Fitting an EJ Motor into an MY or L Series Subaru

Any thing and every thing ever asked about how to do an EJ conversion to an L series and MY. Includes Brumby and Coupe.
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El_Freddo
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Post by El_Freddo » Tue May 27, 2008 2:29 pm

tex wrote:Is anyone familiar with the series 1 brumby and the engine bay because I'm wondering if you could fit an EJ in there!
Have you read all the posts in here? Yes it can be done, if you don't have a lift tall enough you will have to do something to the chassis rails forward of the engine crossmember to make room for the cam belt covers (and possbily the cam covers themselves) - for a turbo that is. Any single over head cam EJ's will fit in without any mods to rails AFAIK.

Not too hard to do i've been told. Check out the subi coupe that the EJ20G's been dropped into - its in the members "mycar" section from memory. That engine bay is exactly the same as the brumby's one.

Hope this is of some help.

Cheers

Bennie
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tex
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Post by tex » Sun Jun 01, 2008 3:45 pm

Thanks I knew about the chasis rails in the later models (found out the hard way first) I just wasn't sure on the earlier ones ie 78 79 etc.
87 targa brumby (Neglected),
92 targa brumby (weekend runabout),
97 Lifted Outback (Dailey drive),
05 outback safety (Too cheap to pass up),
90 model liberty (was to be scrapped instead sold to workmate)
+ others.

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2coupedup
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Post by 2coupedup » Sun Jun 01, 2008 4:29 pm

if the bay is anything like my 76 sedan the rails are an inch or 2 closer/narrower than the 80's models... so maybe more shaving or lift???
I LIKE THEM PRETTY YET TOUGH...LOL
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subarooster
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Post by subarooster » Mon Jul 14, 2008 9:04 pm

This thread has really given me the inspiration to do the conversion :) i'm thinking of putting a n/a ej20 in my 91 L wagon. i'd love a turbo'd one but due to P plate restrictions sadly thats out of the question :( apparently in nsw, i can put a 20 in fairly legally which makes me inclined to do so. I have gannon (superoo) down the road so that should make life alot easier. lol cheers.

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heath
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drilling crossmember for ej 22 into my

Post by heath » Tue Aug 05, 2008 8:30 pm

can anyone tell me the location of the new holes in the crossmember for the ej engine mounts ? im allso running the ej gearbox.

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El_Freddo
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Post by El_Freddo » Tue Aug 05, 2008 10:26 pm

heath wrote:can anyone tell me the location of the new holes in the crossmember for the ej engine mounts ? im allso running the ej gearbox.
Slot the EA holes... Check out this thread

Cheers

Bennie
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BRUMBI
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Post by BRUMBI » Wed Aug 06, 2008 4:45 pm

im just about the do mine and have been told about 6 to 10mm outwards, but they dont have to be new holes just slot them
84 MY Sportswagon
92 Brumby
87 Rx Turbo

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heath
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urgant help whats the select monitor conn.

Post by heath » Sun Aug 17, 2008 10:01 am

doing the ej22 conversion on my m.y at the moment and doing the wireing what is the select monitor conn' and do i need it to run

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kevmif
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Post by kevmif » Sun Aug 17, 2008 10:18 am

Guys what are the legalities of a motor / gearbox conversion in Victoria? Is any special sort of compliance required such as an engineers certificate? What about for insurance purposes?

Thanks.

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AndrewT
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Post by AndrewT » Sun Aug 17, 2008 3:05 pm

heath wrote:doing the ej22 conversion on my m.y at the moment and doing the wireing what is the select monitor conn' and do i need it to run
It's used by Subaru mechanics to plug into their diagnosis computers. It's not required to run. Most of us in WA don't have ours in our looms.

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AndrewT
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Post by AndrewT » Sun Aug 17, 2008 3:07 pm

heath wrote:can anyone tell me the location of the new holes in the crossmember for the ej engine mounts ? im allso running the ej gearbox.
It's not actually a requirement to modify them at all, but yeah most people just slot them a few mm outwards. It just makes the initially fitting easier but you can get away without doing it at all if you can maneuver the engine enough on your hoist chain - a load balancer is the go for this. Either way it has no drawbacks once it's bolted in. Using EJ gearbox or not doesn't have any bearing on the engine mount situation at all.

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heath
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Post by heath » Sun Aug 17, 2008 4:08 pm

got the engine box and exhurst fitted and the loom but cant get any spark. or fuel pump wont start any ideas or could it be one of a thousand things

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Brumble
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Post by Brumble » Thu Feb 19, 2009 10:28 pm

can someone please tell me if I will be able to fit air conditioning in my '92 brumby if I do an ej conversion. This may seem like a ridiculous question but I live in Darwin and go without AC in my regular drive car is not really an option. If not i will probably go with my original plan to rebuild and improve the original ea81 engine.

Another possibility is to fit an ea82. I am already fitting an ea82 gearbox which I have picked up for $50, the same bloke has the matching engine which he will give me for another $50. Is it worth it?

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Post by Outback bloke » Fri Feb 20, 2009 7:21 am

If your car already has AC then it is dead simple. The AC compressor actually sit up on top of the motor so clearance is not an issue. You will have to get 2 custom hoses made up and do some minor wiring.

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El_Freddo
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Post by El_Freddo » Fri Feb 20, 2009 9:02 am

Brumble wrote:Another possibility is to fit an ea82.
I'd recommend NOT doing this - the EA82 is a bit of a backwards step from the EA81 in my opinion... The EA82 was a bit of a marketing tool for subaru to introduce an overhead cam engine. Its poorly designed and after a few pull downs they're frustrating and painful to work on. The EA81 will easily outlast the EA82 if looked after properly. Shove an EJ in there and you won't look back...

That said, I hope Ruby Scoo doesn't catch wind of this posting, I could be walking to work :???:

Cheers

Bennie
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Brumble
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Post by Brumble » Fri Feb 20, 2009 3:39 pm

Thanks for that guys. I'll have a bit of a look around for a cheap ej20 up in Darwin but I don't like my chances, looks like i'll be getting stuck into the ea81.

The ea82 gearbox that i have picked up has the hi/low range selector controlled by a push button activated solenoid. Is this normal and morer importantly are they reliable? I tend to prefer mechanical over electrical in most cases as they are usually less buggy.

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Outback bloke
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Post by Outback bloke » Fri Feb 20, 2009 3:48 pm

The box you have doesn't sound like a dual range. Could be but doesn't sound like it. Have a look at the front of the box. Just above where the cv shafts go on. Can you see a linkage there that goes in to the box and an arm that runs right to the back as well?

You may have a constant box with centre diff lock or you may just have a 2wd/4wd box. Post up a pic if you can and we will be able to tell.

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Brumble
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Post by Brumble » Fri Feb 20, 2009 4:48 pm

My apologies it is a 2wd/4wd box. The selector is for the 2wd/4wd.

I have found an ej22 from a liberty up here through one of the local wreckers. I am looking at $820 for the complete engine. the wrecker has also told me that he has an ea81 turbo that I can have for $300. He has told me that it is complete and it turns over without a problem but aside from that he doesn't know what condition it is in.

How well did the ea81 turbos perform, can much be done with them?

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El_Freddo
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Post by El_Freddo » Fri Feb 20, 2009 5:28 pm

Brumble wrote:I have found an ej22 from a liberty up here through one of the local wreckers. I am looking at $820 for the complete engine. the wrecker has also told me that he has an ea81 turbo that I can have for $300. He has told me that it is complete and it turns over without a problem but aside from that he doesn't know what condition it is in.

How well did the ea81 turbos perform, can much be done with them?
Bugger about the gearbox... If you're wanting to offroad, probabily best to chase down a dual range version.
With the EJ - make sure you get the wiring loom from the engine and under the dashboard including the all important ECU, you'll have to strip this down to fit it in the brumby and run the engine.
The EA81 turbo - I know a few people who may be interested with this, GTlegs is after one for his '77 sedan... Dunno how far you can push these things cos i've never looked into it or had one to play with.

Cheers

Bennie
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AndrewT
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Post by AndrewT » Sat Feb 21, 2009 1:09 am

EA81 turbo do not both with, you will get left for dead by 15 year old Hyundia Excels. Go the EJ, you won't look back (except to see EA81 drivers trying to keep up!) :)
For that price for the EJ22 make sure it's relatively low kms like less than 180,000kms and get something in writing regarding a warranty. If you can get that then it's a good price.

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