2.5 will find any gearbox weak points in short order.

My £2000 + build guaranteed Lateral Performance 450 BHP and 400 lbft gearbox broke in only three weeks use at maximum torque of 391 lbft. It was the torque of the motor that revealed its inadequacies so quickly.

A five speed non-STi box would probably last a similar time or slightly longer.

The 2.5 is absolutely brutal on the torque - it hits hard from 2500 to the red line with relentless torque. Even on smooth roads if they are not dry then fourth gear gives the diffs a workout in a straight line and you have to have both hands on the wheel to control it.

so what your saying is that i may well be infor a new box after a few months, as its a standard WRX box at the moment....:(

You need to fit a stronger gearbox at the same time, or beforehand

Out of interest is the JDM 5sp considered to be "stronger" because the final drive ratio is better able to deal with a higher torque output? In the same way people state that the STi RA box is "stronger" than either standard WRX or STi.

Mark A

Wrx, it all depends how you push it.

John has 391 torque, but he has the mods behind it to push that far ie turbo, fmic (i think?), injectors etc?

You dont need to push as much torque as this and thus keep your gearbox! lol

Mark YHM

I am running this Shortblock using V6 STI RA heads here in the states on an MY04 WRX Wagon. The stock WRX 5MT is not up to the task at all. I have already destroyed one tranny with this motor and am working on the 2nd one right now.

MMmmmmm so i could still go ahead with the replacement 2.5 and keep the old tranny...intresting...

Count me in for one
Can you tell my from where to where this short blocks need to be shipped I probably can help whit this


Kurt

Either my house, Tunbridge Wells or Tilbury/Essex docks.

Mark A

MarkA
Count me in
Paul

Hi Mark A

You can count me in too!

Hacmeister

Mark A

Yes, I'm still in. Keep up the good work :)

Richard.

I have a MY98 with piston slap. If you guys are buying new short engines then would it be worth my while rebuilding my engine using your cast offs? How much would you sell your old short engine for?

Cheers,

Andy

scrappydog

Sorry but I will be keeping my existing bottom end.

Well, Im still in, but I dunno if it will be fitted in my modded Type R or if ill sell it and buy a standard-ish STI7 to go with it :-)

I could even collect from TW if I need too.

How heavy can a short block be?, 50KG?. If it fits in a boot if you line it with something to spread the weight.

have been keeping an eye on this thread for a while.

I could be interested, but what is the time scale?

When I get my *rse in gear. Due to get married next month and that's taking up a bit of time at the moment (Bloody women).

Mark A

Take my advise, buy a marriage licence, book a cheap hotel and use the money save to nearly pay for a brand new scooby.

Jeez, it aint till you look back that you realise.

Count me in for one (possibly)

up

Seen the Lambo-beater in Autocar this week? They have reviewed a 'Type 25' Impreza created by Ian Litchfield of Litchfield Imports. Basically, this car is a new STi fitted with the USDM 2.5 block as in the Group Buy here, and a lot of nice tweaked bits.

The story is headlined "The Best Impreza on Planet Earth" and compares the car directly to a Lambo Gallardo. Quote: "Not even a 5.0-litre V10 can match the Scooby's initial mid-range and it's the Jap saloon that bolts post-apex that little bit harder." and "they are so evenly matched in every conceivable parameter..."

The Litchfield car puts out 350bhp at 6,900rpm, with 356lbs/ft at 3,650rpm on Power Station's "notoriously pessimistic dyno." It blows 1.4bar at 3,000rpm with an 8.8:1 compression ratio. The only criticism appears to be the Scooby's choice of six-speed gearbox ratios.

It's a rave review by any standards, and the Litchfield T25 is a performance bargain at £33k. Which makes this Group Buy at 1/30th of the cost a real no-brainer :D

Richard.

My engine on equally pessimistic dyno with a larger turbo and FMIC did 434 BHP at 1.27 bar and 395 lbft at 1.4 bar at Star.

Seems to be holding together doing so so far, has about 5000 miles under its belt now without any issues at all.

John, my excuse for being excited about this, is insomnia following the regular post-Exmas detox. What's yours? :D:

You (and Litchfield) have shown this motor to have majorly impresive performance potential. If only there was an easy gearbox solution for Classic owners. I just don't fancy the 6-speeder - it's only virtue is apparent strength. But if there's no alternative, that's one hell of a strength. Are there any viable alternatives, in your view, now or near future?

Looking forward to joining to 2.5 club, and leaving those sad 2.0 Group N guys in our dust :D: Especially Floyd :)

Richard.

its the olny thing thats holding me back from getting the cash now, athough i have been informend that as long as i do not excced 400lb of tourqu or 400bhp i should be okay with the 2.5......does this sound about right.( hoping for an answer from the SN boys )

all th best

jay

Ok lets get this moving.

I plan to contact the supplier in the USA today and check availability of the short engines, once he confirms this then I will start collecting names (I'll use a new thread may be). This will be Tuesday most likely and I need between 5-20 lucky buyers.

I plan to take a deposit of @ £550 (once the US price is confirmed) from each member and pay for the whole batch on my credit card.
Once the engines are in the UK I would be charged for the shipping, import & VAT. I can then calculate the individual outstanding amounts.

The distribution point is proving slightly problematic. I'm hoping to use my friends warehouse or garage as the store while shipping to the UK is arranged. If the UK shipping is expensive then I'll deliver them myself in a transit van. The cost of this would be the hire & fuel divide by the number of people needing delivery.

Finally, if people participating in this groupbuy agree I would like a small reward or token of thanks for organising this. This would, numbers permitting be, buy 10 get 1 free i.e the US cost of a short engine divide by the number in the groupbuy. I would still pay for my own shipping, import tax and VAT. Using the costs I already have would mean a total price of @ £1035 with only your local UK delivery to pay if needed.

I hope people are happy with this and feel free to e-mail me. I am away for a long weekend sorting out my wedding and will return on Tuesday.

Mark A

Sounds good.

its the olny thing thats holding me back from getting the cash now, athough i have been informend that as long as i do not excced 400lb of tourqu or 400bhp i should be okay with the 2.5......does this sound about right.( hoping for an answer from the SN boys )

all th best

jay

400 of torque if your lucky! lol

Try about 350 torque before your gearbox dies

to the top.:D

Sounds very good, Mark.

thats for MORE advice

cheers


jay