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I'd like to hear tips on what to look for, finding a good EJ motor to swap in.

Are there certain years that make the swaps easier? (less electronics?)

It's supposed to be cheap, so I suppose people scrounge Gumtree/Quokka, junkyards etc. for good buys...
What do you look for specifically?

I think I'd like an EJ22.
I tried Taza's Subaru with an EJ20.
Torque-wise it felt the same as my EA82 before 3000rpm
though that was in a heavier vehicle with larger tyres.
I'm suspecting having more bottom end torque means harder to bog the motor,
which also means less chance of detonation/ dieseling sound on take-off in soft sand.

Is there a difference in fuel economy between EJ20 and EJ22?
(larger motors don't neccessarily take more fuel at cruise speeds)

I'll need a bigger exhaust,
so what's a good quiet muffler for a 2.25-2.5" single exhaust?

I figure a larger exhaust is automatically louder than L Series's size exhaust,
and I don't want an excessive drone on 110km/h freeways.
It can go louder than what's in though, as I can't really hear what RPM it is.
If not for a much deeper throttle position, I might forget to shift from 4th to 5th at 100km/h.

i cant say much as im used to I4,s not H4,s but yea generally fuel consumption is based on what the car weighs then between the to motors is the extra 200ml going to allow more power/torque to be worth the economy however in saying that it probably is considering the small difference in bore size personally id go any ej22 it seems to be the most common id suggest getting one from the earliest lib possible go gumtree you can generally pick up a wreck for 500-700

I would go for an EJ22 too, although my Foz weighs 400kg more and bigger tyres with an EJ22 in an L-Series that seems to be the best combination from what other poeple have done. I think that would be a good combination power wise too without going stupid with turbos and what not. I would be hunting gumtree, the quokka, ebay and maybe even wreckers.

Taza

word is the oil cap if original has a date on the underside indicating year of engine in the EJ.

What are your thoughts at this stage just motor and adapt plate so retain FWD with select 4WD?

I am not sure if the mix of EJ with MY or L Series box and diff ratios is the reason people love the change, get better feel or fuel economy. or whether EJ and all its box and diff ratios being different to EA stuff makes the bigger better difference package ??

What was Tazas EJ20 in ? With what - and it felt like an EA82 !!?? Is the truth really coming out here ??

I have never driven an MY or L with EJ power train. Been in an EJ20G'd Brumby though

there is NO way an ea82 feels like an ej20 unless tazas is severely tired which i highly doubt.

my 2002 liberty is ej20 running AWD and heavier but is as quick as my sisters FWD ej22 liberty, my liberty takes off compared to her ej22 at about 80km/hr. AWD does lose a smidge of power.

id probably go an ej22, even though theyre starting to get abit long in the tooth.

my ej22 l-series was abit of a weapon. It belted my liberty.

I'm not sure if you're concerned about it or not but i would urge you to consider wether or not you get it engineered. To be properly covered by insurance you need to notify your insurance company of the engine change. For that your car needs to be registered with the motor through the road authority, and to do that you may need to have it engineered. Failure to do so will probably void your insurance in the case of an accident. My mate t-boned a limousine without insurance and he's still paying off a 40,000 debt, that event turned me off my EJ L series.

What are the rules in WA? Can you go an EJ20 without getting the car engineered? If so that is a huge bonus over an EJ22. A much bigger consideration than a little bit of extra HP and torque, especially considering its already a huge jump either way.

I had more "oh shit" braking moments when my car was powered by an EJ. They're underwhelming, and it is not simple to upgrade them. You can get rear discs but they are hard to find and may set you back 4-500. Of course you can go liberty brakes but then you need a crossbred kit, about $1000 plus all the liberty/wrx brake parts you need to source and buy. Don't kid yourself that slotted rotors or good pads will make it brake welll. Sure it might be better that stock, but it will never compare to a newer car (even one a couple of years older).

If you do decide to get it engineered you should find and consult with someone before you set out with the conversion. Engineering will set you back between $800-1000.

Oh yea with the more powerfull motor your car will torque steer like a bitch. So you'll want an AWD gearbox to go with the motor after the conversion. L series came with AWD but it is rare and will set you back about $600-800. Or fit a Liberty 5 speed you need to modify a few things to make it fit. Lots of fiddly little shit that a mechanic is playing with for $80 an hour.

Then at the end of the day if you pay someone to do all of this for you you've basically outlayed the equivilent value of a good condition later model car (and added no value to your own) to have something that doesn't even compare in pretty much every point you could compare them on. You're attempting to fix problems that Subaru solved with a new car.

Most the people that rave on about their EJ converted L series or whatever didn't/don't have it engineered, and the fact is if you take that into consideration it really isn't worth it.

What a dream KILLER lol!!! but true:) Just pray your not in an accident:p

Venom wrote:I'm not sure if you're concerned about it or not but i would urge you to consider wether or not you get it engineered. To be properly covered by insurance you need to notify your insurance company of the engine change. For that your car needs to be registered with the motor through the road authority, and to do that you may need to have it engineered. Failure to do so will probably void your insurance in the case of an accident. My mate t-boned a limousine without insurance and he's still paying off a 40,000 debt, that event turned me off my EJ L series.

What are the rules in WA? Can you go an EJ20 without getting the car engineered? If so that is a huge bonus over an EJ22. A much bigger consideration than a little bit of extra HP and torque, especially considering its already a huge jump either way.

I had more "oh shit" braking moments when my car was powered by an EJ. They're underwhelming, and it is not simple to upgrade them. You can get rear discs but they are hard to find and may set you back 4-500. Of course you can go liberty brakes but then you need a crossbred kit, about $1000 plus all the liberty/wrx brake parts you need to source and buy. Don't kid yourself that slotted rotors or good pads will make it brake welll. Sure it might be better that stock, but it will never compare to a newer car (even one a couple of years older).

If you do decide to get it engineered you should find and consult with someone before you set out with the conversion. Engineering will set you back between $800-1000.

Oh yea with the more powerfull motor your car will torque steer like a bitch. So you'll want an AWD gearbox to go with the motor after the conversion. L series came with AWD but it is rare and will set you back about $600-800. Or fit a Liberty 5 speed you need to modify a few things to make it fit. Lots of fiddly little shit that a mechanic is playing with for $80 an hour.

Then at the end of the day if you pay someone to do all of this for you you've basically outlayed the equivilent value of a good condition later model car (and added no value to your own) to have something that doesn't even compare in pretty much every point you could compare them on. You're attempting to fix problems that Subaru solved with a new car.

Most the people that rave on about their EJ converted L series or whatever didn't/don't have it engineered, and the fact is if you take that into consideration it really isn't worth it.

Basically Ej22 are cheap and older engines. EJ20 are a lot newer but are a bit more expensive. Ej25 from outbacks are even better but beware of the head-gasket problems:) EJ16 is the most economical:p or maybe the ej13:mrgreen:

I guess 70% for people on the forum have used EJ22's and wiring wise Dave will strip the loom in a matter of hours and a lot cheaper than the newer or jap looms like mine that ended taking twice the time and $$ to strip:(

steptoe wrote:What was Tazas EJ20 in ? With what - and it felt like an EA82 !!?? Is the truth really coming out here ??

I have never driven an MY or L with EJ power train. Been in an EJ20G'd Brumby though

EJ20 in a 2001 Forester. Weighing about 1.5-1.65 tonne with 3 people, 2 spare wheels and a heap of tools in. It also depends on how you take off with the clutch. Give it a boot load and it would defernately flog an L-Series (1.. To be honest though I have never drive another EJ20 only an EJ25 and that was about 3x faster than the EJ20 in my Foz.

Realistically unless you can do a compression test on the engine before making a purchase you don't have much to go by. It comes down to pot luck - which I struck gold with mine, very lucky find in a parts yard that I took a punt on as it could have had blown head gaskets, the reason why I got this one is because it only had 127k km on the clock

Then I floor tested it for HG leaks and to make sure my wiring skills had it down pat. I managed to come up trumps after working out some tiny wiring placements that I had wrong. Video's on youtube, linky in sig if you want to check it out.

Autos seem to be a good way to go - generally speaking the auto shits itself and the engine is still in great condition. Also a gross generalisation is that grannys/easy driving people go for autos thus the engine hasn't been flogged etc. There's one wire to ground to tell the ECU that it's not an auto from memory.

I've read on USMB that the OBDII or Gen2 EJ22 after '96 are easier to cut down and the ECU is a little more tricked up than the Gen1 EJ22s. You can apparently do more mods with the engine with the stock ECU as it's more forgiving/flexible to adjustment for the changes - such as shoving an EJ25 block between the EJ22 heads for a high compression "frankenmotor" as they call it... But you're probably not going to be looking into that just yet - I've only dropped that in here as an example, hope you got your head around it!

Taza's Ej20 may be turning larger tyres and a heavier body but it's still got more power than an EA82 plus the gearbox has a lot to do with the performance of the vehicle. The forester has a 4.11 ratio diff, the L series post 1987 have 3.7 ratio. Huge difference especially when you shove on larger tyres.

The other thing to look at is how you're going to bolt the EJ in regards to the gearbox - adaptor plate or go the whole hog and drop in the EJ gearbox as well? I'd recommend a foz box if you can find/afford one. This will allow you to run foz sized tyres with factory gearing and most likely a correct speedo too, it also has a decent low range. 4.11 ratio diffs are on my to get list.

Cheers

Bennie

Think there is a fundamental Q you need to answer for yourself.

Who is going to do the conversion? To pay a mechanic makes it a very expensive exercise, so unless you have the skills, or willing to give a red hot go (and have friends with benefits), most people stop dead in their tracks. And then buy a Liberty.

What I am saying is that finding the motor is the easy part!

'Cheap' and engine conversions are words that should not used in the same sentence from my experience.

Have a good read of the EJ conversion threads if you haven't already done so.

Good luck!

Taza's Foz:

-bottom end torque the same; instant throttle response in at least the first "1 second" of driving in Hi Range

-we did a Lo Range drag race (lol) in an empty parking lot
and my L Series kept up with his Foz for about 40-50 metres @30-40km/h?
It actually was ahead for the first 0.5-1 seconds.

Maybe there is a slight difference from 2000-3000rpm, but the difference is vauge or subtle imho.

I'd prefer to keep my FWD/4wd/manual gear box, if its in good enough condition.

I know what torque steer is.
My manual trans Honda had a little bit of it, at 140 hp in a 2800lb fwd car.
I've also driven a 160 hp 2700lb fwd Chevy Cobalt; that got interesting at full throttle around corners.
My L Series seems to have zero torque steer; too weak.
I don't mind manageable (driveability) torque steer,
as long as it doesn't break other parts.

I can understand why getting an engine out of an auto trans vehicle is prefered.
Easier starting for the life of the engine & less-to-no detonation.

umm torque steer in my experience isn't too bad unless your giving it to it which is very interesting through first and second.. you should be more worried about lack of traction of an l-series with a 2.2, in the wet its quite fun.. well worth it if you like the l-series, they go very well off-road.. we were out having a bash on the weekend and i watched my mates l-series pull my other mates 2009 model turbo diesel colorado out of a rut and then to take the piss drive through it.. box wise i have a liberty the open diffs and poor low range really do take away from the liberty off-road compared to the l-series box and on the engines... engine wise 2.2 is better alot better down-low compared to 2l but the 2l is a MASSIVE! improvement on the ea82 and would be adequate in the l-series not to mention easier to source a low km good condition specimen.. all in all my advice is put an ez30r in with six speed

So I should also consider looking for a EJ20?

My L Series is lighter, with lighter, narrower tyres than Taza's Foz. (215/70R-15's)

Mounted in my car, Taza's EJ20 would probably be:

-a mild torque improvement from 1000-2000rpm
-moderate torque improvement from 2000-3000rpm
-flat out nuts at 3000+rpm; 2-4 times the horsepower?!?

I still think it'd be more useful though having strong torque improvement across all rpm though.
I cringe at steep hills, and get prepared to rev to prevent engine stalling.
My EA82 always makes it, but I would like the option going up slowly:

1500-2000rpm with low manifold pressure
instead of
2500+rpm and high manifold pressure

Don' forget Matt that your L-Series weighs about 500kg lighter than my Foz. So an EJ20 would be heaps more lively in your L than in my Foz. The low end torque offroad wise is decent for a 2.0l but considering you L would be half a tone lighter offroad too with smaller wheels it would go really well.

We tried a Forester stock spare of mine (205/70R15) up against 2nd Hand Yanks L-series with 2" lift kit and it filled the whole wheel arch in both height and width so there is a fair bit difference in tyre size too. Plus im running slightly bigger than stock.

Taza

if you have the choice between 2 in good condition 2.2 for sure but dont write the 2l off as it would be a massive improvement message pav i think i read he had a 2l in his see what he said about it.. all im saying is a 2l from say 98 or there abouts maybe be just as good if not better then an early 90's 2.2 engine with wear and the extra years of mistreatment..

taza wrote:Don' forget Matt that your L-Series weighs about 500kg lighter than my Foz. So an EJ20 would be heaps more lively in your L than in my Foz. The low end torque offroad wise is decent for a 2.0l but considering you L would be half a tone lighter offroad too with smaller wheels it would go really well.

We tried a Forester stock spare of mine (205/70R15) up against 2nd Hand Yanks L-series with 2" lift kit and it filled the whole wheel arch in both height and width so there is a fair bit difference in tyre size too. Plus im running slightly bigger than stock.

Taza

500 kg? I didn't know it was that much.
I figured 200-300kg worth; 2-4 adult passengers.
500 kg though, that's a full car-load of adults difference.

woody.t wrote:if you have the choice between 2 in good condition 2.2 for sure but dont write the 2l off as it would be a massive improvement message pav i think i read he had a 2l in his see what he said about it.. all im saying is a 2l from say 98 or there abouts maybe be just as good if not better then an early 90's 2.2 engine with wear and the extra years of mistreatment..

Would a 1998 EJ20 be better than a 1994-earlier EJ22, technology-wise?
Some of the newer motors make impressive power and torque despite smaller displacement.
That's what I meant, I should look for EJ20's as well, not just have blinders on for an EJ22?
Also why I started the thread; which years and engines to keep my eye out for.

I also misjudged the difference in weight between my L series and Taza's Foz.

I'm used to having my foot buried in the throttle
a full 20-30 seconds from a stop, (including time lost changing gears) accelerating for a 110km/h freeway.
That might take me just past the limit, but it takes its sweet time so it's easy to not "accidentally" drive too fast.
If I did that with Taza's 2.0 in my L Series, I'd probably end up at 150-160km/h instead of 115 km/h

Later model cars have a key coded to the ignition which means you also need to swap over the ignition barrel, which probably isn't a direct bolt in.

Venom wrote:Later model cars have a key coded to the ignition which means you also need to swap over the ignition barrel, which probably isn't a direct bolt in.

What year did they start that?
I'd prefer not needing a chip-key; can't swim with them.