'74 porsche 914 subaru WRX engine swap

[boxman]

check this place out.:
http://www.renegadehybrids.com/indexx.html

I've been to their shop a couple of times. They've done (outright) a ton of conversions and sell kits and individual parts---geez, I think they fabricate parts themesleves--to aid in doing exactly what you're doing. From what I recall during my last visit, they're starting to do more and more V-8's in Porsches --944's, 911's and even 914's. I'm not affiliated with them in any way--just fascinated by what they are doing.

jm
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Former Caretaker of Afton's white 69 vert.....

[Cohibra45]

FYI,

Their Suby swap conversion kit sells for over $7200 . You could buy a lot of T4 for that price and maintain resale.

Take care,

Kelly (Cohibra45)

BTW, check out my engine I am having Jake build me in the Performance, Engines, Racing section here on the samba. Here is a link:

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=265467

[greesha]

If you want to dump so much money into a subaru, why not do the STI conversion?
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FS: 06' New Beetle, Shadow Blue, 5-speed, 13.4k Miles, PM me or drop me an e-mail! I WANT IT GONE!!!!

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..................4 lyfe

[enikolayev]

Cohibra45, how much is your engine going to cost? i looked at renegade hybrids.. and yes i admit that they know what they are doing... but their prices are ridiculously high. i'm gonna see how much i can do while getting away with paying the bare minimum. I'm sure with the right connections, this can be done relatively cheap. i'm keeping a log of everything i buy for the car to see exactly how much i spend.

[didget69]

[Cohibra45]

didget69,

Your right about the other things, but in my opinion, if you don't do it right the first time, why bother. They have the mods and the experence in making the mods change. They have been doing this for a few years and if your time isn't worth anything, then by all means, go ahead and experiment. Trial and error is expensive, not only in the time wasted, but also the parts/material wasted. If you are lucky, you will only spend what it would have cost in the first place to just purchase the kit.

enikolayev,
The engine Jake is building for me is a total custom with many new cutting edge parts/coatings/machining. That said, he sells kits that with your engine as a base, can reach 160hp easily and still be extremely dependable/drivable for 100,000 miles !!! Just go to his website and drop him a line.

Kelly (Cohibra45)

[enikolayev]

i dont want to have to settle for 160 hp... 220 sounds so much more appealing with the subaru. I'm looking at what other people did on their conversions and getting ideas for myself. Its not like rushing in blind. 2k for engine mounting is still really steep (for me at least). remember i have a 3500 dollar budget. this includes repairing valves on my subie motor, changing 1'st and 2nd synchros on the tranny and everything else..

[Cohibra45]

enikolayev,

Check out this car for sale. For the price of your budget, you could have two great cars and take your time on your Suby rebuild!!!

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/showthread.php?t=374920

Take care,

Kelly

[enikolayev]

3,500.... sounds intriguing.. the paint on it looks really nice and all, but with the little blemishes that it has.. naa, i'll pass. I don't want to put this project on hold, because that way they are likely to not get finished.

Today i cleaned up the battery tray rust. Using a piece of a VW golf's hood, my brother made a piece of the body panel that rusted. Its getting welded in tomorrow. pics coming soon.

After that bit with the rust is taken care of, i'm gonna start on the subie engine and replace the valves. need to see how its going to sit there and determine if i should cut some of the metal around in the engine compartment for more room or not. Just in case i will need to check or replace spark plugs in the future.

[66 deluxe]

Well, in australia the price of a 2 litre and up subaru engine is around $700- $1500, we have heaps of them here and many people do the swap, personally i never will put a suby in a vw, i love the look and design of a aircooled type1 and type 4. Besides have you seen the price of new heads for a suby, no thanks. I just bought an engine kit from Jake, and it will be much cheaper than any suby installation. Shops here charge around $7000 minimum for the conversion, i have been in many bugs with a high performance aircooled engine and i have driven many subarus both are good but in all honesty keep suby's in suby's and aircooled in vw and porsche. A friend of mine has a 2.2 litre suby engine in his bay and it didn't really impress me. My bay with a better cam and twin 40 idf's and good exhaust could keep up and pass it everytime. My brother drove my bus and he is a die hard v8 man, guess what he did sold the v8 and now has a dual cab pick up, waiting for a type 4 engine built by me. But it's your money so waste it how ever you like, but have fun reselling the classic 914 with a H2O engine in it. Just research your options before spending too much on this conversion hell it may be something simple thats wrong with your engine anyway, as for A/c just go 2x70 thats two windows down at 70 mph works for me and i live in one of the hottest countries on the planet. besides A/C uses too much fuel anyway, turning of A/C and you can feel the power increase and load drop from the engine.

Damo.

[enikolayev]

well, i bought the car for $400 and the subie engine for $200... you do the math. The reason i am doing it myself is because people charge so much for the conversion.. trust me, this is the cheapest alternative for me.

when i pulled the old 914 engine. it had so much oil, leaves and other gunk around it... the carbs look disgusting. i don't even want to take it apart. the problem with it is something with a cam or a lifter. since one of the valves has about 1/2 inch of clearance all the time.. regardless of how you adjust it. Also i have no experience with adjusting carbs and all that. If i decided on a built aircooled engine.. that would cost me an arm and a leg. people want at least 1500 for stock long blocks. I am not too good with engine internals so i can't build it myself. but other fabrication work is not a big deal. The subie produces 220 hp out of the box.. an aircooled engine that powerful would not be too cheap.

[George Evans]

I think it's funny how all the 914 shops & so called experts advise everyone to keep the cars stock for resale value. What resale value? You dump 10k into a teen & it's worth 5k. Spend 15k & its worth 7.5k. I say carb it, Sub it or do whatever makes you happy.

[enikolayev]

Touche'!

[VWXTC4FREE]

If your so against the air-cooled motor .I suggest you find another forum as this is an air -cooled site.Everyone here is offering there advice free of charge.Jake has been doing this awhile and wouldnt steer you wrong.But sometimes you have to do it your way even if it isn't the best way.

[70 140]

WTF is with all the heckling? Its a POS 914. Want to save one? Go to the classifieds and buy one of the <$1000 beaters. Let the guy attempt his swap and post some pictures.

Eniko, there are a few threads in the Vanagon forum about Subaru conversions. Having the engine is only the beginning. This thread ( http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=237938&highlight=subaru ) is pretty good, he goes through most of the swap - wiring, ecu, etc.

[enikolayev]

all these negative posts are meaningless. I appreciate the few people that actually support me in this endeavor. thanks to 70 140 for the link, it has some great info although i'm using an '03 wrx engine.

as of right now i'm looking for a set of used heads for the subie engine. those suckers are kind of hard to find.

The battery tray rust was fixed and some of the body work done. need to get the subie engine up and running so i can take some measurements and plan my next assault. It has gotten to the point where all i think about when i go to sleep and when i'm in class is sliding through tight corners on the finished 914. I promise more pictures when i get the chance, with school, work, and friends... its hard to keep up with the car.

[Bulli Klinik]

Lets see some pics...

This guy started a thread about doing a subie conversion, not a thread asking if he should or not. If you can't handle it, maybe YOU should look for another thread.

[smokie298]

I had to sign up and post my 1st thread on here to say something to all of you die hard Porsche 914 guys who are rippin on this thread. First of all . I love everyone of my 914s (all 5). Especially my very 1st one that my uncle in 1974 bought the day that model was released. he sold it to me in 1991 and I have had it ever since. all 33 years of this car have been in my family !! how many of you can say that? I don't care how much you love your 914s , its not a car you would let your son, wife, daughter, or maybe even you drive anywhere where its remotely hot for a daily driver. I've been working on these cars for years (16 to be exact)and like I said I do love it but The Porsche 914 engine is NOT reliable . at least not reliable enough for daily driving. now im sure ill get a lot of shit for posting this and I really don't care . But the fact of the matter is that this kid should very much get the wrx engine . Especially if he dosent want to always be working on it. The wrx engine is Incredibly reliable compared to the 914. now before all you die hards go nuts. I bet none of you have had your 914s for even half the time I have had mine. so think about that before you talk shit. and to the kid who started this thread, go for it. im a certified Porsche tech. and I can tell you throwing in that wrx into that 914 is the best thing you can do! trust me Ive done it to 1 of mine! To everyone who doesnt agree with me LETS RACE. youll change your mind.
Have fun yelling at your computer.

[Cohibra45]

smokie298,

Welcome to the Samba. No getting mad and yelling here, at least not from me...

I'm glad you put in your two cents worth. I wasn't saying that he shouldn't put in the subie, but it will probably be more expensive than he thinks. He is a college guy and most of us have been there before. I remember WAY BACK (1973), , I was driving my 70 Squareback and I could pack up everything I owned and I mean everything in it and go if I wanted to.

I don't think anyone here will disagree that the aircooled engine might take a little more maintenance; BUT, it can run fine in the heat IF properly maintained. That is one of the reasons it (aircooled engines) was developed in the first place. These have run in the harshest environments in the world and don't overheat. The Baja and the Paris to Dakar, just to mention a couple. The trick is maintenance. Yes, the WRX made more hp originally, but does add a couple hundred pounds weight and that is it's downfall here. The Type 4 engine can produce a lot more horsepower and torque reliably if built and maintained right. Just look at the engine Jake built.

Here is a link to that engine !!!

http://www.aircooledtechnology.com/r_d_3_OH_p2.htm

The 914 is no exception!!!

Again, welcome and glad you joined up. Hope to hear from you more often.

Kelly (Cohibra45)

[Cohibra45]

smokie298,

PS...

I forgot to say this in the my last post. Most people here are very good and want to help you with your VW/Porsche. You don't have to cuss ...

I'm no saint, but the need to cuss to incite others is not welcome...

Thanks,

Kelly (Cohibra45)