96ImprezaB Posted May 31, 2005 Share Posted May 31, 2005 Hey all, I'm new here and this is my first post on here so bare with me. I recently came into a '96 Impreza 1.8 5spd, given to me by my bro in law. It's got a lot of highway miles on it, but it runs like a champ and only has a few minor problems, brakes, exhaust, cv joints and some dents. I'm not looking to make the car tear up the streets, but more sportier. I can't really afford to do an engine swap, and where I live its hard to find a 2.5 for decent money. Are there any mods I can do to it as it is now? I'm looking to cover everything from suspension to wide body kits if there are any available. Any help would be awesome. NT Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cougar Posted May 31, 2005 Share Posted May 31, 2005 Welcome to the forum. Hope you enjoy the new ride and being a member of the Soob family as much as the rest of us here. In case you didn't know it, there is another site you can look for help that is mainly for Impreza owners. Here is a link for you to use: http://www.nasioc.com/ There is great info available from both of these sites and has members that are always willing to help out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simpreza2 Posted May 31, 2005 Share Posted May 31, 2005 Welcome to the boards. As in your case theres not too much for the ej18 engine but all of the 1st gen impreza suspension parts are interchangeable and along with some wrx stuff like brakes, sway bars and wheels. Also if you havent found NASIOC.com you can check them out too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edrach Posted May 31, 2005 Share Posted May 31, 2005 I believe the 2.2 engine would swap relatively easily; I'm not partial to the 2.5L since I don't like interference engines. Welcome to the board and good look with the Impreza. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GLCraig Posted June 1, 2005 Share Posted June 1, 2005 I believe the 2.2 engine would swap relatively easily; I'm not partial to the 2.5L since I don't like interference engines. Welcome to the board and good look with the Impreza. Hey Ed, when they changed the valve angle in the EJ22 heads, it became a interference engine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamal Posted June 1, 2005 Share Posted June 1, 2005 That was in 97, btw, and the higher compression pistons also have to do with it being an interference engine. If you're swapping engines, you would also want to use a 96+ engine because it's ODB II. Short of an engine swap, you're not going to be able to make much more power. There are a few places that will do a WRX driveline/brakes/suspension/dash swap for about $6500 (good condition used parts included). Aerosim in SoCal is one of them. Please, please, don't do a widebody kit, most of them look like crap unless you want to spend a lot of money, and do as little as possible to the exterior of the car aside from a set of nicer OEM Subaru wheels (used WRX wheels and tires run about $200-$250). Every thing else will look all ricey. I suppose 2.5RS bumpers and sideskirts wouldn't be too bad. I'd suggest putting in WRX wheels and suspension. It will make the car much more fun to drive, although it won't be any faster. You could probably find all the parts on the nasioc classifieds for around $500. The hardest part about installing them is renting a spring compressor to change the rear strut tops. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
96ImprezaB Posted June 1, 2005 Author Share Posted June 1, 2005 Thanks very much for the input fellas. Its been a very big help. I think I'm going to sit down, think things over and start to price stuff out and then decide what I'm gonna do. NT Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JT95 Posted June 3, 2005 Share Posted June 3, 2005 I'm kinda new to Subaru too, so I can't give you any Subaru-Jedi wisdom for power. As far as the look, get a set of used WRX wheels from someone who bought aftermarket ones. Do some custom work to your grille/nose, but don't go all crazy with body kits. You might want to put an intake kit on the car. You might want to check with MSD and see if they have anything for your engine. That might give you a little bump in power and gas mileage. http://www.msdignition.com/1support.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
96ImprezaB Posted June 8, 2005 Author Share Posted June 8, 2005 Any of you lads fancy telling me what a distribuorless ignition is? I'm just curious. NT I'm kinda new to Subaru too, so I can't give you any Subaru-Jedi wisdom for power. As far as the look, get a set of used WRX wheels from someone who bought aftermarket ones. Do some custom work to your grille/nose, but don't go all crazy with body kits. You might want to put an intake kit on the car. You might want to check with MSD and see if they have anything for your engine. That might give you a little bump in power and gas mileage. http://www.msdignition.com/1support.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cougar Posted June 11, 2005 Share Posted June 11, 2005 Here is a link you can use that tells the story pretty well. http://www.innerauto.com/Automotive_Definitions/Distributorless_Ignition_System/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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