Thoughts re engine choice please

[Zarf]

Hi all,
Iam thinking about 2 options re my future 818 build & would like some thoughts from those who know a bit more than myself please..
Choice 1 - Can buy through auction a used damaged wrx complete for which I get all req at once then rebuild & modify as req to suit my needs which is a mostly road car for my wife & I with the occasional circuit sprint at the local circuit would like 300 to 350bhp at the wheels..
Choice 2 - local wrecking yard imports jdm cars then strips so buy individual parts from them the engine they offered is SG9 sti ej255 with avcs using a vf41 turbo rated at 320hp which I believe is at the crank this option is most likely to cost double at least vs buying a wrecked car but will be lowest mileage..

My experience & back ground is qualified mechanic with a fully equiped shop but to be fair not an expert re Subaru but want to learn..

Any suggestions or advice would be appreciated thank you Andrew

[mikeinatlanta]

I have a cobra roadster, however, you may find my situation relevant. I chose to do it the part at a time method and found it impossible to control myself and each part had to be the best available. As a result, I'm at about 30 grand into my motor. For me, by far the smart move would have been to buy complete and do upgrades as needed.
IMO, unless being built with a very specific purpose in mind, a stock WRX motor is plenty to get the car fully sorted. We sure enjoyed it in our WRX.

[NevaLift2Shift]

It's really a toss up, I bought a wrecked '03 donor that I ended up selling about $1k worth of parts off it. That money pretty fast with aluminum LCA's and 2006 WRX brake package. It is very nice to already have all the stock parts like the steering column, gauge cluster, wiring harness, front and rear drive axles, master cylinders, slave cylinders, drive hubs, steering rack, etc. All those parts are going to take some time to source and are not something you can find aftermarket. As long as you can easily locate those parts, everything else can be found aftermarket and new.

I've spent a great deal of my time refurbishing the used parts. Mostly painting the old parts, but replacing any bearings, seals, or wearable parts. I'm looking for the same kind of power and plan on doing some 20 minute sessions at a road course. I'm in the process of the engine build, so I am looking into oil capacity\pickups\windage tray, an Air Oil Seperator, oil coolers, air-to-water intercoolers. All of those are concerns with the 818 chassis and WRX engines when tracking them.

[Zarf]

Thanks all for the replies I can see it's just much better to buy a complete car & go from there fixing things if req

[GoDadGo]

If you have a friend who has a dealer licence you may be able to attend a local salvage or wholesale auction. Just a thought, but I don't know how popular Subaru's are in your neck of the woods. In the Deep South they are almost non-existent. Good Luck!