Numbchux

tried to post this last night....but the site stopped responding.... I've mentioned much of this, and solutions for most of it. the DBW (drive-by-wire....you'll see this acronym on the big impreza forums) means you'll need to swap the pedal box. which you'll already have to do for the hydraulic clutch. the signal for the tach is the same, you can put the speedo gear from any 5-speed in place of the electronic sensor in the 6-speed. and run the EA speedo cable and speedo. the temp gauge signal will work just like any other EJ swap, the EJ257 still only has an idiot light for the oil pressure....so wire in an LED (or re-use one of the existing idiot lights). you'll need to modify the radiator support to use the STi radiator, but that's been done and documented. the stock DCCD controller depends on the stock ABS system. which you're just not going to retrofit onto an EA car.....but, there are aftermarket controllers specifically designed for non-abs cars (buddy of mine just installed it in his '93 legacy). or, run without it and run with uber rear-bias. the interior stuff is a matter of opinion....I personally like the simple interior with my XT6 seat upgrade. and caboobaroo has just documented STi seats in his coupe. yes, brakes suck stock, which is why I say you MUST go 5-lug. once you've tracked down XT6 rear hubs, you can run the STi brakes at all 4 corners. there are lots of suspension options if you use the EJ front knuckles. anything from full coilovers, to eibach sleeves and KYB GR2s. use some XT6 sway bars, whiteline makes poly bushings. steering is great with good tires. I love the way my car handles! the XT steering rack's quicker ratio helps some....I'm currently talking with L&E fab about making a quick ratio steering column......but that'll be some $$$. only thing you can't solve is the fact that the EA82s have the torsional rigidity of a wet noodle.....but, I think with a little bracing that could be drastically improved. but the other side of that coin, is they weigh less than any EJ series subaru. an EA82 car will easily weigh ~500lbs less than a similarly equipped (tranny, body style...) first gen legacy. you won't be able to please the computer entirely, but with some openECU and/or Enginuity tuning, you can get rid of the check engine lights, and compensate. the STi uses a fuel pump controller, and the best way to deal with this when swapping into a GC impreza body (for example) is to swap the whole STi pump unit into the tank. but the EJ pumps are in-tank, whereas the EA ones are in-line. so you'll have to get a bit creative. and you probably won't be able to use the fuel temp sensor, but that'll just throw a code. an EJ257 can go where an EJ22e was, and an EJ22e can go where an EA82 was. all the information for both swaps has been documented (I've helped or done a couple of each). just put the puzzle pieces together. many people like to buy early imprezas (only thing even close in weight to an EA82, and still heavier by a couple hundred pounds), and STi swap them. that's a similar amount of work. entire suspension, brakes, wiring, drivetrain, etc.

pkd still makes them (although has asked not to be referred to as his own company....just ozified or BYB is fine). http://www.ozified.com allied armament does the occasional group buy, but subaru parts aren't their #1 priority....check out the vendor forum for their stuff. and their site: http://alliedarmament.homestead.com/SubParts.html (you may notice a 'few' pictures of my light blue '88 wagon there...) and SJR, listed above. I say this to everyone interested in lifts. I've had 2 lifted EA82s (both '88s). one with a 3" BYB kit, and the other with a 4" AA kit. and I also ran an SJR rear diff shim on my blue wagon. as well as helped install an AA kit on an '87 EA81 hatch. and I modified my AA kit to mimic what SJR was doing with the front....MUUUUCH stronger! All 3 companies make a great product. high quality hardware, you won't ever have to worry about blocks collapsing or anything like that. BUT, the design varies quite a bit. The BYB kit is pretty simple, pretty much just blocks anywhere that the suspension attaches to the unibody. makes for very easy install, very little modification required. but sacrifices strength and clearance for it. the SJR kit requires the most work to install because you're messing with some of the geometry. BUT, as a result, is much stronger out on the trail. and the AA kit is somewhere between. leaving the rear trailing arm pivot up tight against the unibody (#1 weakness on the BYB kit), but still drops the leading rod brackets (I ripped the captive nuts out of the framerail about 4 times before changing it to the SJR design).

check out the ultimate subaru repair manual here: http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=54 will have the answers to most of your questions. I'd recommend just swapping for SPFI fuel injection from a later EA82. pretty simple swap, and will yield more power, better mileage, and better driveability. and yes, you can swap for rear disc brakes off of a turbo EA82. also a sweet upgrade!

no, there isn't a universal design for seat mounting. But, the basic idea hasn't changed much. so you may find that mounting seats from other cars won't be too difficult. might have to drill some new holes in the rails or seat frame.....but probably nothing too difficult. as for the parts, I haven't had too much trouble finding what I need. if used parts are acceptable, the wanted section here. otherwise local parts stores, dealer, or http://www.rockauto.com (they have pretty much anything you can think of, and pretty good prices too!). oh, and happy first post!!

best way is to find local insurance auctions. find a car that's been totaled, but is repairable. and look for something where most of the damage is in the back.

well, the clutch "linkage" is a cable....the hole in the firewall is already there. and you have to swap the whole pedal assembly.

well, it all depends what motor you get exactly. the later ones are pretty pricey.....but you can get an older EJ20G for a pretty reasonable price, and easily break 300awhp. suberdave is running one in his wagon. downside.....only the USDM ones are the 2.5l.

take it apart....it'll explain itself

indeed. an XT6 clutch will be plenty with adequate gearing (which you will have). and there are aftermarket options as well. stick with the EA tranny for that extra reduction! With bigger tires (I'm assuming you're probably shooting for somewhere in the neighborhood of 31-33"ers) you'll probably want to run with the EA case in low range even when you're not wheeling.... awesome project! I wish I had the means for one like it. but without a garage, or fabrication skills (not to mention the fact that all the cars worth starting a project like this with are all rusted out in this part of the world), I was pretty much just left with moving to something else. I with my Toyota looked like a Brat and had an EJ22

also, jdm engines don't have a whole lot of differences from the usdm ones. so if you need gaskets, or something like that, you can usually pick them up from the dealer. and even anyway, jdm part numbers will come up at a us dealer parts counter. so if you find a part number, you can still get the part.

I stumbled across a pretty sweet fix this fall. when I went to put everything together, I couldn't find the 2 bushings for one of the pivot points on the tranny side. but I did have the bolt and the sleeve that fits over it. so I wrapped the sleeve with electrical tape until it fit snugly into the linkage. I had only intended it to be a temporary fix, but it improved shifter feel soooo much, I've left it. and it's worked great! and again, I only did it to one pivot point!

that's why I was saying without a subframe. it'd be easy to swap a whole different setup in there if you were building a subframe under it, but that'd be hard to do without lifting the whole car at least a few inches my dad has a full Z31 turbo rear end just like that in the garage (5-lug swap for his N/A Z31). While it uses the same concept as the EA82 trailing arms.....I think it would be just as much work to make it fit up there. also, with XT6 hubs, you could modify the backing plates, and use the brembo brakes off the rear of your parts car. then the only EA82 part left is the bearings themselves, which are pretty tough. I think they'd hold up fine. another thought I had....IIRC the STi (or maybe not just the STi, but all newer cars...) have a wider track than the older EJ cars. meaning longer axles. So if you're using XT6, or modified EA82, control arms (bolt-on, and IMHO no need for an upgrade) you'll need to solve that problem. if you're using '04 STi hubs, you can just slide older axles (like from a GC impreza....known to be the right length) in there. all 5x100 hubs use the same splines, but if you have '05 hubs, you'll have to have the axles custom shortened.....

nice! all 4 (using '99 rears) AGXs cost 418 before tax and shipping from tirerack..... although I haven't researched any local sources yet.

I would not even consider this, as the mounting points are very different (especially for the strut tops ). and I would not trust the unibody to support these kinds of forces (even just for driving around the block) without building a subframe to support it. It would just put all kinds of twists, torques, and such in places that weren't designed to hold up to it. just my 2 cents.... which reminds me.....I'd look for an '04. cheaper suspension (the '05 switched front knuckle design, which means '05+ STi specific stuff.....which means many thousands of dollars for a relatively basic setup), and the bolt pattern will match the rear XT6 hubs (which is the best/easiest way to do it).

ishada. order up some coilover sleeve springs from ground control (http://www.ground-control-store.com) or, if you're willing to sacrifice some quality to save some coin, find some generic ones on ebay....anything like it for a '93-'01 impreza will work. there isn't a definite answer. 2wd shocks will do nothing. and there isn't a known shorter spring other than aftermarket. the Ground control 2.5" inner diameter springs (link listed above) fit perfectly in the stock EA82 rear upper perches, and can be ordered in any length/spring rate. so take some measurements (unweighted length! and stock rear springs for a wagon are 196 lb/in), and send 'em an email.

not just talking about making it shorter.....but actually improving the approach angle. with the stock bumper, the rad support is still the first thing (or maybe second, behind the oil pressure sending unit) to effect the approach angle.

sweet! a pair of '99 stock miata shocks with springs and top mounts just arrived at my house a couple weeks ago. these do have a bushing on the top much like the EA82s do....when I stop being lazy, I'll see if I can't make the miata bushing fit in the EA82 bracket......that would be the holiest of grails! although, I've put about 12k miles on this setup using the '90 Miata shocks. works muuuuch better than the EA82 stockers. and holding up fine (knock on wood!).

well, I think the best way to do it, might be to take both pairs in (one pair, R180, and one pair EA82), with an accurate measurement of what lengths they need to be (easiest way to do this would be to get an accurate measurement of the difference of widths between the 2 diffs), and take them to a drivetrain shop. as they'll probably have to be cut and welded together. Which, especially in a high hp environment, should be professionally done. but once you get both sets of axles side-by-side, you may find that you'll be able to just mix and match parts.....who knows.

who knows. the r180 is bigger in every dimension. uses different axles, hubs, brakes, etc. etc. etc. doing the swap in an EJ car means essentially replacing the entire rear end. from suspension, to lateral links, to diff hanger, all of it. but the rear end in an EA82 car is completely different...... I think the easiest way to do it, would be fab up the mounts for the r180. and then make custom axles to run the EA82 trailing arms.

ooo.....good call, I'll do that now.

here are the 2 from my hard drive: date on the files says I downloaded them in September of 2004.....

of course there is. but 99% of that stuff is heavily documented on dozens of other subaru sites. Seriously, this isn't much different than doing the same swap into an Early impreza....which has been done hundreds of times. only things that won't be the same for an EA car, is the fact that the dash isn't interchangeable, the rear end stuff isn't either, and there isn't a cutout already stamped into the firewall for the hydraulic clutch stuff (although, IIRC, suberdave is using a hydraulic clutch in his beast.....). my biggest worry is the rear diff. I've seen what a modded EJ257 can do to an R160 under mild abuse......

yes there is....it's saved on my dad's computer. but I can't find it for the life of me now.....I'm lookin though EDIT: VICTORY!!!! found it.....so I uploaded it to my site.....now I'll be able to find it easier:

holy open-ended question batman!!! there's no one-size-fits-all motor out there, if there was, it would be way more expensive. there are tons of options, they're all good....

did you read my write-up? it's catered more towards the EJ22e side of things, but will give you a huge jump start. and from there, search the likes of NASIOC and other forums for the information to get to a 257. as someone who's helped on a number of major swaps. here is my biggest piece of advice. do NOT piece together a swap. it'll just add to the headaches, and time. save up, and cough up what you need to for an entire donor car. then you'll have everything you need. and you'll know that the engine runs. I did the wiring for 2 full EJ205 swaps (engine, tranny, interior, etc.) in the last 6 months. 1 was done in about 2 weeks time because he had the entire car there, the other took about 8 months from first ordering the parts, to running and driving, finally got it going a couple weeks ago. because he didn't quite get everything. also, if you have an entire car, you can make a bunch of your money back selling parts that you don't need (the guy who bought individual parts ended up spending substantially more!). I know of a few places in the midwest where wrecked cars can be found..... Use an EA82 car. that'll also save you a ton of time and money in the fabrication department. as I know the DOHC motors don't fit between the EA81 framerails, and I highly doubt the 6MT would fit in the tranny tunnel..... But, we know that the DOHC motors fit in the EA82s. and they say that a 6MT can be put anywhere that a 4EAT could, and we know that EA82s came with 4EATs...... your biggest hurtles will be, in no particular order, wiring, converting to hydraulic clutch, rear diff (stock r160 + 257 power.....yikes.....and converting to an r180 in an EA car will be a giant of a project), and 5-lug (gotta do it, period. only way to get the brakes and suspension to control the power.....now, start looking for XT6 parts!!!). look for a '04-'05 donor car. the '06+ ones have immobilizer systems that will make it impossible (or very close to it) to run the motor on the stock ECU. and the '07s (I don't know about the '08s...don't have a FSM for one of those yet...) dropped the 1.1:1 transfer gear, so will need a 3.545 rear diff, the older ones use a 3.9 rear diff, which already exist in plenty in the EA cars. also, you'll need the speedo gear from an Early EJ tranny to swap into the 6MT to get your speedo to work (or find a way to graft the STi gauges in there, but that would take a stinkload of work to make it not look like total crap!) all the information is out there. take the information in my write-up, plus the documentation that suberdave and rguyver have done on their swaps, plus the information on NASIOC and RS25......you'll be doing it with your eyes closed.