Installing a 2.5 block w/ 2.0 heads need help!

Discussion in 'Modifications & DIY how-to' started by Jake, Oct 22, 2007.

  1. Jake

    Jake Active Member

    Ok, so my friend who bought the car from me will be installing his new 2.5 block with the factory (cleaned up, valve job) 2.0l heads back into the '02 WRX. our first question is what is needed to "prime" the engine. just hook everything up and turn the ignition without the plugs in? anything else we need to do before we crank it over?

    i'm sure more questions will arise tomorrow or the next day. thanks in advance!
     
  2. slowwrx

    slowwrx Supporting Member

    You should make a checklist before you crank it, and if there is anyway for him to get a set of cams before he puts it together that would be awesome, thats the only thing wrong with the 2.0 heads, they need cams.

    Matt
     
  3. Jake

    Jake Active Member

    he's just looking for reliability i think at this point. cams ARE in the future tho i believe. he's just trying to get it started up.
     
  4. slowwrx

    slowwrx Supporting Member

    to prime it, just pull the wires off the coil packs and injectors and turn it over until oil comes out the feed line for the turbo. After that you should be good to go.

    Matt
     
  5. Jake

    Jake Active Member

    gracias.

    as i said before, i'm sure more questions will come
     
  6. slowwrx

    slowwrx Supporting Member

    do all the basics too like check for fuel and spark, also check that the timing is set correctly
     
  7. Kokopelli

    Kokopelli Active Member


    ^^what he said. Especially the part about cams. Do them now ad save the labor and additional cost of doing them later.

    As far as priming goes, I unplug the fuel pump relay. Its the green connector up under the dash by the passengers right foot.
     
  8. Sharpe

    Sharpe Member

    thanks for the help guys...i am the one who bought jake's car. cams are in store in the future...but for now i am in the hole far enough. this is my first of many mods to come. jake, you going to be available to help a brotha out with the putting everything back? it is just laying in pieces in the shop as of right now...i just want to make sure that i get everything back on correctly. block, gaskets, oil pump, head bolts, and plugs will be here today...i plan on working on it tomorrow and thursday after work. i get off tomorrow at 4 and probably noon on thursday. my goal is to have her running and back in my driveway by friday night. think its do able?
     
  9. slowwrx

    slowwrx Supporting Member

    Sell youre soul and buy cams, it will make life much better later
     
  10. Kokopelli

    Kokopelli Active Member

  11. Sharpe

    Sharpe Member

    already did to get what i have on order! haha.
     
  12. Jake

    Jake Active Member

    yeah i am off on wednesday and thursday. so, i'm available all day those days.

    oh, and i'm working on something else. trying to get us a car with the same swap to compare where each bolt goes, etc.
     
  13. Sharpe

    Sharpe Member

    sweet...so who is coming down for the comparison?
     
  14. Jake

    Jake Active Member

    don't know yet, working on it
     
  15. Sharpe

    Sharpe Member

    anything? anything?
     
  16. Jake

    Jake Active Member

    nothing he has yet to return my PM's
     
  17. crashtke

    crashtke Member Supporting Member

    What cams are you guys running in the 2.0 heads? There are quite a few options out there, just curious what kind of sucess you had with which cams.
     
  18. Jake

    Jake Active Member

    yeah, i was curious of the same thing...?


    will stock STi cams work? if so, are they worth anything?
     
    Last edited: Oct 23, 2007
  19. crashtke

    crashtke Member Supporting Member

    I talked to Christian at Cobb and he seemed to think that they would give horrible midrange and low end, but others have used them and done ok...Christian said he was not really all that happy with the ones he had tuned that used Sti cams. He said they lacked midrange and did not really come alive till up top.
     
  20. slowwrx

    slowwrx Supporting Member

    I would just use some Brian Crowers, they seem to be reasonable and the few people I've seen that used them made good power.

    Matt
     
  21. nicad

    nicad Yes I am a troll

    I have some stock sti (ej257) cams if you are interested. not much, but better than the ej205 cams
     
  22. Jake

    Jake Active Member

    next question. when reinstalling the cams, what are the proper shim distances?
     
  23. Kokopelli

    Kokopelli Active Member

    did you change the buckets around or put new cams in?

    2.0l specs:
    Valve clearance:

    Intake: 0.20+-.02 mm
    Exhaust: 0.25+-.02 mm
     
  24. Jake

    Jake Active Member

    stock cams. gonna have them ported and polished now i think. other than that stock everything
     
  25. Sharpe

    Sharpe Member

    anyone anyone???
     
  26. slowwrx

    slowwrx Supporting Member

    The limitation right now isn't in the port size or shape its all in the cam. Its a waste to port them unless you are putting cams in them.

    Matt
     
  27. crashtke

    crashtke Member Supporting Member

    Well a little porting/bowl clean up will help with det.
     
  28. Sharpe

    Sharpe Member

    the biggest question i have is by putting the 2.0 stock heads and stock cams on a 2.5 block, will i have a valve clearance issue or should i have no problems just bolting up??? what would everyone else do? also, those of you who have done the 2.5 swap and kept your origional heads, did you have to do any valve adjustments when bolting back up to the block?
     
  29. Kokopelli

    Kokopelli Active Member


    nope.
    the 2.0l wrx heads bolt up in stock form with no issues. Just make sure to use gaskets for a 2.5 not a 2.0. With 2.0 head gaskets the crush ring will be inside the cylinder due to the bigger bore.
     
  30. Jake

    Jake Active Member

    yeah we got the 2.5 head gaskets. so all we have to do is just put the cams back in and bolt them back on, then crank it up with everything at TDC? no shimming or making sure the cams are in a certain place or position?
     
  31. Kokopelli

    Kokopelli Active Member

    When you put the timing belt on you line up all the marks and everything will be in the right position.

    The cams can be installed any way as long as you only rotate them the right way to get them into position to install the belt. The motor is not at tdc when you do this so you do not need to worry about hitting the pistons. Its more of a concern of having the intake valves hit the exhaust valves.

    On the 2,4 side you need to make sure that once you have the cams in position that they stay there. They may want to move on you and there is the possibilty that they can hit.
     
  32. Sharpe

    Sharpe Member

    perfect! thanks liquid force! I owe you! that was the answer i was looking for!
     
  33. Kokopelli

    Kokopelli Active Member

    Don't you have a service manual?
     
  34. Sharpe

    Sharpe Member

    i do but i wasn't sure since the 2.0 heads and the 2.5 block...just wanted to make dead certain is all. did i notice earlier that you were looking for a ej20 crank?
     
  35. Kokopelli

    Kokopelli Active Member

    Is it in good shape? And is it really cheap?
     
  36. Sharpe

    Sharpe Member

    it is free and it came out of my old 2.0 block. you can have it if you want it. i was just going to use it as a paper weight but i really don't have any use for it. BC2003UGA horded 2 of the pistons and rods...i still have the other two and the block left...if you want it you can have it.
     

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