Subaru Conversion Products, coldwater914.com Options

[IM101]

*1/19/2021: First couple of updated production cradles are complete and will be shipping out tomorrow! I'll be welding and shipping the rest over the next week or so, have 18 more to go, anyone who said they were interested will be getting an email from me shortly. Good to be back!

*12/10/2020: Wanted to wait until I was close to give an update, I have completed the prototyping process and am finishing welding production cradles over the next few days, 20 in this run, with many already spoken for and many more cradles to come after.. Also have hardware arriving for the cable shift and back plate so will be able to send those out as well. Also I am updating the shifter as well, specifically adjusting the clamp on the shift rod coming out of the 5mt. The update should remove a small amount slop that can be present on some of the original kits.

*8/7/2020: Wow, 5 years since my last update, time flys.  Apologies for going no show for such a long time, and to the guys who were hoping for a kit sometime over the last 5 years really bummed and somewhat feel like I let the community down (but such is life, and family comes first as I am sure you are all familiar with).  On to the good news, I just confirmed and paid for my first laser-cutting order in a long time, 4 new prototype parts that should be the pinnacle of my original cradle design. adjusting a few of the quirks from the original design (Ex: perfect axle alignment, OEM Transmission mount etc.). I also have been working with a new CAD application I have been able to do some modeling (link to photo) which has me excited about future possibilities.
The biggest benefit of the new design will be in much easier/quicker production time, eliminating a lot of tube prep/bending. Which for me is huge as the main issue holding me back over the years is time. I am actually working to further reduce production efforts, but that will come later in the year as I have the process more ironed out.

For now and most importantly for all of you, my plan is to have 20 cradles / trans hangers ready to ship by the end of August.
I'll reach out to those who have emailed me in the past with interest for a cradle but feel free to ping me again if you want one. Also have a business line set up, feel free to shoot me a text as well: 208-817-0141

*1/26/2015: After a rocky year, Re-focusing, moving the shop, and getting some help.

*12/9/2013: Back up and running, planning to ship parts at the end of next next week!

* 09/6/2013: In Boise ID! we move into a new apartment on the 10th, onto a good job lead that should give me some time to begin the process of reopening Coldwater. Please email ian@coldwater914.com if you are interested and ready to buy parts as it will help me to schedule production.

* 07/11/2013: I Get married tomorrow and will be gone on honeymoon/moving probably until mid august. feel free to email me with any questions, I will respond when I'm back stateside and settled. Thanks for all the support!!

*Update 05/20/2013: Liquidating stock to get ready for a wedding/move to Boise. 5% off normal prices, an ej22t, and a couple of transmissions.

*Update 09/12/2012: very exited to announce that my website is live! feel free to check it out coldwater914.com. It is a work in progress but I'm very please with how it is turning out.

I’m very excited to announce that I will be doing my first production run of cradles this coming weekend august 11th. In concert with this first production run I also am coming out with several other drivetrain related products. Below is a list of what I will have ready to ship the beginning of next week.

It should be noted that the last item on the list, the Hybrid Axles, are not quite ready to go yet. Pending a final test fit and a boost in capital (hopefully from this first production run), I will be able to put in a stocking order with SAW and have them ready to ship in 3 weeks.

If you want to help out with the stocking order feel free to officially pre order the axles when you pay for the rest of your order, If you chose to preorder the axles, I will ship them for free (domestic only) when they come in.
At this time I’m ready to start taking informal pre orders, (the list has already been started and two of the ten cradles are already claimed) just send me a note letting me know what you would like.

(Shipping not included in price)

-Engine Cradle- 500$

(pictured cradle is a prototype set up with 4cly only engine mounts, new style designed to accept Subaru mounts)

Save yourself uncounted hours and get this bolt in engine cradle. Designed to be as universal as possible the cradle works with the stock 914 chassis mounting points as well as stock Subaru engine mounts, enabling the use of either a 901 or Subaru transmission. Made from .095" wall steel tubing and .25" laze cut steel, the cradle is burly enough to accept any Subaru motor from the four cylinder ej series to the 3.3/3.6L sixes.

-5mt Transmission Hanger- 75$

Take your 914 Subaru conversion to the next level, by upgrading to a Subaru 5mt transmission. The transmission hanger incorporates seamlessly into your Cold Water Engine Cradle, allowing you to install/remove the transmission without dropping the cradle/engine

-FWD Spline Coupler- 175$

This coupler replaces the center differential in the Subaru 5mt, locking the transmission into front wheel drive. Formed solely in the US from a single piece of high strength 4140 alloy steel and hardened to perfection, you can be sure that only quality parts are going into your transmission.

-5mt Back Plate- 100$

For those who understand that a thin piece of aluminum with some wholes cut should not cost 200+ this plate is a, no nonsense, get it done, part. Laser cut out of marine grade aluminum and including the necessary hardware, it can be described as simple, quality.


-Late Trans Stubs- 100$


Later Subaru 5mt’s use an all in one DOJ(inner CV) that is incompatible with the design of a 914, however the later transmissions, no matter the visual similarities, are stronger than the earlier ones. to convert these late transmissions to use the older style female DOJ and stub, it is usually necessary to open up the transmission to install a set of the older Stubs and oil seals. Not the case anymore, with the right axle stubs/oil seals from Subaru and ten minutes of time a transmission can be ready to rock the necessary DOJ.


-Urethane Cradle Mounts- 85$
For that sweet spot between stock rubber and solid mounts these Urethane mounts help to kill weld cracking, bolt loosening, vibration while replacing soft/old/cracking rubber mounts that will fail after too much heavy use. The simple design is a direct replacement of the stock mounts, which means even if you aren’t ready to jump into liquid cooled engines you can still tighten up shifting and replace old cracked rubber on your teener.

-Hybrid Axles- 375$

These custom, 4340 alloy, Sway-A-Way axles bridge the gap between the Subaru transmission and the 914 hubs. With Subaru splines on one side the axle will fit the 02-04 Impreza wrx DOJ. While on the outside Sway-A-Way's signature free floating splines accept both the 914 and 944 CV joint. The 02-04 wrx DOJ will fit most subaru 5mt transmissions from 93-2013

* The axles also have been found to fit other older Impreza DOJ's as well and similar year legacy DOJ's, But are not guaranteed on anything but the 02-04 wrx DOJ
** DO NOT buy after market DOJ's of any kind and expect them to work, they are made mass produced in china and the inner star/race is not stock OEM.


Feel free to ask questions (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

Best Regards,
Ian Megale
Founder
Cold Water Conversions LLC
(503) 720-2981

[IM101]

So, to clarify for my dumb ass; I can but an EZ30D with just about any Suby 5-6 speed, buy the Small Car $200 kit to adapt to the 914 ECU, buy your kit and have basically what I need sans the cooling, clutch parts? And if this is correct will it matter whether I go JDM or USDM. TIA, kent

Kent,
Basically, you are right in your recipe; however what the small car DIY kit does is allow the use of the stock SUBARU ecu. This is an alternative to an aftermarket standalone ECU, which is powerful and flexible but expensive. The DIY kit helps you weed out 70% of the unneeded wiring, resulting in a wiring system that consists of the ECU and only the wiring to run the engine properly (I’m doing a full ez30d set up for a customer right now, I’ll take pictures of the wiring before and after, I would bet there is 50lbs of copper that is removed).

"Just about any 5-6 speed," is not quite right either, although from about 93 onward manual Subaru transmissions can bolt up to basically any engine, doesnt mean they are equal. for the 6mt, only the new 2010+ 5mt based 6 speeds will work, the STI 6 speed cannot be converted to FWD up to this point and is too long for the 914 besides. for 5 speeds, in general you want to stick to the power output of the engine the trans was originally on, ie you should not throw an NA 5mt on a turbo motor and expect it to last. Furthermore, although it would be nice to think otherwise the transmissions are stronger the later the year ie: 2008 is stronger than 2004 is stronger than 2000 is stronger than 1996. Finally you want to think about what gear ratio you want to go with those range from 3.9-4.44.
I am working hard on many things right now, but i have a 5 page document with a much more in depth look at the engine/transmission choices that i will be posting up to my website soon hopefully. it should help to answer a lot of questions.
Also i do not know if small car carries jdm wiring kits, because yes it would matter.


Charlie,
I agree with you to a point on the aftermarket ECU, for people going for massive power and 90% of the JDM engines, aftermarket is the way to go. On the other hand, if someone just picked up an NA 2.2L or 2.5L for 1-1.5k(including ecu) and just want a reliable 914 with quite a bit more ummph, then the stock ECU is a better choice just for the budget. Even if a person plans on upgrading to a turbo engine later I don’t think it’s that necessary to spend the money on the aftermarket ECU. I mean with a 02-05 wrx you have both Romraider (free+50$ for a cable) and Cobb AP (200-500 used) out there for tuning assistance, at a price that is much less than a standalone set up.

On the small car stuff, im still learning, but basically it is what you described, it is made to get the stock ECU running not much else. However they do leave in the OBD2 dongle, which leaves an opening for romraider or AP. For the EZ30D i have found one experimental definition for romraider out there, which opens up some tuning options.

Thanks for the kind words, always nice to hear support =). I am thankful to all the pioneer conversions as well, I probably wouldn't be here without them. I'm definitely not an expert by any means on the wiring/ecu side of things, but I'm learning and exploring options as I go and the goal down the road is to be the source for basically top down subaru conversions on 914's cooling, ecu, engines and all. "kaizan," hmm, I've never heard that before, you may be interested to hear my plans for my own conversion then. Starting out narrow body 4-lug with an ej22/25 franken engine and taking it through the conversion life cycle, tracking my progress as i go, ending with a 280+ HP beast with all the trimmings.