91 Legacy RS turbo Motor Replacement

[pcchad]

Hi guys,
I have a Jap Import 1991 RS legacy single Turbo .(EJ20)
I have a valve my mechanic thinks has either jammed or bent. The compession is down a bit in one cylinder, the engine goes great at speed, but idles like bag poo!

He tells me it would be cheaper to just replace the motor than crack it open and fix.

Can anyone advise me :
1. Upto what year motor would slot straight in. (ie. can I put a 93 RS motor in? WRX ??? )

2. Any model motors I should avoid?

3. Any mods, or things I sould replace while the engine is out?

Thanks in advance.

[Fishy]

I'm far from an expert but what I've read around here leads me to believe That "legacy" is japanese for "lego". Most EJ motors would fit right in there but some are more desirable than others. If you're boosting I would think a 90-94 EJ22t would be the obvious choice from a price/performance perspective. They're a great solid motor and would bolt right up I'm sure. My friend's legacy went to the graveyard due to a dead 4EAT but the all original EJ22t had 470,000kms on it and was smooth and strong. People around here have had pretty good results sticking some extra boost into them too.

As for mods the sky's the limit... and when I say "sky" I mean "your budget"

While the donor motor is out I'd definately look into changing the timing belt, spark plugs, etc. All those things that get neglected otherwise.

that's my 2 pennies worth anyway. good luck

[Matt Monson]

Actually,
An Ej22T is not a direct replacement. I won't go into all of the details, but it is a firm, NO for a car that is already running an Ej20.

Your mechanic is probably right. You can get 89-94 Legacy Ej20G's from Nippon Motors in CA for $650 plus freight. An 89-93 would be a little more desireable because they were still closed deck, but any of them will work. Also, any '93-96 WRX EJ20 will also be a direct replacement for you. They come with a higher HP rating, but that's primarily tuning.

If you engine is from a manual car, it already has a vf-8 on it which is pretty similar in size to the TD05-16g used on manual WRX's. If either your engine or your replacement engine are from an auto, the turbo will be a fair bit smaller. You can use whichever turbo is the larger when you replace the engine...