99gtott Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 Hello again, A few weeks ago I bought a 1999 lego with a bad ej22 phase II, it has a horrible bottom end knock so i've been looking for a doner motor. Then this last sat i found and bought a rolled 2001 outback with a 95K mile ej25 phase II. Does anyone know if this is a direct swap or will i need to also swap the intake or anything else? Also i will be breaking the 2001 outback if anyone wants tranny, suspension, head/tail lights or anything else.. Thanks for the help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 Use the EJ25 short block under the EJ22's heads. It's a well documented upgrade - high compression and makes somewhere around 180 to 200 HP. We call it the "frankenmotor". They talk about it on NASIOC all the time. GD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gloyale Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 Use the EJ25 short block under the EJ22's heads. It's a well documented upgrade - high compression and makes somewhere around 180 to 200 HP. We call it the "frankenmotor". They talk about it on NASIOC all the time. GD I think the Phase II heads are the same so there wouldn't really be any reason to swap heads. The franken motor is phase I 2.2 heads on a 2.5 block. He should be able to swap just intakes and be done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
renob123 Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 I think the Phase II heads are the same so there wouldn't really be any reason to swap heads. The franken motor is phase I 2.2 heads on a 2.5 block. He should be able to swap just intakes and be done. From what I've read, the frankenmotor is any phase 2.2 (or 1.8) heads on any phase 2.5 block. People with Outback Sports do it, and they have phase II heads, I think. I was also under the impression that the 2.5 heads flowed better. Anyway, it would be cool if the intakes matched so he could just add the 2.5 motor, but since we know the frankenmotor works, he could swap just the blocks and leave everything else how it is. I guess it depends on what parts he has to work with. Jacob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 You can use phase-II heads as well. A lot of folks are doing this with OBS's and such that have the phase-II heads. They use the thinner WRX head gasket IIRC. You get the benefit of the roller rockers too and adjustable solid lifters. The 2.2 heads have smaller combustion chambers across the board because the 2.5 is a bored AND stroked 2.2 so the chambers are larger on the 2.5 heads to accomidate the piston traveling much farther - even to the point of actually cresting over the deck on the EJ25D for example. At least that's my understanding. In the EJ world, the only time the Frankenmotor makes sense is if you have a 2.2 vehicle already - then it's just a head gasket job with a short block change thrown in and makes for a really decent performance improvment. Throw in a set of Delta cams and it's a really fun machine that can be built cheap. renob123's engine was just about $700 with a $200 used EJ25D block (90k - from a 2.5RS), totally reworked heads, Delta cams, and a complete reseal. IMO - that's about as cheap as I've seen for ~200 HP on a Subaru. GD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 you're sure it's a bottom end knock problem right? timing tensioners or piston slap on these can sound like a terribly metallic knock too. these new style tensioners are known for this and piston slap is not a big deal...just terribly annoying. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
renob123 Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 IMO - that's about as cheap as I've seen for ~200 HP on a Subaru. I can think of one: But back on topic, the thing about swapping is that if it's feasible, it's better to go with the 2.5 heads because they flow better and will give better performance than the compression bump of a frankenmotor with 2.2 heads. That's often lost on people looking to swap things around. Jacob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
99gtott Posted August 30, 2010 Author Share Posted August 30, 2010 (edited) thanks for the info guys, i kinda want to build and put this motor in my 99 gt but i just finished up putting a low milage 2.2 in it.. i'm actually just looking for a quick swap and sell. if i can just swap the intake and plug it in then i will go this route. anything else i should know? i'm pretty sure about the knock but is there a way to find out if it is the tensioner? thanks again! Edited August 30, 2010 by 99gtott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnceggleston Posted August 30, 2010 Share Posted August 30, 2010 i'm pretty sure about the knock but is there a way to find out if it is the tensioner? thanks again! pull the driver side timing cover and see if it's flopping around. use mechanics stethoscope to isolate the noise. i used a piece of trans fluid hose to locate the loudest place in my engine, but the stethoscope is better and not expensive. the intakes will swap between 99 ej22 and 01 ej25 so that would be the easiest as long as all the other stuff works, ie: tps, iac?? i think, the 01 will not go into the 99 GT since the GT is a phase 1 dohc engine, not sohc like the 01. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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