Putting a ej22 into a 98 outback

[raymond338]

I have a 98 outback with a blown 2.5 motor but everything else is in excellent condition, AWD 5 spd manual, limited edition leather, the works.

 

I want to switch it to a 2.2L (my personal preference).

 

My wife is currently driving a 1996 OB with the 2.2 and 5spd. It is showing its age and the abuse of numerous previous owners. I would like to fix up the 98 for her.

 

I have a 1997 Subaru Legacy wagon (also AWD manual) with the 2.2. I also have access to a 1992 legacy with the 2.2 and AWD automatic trans.

 

Would one of these be easier to swap than the others? Will the 2.2 bolt up to the 98 MT?

I would prefer to use the 97 or 92 so she can keep driving her car while I do the work.

 

Any info or links greatly appreciated. Just getting started; I have plenty of mechanical experience but havn't done this kind of thing and am looking for some experienced guidance.

thanks!

[idosubaru]

tons of information all over the board.

 

I have a 1997 Subaru Legacy wagon (also AWD manual) with the 2.2.

if this motor has EGR then swap it into the 98 OBW with the 2.2 exhaust manifold as well. bolt in plug and play swap. there's nothing to know about it - remove engine, install engine. keep the EJ25 handy for any extra brackets, etc like for the power steering or A/C but otherwise it's really easy.

 

you can do it even if the 97 doesn't have EGR but you'll have a check engine light for emissions stuff that you really can't get rid of. i did that swap without EGR and swapped the intake manifold, ECU, and cut all the wires for the EGR stuff and still have check engine light. but it doesn't matter in this state so i just ignore.

[Numbchux]

the Outback has dual exhaust ports on the engine.

 

The '97 will have single-ports. So if you use this engine, you will have to swap the exhaust manifold too. But everything else should be plug-n-play.

 

 

I put a '94 2.2 in a '96 outback last summer. Wasn't hard at all, maybe 8 hours of fairly casual work. I had to remove the intake manifold to swap the 2.5 wiring and a few of the sensors across. I also had to swap the 2.5 throttle body, as the throttle position sensor was different. And the crank/cam sensors had slightly different wiring, but swapped right across. Car runs like a champ now!

 

 

With both full engines, you should have everything you need to get it running. But if you want/need to have the check engine light off, you might need to do some figuring for the EGR...