Ej20 engine swap? Possible or insanity

1.8-liter VVTL-i (2ZZ-GE) and VVT-i (1ZZ-FE) engine, transmission, exhaust, intake, and performance tuning discussions
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qgardner
Posts: 3
Joined: Sat Feb 24, 2018 6:38 am

Ej20 engine swap? Possible or insanity

Post by qgardner »

Hey everyone, I'm new to the community but I've had my 03 vibe since 04. Ive got 2 other cars but I'm thinking up something insane for this baby. The engine is seriously lacking power and I wanted to throw the idea around of swapping the 1zz for an ej20. I know this is crazy lol but I'm wondering do you guys think it can be done? Had this crazy idea like 3 months ago and wanted to get some input. Thanks in advance lol
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joatmon
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Location: SMC MD

Re: Ej20 engine swap? Possible or insanity

Post by joatmon »

Anything is possible with enough time and money. I don't know how much the ECU in the Vibe is used for non-engine functions,would you need to have a subaru ECU for the engine/tranny, and also the current ECU for anything else?

There was a time when I might consider such a drastic mod, but I'm now at the point where if I wanted a car with a lot more power I'd buy one that came that way. Hopefully someone currently more adventurous will weigh in.


But welcome to genvibe
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SeattleJeremy
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Re: Ej20 engine swap? Possible or insanity

Post by SeattleJeremy »

I love a crazy engine swap as well as the next person, but what are your goals for the car?

Have you ever done this kind of work before (engine swaps in general)? Have you fabricated things out of metal before? Do you have the equipment, space, and time to do this work yourself?

Working WRX's can be had for less than $5000.
*Sold* 06' Vibe Base - Mono Platinum - Manual
Turo'ing 15' BMW 328i Sport - Jet Black - Auto
Daily 19' Toyota Camry SE Hybrid - Galactic Aqua Mica - eCVT
qgardner
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Joined: Sat Feb 24, 2018 6:38 am

Re: Ej20 engine swap? Possible or insanity

Post by qgardner »

Thanks for input @joatman, I know theres a lot to consider when doing such a drastic conversion. I did consider buying a Wrx STI, but I honestly love my vibe lol

@SeattleJeremy the car is bone stock from the factory and has currently 289k miles, I started talking with my father in law about doing an engine rebuild because the engine has a few small issues. From there we talked about some light mods for added performance and adding a wrap to cover the dated paint job. Then I got to thinking... Ive always wanted to make the vibe into a project car I just never had the time or energy to commit. Thats when I thought about turning this little car into the perfect sleeper.

I have worked on cars but in no shape or form capable of such a project on my own. My father in law works in a fabrication shop here in Miami and the owner is a long time family friend so he gives me a break on labor costs lol
SeattleJeremy
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Re: Ej20 engine swap? Possible or insanity

Post by SeattleJeremy »

Then it sounds like a doable project. You might want to find an intact WRX and take some measurements, and compare the important points in the engine bay, sub frames, and rear suspension. I'm sure you will want to convert to RWD? If so the rear suspension is really different. You might want to look at an AWD vibe, but keep in mind the rear diff of an AWD Vibe is not going to put up with the power an EJ20 is capable of stock. The rear suspension of an AWD vibe is similar to the 2000-05 Celica, except the Celica didn't come with the rear drive components.

As Joatman said, you might need to retain the stock ECU for some Toyota/Vibe stuff, but getting a standalone ECU or tuning the stock Subaru ECU should be cake.
*Sold* 06' Vibe Base - Mono Platinum - Manual
Turo'ing 15' BMW 328i Sport - Jet Black - Auto
Daily 19' Toyota Camry SE Hybrid - Galactic Aqua Mica - eCVT
treesleavedents
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Re: Ej20 engine swap? Possible or insanity

Post by treesleavedents »

The biggest problem will most likely be the width of a boxer engine restricting space inside the car. Our cars also don't have transmission tunnels because of the transverse layout. If you want to swap an engine in I would recommend sticking with a FWD transverse layout unless you have some amazing fabrication skills and can design a structurally sound front end from the ground up.

2zzge
k20
rb20det
etc
2003 Vibe GT. PPE exhaust. Injen CAI. Mfactory LSD. Eibach springs. Corbeau GTS2 seats. Custom stereo, lighting, sound deadening, and upholstery. http://forums.genvibe.com/phpBB3/viewto ... 30&t=44330
qgardner
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Joined: Sat Feb 24, 2018 6:38 am

Re: Ej20 engine swap? Possible or insanity

Post by qgardner »

@SeattleJeremy thanks for the recommendations, the measurements were the one of the first things that came into mind. Trying to fit in the components , also the conversion from awd to fwd.. I'll have to do some more research. I honestly think it can be done

@treesleavedents I was thinking the same thing in regards to the engine width, thanks for the tips on the transmission. I had some concern with that also. My father in law works at a fab shop and the owner would give me a break on labor costs, but at the same time i don't want to throw a ridiculous amount of money into this project lol You put in perspective about the level of fabrication would need to go into converting to rwd. I would def agree sticking with the fwd and some how figure out how to distribute the amount of power. I'm def going to need to research more.. Thanks again
treesleavedents
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Re: Ej20 engine swap? Possible or insanity

Post by treesleavedents »

Get a honda driveline with a limited slip differential. Honda's tend to run their engine management and the rest of the cars electronics separately in their older models (no clue about newer models...) so it would be the easiest way to set it up electronically without losing all the accessories like radio, lights, etc.

B18 from an older integra with a cheap turbo kit would be great and cheap.

K20 from a civic si if you want NA, or supercharge it for more fun.
2003 Vibe GT. PPE exhaust. Injen CAI. Mfactory LSD. Eibach springs. Corbeau GTS2 seats. Custom stereo, lighting, sound deadening, and upholstery. http://forums.genvibe.com/phpBB3/viewto ... 30&t=44330
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