alright heres my situation... I picked up a 1997 Impreza 2.2l L sedan about 5 months ago. It only has basic mods, weapon R intake(which I dont care for) and a canister(unknown) welded on with stock piping and aftermarket wheels. All of those parts came on the car when I bought it. I'll be modifying it more extensively very soon and was looking for some help with parts compatibility and info.
Obviously the beast of the bunch in this generation was the 2.5RS- so my first question is how compatible is the 2.5Rs with my car and how do they differ in 1997, if in fact the 2.5rs was produced in 97? As far as I know my chassis code is GC8 so that means a 2.5 Hood and spoiler will fit my car fine correct?
My plan for my car is to keep it clean, and when I add parts they will be top of the line, for this is my second project car and I learned the hard way purchasing downgraded second hand parts before. Never again.
My second question: where is a good place online or anywhere to shop for parts for my car?
Last question: How durable and dependable is the 2.2L L Sedan and would it be worth upgrading, or should I just sell it after winter and go with a 2.5RS? I cannot afford a WRX because I am in college but plan to purchase one someday!
Please help!

fouraffinity@yahoo.com

GC8 is a pre MY01 2.0 WRX IIRC. Wouldn't the 2.2L Sedan be GCC/GC4?

http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/images/top_search.gif
:)

Obviously, being new, it's so tempting to ask questions like you asked- they are VERY valid questions, but what you asked has been asked dozens, if not hundreds of times. You'll definitely want to search and read up because there is no way to put all that info here.

And read the FAQ's too!!!!

But to get you started:

Obviously the beast of the bunch in this generation was the 2.5RS- so my first question is how compatible is the 2.5Rs with my car and how do they differ in 1997, if in fact the 2.5rs was produced in 97? As far as I know my chassis code is GC8 so that means a 2.5 Hood and spoiler will fit my car fine correct?

Basically, without getting into a huge deal about "naming conventions" (read the FAQ on that...) the 1997 has the "new style" hood and light shape for impreza's. So the 2.5 RS hood and spoiler WILL fit your car. Likewise, the 2001 RS had "clear" headlights which will also fit your car, as would the bumper (with the foglights, after either replacing the bumper beam or cutting it.)

You can, in essence, just buy the bits and pieces to make your 1997 L look like an RS for not a whole lot of money.
But other items, like exhaust related, won't necessarily fit. You most likely have single port exhaust heads, which, require single port exhaust headers. I think borla makes a set, though it's debateable how much power you'll see. One thing you have to realize off the bat is that these things just don't have that much power to start with and "unlocking" them through freer flowing exhausts and intakes don't help all that much. BUT, that doesn't mean you can't make it look good or handle well!

Just about all the other bits and pieces can be bolted on, some from a WRX even! You can put WRX 2 pot front brakes (you'll need rotors, calipers, pads, and brackets, but otherwise, they just bolt right up.) You can convert your stock rear drums to discs with the equivalent RS parts (you'll need a bit more pieces, but do a search and make a list.) You can use the suspension bits from an RS- you could get a new set of struts+springs. You could upgrade the rear sway bar from a WRX or aftermarket.

That should be enough to get you started! :)


My plan for my car is to keep it clean, and when I add parts they will be top of the line, for this is my second project car and I learned the hard way purchasing downgraded second hand parts before. Never again.
My second question: where is a good place online or anywhere to shop for parts for my car?

Good call - cheap parts are easy to come by, especially used if they're in good condition, but poorly made or broken parts will never be good regardless of cost.


Last question: How durable and dependable is the 2.2L L Sedan and would it be worth upgrading, or should I just sell it after winter and go with a 2.5RS? I cannot afford a WRX because I am in college but plan to purchase one someday!
Please help!

VERY durable! VERY dependable! So long as you keep up with maintenance (and the owner before you did the same.) Either way, they're relatively cheap to own and cheap to fix. Heck, you could get a replacement 2.2L motor for a couple of hundred bucks if yours lets go.

So, in conclusion, it really depends on how much you want to spend and how long you want to keep the car and what you want to do with it. You could toss a WRX motor in there, but that'll run you anywhere from $5000-9000 (due to the other stuff you *SHOULD* upgrade at the same time, like exhaust, transmission, differentials, axels, etc.) Can you get by without doing all that? Surely- but you'll be making comprimises (or breaking transmissions!)

But if you only need it for school, I say do the stuff that makes you happy without breaking the bank. Undoubtedly, if the stock wheels are still on it, pick up a set of RS wheels or WRX wheels - they'll fit and look great! Get a bigger rear sway bar, upgrade the front brakes from a WRX owner going to a big brake kit (BBK).

My opinion - stay in school, pay for that since it's a priority, and focus on that. Keep your L happy and it'll make you happy til you graduate. THEN take a look at what Subaru has to offer- heck, by then WRX's will be cheap(er) and numerous. STi's will come down in price, and who the hell knows - maybe the new models will offer more power or a complete redesign.

Either way, my .02 - keep the L while you're in school = cheap, reliable, hella fun transportation, low insurance, easy on gas. Once you graduate (and pay off your bills!) treat yourself to something a little newer.

<--- owned 2002 WRX since 21st birthday (present to myself with my own money.) LOVE IT. Absolutely LOVE IT.

<--- girlfriend bought 1997 L Wagon last summer as a second car for us both to use for hauling stuff, commuting, ski trips, vacation, etc. LOVE IT. I absolutely love it!!!!!! It is almost more fun to drive on the street than my WRX. Sure the WRX is fun at the track and autox, and yes it'll beat the living daylights out of most cars, but what's the fun of going 0-60 in second gear when the speed limit is 65? It's WAY more fun to throw the wagon around and try to maintain speed. Such a damned fun little car!!

Your car is a GC4, G=Impreza, C=Sedan and 4=2.2L 4cylinder EJ22 engine.

The RS hood will bolt right on your car.
RS suspension parts are bolt ons also.
Your car has a Phase I EJ22 with a little less power (137 vs. 142HP) than the '99 and later Phase II 2.2. It's very durable but more limited mod wise than the EJ25 motor in the RS.
The RS model was only available here as a coupe for '98 and '99. The Sedan came in 2000.

See the Vendor Forum for lots of online sources of parts.

But instead of shoveling a lot of money into the L, just find a good used '98 (first year)-'01 RS coupe or sedan. You know that you want the hood scoop for the look and the EJ25 for the power so just get one and you'll save money in the long run.

Here's a good site to gain some basic Impreza model knowledge. Go to the Archives section and study up.
http://www.cars101.com/

welcome aboard. u also have rs25.comat ur disposeal. where in NY are u located. i'm on LI.

Dumping the L and buying an RS at this point is not going to save you money. You can upgrade all the L components to better than RS and swap in a turbo engine.
I very much agree that you should postpone this until you are working for a living.
A few easy and high value mods can be made to hold you over.
RS springs and struts bolt right up - make sure the struts are not worn out. $100
A 18-20mm rear sway bar - used WRX fits fine $50
Quality set of tires -
Whiteline ALK - $100
Good alignment with max front camber.

As an RS owner who has done (or atleast paid for and waiting to install) all of the more common mods to the car (ie. i/h/e, cams, pulleys, struts/springs, swaybars, strutbars, alk, bumper conversion) I kinda wish I had started off with an L. The stock RS suspension parts are nothing special, and aftermarket parts are a huge improvement all around. So, either way, an L or RS would've ended up with the same setup in my hands.

I wish I had started with an L because they are cheaper and the money that was saved there could've been put towards a WRX engine swap. An RS's EJ25 can be made to put out some decent power, but nothing compared to the potential of th WRX's EJ20.

As it stands now, I've invested too much time and money in making the most out of the NA engine to start all over again. I'm very happy with the car, don't get me wrong. But, I could've had a TRUE GC8 on my hands had I just started off with the engine swap.

I'd advise you to take a ride in a NA impreza with all the basic bolt ons, or one with all the mods that you could see yourself doing in the future, and then take a ride in a modded WRX, and see if the difference is tempting enough for you to do a swap.

As an RS owner who has done (or atleast paid for and waiting to install) all of the more common mods to the car (ie. i/h/e, cams, pulleys, struts/springs, swaybars, strutbars, alk, bumper conversion) I kinda wish I had started off with an L. The stock RS suspension parts are nothing special, and aftermarket parts are a huge improvement all around. So, either way, an L or RS would've ended up with the same setup in my hands.

I wish I had started with an L because they are cheaper and the money that was saved there could've been put towards a WRX engine swap. An RS's EJ25 can be made to put out some decent power, but nothing compared to the potential of th WRX's EJ20.

As it stands now, I've invested too much time and money in making the most out of the NA engine to start all over again. I'm very happy with the car, don't get me wrong. But, I could've had a TRUE GC8 on my hands had I just started off with the engine swap.

I'd advise you to take a ride in a NA impreza with all the basic bolt ons, or one with all the mods that you could see yourself doing in the future, and then take a ride in a modded WRX, and see if the difference is tempting enough for you to do a swap.

My friend did the jdm ej20 swap, and that made me want one. :disco:

Zach

thanks guys so much for all the help, sorry it took me so long to get back to you but I do my internet research at the local library (dont have a pc at home yet) so I'm kind of limited right now. Your information really opened up my eyes to what I want to do. I think I'll keep my L and just do mild suspension and brake upgrades for now and keep the motor bone stock. I'll either swap in an ej20 after school or just get a WRX altogether. Anyone in the PA or NY area? Email me and well have to hookup and talk Scoobies sometime. Thanks again for all the help.

fouraffinity@yahoo.com

Here's an idea for exterior for ya. Looks should be last, suspension, wheels/tires, brakes 1st. 2nd power/engine swap. 3rd exterior.
http://img.drive.com.au/drive_images//dealer/subdon/23723_1_m.jpg
-Joe

^^^^ agreed.. V4 bumper is HOT :)

hey hey i have a 02wrx . its putting 395 to the wheels. i really want to swap everything into an impreza l . their so much lighter and with that power i could mabey break high 10's . the questions i have are has any one done this swap? will the impreza drivetrain hold that power, suspension wise, will everything swap(ciol overs) any one that could answer any of these questions, their knowledge would be greatly appreciated.

the L model might be lighter, however if you swap everything over you have to take into consideration that if you also plan on swapping the WRX drivetrain that may affect the weight also(of the L). If you are putting down 395 to the wheels that will probably tear apart the L drivetrain in a short amount of time.

just my 2cents

hey hey i have a 02wrx . its putting 395 to the wheels. i really want to swap everything into an impreza l . their so much lighter and with that power i could mabey break high 10's . the questions i have are has any one done this swap? will the impreza drivetrain hold that power, suspension wise, will everything swap(ciol overs) any one that could answer any of these questions, their knowledge would be greatly appreciated.

well for wiring your going to have to go convert back to obd1 if you get a 93-95 car which i dont suggest getting. Get a 96 or 97. And your swap, people do the jdm ej20g swap, which depending on the years are all faster than your motor stock. 240hp,260hp, and 280 hp. The Suspension will be fine,but most people go aftermarket neways. You obviousley are going to have to use the wrx trans not only because of the power youll have but becasue of the gearing. You also must have a matching rear diff with the tranny too. Umm coilover from a GD body (WRX) will not work with the GC body becasue of differnt weight issues. Although I have seem some posts where the owner does say that some GD coilovers will work with GC cars, but I would ignore that. My friend did an AWD coversion along with the ej20g swap, and his awd is still missing some pieces here and there, and the car functions just fine.Hope some of this helps you.

Zach