subaru swap questions

[Sash_Bay]

I didn't read the entire thread yet, but noticed you were looking for a 091. I decided not to go through with the swap. I have this built by Rancho.

https://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=2580354
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69 Hightop Baywindow
73 Lowered Baywindow
63 Bug

Owned:
68,69,70,& 71
65 Standard Split
67 Bug
66 Fastback
68 Ghia

[W1K1]

Mines at Benco right now getting the gear swap, you're a couple weeks too late for me.

[W1K1]

[Shonandb]

I came across a local licensed dismantler here in Vancouver who has a small shop where he bids on mainly North American built Japanese Car (Toyota, Subaru, Mitsubishi, etc) ICBC write offs and then parts them out.

I told him that I was looking for a low mileage Subaru 2.5L SOHC from 2000 to 2005 and he called me about 4 months later saying that there was a 2000 with 150,000 kms that had some light body damage. We agreed on a price ($800) for whatever I wanted from the car and he would take care of the rest. I went and saw the car running, drove it and took what I wanted over the weekend.

I removed the whole dash, heater & A/C unit, switches and control units, hoses, steering wheel, took pics of the VIN, removed the wiring harness from the engine all the way back to the gas tank, and took the radio and all 4 speakers too. There hasn't been anything else that I've needed from the donor since. Also, take lots of pictures before and during the removal process. I had access to the shell for another few weeks but didn't need anything else.

Maybe you can find a similar set up in Calgary over the winter.
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76 Westy with a 2.5L Subaru SOHC + Vanagon (010) Automatic Transaxle
Build & Trip Thread: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=758760
Previous 1973 Panel Bus:
Click to view image

[skills@eurocarsplus]

it's best to buy the whole donor that way you have the VIN for future parts/wiring diagrams etc.

to put it bluntly- I won't do a swap without a VIN for a lot of reasons, but the main one is I get a new short block from Subaru. I won't even fuck with used engines, not worth it to me so milage isn't near as important when I look for a donor as most of it is getting tossed.

that and if you cut the wrong wires removing the harness, you're fucked. there are some shieled wires for the o2/cam/crank sensors etc that are NOT repairable (easily that is) so used harnesses are a real gamble

JDM stuff is a joke. It's the same used junk you can find locally. I have never met anyone that has had good luck with any JDM engines
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[W1K1]

[skills@eurocarsplus]

last s/b I bought was just under 2k a couple months ago.

I can't speak to the canadian market in terms of what to use, not sure how much they varied, but I like 99-04 here, just before the DBW came into play. DBW isn't bad, just complicates things
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[Shonandb]

[W1K1]

[Shonandb]

I've run my stock Subaru belly rad set up without any duct work (protected by a coarse screen) for 2 years now using the fans to cool it connected to a temp switch. You can hear the fans cycle on and off when idling at a stop but I don't notice them when driving above the road noise.

The rad is angled so air flows through it and the fans rarely turn on while driving on regular roads (30 to 50mph) but on the Hwy in the summer, they cycle on and off regularly (watching the temp gauges before and after the rad).

Doing some work to the Bus this week and will make up and add a cooling duct/air scoop to force air through the rad to see how that changes things and will report after a few trips. Also moving the rad forward to make room to add the condenser and fan for connecting and making the A/C functional.
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76 Westy with a 2.5L Subaru SOHC + Vanagon (010) Automatic Transaxle
Build & Trip Thread: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=758760
Previous 1973 Panel Bus:
Click to view image

[W1K1]

can you take a couple pictures while you're under there?
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http://www.thesamba.com/vw/archives/manuals/jim_martin_engine_build.php

1973 super
1965 squareback 1500E
1971 bay window westy- subi swap

[Shonandb]

Will do.
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*******************************
76 Westy with a 2.5L Subaru SOHC + Vanagon (010) Automatic Transaxle
Build & Trip Thread: https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=758760
Previous 1973 Panel Bus:
Click to view image

[metahacker]

[Shonandb]

[metahacker]

yah, i would agree jdm "cars" brought to america probably all get ragged out by enthusiasts

but there is a whole industry in japan of cutting up low mileage jdm cars (e.g. junkyards) and exporting the parts to other countries

for example:
https://jspecauto.com/en/subaru/engines/subaru-out...-for-sale/

$ 1,095 for a Subaru flat-6 3.0L (EZ30 "D" aka mk1 pre CANBUS) .. with low miles

[skills@eurocarsplus]

imho you're a fool if you go JDM

I'm all over Gods green earth with subaru shit and can tell you anyone trying to do a JDM swap runs into giant roadblocks when trying to sort out the harness.

The parts are different enough that electronically you can really paint yourself into a corner.

with 20+ swaps under my belt if JDM made sense you'd hear me talk about it. Plus you never know how someone will remove the harness. 1 cut thru a shieled cable and the harness is junk
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[metahacker]

Hmm "a fool if you go jdm", that's a bit heavy handed.... :)

in terms of the EJ25 SOHC pre-CAN engines that your conversions are focused on... those were never even offered as a JDM engine - so yes, they are apples and oranges

trying to take a JDM EJ25 DOHC and wire it as if it was a US EJ251 would be a train wreck, sure. they are simply just NOT the same engine. the more recent JDM version of the "EJ25" NA wasn't even available here.

you would just use the original harness and ECU from japan (or a Viper or Link ECU or something if you really wanted...but what's the point for a NA 4 cylinder)...and of the two "cheapskate" choices of spending months parting out some 200+K clapped out US soccer mom outback POS only to just throw the engine in as-is (without a rebuild or new short block) in all its oil burning glory, vs. swapping even an obscure AF JDM 4 cylinder with ~50K miles for similar/less money than the cost of said beater ... well...... you can see why im making this comparison. even choosing something where you're just asking for confusion, like an EE20 turbo diesel flat-4 is doable.....if its so cheap that you can you buy two complete swaps you may be all set in terms of parts. :) JDM stuff is dirt cheap so buying replacements from the land of the rising sun is not the end of the world - a seemingly endless supply of low mileage complete replacement engines for $800-2000... the main thing is just to understand what is what and avoid oddball shit like some JDM only EJ25D that you don't have a harness or ECU for. not worth all the hassle.

the more time than money approach doesn't work for everyone -
like customers who have enough money to pay a famous pro guy to do a "factory style" swap...
they just want something 100% practical.
"JDM only" can totally be an issue in that regard.

for example - every dude with a JDM Honda VTEC swap in their Honda CRX back in the day used to have to change out the entire VTEC solenoid assembly,
simply because they couldn't figure out how to get a simple replacement gasket when it leaked....
we never had that generation Integra/Civic VTEC engine in the states....
when it came time to find certain parts it was good luck with your JDM swap.

i was the dude who first posted to the interwebz a solution for USDM OBD-0 Acura NSX parts interchange with those early JDM VTEC Civic engines... so I understand, first-hand, the fucking tragedy of having a JDM engine and not knowing what the fuck you can do to fix some dumb shit stateside and being helpless and having to resort to crazy stuff like paying some dude in Japan and using Google Translate to beg him to go ask the dealer and try to ship you parts lol.

that is just one specific case, the US non turbo SOHC EJ25 isnt the only Subaru engine you can put in a Bus...there are plenty of others (that came state side as well and have all the parts you could ever want), most notably the six cylinders...

people are doing plenty of JDM EZ30D swaps into Volkswagens.
a very nice motor for a Bus/Vanagon...
that one is pre-CAN and easier

the CAN EZ30R with the factory ECU is also possible (with some special CAN bits so you aren't forced to do stuff like keep the cluster)...
that mk2 EZ30 engine is a bad mother f....
can also do the EZ36 if you want a real serious stroker

those $1,000+ EZ's are a Japanese Porsche 911 engine
literally only 1" bigger than the EJ, the EZ is freakin awesome
it's not simply a hacked EJ Frankenstein 6 cyl fatty like the EG33 SVX motor (which is nice in its own ways)
i know that's what everyone thinks of when they think Subaru 6
but the EZ is designed to a serious packaging constraint
hence the use of a a timing chain (rated for the life of the engine)
instead of a belt (that needs to be changed)

but YEAH i hear you on the whole US EJ25 vehicle donor + short block approach --
with $2,200 brand new OEM short blocks for the US subarus ...
stripping an old clapped out soccer mom car
but using that new OEM short block (and some other new OEM parts and a good set of heads) is like turning your bus into a brand new subaru from the dealer

it's a pretty great equation. it's a 100% winning formula (if you refresh said clapped out engine).

i get it ..... and an EJ25 bus is exactly how anyone would have wanted the bus to have come in the first place -
nothing more nothing less -
like the perfect dream factory version of what a Bus should be ...
no drastic "need" for more

i daily drive a EJ25 bus now ... its really nice, but....
personally, i like the idea of the JDM EZ30R in a Bus the best :)

it's not as popular, yet.... most experts in the U.S. swap scene still aren't dealing with the CAN versions on factory ECUs (again, using stuff like Link, Viper, Haltech, and previously Weber/Redline, sure.... that's even how most Subaru car guys go with JDM CAN swaps) but for a Bus (and especially a Vanagon) the EZ motor just makes the most sense and is readily available FOB.

that said, the EZ30"D" is an easy swap, doesn't have any of that high tech shit to solve for, is cheap AF and yields a better driving car than an EJ.. if you're gonna "ruin" a magical air cooled truck/van might as well put a real Porsche style engine in it.... the US EJ25 SOHC is cool but there's a bigger world than 1 engine and arguably the JDM EZ30D would be cheaper than a "proper" (0-mile block) US EJ25 swap. but even then, charging money for conversions, though, a 0 mile swap would likely still be my preference for "someone else" if i was being hired to do the work (over a used engine)...although i haven't checked to see if EZ30 US 0 mile blocks are available from the dealer for a similar cheap price so maybe not.

for a relatively straightforward low budget DIY job i would definitely consider the EZ30D JDM its almost stupid how much engine you get for the money.

[blue72beetle]

Would a BN4 heater fit in the engine bay of a Subaru swapped bus?
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-Andy-
-1970 Ghia-
-1971 Bus 1776 Microsquirt EFI-

[W1K1]

[skills@eurocarsplus]

my opinion is just that, an opinion.

I have been working with CAN, MOST, LIN, and now FLEXRAY since '99. All i can say is your average vw owner can't find TDC without a 7 page thread. why make the swap more complicated than need be? If someone had a CAN network go down in a swap their brain would leak out of their ears.

aftermarket ECU's are fine IF you enjoy tuning, and that brings a whole new dimension to the swap...hours of dyno time to make it right for example.

you claim a bunch of subaru diesel swaps. I haven't seen many and one reason is the sheer obscurity of the platform in the US.

the SVX and any other 6 is pretty heavy and a pig on fuel. you can literally build a 2.5 na to meet or exceed the hp/torque of a 6 with some head work, crank and cams IF you wanted to go that deep

I have been down the JDM road in a previous life. My brother is a Hondog fanboy who doesn't know which end of the screwdriver to hold and trying to sort the mess of a CRX he had about had us to the point of not being on speaking terms. I just don't see any value in JDM shit, and most of it is a myth anyway (the low miles part for example)
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