Bob Nieuwsma Posted June 27, 2021 Share Posted June 27, 2021 I am not sure what to do! I have so many questions! I will try to be brief and summerize. 1st suby is a 1996 outback which I did a 2.2 swap back in 2014. The 2.2 had 125,000 on it at the time, now has 200,000 give or take and runs great and does not use any oil after I switched to Chevron 10w40. It is a 95 0r 96 dual port engine.But the car is in pretty rough shape and has a u joint ready to fall out and you can`t just buy a u joint you have to but a complete drive line! $250.00 bucks on E bay. Just bought 2nd suby a 1999 outback aniversery addition super clean car with 161,000 on it and a blown head gasket. Bubbles in the radiator overflow tank, but it runs good, doesn`t over heat unless you drive it hard. I want to keep this car for as long as possible because it is so clean. And with it came a Legacy wagon 2.2 manual transmission ( not sure what year because I havn`t brought it home yet.) The guy said you can have it for a hundred bucks!! Here`s my questions #1 do I put the 2.2 from the 96 into the 99 and just drive it? or pull the 2.2 heads and put them on the 99 2.5 block and frankenmotor it? ( I`ve read the 99 block is the best for this! ) #2 Will the increased compression give me better mileage? or just more power? sometimes more power means better mileage but not always! #3 Will the frankenmotor be an interference motor when done? I really don`t care because if I can do this I can change a belt every 80,000 miles! 2x and the car will be done anyways. #4 Will the heads of the 2.2 parts car with manual tranny work on the 96? I know it is not an EGR motor but if it will work I could keep it around just as a run around car to help make the 99 last longer. ( I don`t care if the check engine light is on ) find a driveshaft out of a wrecking yard and run it into the ground. #5 or just part out the 96 and keep everything of value for the 99? #6 The heads on the 2.2 in the 96 were resurfaced but if I do the franken motor should I do a valve job and put in new lash adjusters? #7 If I do a frankenmotor will I need to run premium fuel? My goal is to have a nice car that is good in the winter here in Montana! An outback with snow tires will go anywhere this old man wants to go (61) this year. Our other car is a 2006 Toyota Corrola which is a great car 40mpg but not a winter car like a Subaru! But if I can keep the 96 going it would be great for beating around the mountains, running to town ect. Thanks in advance to those who choose to give their advise and opinions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heartless Posted June 27, 2021 Share Posted June 27, 2021 At this point, i would not make any decisions until you have both of the "new to you" vehicles in your possession and see exactly what you have to work with. Ideally, you would keep your running car as is, and do any swapping, if applicable, with the purchases. but until you have both of them at hand.. not gonna suggest anything. just my nickles worth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike104 Posted June 28, 2021 Share Posted June 28, 2021 I've heard the Outback with a 2.2L is a bit doggy so that may not be the best option. Also if the Outback has head gasket leaks the bottom end could die early so using that block may not be the best choice for longevity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ocei77 Posted June 29, 2021 Share Posted June 29, 2021 99 was a transition year. IIRC they went from a three part bulk harness to a two harness unit. The temp sensor also changed location and connector So you will need the harness that matches the body and that intake. The ect can be swapped as necessary to match. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted June 29, 2021 Share Posted June 29, 2021 1 hour ago, ocei77 said: 99 was a transition year. IIRC they went from a three part bulk harness to a two harness unit. The temp sensor also changed location and connector So you will need the harness that matches the body and that intake. The ect can be swapped as necessary to match. What do you mean - all 1996-1999 Outback EJ25 engines are the same electronically and swap - bolt in and plug and play. Only thing that changes is bellhousing bolt count in 99. Are you saying 96-99 Outbacks aren't interchangeable? If they are then the EJ22 swaps in the same as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted June 29, 2021 Share Posted June 29, 2021 On 6/27/2021 at 10:01 AM, Bob Nieuwsma said: I am not sure what to do! I have so many questions! I will try to be brief and summerize. 1st suby is a 1996 outback which I did a 2.2 swap back in 2014. The 2.2 had 125,000 on it at the time, now has 200,000 give or take and runs great and does not use any oil after I switched to Chevron 10w40. It is a 95 0r 96 dual port engine.But the car is in pretty rough shape and has a u joint ready to fall out and you can`t just buy a u joint you have to but a complete drive line! $250.00 bucks on E bay. Just bought 2nd suby a 1999 outback aniversery addition super clean car with 161,000 on it and a blown head gasket. Bubbles in the radiator overflow tank, but it runs good, doesn`t over heat unless you drive it hard. I want to keep this car for as long as possible because it is so clean. And with it came a Legacy wagon 2.2 manual transmission ( not sure what year because I havn`t brought it home yet.) The guy said you can have it for a hundred bucks!! Here`s my questions #1 do I put the 2.2 from the 96 into the 99 and just drive it? or pull the 2.2 heads and put them on the 99 2.5 block and frankenmotor it? ( I`ve read the 99 block is the best for this! ) #2 Will the increased compression give me better mileage? or just more power? sometimes more power means better mileage but not always! #3 Will the frankenmotor be an interference motor when done? I really don`t care because if I can do this I can change a belt every 80,000 miles! 2x and the car will be done anyways. #4 Will the heads of the 2.2 parts car with manual tranny work on the 96? I know it is not an EGR motor but if it will work I could keep it around just as a run around car to help make the 99 last longer. ( I don`t care if the check engine light is on ) find a driveshaft out of a wrecking yard and run it into the ground. #5 or just part out the 96 and keep everything of value for the 99? #6 The heads on the 2.2 in the 96 were resurfaced but if I do the franken motor should I do a valve job and put in new lash adjusters? #7 If I do a frankenmotor will I need to run premium fuel? My goal is to have a nice car that is good in the winter here in Montana! An outback with snow tires will go anywhere this old man wants to go (61) this year. Our other car is a 2006 Toyota Corrola which is a great car 40mpg but not a winter car like a Subaru! But if I can keep the 96 going it would be great for beating around the mountains, running to town ect. Thanks in advance to those who choose to give their advise and opinions. You need to decide - that's way too many open ended questions. We can't see condition, needs, your decision making rubric, finances...etc. 1 dealers choice 2 it'll depend on your driving style (weight, grade, speed, acceleration, highway/city, etc). but more than likely this question interacts with question 7. will need premium/higher octane fuel to see the most benefits, and probably mileage gains, on a high compression engine. i've seen that reported before. they "run" on low octane but not very well. i live in the mountains and assume you're close - does mileage really matter to us? lol 3 yes 4 yes. you can rebuild driveshafts with Rockford, and other, ujoints but it's a somewhat challenging job to DIY 5 dealers choice - do you want two vehicles or to keep a running vehicle running? I don't know your needs, modus operandi, financial constraints, relatives, work, past/current/future plans... 6 If I had faith in the heads - knowing much of their history and recent performance and they weren't overheated and run hard and poor oil change history - I'd probably leave the valves and adjusters alone. of all the things that go wrong on 20+ year old subarus it's never been valves that i'm contending with. 7 see #2. "need" - probably not but you won't get the full benefits of doing a frankenmotor i don't believe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1 Lucky Texan Posted July 2, 2021 Share Posted July 2, 2021 ^^^^ yep I THINK I have seen step-by-step pics or maybe a video on swapping the u-joints. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted July 2, 2021 Share Posted July 2, 2021 1 hour ago, 1 Lucky Texan said: ^^^^ yep I THINK I have seen step-by-step pics or maybe a video on swapping the u-joints. good point - these staked in ujoints aren't Subaru specific so i bet someone's done it wether Subaru or not...any staked in video should give you a really good overview. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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