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Thu Dec 27, 2012 11:46 pm

I spent probably six months planning and researching and I finally am about finished with my EJ25 conversion. It was about a solid month's worth of work. I pulled alot of late late nights working on it.

I still have some fine tuning to do here and there and to get the cruise control working, but its already made a trip to hood river and back and I'm pretty damn proud of it.

It's an 2005 Impreza EJ253 SOHC, used the Small Car setup with a few RMW bits here and there. Tom Sheils did the harness for me.

All in, I think it was somewhere north of $8500, but I literally replaced EVERYTHING in the cooling system. Every valve, core, hose, tee, everything, everything everything. I probably did things the hard way, but it all worked out in the end.

Initial thoughts? Wow. I can't stop smiling. I can cruise at 70-75 with ease, pass people, keep it cruising up a long hill, this thing has some pep. I step on the gas, it gives out a really nice exhaust tone and I've even gotten some thumbs up from random people I pass. Also got yelled at by a guy in the neighbor that I "needed to slow that thing down" -- words I never thought I would hear with my Westy.

I documented the whole thing with my GoPro, I hope to have it edited to share with you all. Feel free to ping me with questions, or you can come check it out in person if you want.

Its been quite a journey, but man what a result. Thanks for all your help TheSamba!

*EDIT*
I completed the video of the journey, here it is on YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plf6IR2WgtE&list=PLNV-mDD6-hU9tRJcm99Z7TpwhOW1h9Uvk
*EDIT*

Thu Dec 27, 2012 11:50 pm

Looks sweet

Fri Dec 28, 2012 12:04 am

theDrew wrote: I spent probably six months planning and researching and I finally am about finished with my EJ25 conversion. It was about a solid month's worth of work. I pulled alot of late late nights working on it.

I still have some fine tuning to do here and there and to get the cruise control working, but its already made a trip to hood river and back and I'm pretty damn proud of it.
Good to see - my EJ251 conversion should be done in about a month (although I'm not the one doing it). With regards to the cruise-control, did your van already have that? Or did you retrofit cruise in during the conversion, by salvaging all the various Suby parts?

Also wondering if you stayed stock with the clutch and starter, or upgraded?

Thumbs up,

Brian.

Fri Dec 28, 2012 12:07 am

luVWagn wrote:
Good to see - my EJ251 conversion should be done in about a month (although I'm not the one doing it). With regards to the cruise-control, did your van already have that? Or did you retrofit cruise in during the conversion, by salvaging all the various Suby parts?

Also wondering if you stayed stock with the clutch and starter, or upgraded?

Thumbs up,

Brian.

Previously, no cruise control. Trying to do it with all Subie parts -- no joy so far, but I still need the correct brake and clutch switches.

I used small cars stage 2.5 clutch and pressure plate, and a subie starter (which, depending on who did your reveresed coolant manifold will interfiere with. Check out http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=537306

Fri Dec 28, 2012 5:39 am

Keep in touch with any CC success, maybe a build blog, what stalk you used off of steering column, etc...

Fri Dec 28, 2012 7:31 am

theDrew wrote: Initial thoughts? Wow. I can't stop smiling.

:D =D> :D

Now rub off that yellow paint from the intake plenum..... :D

Fri Dec 28, 2012 9:07 am

Nice! Its an amazing transformation, isn't it? ;)

Fri Dec 28, 2012 10:57 am

It is awesome isn't it? It is a whole different van after the surgery. I did all new and replaced every seal and what not I could find, too. Lots and lots of piace of mind in that, I must admit. You can count on a couple of hiccups and whopsa but likely no show stoppers. Bravo to you!

RE: Cruise control. You should be able interface the Subaru cruise actuator with the stock Vangon cruise pump. Just a hose. Then it all looks and acts stock, unless you do not have the stock system already. The complete Subaru system can be grafted in, I have seen. Just more work.

Fri Dec 28, 2012 11:00 am

Did you consider an SVX swap? If so what made you go with the 2.5?

Fri Dec 28, 2012 11:08 am

MayorMcCheese wrote: Did you consider an SVX swap? If so what made you go with the 2.5?

From what I read, the 2.5 is about as high as you want to go with the stock transmission before you start breaking stuff. Maybe true or not, but thats what I stuck with.

And really, the 2.5 is plenty of power, I don't see why you would need more unless you wanted to race it at the track.

Also, from my reading the sixes will fit in the bay, but things definately get tighter. Since I had never done anything close to this before, space to work is pretty nice when you really dont know what your doing :D

Fri Dec 28, 2012 11:08 am

Welcome to the exclusive club of Vancouver, WA Vanagon owners powered by Subaru! Its a small club...

Fri Dec 28, 2012 1:53 pm

theDrew wrote: MayorMcCheese wrote: Did you consider an SVX swap? If so what made you go with the 2.5?

From what I read, the 2.5 is about as high as you want to go with the stock transmission before you start breaking stuff. Maybe true or not, but thats what I stuck with.

Its very true-right on the money
SVX will blow the stock tranny, everytime

Fri Dec 28, 2012 2:07 pm

Not more than 1 hr ago I got off the phone with my mechanic. I'm in line to have this exact same conversion.... now I'm even MORE anxious to have it completed and back on the road!

THANKS FOR NOTHIN'!!!! :lol:

Fri Dec 28, 2012 6:39 pm

Did you get the A/C going?

Sat Dec 29, 2012 4:46 am

theDrew wrote: luVWagn wrote:
Good to see - my EJ251 conversion should be done in about a month (although I'm not the one doing it). With regards to the cruise-control, did your van already have that? Or did you retrofit cruise in during the conversion, by salvaging all the various Suby parts?

Also wondering if you stayed stock with the clutch and starter, or upgraded?

Thumbs up,

Brian.

Previously, no cruise control. Trying to do it with all Subie parts -- no joy so far, but I still need the correct brake and clutch switches.

I used small cars stage 2.5 clutch and pressure plate, and a subie starter (which, depending on who did your reveresed coolant manifold will interfiere with. Check out http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=537306

I used the stock Subaru brake and clutch switches mounted on some brackets I made. Did you grab them off the donor car? My cruise, off a 99 forester used the entire system with splice in the middle of the harness to get the actuator to the back. I had no cruise before my swap. I have since gone with a vanagon cruise turn signal stalk but originally I had the stock Subie switch mounted on the lower part of the dash. It works well!

Sat Dec 29, 2012 7:27 am

Looks good. I just began pulling my old engine and have a 2000 2.5 Subie at my mechanic's getting freshened up -- new timing belt, head gaskets, etc., I went with the RMW kit and had the harness done by Tom Shiels in Ontario. I'm going to take it slow and I'm sure I will learn a ton. I chose the 2.5 because I thought it gave me plenty of power and the best opportunity for good fuel economy. I'll also be hooking up stock cruise and AC at some point in the future.

Sat Dec 29, 2012 8:09 am

theDrew wrote: I spent probably six months planning and researching and I finally am about finished with my EJ25 conversion. It was about a solid month's worth of work. I pulled alot of late late nights working on it.

I still have some fine tuning to do here and there and to get the cruise control working, but its already made a trip to hood river and back and I'm pretty damn proud of it.

It's an 2005 Impreza EJ253 SOHC, used the Small Car setup with a few RMW bits here and there. Tom Sheils did the harness for me.

All in, I think it was somewhere north of $8500, but I literally replaced EVERYTHING in the cooling system. Every valve, core, hose, tee, everything, everything everything. I probably did things the hard way, but it all worked out in the end.

Initial thoughts? Wow. I can't stop smiling. I can cruise at 70-75 with ease, pass people, keep it cruising up a long hill, this thing has some pep. I step on the gas, it gives out a really nice exhaust tone and I've even gotten some thumbs up from random people I pass. Also got yelled at by a guy in the neighbor that I "needed to slow that thing down" -- words I never thought I would hear with my Westy.

I documented the whole thing with my GoPro, I hope to have it edited to share with you all. Feel free to ping me with questions, or you can come check it out in person if you want.

Its been quite a journey, but man what a result. Thanks for all your help TheSamba!

what did you use for the air filter box? It looks like a custom deal... and did you swap the snorkel over to the driver's side? I have a very similar conversion but i am a little unhappy about how my air box sits...

Sat Dec 29, 2012 11:13 am

A/C -- I haven't bothered with that yet. I'll probably do the RedTek conversion a little later this year.

Cruise -- I got in the subie brake switch yesterday, but still no joy. Continuing to work on that. Its all fly by wire, so there's no actuator to install, its just getting the subie switches hooked up right.

Air Filter -- Thats the intake kit from RMW, but I had get that blue silicone 45 degree piece to make it work with the small car fly by wire pedal mount.

Sun Dec 30, 2012 6:10 am

Cruise Success!!!

With the help of Tom, I got the wiring all figured out it works!

So Subie stalk, subie brake switch -- I'll take some pictures once I get the stalk mounted.

Sun Dec 30, 2012 7:01 am

very nice job sir.

Ben