Tried searching but unclear whether I can swap in a long block or just the short block. The 05 has 220K but a clean body and the Sound System/HVAC is still great so I'd like to keep it but on the cheap, especially as this is my daughters second oil starvation incident so I'd rather not shell out $1500 on top of labor when I have two solid running 251 motors that don't leak.

When are these kids going to learn that they have to check AND change the oil (and other fluids) in their cars? 

I can't tell you how many people we've sold engines to because their kids ran the cars out of oil.  You, sir, have my condolences.

 

If I was you, I'd be darn tempted to get her an old beater until she learns to take care of it.  Say, a '93 Impreza with an EJ18 engine.  They're much more forgiving. (Yeah, I'm a mean mother/grandmother.)

 

That said, use the longblock, BUT make sure that these things match the old engine:

Left cam pulley

Crank pulley (the one that fits up against the block)

Heads (there are several options, like ACVS, but it's a pretty sure bet that the oil passages in the heads are full of metal and the cams/cam journals are probably badly scored)

Swap all the car's engine electronics onto the new engine as well.

If the car is a manual, make sure the engine you put in either came from a manual or has the bracket on the oil pump to keep the timing belt from rotating backwards (thereby jumping time).

From my research, you shouldn't have any problems using the older engines.

 

Good luck!

 

Emily

Thank you Emily, I fired it over this morning and without the distraction of traffic and my grandson it sounds like the oil running low might be coincidental. I'm tearing it down to check the timing components. It sounds like my first Loyale. Lots of ticking and runs but badly. Not much power and when I drove it off the road it was stalling off throttle. Maybe I have a little luck and jumped timing without interference. Thanks for the info. My last build was a long time ago when Moosens and I tried our hand at TSD rally. Good advice on the beater. That was the 95 Imp that she tried to drive with the Y pipe on the ground and NO oil as I was waiting for the new dipstick to arrive. That taught me to secure keys while working on things. 

Thank you Emily, I fired it over this morning and without the distraction of traffic and my grandson it sounds like the oil running low might be coincidental. I'm tearing it down to check the timing components. It sounds like my first Loyale. Lots of ticking and runs but badly. Not much power and when I drove it off the road it was stalling off throttle. Maybe I have a little luck and jumped timing without interference. Thanks for the info. My last build was a long time ago when Moosens and I tried our hand at TSD rally. Good advice on the beater. That was the 95 Imp that she tried to drive with the Y pipe on the ground and NO oil as I was waiting for the new dipstick to arrive. That taught me to secure keys while working on things. 

 

Good Lord. One of my granddaughters is nearly that bad.