legacycentral bbs

As some my know, I'm on the last few yards of an engine build. And as usual, the second guessing has set in. But I think this exercise might have some merit.

Theoretically, would my built 2.35 stroker net me a complete STI engine swap?

My motor will be:
EJ22T shortblock, professionally machined for #5 thust
EJ25 phase 2 crank
Pauter rods
Custom CP forged pistons ~8.5 compression ratio
Coated ACL bearings
Shortblock professionally built by Millenium Motorsports
Clearances set to about 350 HP, can be honed .5 thousands or so for a 500HP capable block

EJ20k heads, refreshed
New water pump and oil pump (Oil pump type undecided ATM)
MLS head gaskets (Stock or Cometic undecided)
Complete EJ20G intake manifold setup
STI 550cc sidefeeds w/proper rails
Stock 90 degree TD05
Stock exhaut manifolds and catless uppipe
Choice of WRX black slanty intercooler (clears clutch resevior), STI silver slanty intercooler, '06 WRX intercooler or Legacy air/water intercooler.
Apexi PFC, not custom tuned
Apexi boost control kit
Apexi Powerflow intake
Choice of EJ20G JECS AFM or Z32 Nissan AFM.
WRX EJ20G wiring harness, possible merge labor
EJ22T to 4 channel ECU jumper harness
Choice of 2 channel or 4 channel ignition setup


So, could I sell the whole thing, ready to run, for enough to get me a complete, ready to run, STI EJ257 swap? Complete engine w/manifolds, intercoler and turbo. Wiring harness, ECU, AFM/airbox etc.?

Not completely seroius yet, but my mind is wondering. I'm not sure I can afford to get the current build in the car and still have the scratch leftover to properly tune it. My goal is, and has always been, about 300HP. Either motor will provide that, and the STi swap will save me a bit of money because I can merge the harness myself and run the OEM tune.


Again, just investigating options. Thoughts?

Id say build your engine, not an sti swap... because your engine, even if you have to spend more time saving for proper EM will be able to handle more power for longer than an STi swap that was used previously. And you never really know how the engine was treated, and then you'd want to "refresh" the sti engine, which means, new seals, new headgaskets, rings, bearings... which in the end, ends up costing you double what you could have spent by building a sweet 2.35 DOHC stroker... And you could then spend the extra money saved from building your own motor on a standalone that would allow you to tune it however you want to and give you wayyyy more flexability than a sti engine, harness, and ecu.

Link to full sti swap w/out turbo

Sti Swap $5350 not including turbo and uppipe or cost for any refreshing.

Built Motor.

22t block... assuming you already have...
ej257 crank - $150 from Subaru
headgaskets - $56 from subaru
Bearings - $76 from Subaru (Crank Main only)
Rod Bearings - $76 (lets just assume they are the same as crank for arguments sake.
Pistons - $600 (not sure how much exactly they are, if i were you I'd buy Wiseco Stroker Pistons, but thats just me)
Eagle Rods - $500
20k heads - Im guessing you have them, if not $300 plus 500 to have them refreshed
20g intake mani - $100... or go cheaper and buy an ej25d one that already has fuel rails for $50-100
Intake Mani Gaskets -$14 from subaru
Oil Pump - $150 from Subaru for an STi
Water Pump - $150 from subaru for an STi
Timing Belt - $60 from Subaru
Exhaust gaskets - IDK so lets just say... $50?
vf48 - $500
Assorted O-Rings and other seals - $150
Pride in Building your own Mega Motor - Priceless


Total cost ish for the ej235k = About 3475-3600 not including EM

That leaves you with $1500+ For Proper Engine Management...

A Link G4 Extreme ECU is about $1900... Now of course that doesnt include tuning, but its just about the best out there.

Cliff Notes:

STi Swap - $5300 for just motor and no turbo
Fully Built 2.35L - approx $3300 before price of EM, oh, and you did it yourself, and its wayy stronger than an STi Motor.

(and I know I didnt go with your rods, but thats just cuz I'm lazy and dont feel like finding prices... and didnt go with Coated Bearings... because my friend has revved to 8k on a built 2.2L w/ stock subaru bearings... and he has about 30k miles on his shortblock, over the course of about 2-3 years of daily abuse... oh and the things from subaru are priced at what I pay...)

Holy crap... I'm completely retarded... um yea... I totally missed the point of your post... For some reason it registered as "Should I buy an STi Swap, or do this build"

Not, should I sell my build and get an STi Swap.

Um in that case... Your engine is better, keep it, run it, enjoy it.

Keep in mind a few things. First and formost, at 300HP, the Stock STI motor will most likely last alot longer than a built motor with forged pistons. This has everything to do with stock clearances and materials. Cast pistons, especially OEM hypereutetic, have a noticably lower expansion rate, so can be run with very tight piston to wall clearance. This prevents rocking, and as such the rings will have a much longer service life.

Second, a 300HP STI motor is running it's stock, warrenteed, tune. Nothing will "go wrong" and pop an expensive motor while testing and tuning. I've been around long enough to know that things like that can, and do, happen.

Coated bearings were the preference of the engine builder, and for the ~$40 difference, it can only help. In fact, everything about the build is "overdone". That's one of the reasons I threw this out there for disscussion. Other then the (correctable) machined clearances, this is a 500-600HP block. Maybe it should get the chance to see it? I cannot, and will-not, afford to build "the rest of the motor" to 500HP. You know, the expensive parts.....turbo, fuel, intercooling, HEADS, EM and tuning. As we all know, once you start targetting 400+HP, the shortblock becomes a "minor" expense.

As you figured out I already have my EM in place, but I wanted to comment on your comment that aftermarket EM gives more flexibility. For a OBD1 ECU, like our EJ22T or EJ20G, yes aftermarket hold a significant advantage. But when talking about an STI swap, the OEM ecu is just about the best you can get, unless you want "racing" extras such as anti-lag or launch control. The OEM WRX/STI ecus are generally considered to be much better than the aftermarkets in drivabilty. They have much better adaptivness to unusual conditions, such a knock stratagies. They are even programmable for free. Unless you need non-OEM "features" I would trust the OEM ECUs to save your motor from unexpected conditions far more than a Hydra or such.

Either way, it most likely doesn't matter. I can most likely run my current build very conservatively/safely at the limit of the TD05. That alone negates most of the reason to do an STI swap instead.