Engine swap

825

Asked by Trent Dec 05, 2017 at 12:17 PM about the 2006 Subaru Forester 2.5 X

Question type: Car Customization

I have a 2006 Subaru Forester with the ej253
naturally aspirated it has the avls. The block
is cracked. I purchased the motor out of a
Subaru Outback but it is an ej251 and does
not have avls. I know I must swap the
crankshaft reluctor wheel or gear as some
call it and the driver side camshaft gear
along with the intake from the ej253 over
onto the ej251. My question is this the
wiring harness that goes to the ej251 in the
outback is way different than the wiring
harness in the Forester due to the avls. Do I
have to put the heads from the ej253 onto
the block of the ej251 in order to make it
work or can I just simply put the intake and
Cam and crank gears on it along with the
wiring harness and just leave the parts of
the harness that go into the avls system
unplugged rather than putting on the heads
from the 253. The only reason I ask is
because I'm pretty sure one of the heads on
the Forester if not operating correctly. I
guess pretty much the question is how can I
do it and make it run these incidents are like
Legos and they can be built several different
ways some say that all I need is to switch
the intake Cam and crank gears and wiring it
harness over and just to tie off the parts of
the wiring harness that would go to the
heads and the avls. Some say I must put the
heads from the ej253 on to the ej251 as well
I hope that is not the case

8 Answers

This is why I always recommend using the exact correct engine. You will be sorting out problems for a long time if you ever get it to run. I would sell the EJ251 and buy a EJ253.

47,950

I'd swap at least the full heads. If that's too costly follow FOR's lead and get the proper whole motor; think you have to swap out the ECM too.

825

The swap went fine. I ended up just not putting the heads off of the 253 onto the 251 and leaving the variable timing sensors on the wiring harness unplugged. So far it is running fine

3 people found this helpful.

Hi, Trent! Re: the 2006 Subaru Forester engine swap (I have the exact same vehicle) 1. Did you swap the crankshaft reluctor wheel or gear (harmonic balancer) 2. Did you swap the driver side camshaft gear 3. Did you swap the intake manifold 4. Did you swap the wiring harness 5. Did you swap the ECU (ECM) 6. Is your 2006 Forester an "X" or ??? 7. Is there anything else I need to know? Thanks so much! Phil (Subeeguru)

If you used the old ECU it won't know that the engine has the VVT. Hopefully the default cam setting works for you. I cannot imagine that it is at the optimal point but apparently it works. There will probably be a power/efficiency trade off.

Your Answer:

Forester

Looking for a Used Forester in your area?

CarGurus has 32,962 nationwide Forester listings starting at $1,850.

ZIP:

Own this car?

Share your experience with others.

2006 Subaru Forester

Review another car

CarGurus Experts

  • #1
    Chris W
    Reputation
    11,360
  • #2
    TheSubaruGuruBoston
    Reputation
    9,750
  • #3
    Nick Eidemiller
    Reputation
    6,210
View All

Know more, shop wisely

Search

Related Models For Sale

Used Subaru Outback
1,231 Great Deals out of 36,569 listings starting at $1,900
Used Toyota RAV4
1,780 Great Deals out of 29,465 listings starting at $2,495
Used Honda CR-V
1,913 Great Deals out of 40,188 listings starting at $2,477
Used Toyota 4Runner
1,003 Great Deals out of 20,301 listings starting at $1,950
Used Subaru Impreza
312 Great Deals out of 7,941 listings starting at $2,795
Used Subaru Legacy
362 Great Deals out of 6,751 listings starting at $499
Used Toyota Highlander
1,066 Great Deals out of 17,651 listings starting at $2,790
Used Toyota Camry
1,986 Great Deals out of 40,108 listings starting at $1,550
Used Toyota Tacoma
1,543 Great Deals out of 26,337 listings starting at $3,700
Used Honda Pilot
833 Great Deals out of 27,723 listings starting at $1,899

Used Cars for Sale

2024 Subaru Forester For Sale
19 Great Deals out of 20,930 listings starting at $24,940
2023 Subaru Forester For Sale
56 Great Deals out of 1,294 listings starting at $23,881
2022 Subaru Forester For Sale
65 Great Deals out of 752 listings starting at $17,995
2021 Subaru Forester For Sale
167 Great Deals out of 2,712 listings starting at $13,999
2020 Subaru Forester For Sale
76 Great Deals out of 1,144 listings starting at $11,299

Content submitted by Users is not endorsed by CarGurus, does not express the opinions of CarGurus, and should not be considered reviewed, screened, or approved by CarGurus. Please refer to CarGurus Terms of Use. Content will be removed if CarGurus becomes aware that it violates our policies.