i have a 97 impreza brighton 1.8L 2door 5 speed manual that i want to turn into a wrx. but dont know what will fit my car. The car has 150000 miles on it and isnt gonna make it much longer. will parts from a 2.5 rs fit. is this worth trying

any EJ motor will fit, except the twin turbo kind. they will even bolt up to your stock tranny. you can swap in a 2.5RS motor or a wrx motor. the 2.5RS motor will run off your EJ18 ecu and wiring, the wrx motor on the other hand will REQUIRE the use of a wrx wiring harness and ecu, and some other odds and ends. take a look around nasioc.com, lots of info there.

 

 

~Josh~

any EJ motor will fit, except the twin turbo kind. they will even bolt up to your stock tranny. you can swap in a 2.5RS motor or a wrx motor. the 2.5RS motor will run off your EJ18 ecu and wiring, the wrx motor on the other hand will REQUIRE the use of a wrx wiring harness and ecu, and some other odds and ends. take a look around nasioc.com, lots of info there.

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Do you know where i can find a write up for the 18 to 25 swap? ive read about a 18 to 22 using the 18 heads and manifolds, for connector reasons, and the 22 block. But i lost the link on that one,

and id much rather do a 2.5 swap than a 2.2 ive looked all over the place. Im identical to the thread starter, Brighton Coupe 5sp with about 140k miles.

Well I guess if you have no automotive aptitude, the EJ25 would be less challenging, but I wouldn't run the 2.5 on the ECU from the 1.8. I have done the WRX conversion. It takes about 6 hours to bolt in the conversion and then about a week to figure out the wiring. If you choose to tackle the WRX conversion, make sure that you get a front clip with the rear suspesion, not just the engine and the ECU. Let me know if you want to go the WRX path, I can help you.

Well I guess if you have no automotive aptitude, the EJ25 would be less challenging, but I wouldn't run the 2.5 on the ECU from the 1.8. I have done the WRX conversion. It takes about 6 hours to bolt in the conversion and then about a week to figure out the wiring. If you choose to tackle the WRX conversion, make sure that you get a front clip with the rear suspesion, not just the engine and the ECU. Let me know if you want to go the WRX path, I can help you.

 

What all is does the WRX change? Really im just lookin to get more power, and play a little off road. Ive already added legacy struts for a little lift.

I would really rather not mess with the wiring . IF i could just change the block, use the 1.8 ECU and wiring thats what id like to do. If that turns out to not to be what im lookin for then id like to maybe turbo it down the road. Would I then have to change the ECU?

Sorry for being totally ignorant on this subject but im new to the subi world, i did an engine swap on my Tacoma last year but that was just a 3.4 to a newer 3.4, no wiring was needed.

turbos are completely different animals that require special attention and care. that being said, a wrx swap would probably be easier (minus the wiring part) than installing a turbo kit on the stock motor, and would prove more reliable.