tuned ECU. Guessing around $1,200ish.

you can actually get closer to 300whp with those mods depending on turbo size and intercooler effiency

[cj91legss]

A LOT. 04 STI packs 300hp at the crank and it's got a 2.5L engine, much bigger turbo, DOHC heads that flow much more air than your SOHC heads, 525cc injectors vs 370cc (I think), much bigger turbo and OBD2. Not to mention if you get up to those numbers you're going to break gears so you'll need the STI 6spd swap. All in all you'd probably be best off buying a WRX instead. You won't have 300hp but you will save a lot of hassle trying to get there and probably money too in the long run. To swap the STI drivetrain and powertrain into your car would run you probably $9K along with the dash and ECU and harness.

You can get 220hp at the crank on the EJ22T with a bigger turbo, 440cc or 525cc injectors, DOHC head swap, 3" exhaust and a Rob Tuned ECU. Guessing around $1,200ish.

i was thinking more like over 200whp.

most of us that have done the dohc swap, almost see 200whp

[Legacy777]

you can actually get closer to 300whp with those mods depending on turbo size and intercooler effiency

I think 300 whp may be a little bit of a stretch. The STi 550's are really close to maxing out around 300 chp. You may be able to get a little bit more out of them....


To the OP, I would echo Kimo's thoughts on just getting a WRX as it is a lot easier to put on upgrades for power. If you're set on a turbo Legacy you can go down the robtune ECU path with supporting upgrades. I think Kimo's costs are rather light, but that's me. A good rule of thumb is you can expect to almost double whatever you've budgeted. There's always little things that come up and add up.

[VilleV]

Is there any difference between the US model and an EU model? The car i'm looking at has 200hp stock and an upgraded ECU with 3" exhaust from the turbo, and is supposed to have 230hp today.

[kimokalihi]

That is assuming a 20 year old car still pushes out it's stock numbers, which it won't. The JDM and euro versions had a different engine and air-to-water-intercooler.

The DOHC 2.0 liter turbocharged 217 bhp (162 kW; 220 PS) EJ20G engine was introduced in the Japan-spec Legacy RS in 1989 and later used in the Impreza WRX when it was introduced to Japan in 1992. International versions of the Legacy turbo were offered the DOHC 2.0 liter engine with a water-cooled intercooler starting with 1991, with a manual transmission only. The USA-spec EJ22T SOHC 2.2 liter 163 bhp (122 kW; 165 PS) turbo was not offered the water-cooled intercooler when it was introduced to them in 1991, and was available with either a manual or automatic transmission.

[kimokalihi]

A good rule of thumb is you can expect to almost double whatever you've budgeted. There's always little things that come up and add up.

You can say that again!

[evolutionmovement]

I always triple.

[Legacy777]

Sounds like you just need to up your budget

My solution is just not to make a budget

[MikeyMeyagi]

you can actually get closer to 300whp with those mods depending on turbo size and intercooler effiency

I think 300 whp may be a little bit of a stretch. The STi 550's are really close to maxing out around 300 chp. You may be able to get a little bit more out of them....


To the OP, I would echo Kimo's thoughts on just getting a WRX as it is a lot easier to put on upgrades for power. If you're set on a turbo Legacy you can go down the robtune ECU path with supporting upgrades. I think Kimo's costs are rather light, but that's me. A good rule of thumb is you can expect to almost double whatever you've budgeted. There's always little things that come up and add up.

my car makes 290whp on those mods

[evolutionmovement]

My problem, like Abner Doble, is an adherence to quality and I upgrade as I go from my original spec. My bike was probably the only thing I've built that only went over budget by 10%. But that was also because I wouldn't allow myself a couple of upgrades.

[Legacy777]

my car makes 290whp on those mods

You are probably a rarity then....

[snailslow]

my friends makes 300whp with a v39 and those mods too.. 250whp isn't hard to get with a bigger turbo and a few mods

[cj91legss]

I believe Jake made around 270whp with a td05, stock ecu (no chip) 440s and 20G heads