Subaru head gasket concerns
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I think the shop is just going to wire up the ECU already in there to the JDM.
I have to choose between a JDM EJ20 (low miles, clean engines! Just slower) and a built up EJ251 with mods.. and also an ECU.
Which would you choose?
https://jdmenginezone.com/products/...2&utm_source=google&utm_medium=smart_campaign
Or
https://www.ebay.com/itm/ej251-engi...959576?hash=item2af77f9358:g:c5UAAOSwnGlftJFz
(My engine was simply on the way out, changing oil wasn't going to help it, piston slap only gets worse and that leads to a cylinder getting chewed up and you can feel it driving so... Here we are. Explains why they sold the car for $600. That and the P0420 But we are.good.)
EDIT: Shop wants me to go JDM because
1. apparently it is a "direct replacement" for an EJ25.
2. Apparently
An EJ20 is a better motor
Without head gasket issues.
3. Apparently it is an easy interchange and only a few things have to be done, like a sensor drilled in.
The choice is mine, I could get the EJ251 but that needs an ECU change... Only because that particular engine has a tune on it. And cams and stuff..
Just my 0.02$. I’d go with the ej2.5. Personally, I have always been weary of JDM stuff. If something ever breaks, then you have little to no support finding parts and people that are knowledgeable. JDM to me is like Apple AirPods. It’s just a name for 200$ when I can get a knock off for 40 bucks.
and regardless of what anyone says, the EJ series had its flaws but it is a fine engine. If it was that bad, it wouldnt be working on its 33rd year of existence. Most of the issues can be attributed to maintenance or trying to do “too much” with a stock engine.
Further,
I would find my own donor engine and have it built myself. Anyone that lists an engine on eBay for that price and says it comes with a “delicious” stage 3 tune is shady.
I would find my own donor engine and have it built myself. Anyone that lists an engine on eBay for that price and says it comes with a “delicious” stage 3 tune is shady.
What I really like about the EJ25 is that it is technically a drop-in, it just needs ECU changed over that tune.
Let me text the guy.
See above post.
One thing that he did say was that it would have a Cobb module for adding in tunes or whatever.. I wonder if that is true.
My shop thinks sometime wrong with the engine and that it has been beat up. (The EBay one)
I don't even exactly know what a "Delicious Stage 3" tune is (I read briefly) but it seems like all I would have to do is put in premium gas (91 or higher.) I don't know what those other parts listed are either, really, but..
Seems like my choice is between an underpowered EJ20 and a racer sort of of an engine ?
Seems like my choice is between an underpowered EJ20 and a racer sort of of an engine ?
I have a delicious Cobb Stage 3leventy billion on my STi dood.
The EJ251 you linked to is SOHC, which has the spark plugs at the top of the head. Those are fairly reasonable to do.
The EJ25D and other DOHC Subaru engines have the spark plugs in the middle, and it is much more difficult as it pushes against the frame.
I have a delicious Cobb Stage 3leventy billion on my STi dood.
Cant put a Cobb on a pre-2001
One thing about the EJ20 (probably an EJ201) which my car will have in it next week.. the spark plugs then go to a coil on each plug, is that right? I passingly looked at it.
At least now I won't have a head gasket problem
And yeah, the guy putting it in knows you have to drill a hole to add the sensor a JDM doesn't have, etc etc etc. Nice low miles engine going in. That should be stronger, and more fuel efficient . I am happy.
That EJ201 is not coil-on-plug. There is a single coil at the very top of the engine and a wire going to each spark plug. Again, the wires are very easy to replace on a SOHC, almost impossible on a DOHC.One thing about the EJ20 (probably an EJ201) which my car will have in it next week.. the spark plugs then go to a coil on each plug, is that right? I passingly looked at it.
At least now I won't have a head gasket problem
And yeah, the guy putting it in knows you have to drill a hole to add the sensor a JDM doesn't have, etc etc etc. Nice low miles engine going in. That should be stronger, and more fuel efficient . I am happy.
COP vs wires don't affect the difficulty of replacing the spark plugs. It will be just as hard (or easy) pulling out a COP coil as it is to pull spark plug wires (which have boots the same length as COP boots have).
I would recommend replacing the valve cover gaskets, spark plugs, wires, and timing belt before installing the engine, as the work is much easier to do with the engine out of the car. The post-95 SOHC engines are interference (as are all DOHC).
Valve cover gaskets do fail with age, even on non-Subaru cars. So while you'll be ok regarding the head gaskets, you should still do the VCG job.
In the video I quickly watched, the guy must have been doing a timing belt because he had the VC off. Is all that necessary? Or is it plug-and-play for the most part.
After looking at other EJ25s, asking about an EJ22... And that cammed EJ251 (which the shop told me is buying someone else's problem. Said he would tell me to buy another car before he told me to buy that and if I bought it and he put it in and it didn't work which was his prediction that that would be on me and he's still getting paid..) it seems an EJ20 could be a good choice.
I'm wondering how it will do on the highway . But. Now I have a slightly smaller engine, with slightly thicker cylinder walls between it and the water jacket, probably will be a little more efficient and I wonder if it will be slower. Seems I have a good choice, low miles JDM unit.
Now, another poster said don't go running Group V oils because it deteriorates the gaskets. Is that only on an EJ251? And I guess a VCG makes sense before it goes in...
I have 2 Foresters, a 2004 and 2018. The 2004 is from the era that had more than its fair share of head gasket failures. Mine has just over 100k miles. I just completed the major service (timing belt, pulleys, water pump, coolant, etc.) and the head gaskets are fine. It's been and continues to be a reliable car. Seems I dodged a bullet with that one. The 2018 is long after Subaru fixed the head gasket issues. From what I read, the head gasket issues were from the late 90s to the mid 00s.
With the SOHC engines like my 2004, the spark plugs are a little harder to access than a typical I-4 engine, but they're not that hard. Replacing the timing belt, tensioner, pulleys & water pump was easier than I expected, easier than other cars I've done.
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There will be nothing wrong with the EJ20's lower power. Most countries used the EJ20 instead of the EJ25.
And yes, buying a modified engine used is definitely sketchy at best. Don't buy someone else's problem.
I don't have any experience with group V oils and haven't heard that, but I'd be much worried about the coolant.
Why? That was one reason my '72 had relatively generous trunk volume for such a small car. When I didn't need the trunk space, which was most of the time, I moved the spare to the rear for better weight distribution. They claimed the tire under the hood didn't get as hot there as it would on the road on a hot day. My parents' '74, with essentially the same body, was burdened its spare always in the trunk, possibly because of the air conditioner.
I owned an ej22. The ej22 is a closed deck design where the block meets the head. Back when I was involved, the 22 was considered to be the sturdier of the 2. Even back then around 97, the 2.5 was open deck, but was not known for HG problems.
my 2.2 was in an awd wagon, with slightly oversized tires and stiffer springs in the rear. I lived and commuted around the DC beltway and was a MTB trail junkie every Saturday and a couple of nights per week. i was merciless on that 2.2 keeping up with beltway bmws and dirt trails. On the beltway, the throttle was binary - either on or off. It never let me down.
some pin slap showed up early in life... I want to say before 20,000 miles. When we sold it around 112,000 it was still there, no better and no worse. In my personal opinion, the ej22 was one of their absolute best. I have no clue, but hope that it is the direct pedigree into their forced induction units.
So, I ended up going with an EJ20 JDM.
The engine in my car.. I gave it a shot with cleaning with oil.. I believe the seller sold that car because it had the ever, ever so slightest beginnings of rod knock, ran well etc but. I really suspect one cylinder was beginning to get chewed up, and contribute poorly to overall compression ("poor cylinder contribution, low compression.") Nevermind the sound at start.. it was at idle or when going from D to R to back into my garage that I notice 3-4 engine shakes every time. The very beginning of a Death Wobble? Ok.
So I decided to have the engine replaced.
Something wasn't right with it.. you say "pin slap".. like a wrist pin? All I know is, it would only get worse and motor oil wasn't going to fix it and all the masking was not a fix, if any. So here we are. Engine ordered today.
I did look for another EJ251 (coming from an EZ30D, it sucks.) The only one I found was. Cammed. And my garage guy INSISTED it would not run right. From a 2001 Legacy GT. https://www.ebay.com/itm/ej251-engi...959576?hash=item2af77f9358:g:c5UAAOSwnGlftJFz
So ultimately I decided to trust him and next week it will have an EJ20 (JDM.)
I look forward to the stronger engine.
Do you think I will like it?
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