MENUTuning the Subaru EJ16
"Building the best modified Subaru EJ16 engine!"
Carref prides itself on providing the latest tips and guides to your modification project.
TorqueCars will examine EJ16 tuning and summarise the ultimate modifications. Subaru EJ16 are fantastic to work on and with the best uprated upgrades like a remap, turbo kits and camshafts you will greatly maximize your driving enjoyment.
We rely on our visitors to pass on tips and tell us about their projects and what worked on their car, and this article is the culmination of the feedback we have received. First let us look at the history and specs of this engine and then consider which tuning modifications work best on it.
History of the Engine
- Impreza 93-94 (JDM only) GC4 series
- Impreza 93-06 (Europe & Middle East)
- Impreza 93-97 (Australia)
- Impreza 93-06 (Latin America)
- 89–97 bhp @6000 rpm 102 lbft at 4500 rpm
Tuning the Subaru EJ16 and best EJ16 performance parts.
What are the most effective EJ16 upgrades
Just because particular upgrades are are common on EJ16 it doesn't mean its worth having, we shall greatest upgrades that will give your EJ16 the best power gain for you money.
The camshaft profile plays a big part in the engines power output so camshaft upgrades make quite a large difference. The intake & exhaust durations will alter depending on the chosen camshaft profile, so large engines power gains are on offer for camshaft upgrades.
Fast road camshafts normally increase the performance through the rpm band, you may lose a little low down torque but your higher rpm power will be higher.
Race camshafts, increase the higher rpm power band but as a result the car will not idle smoothly and low end power nearly always suffers.
A Motorsport and race cam won't do well if driving around busy urban areas.
You should ideally optimize your torque band to your typical driving style so for a car driven daily stick with a fast road EJ16 cam
Different EJ16 engines respond better to more or less aggressive cam durations so view each engine as unique.
The map and fuel pump and injectors also will make differences on the power gains you'll get.
Longer valve durations can alter the power band and on most engines the exhaust and intake durations do not need to match, although most cams and tuners use matched pairs there are some advantages to extending the intake or exhaust durations.
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How to tune your car
- Improve the handling
Focus on Suspension improvements, such as coilovers and make sure the bushings are in good order and that the alignment is correct. Then focus on improving the brakes, with a big disk brake conversion kit and fast road brake pads.
- Remove restrictions
Focus on the intake and exhaust with filters being the common point of restriction in a tuned car. Intercoolers may also become restrictive on turbo engines so this may also need to be uprated.
- Burn more fuel & air
Increase the fuelling so it matches the air coming into the engine. The ratio is important so you need to improve the fuel pump and injectors, so the head mods, big valve conversions, fast road camshafts and forced induction upgrades extra supply of air is adequately met.
- Test and replace any weak parts
Weak areas are commonly the clutch, the turbocharger and pistons and crankshaft in a highly tuned engine. Makes sure these components will cope with your power aspirations.
- The Tune or Remap
A cars ECU controls the fuel, timing, spark and even the turbo in some cases, so to fully extract your gains you should remap the car last and this will fully release the power. Some cars are easy to map, and others require piggyback ECU's or aftermarket ECU's but this is the most vital step of your tuning project.
Modifying to Stage 1:
Intake headers, Remaps/piggy back ECU, Panel air filters, Sports exhaust manifold, Fast road camshaft, Drilled & smoothed airbox.
Modifying to Stage 2:
high flow fuel injectors, fuel pump upgrades, induction kit, Sports catalyst & performance exhaust, Fast road cam, Ported and polished head.
Modifying to Stage 3:
Adding or Upgrading forced induction (turbo/supercharger), Competition cam, Internal engine upgrades (head flowing porting/bigger valves), Engine balancing & blueprinting, Crank and Piston upgrades to alter compression, Twin charging conversions.
ECU flashing should help to to establish the full potential of all the parts you've done to your EJ16.
It will usually give around 30% more power on turbocharged vehicles and you can expect to see around 15% on NASP engines, but your mileage often differs on the parts you've carried out and the condition of your engine.
Forcing air into each cylinder is vital to any performance tuning job.
Headers flow the air during the suck phase from the filter and allow it to be drawn into the engine cylinders with fuel for the squish phase.
The size of bore and shape and flow characteristics of the Intake manifold can make a noticeable effect on to fuel delivery on the EJ16.
Many mass produced engine air intake manifolds are ripe for aftermarket tuning parts, although a few makers provide decently flowing air intake manifolds.
Larger EJ16 valves, carrying out 3 or 5 angle valve jobs and porting and head flowing will also raise bhp, and significantly will allow you to get raising the bhp increase on other parts.
Which turbo upgrades are best?
NASP engines need quite a lot of work when you add a turbo, so we have a separate guide to help you take into account the pros and cons of going this route on your EJ16 but we don't think it is worth the effort or cost.
The more air you can get into an engine, the more fuel it can burn and uprating the induction with a turbocharger upgrade makes impressive power gains.
Research these limits and install better quality components to utilize the power.
We see many tuners spending a lots of money on turbo upgrades on the EJ16 only to watch the engine block go up in smoke just after it's first rolling road session.
It is not unusual that there is a restriction in the air flow sensor AFM/MAF on the EJ16 when considerably more air is being drawn into the engine.
We note 4 bar air sensors coping with quite large power gains, whereas the OEM air sensor sapped bhp and torque at a much lower level.
Adding a supercharger or additional turbo will make large power gains, although harder to get working. We have this feature on twinchargers if you want to read more.
Fuelling
When you increase the power you will need to uprate to the fuel system.
More power needs more fuel. 
We would recommend you to be generous with your flow rate on the injectors.
The accepted safe increase is to add another 20% when fitting an injector, this accounts for injector deterioration and affords a little spare capacity should the engine require more fuel.
We think this one is common sense, but you'll need to match your fuel injector to the type of fuel your car uses as well.
All the following flywheel power targets will assume an injector duty cycle of 80% and a base of 58psi of fuel pressure at idle.
4 Cylinder turbocharged engines
- 58 PSI 340cc/min 200hp
- 58 PSI 511cc/min 300hp
4 Cylinder NASP engines
- 58 PSI 285cc/min 200hp
- 58 PSI 426cc/min 300hp
Choosing the right performance exhaust
One of the most common mistakes and problems we see in tuning projects is usually down to the exhaust, or rather a poorly chosen exhaust for your engine.
You should look to uprate your exhaust if the current exhaust is actually causing a restriction.
On most factory exhausts you'll find the flow rate is still ok even on modest power gains, but when you start pushing up the power levels you will need to get a better flowing exhaust.
Sports exhausts generally help improve air flow out of the engine but do not go too large or you could will reduce the flow rate. Stick to 1.5 to 2.5 inches as a rule of thumb.
Typically exhaust restrictions can be located the catalyst and filters installed, so adding a better flowing race alternative will help avoid this restriction.
Weak spots Issues & problem areas on the EJ16
The EJ16 engines are generally reliable and solid as long as they are regularly serviced and maintained.
Regular oil changes are vital on the EJ16, especially when tuned and will help extend the life and reliability of the engine.
For more information on Tuning your EJ16 engine please join us in our friendly forum where you can discuss tuning options in more detail with our worldwide members with the EJ16 engine, or read our ej16 tuning articles to get a full grasp of the benefits and drawbacks of each modification.
Please help us improve these tips by sending us your feedback in the comments box below.
We love to hear what our visitors have got up to and which tuning mods work best for them on each model of car. Comments are used to improve the accuracy of these EJ16 articles which are continually updated.
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