I have a 96 brighton I'm looking to swap a usdm ej20 into now aside from the ecu, harness, motor, sensors, what else should/would I want to do to make this a safe reliable swap. I plan on getting a new clutch and wrx rear brakes since my 96 has drums on the rear. I guess my question is do I need wrx axels and what else should I take from the drivetrain?


-thanks

you'll need a Cross member you can use a few diff. ones. I used one from a turbo legacy. With that cross member you don't need to shim the lower control arms. If you use a WRX cross member you'll need to shim them. You'll also need a fuel controler to be CEL free and Power steering res./lines from a wrx. Someone else will come up with some more stuff that you'll need.

yeah, fuel pump controller, wastegate solenoid, possibly radiator and hoses, ps pump from wrx, wiring diagrams, and an upgraded fuel pump.. About all i can think of at this point..

Oh, and with the different crossmember, you'll need a different front sway bar. :)

I got a F sway bar from a GC8 and that worked for me but I didn't notice a diff. in the shape or size(except one was 20mm and the other was stock) Why exactly won't the stock sway bar work?

ah crossmember I forgot about that what about the the diffs anything like that? or is it basically I have to decide if I want a rs rear or wrx?

well if you are sticking with your stock tranny you won't have to change a thing. when you change to a wrx tranny I think you need a shorter/longer driver shaft not sure if it's shorter or longer and you'll need the diffs.

http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=880061

someone should sticky that thread...that is a rough list of needed materials

well if you are sticking with your stock tranny you won't have to change a thing. when you change to a wrx tranny I think you need a shorter/longer driver shaft not sure if it's shorter or longer and you'll need the diffs.
ahh ok thanks I don't expect the stock L tranny to last too long anyway

You'd be suprised how long a stock L tranny will last with an EJ20, even at stage 2 or better there are a bunch of use running around on the stock tranny with many miles on it. :)

A lot of it is how you drive and shift it.

my impreza L tranny held up to a ej20 jdm with 20 psi , drove it hard too, i only took it out to do an sti conversion to the car

ahh ok thanks I don't expect the stock L tranny to last too long anyway

Remember...that tranny's basically similar to a WRX tranny. Gear ratios and final drive are different, and there's no LSD on the rear axle, but the case is just an older revision of the same thing. With RS trannies, the higher final drive ratio might make them a little more susceptible to breakage from the increased power, but not significantly so. I'm not sure what the final drive on an L is, so I can't make a comment there.

Remember...that tranny's basically similar to a WRX tranny. Gear ratios and final drive are different, and there's no LSD on the rear axle, but the case is just an older revision of the same thing. With RS trannies, the higher final drive ratio might make them a little more susceptible to breakage from the increased power, but not significantly so. I'm not sure what the final drive on an L is, so I can't make a comment there.
ok thanks for the heads up now if I were to get a rear with lsd I will have to switch out the tranny?

also what sensors will I need? front and rear 02 any other misc ones?

ok thanks for the heads up now if I were to get a rear with lsd I will have to switch out the tranny?

also what sensors will I need? front and rear 02 any other misc ones?

You'll need a 3.90 rear lsd... like what came in the Legacy SS's. You'll need new rear axles too.

As for sensors... you need all the WRX ones. MAF, o2s, etc.