Any hope for a 95 legacy 2.2 AWD gaining some speed?
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Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 35
From: Ontario, Canada
Car Info: 01 Legacy GT
Any hope for a 95 legacy 2.2 AWD gaining some speed?
Hey, I have a 95 Legacy 2.2L AWD, auto unfortunately, and like you all, would like to make it faster. Can anyone help? besides suggesting an engine swap. Or should I not even bother putting money into performance and just go for show?
Also does anyone know of anywhere in Canada I could buy parts from, like a hood with scoop, wrx style rims, mod chips, etc..
Thanks,
C_Noles
Also does anyone know of anywhere in Canada I could buy parts from, like a hood with scoop, wrx style rims, mod chips, etc..
Thanks,
C_Noles
Its going to be tough getting much more power out of that thing short of an engine swap. You can do things like intake, headers, exhaust and get a few extra HP. The auto sucks a lot of power out too, unfortunately (4eat driver here myself).
You could put a turbo on, but I wouldn't suggest doing that unless you do some research. Check out the Aftermarket Turbo forum. My only suggestion is to make sure they are talking about the naturally aspirated 2.2L engine, not the one that came turboed from the factory. The EJ22s that were turbo from the factory can hold a lot more boost then your engine can.
You could put a turbo on, but I wouldn't suggest doing that unless you do some research. Check out the Aftermarket Turbo forum. My only suggestion is to make sure they are talking about the naturally aspirated 2.2L engine, not the one that came turboed from the factory. The EJ22s that were turbo from the factory can hold a lot more boost then your engine can.
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From: No So Co
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Unfortunately, there's not a lot of performance stuff for the 2.2 NA. Just going for show isn't going to get much better as almost all of the BD/BG Legacy aftermarket stuff is out of Japan. How tight are the emission regulations in Canada? Could you get away with a ej22t swap. That might be fairly cheap, though I'm not sure if the 95's were OBDII which would complicate things further. Your best bet is just getting some rims/tires and some suspension stuff (springs, struts, swaybars, etc.). If you can't outpower someone, you can always outhandle them 
-Brian
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well, I have an EJ22, and here's what is done to it, and what i've done to it.
I bought it from my work (car dealership) where it was not to badly priced. It was rebuilt and converted as a salvaged title. Ran and drove strong, needed a new clutch. (my '95 legacy is OBDII btw)
EJ22 block
SOHC dual port heads (don't know if they are 2.2 or 2.5, as we know SOHC N/A 2.5L heads swap onto any N/A EJ engine)
Gen II impreza MAF sensor, ECU, and manifold. (yes... the maf sensor is different, and requires the other ecu as it has a different pin connector... but it's a WAAAAY better maf)
Ground mod... 10 ga wire all over the engine grounding electrical parts better.
Runs 93 octane, with resetting the ecu occasionally to advance the timing.
Cut the bottom of the airbox, took the snorkel out, put in a k&n.
replaced the fuel filter.
I'm guessing from my butt dyno, and racing other cars (specifically, a '99 legacy GT 2.5L wagon with full on exhaust, no cats, intake mods.) that I'm running about 170 - 175 engine hp. This wagon has the same gearing, 4.11, and the same tranny. He's got a motor that at stock is 165hp, plus a full exhaust with no cats, and the short ram intake. If he can BARELY pull away from me in first and second gears, and end up no more than about 5 or 6 fee from my front end, by the time I hit 55 or so (topping out second gear) then I can't be too far behind. Figuring in that his car is a little heavier, but not by much.
I've seen a 2 stroke 2.0L hit 400 hp, seen N/A 5.7Ls hit 700+, if enough money is supplied, any engine can do great hp numbers. I've personally seen aircooled volkswagen hippy vans do 12s and 13s in the 1/4. It's about how much money, and how easy it is to mod. Between valvetrain, exhaust, ecu, flow rate (rails, injectors, pump), intake, and overall performance work like p&p'ing... you can get a really high number like 250, but it'll cost you. I think you might top out at about 275 even with 2.5L heads which have better flow naturally...
I'm a believer in N/A builds. A honda vtec 1.8L block with a vtec 1.6L (B18 block, B16 head) can produce 200 flywheel hp EASY. I work at a dealership, and get to talk to the honda guys all day long... if discplacement is the issue, we know that engines DON'T max out at 100hp per L. It just gets harder to do and more expensive after that.
I bought it from my work (car dealership) where it was not to badly priced. It was rebuilt and converted as a salvaged title. Ran and drove strong, needed a new clutch. (my '95 legacy is OBDII btw)
EJ22 block
SOHC dual port heads (don't know if they are 2.2 or 2.5, as we know SOHC N/A 2.5L heads swap onto any N/A EJ engine)
Gen II impreza MAF sensor, ECU, and manifold. (yes... the maf sensor is different, and requires the other ecu as it has a different pin connector... but it's a WAAAAY better maf)
Ground mod... 10 ga wire all over the engine grounding electrical parts better.
Runs 93 octane, with resetting the ecu occasionally to advance the timing.
Cut the bottom of the airbox, took the snorkel out, put in a k&n.
replaced the fuel filter.
I'm guessing from my butt dyno, and racing other cars (specifically, a '99 legacy GT 2.5L wagon with full on exhaust, no cats, intake mods.) that I'm running about 170 - 175 engine hp. This wagon has the same gearing, 4.11, and the same tranny. He's got a motor that at stock is 165hp, plus a full exhaust with no cats, and the short ram intake. If he can BARELY pull away from me in first and second gears, and end up no more than about 5 or 6 fee from my front end, by the time I hit 55 or so (topping out second gear) then I can't be too far behind. Figuring in that his car is a little heavier, but not by much.
I've seen a 2 stroke 2.0L hit 400 hp, seen N/A 5.7Ls hit 700+, if enough money is supplied, any engine can do great hp numbers. I've personally seen aircooled volkswagen hippy vans do 12s and 13s in the 1/4. It's about how much money, and how easy it is to mod. Between valvetrain, exhaust, ecu, flow rate (rails, injectors, pump), intake, and overall performance work like p&p'ing... you can get a really high number like 250, but it'll cost you. I think you might top out at about 275 even with 2.5L heads which have better flow naturally...
I'm a believer in N/A builds. A honda vtec 1.8L block with a vtec 1.6L (B18 block, B16 head) can produce 200 flywheel hp EASY. I work at a dealership, and get to talk to the honda guys all day long... if discplacement is the issue, we know that engines DON'T max out at 100hp per L. It just gets harder to do and more expensive after that.
Last edited by thatlegacy; Jul 10, 2004 at 09:15 AM. Reason: spelling errors
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Joined: Sep 2004
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hey i have a 96 legacy 2.2 and there are plenty of mods u can do to gain some hp. u can always go to a muffler shop and get a new cat-back exhaust system with a high performance muffler. then i know that a 98 impreza cold air intake from injen will fit on your car aswell. i think borla makes some exhaust headers. u can get nology hotwires for a 98 impreza as well, they will work. all sorts of ignition upgrades. try the website www.prostreetonline.com, they have a lot of stuff too.
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From: GVRD
Car Info: 2003 subaru forester xs
i'm in the same boat as u are... ej22at in a 95 legacy. the only way to be fast is to be going downhill in a tailwind drafting transit buses 
i hate to say it but the auto tranny is one of the reasons for being slow. even manually shifting it dosen't do much. i've driven a 5spd ej22 and it's much more responsive than ours with the AT
i hate to say it but the auto tranny is one of the reasons for being slow. even manually shifting it dosen't do much. i've driven a 5spd ej22 and it's much more responsive than ours with the AT
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From: Roseville, CA
Car Info: 1995 Subaru Impreza 1.8 L
Originally Posted by C_Noles
would like to make it faster. Can anyone help? besides suggesting an engine swap.
There are all the usual bolt on mods for the EJ motors... Intake snorkel removal or a cone filter w/ maf adapter (whole intakes dont do a whole lot more than the equivalent of those two intake setups, so save the money), headers/exhaust (borla headers are cheapest and most popular, but not the most powerful. Random tech cat sections are compatible with stock headers or borlas, and are CARB legal and give a few HP from the higher flowing cat, and for a catback you can get any number of exhausts designed for Imprezas and have it modified to fi the legacy... Otherwise, just take it to a muffler shop and have it custom made), lightweight/underdrive crank pulleys (underdrive gives a couple more HP in the 2000-4000rpm range, but have power issues with diming lights at low rpms). The auto tranny is a big damper on your performance, so a good thing for you might be swaping in a 5-speed.
For non-bolt on mods, as it turns out, a crankshaft from a 2.5 works with the 2.2 block and essentially strokes it out to a 2.35l motor with a ~9.87 compression ratio, good for probably 7-12hp or so. That doesnt constitute a whole engine swap, but it will be a bit of work to have installed (unless you have some other work that needs to be done, it would be a good time to have it done then)
Since your car is a 95, it has the dual port heads but onlly 135hp/140ftlbs torque stock (as opposed to the 97/98 2.2 which has single port heads yet 137hp/140ftlbs torque, and the 99-01 which have 142hp/149ftbs torque... You could feasible swap to the newer heads, but that would be roughly equivalent to swaping an entire engine as you would have to swap in the compatible intake manifold, sensors, and wiring. So the best bet would be some custom cams at best for the heads if you are serious, perhaps some major port work even valve upgrades (which im not sure are possible yet, but im checking around) for the older dual port 2.2's...
Anyway, hope this helps.
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From: Mukilteo, WA
Car Info: 96' Impreza GM4
"I'm guessing from my butt dyno, and racing other cars (specifically, a '99 legacy GT 2.5L wagon with full on exhaust, no cats, intake mods.) that I'm running about 170 - 175 engine hp"
170-175? Really? You gained 40 HP with a MAF swap and grounding mod???
170-175? Really? You gained 40 HP with a MAF swap and grounding mod???
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From: Roseville, CA
Car Info: 1995 Subaru Impreza 1.8 L
Originally Posted by motoracr22
"I'm guessing from my butt dyno, and racing other cars (specifically, a '99 legacy GT 2.5L wagon with full on exhaust, no cats, intake mods.) that I'm running about 170 - 175 engine hp"
170-175? Really? You gained 40 HP with a MAF swap and grounding mod???
170-175? Really? You gained 40 HP with a MAF swap and grounding mod???
Originally Posted by Kostamojen
Eh, im lost in this whole thing. Nevermind.
Thats what I was getting at.
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