The Bostig Conversion System (model 2013)
Quick Specs
Performance
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Crankshaft HP and torque, 19% drivetrain loss. Torque is in Ft/lbs.
Clearance & Departure angle
Install time
Install times based on home/driveway install, no lift, and reading/comprehension of the install instructions.Inexperienced mechanically: 3-7 days
Prior install of a Bostig conversion, or experienced mechanically: 2-3 days
Cost
Total cost of conversion as installed by a DIYer. $5.4k-$6.7k with a low mileage used engine, $7k-8k with a brand new engine. The kit itself starts at $4830 of that currently.Our philosophy is to never provide parts that can be purchased off-the-shelf. It is cheaper and allows maintenance independence, only the parts we must handle come through us. In addition to the kit from us, you will need to purchase the required parts shown on the required parts list in the documentation section.
Configure my Group 22B kit
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Yes(+430) No, I'll add it later Novice: SCT X3 Reflasher(+479) Expert (I have ePID ford logging capability): Chip |
Overview
Engine
Benefits
Features
Comparison Matrix
FAQ
Testimonials
A chain is only as strong as it's weakest link
The most mature and actively developed conversion
Our goals for the conversion
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The Zetec is a European and North American made distributorless Dual Overhead Cam( DOHC) two liter inline four cylinder engine developed by Ford Motors and Cosworth Ltd. of the UK. The 2.0L Zetec was used in the Ford Focus, and as such has reached production levels that no other option has (for instance more zetec engines were produced than the entirety of all engines and displacements that Subaru produced from the 15 years 90-2005). The Focus is a "world car" and is sold in every market that Ford is present in, making it easy for the Focus to become one of the best selling cars in the world (it outsold the VW Golf in 2001 making it the best selling car on the planet that year, 64% of those were zetecs). The Zetec is extremely well designed and well made. We were surprised many times along the way by small, and not-so-small design features that help make the Zetec such a wonderful little engine. Its split case to help reduce NVH , its Non-interference design, and its mechanical simplicity are a few features that make the Zetec a rugged engine and tenacious performer. There are very few inline 4 engines that are as simple and trouble free as the zetec, and no horizontally opposed engines that are.
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Confidence in your vehicle
Most engine conversions function great when everything is within spec, as they should, but customers often forget that what happens when something goes wrong can be much more important. It's when things go wrong that the real tests of robustness and preparation in design and forethought are performed. Unfortunately more often than not, those in the position to minimize risk, impact, and cost of potential problems at design time don’t (just ask BP). We do.
Fewer hoses, fewer wires, engines that are the simplest, most reliable, and prevalent one can put in a vanagon, and the fact that we avoid specialized knowledge and tool requirements for dealing with engine internals are all results of our design philosophy. The Bostig 2010 is the easiest, fastest, and least expensive conversion to maintain proactively or repair reactively.
Confidence in drivability comes from being able to do something as simple as merge onto the highway without fear of impending doom. It also comes from being able to enhance the original design concept of the vanagon which is to achieve great efficiency, capability, and versatility with a lightweight powertrain that smartly employs gearing and relatively small powerplants; not heavy components, brute force, and the fuel/performance costs associated with them.
Confidence in your investment
- All of your eggs aren't in one basket, no component or subsystem costs more than $850 including a brand new engine. Most alternatives have engines that cost into the several thousand dollar range... JUST for the engine(which can only be bought used or rebuilt, not new). Since you're only as strong as your weakest link, you can also be confident that because not all of your conversion dollar goes into one thing, the other links in the chain can be made better, as is the case with the Bostig 2010. We address links in the chain that other conversions completely ignore. One third of Bostig customers have been through an unsuccessful alternative(other conversion or rebuild) before finally coming to us. The money spent on those unsuccessful alternatives would typically offset most of the cost of the Bostig, and speaks nothing to time and aggravation.
- Bostig backed - 5yr/50k warranty - longest of any engine swap kit available, we are the only dedicated vanagon conversion specialist with primary support and engineering resources in the market, we are not a garage, jobber, restoration shop, or retailer that also sell conversions compiled from other's parts
- The only conversion that has an actual production model/specification. There is no such thing as "The [insert other conversion here] conversion", only things like "Dave's subaru conversion" or "Bill's inline VW conversion" since there are as many variations and combinations as there are installers, and no two are identical. With us, there is "The Bostig 2010 Conversion". You can be confident in the consistency we achieve, which means you can avoid much of the risk associated with process, part, information, and individual differences during install and maintenance.
- Extensibility/Upgradability/Modularity. The Bostig 2010 is the only conversion for which everything is engineered to allow modular upgrade paths to new options and add-ons for painless and built-in future-proofing.
Confidence in yourself
- Build your confidence by learning faster and easier with the best support in the market. The best written documentation, video tutorials, and phone based support are part of the bostig conversion system. With more supported installs than any other conversion for vanagons, you get guided access to the most complete and accurate information on any conversion available.
- Build your confidence with our unmatched record of successful installs. We've had blind individuals, high-school students, senior citizens, and even folks that had never changed their oil complete the conversion successfully.
- You might not think so starting out, but once completed, you'll not only have a drool inducing engine compartment you won't have to see often, you'll have had enough guided interaction with the whole system to be able to fully maintain and service it yourself. Put your van into good hands you can trust, yours.
Realized value
- Realized value comes from ability to use what is it you've done/bought, not just own it. Bostig customers enjoy less time wading through posts and answers to questions online trying to judge which ones to believe. Instead they are successful in maintaining their project timelines and get on the road more successfully and quickly than if they did not have a trusted, single point-of-contact, wealth of correct answers at their disposal.
- Long useful life comes from the highest quality parts in both construction and design. We have the only dedicated fulltime engineering resources in the market, and all Bostig parts are made in the USA or Canada.
Completeness
- The only conversion system, with engineered engine mechanicals, engine management, and operator information. The other kits stop at engine mechanicals, and/or cheat engine management, and offer little or no documentation at all.
Time Savings
- Simplicity, which translates into less to learn, which in turn means it's faster/easier to master.
- Relevancy and accuracy of acquired knowledge managed for you. With anything else it is your responsibility to determine good from bad, and valid from invalid on your own, which takes time and research with no guarantees.
- Plug and play - The only conversion available with a purpose built 100% brand new plug and play(no splicing) wiring harness.
- The only conversion available that can be completed with 100% brand new parts if desired, so sourcing can be faster. Even with salvage parts, we show you how to avoid setting foot in a yard, and completely avoid removing a single part from a donor/salvage car yourself.
Education
- Includes the most extensive and highest quality written and video based documentation for any engine swap kit, for any application.
- We offer accurate and relevant information. Bad information can be worse than no information, and it becomes a common pitfall for conversions without centralized support, feedback, or experience. We avoid the scenario where the person least able to make the correct judgement(inexperienced installer) is left to decide what should happen, and what path should be taken. Learn what you need to learn, and learn the correct information the first time.
- Knowing how to properly install a part can be as important as the part itself. We know this, and provide documentation to ensure it.
- Knowing where/how to source a part can be as important as the part itself. We know this, and provide documentation to ensure it too.
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Simplicity
5year/50K mile warranty
Based on a world engine
Ford UK made 3.5 million zetec engines in its Bridgend plant alone, zetecs were also made in Cologne and Chihuahua. Subaru engine totals for every engine of all families they made from 1990 to 2005 do not total the bridgend single plant output of zetecs. In 2003 Subaru broke its previous all-time annual sales record when they sold 186,819 vehicles (all models/brands) in the US. In 2003, Ford sold 3,483,719 vehicles (all models/brands) and 229,353 of JUST the Focus model in the US, which is only one of the vehicles the zetec came in. People in vanagonland often forget (not coincidentally because they also happen to be the target demographic of Subaru marketing and advertising) that Subaru is not a large car company, with low sales most of which are highly concentrated in the Northwest and the Northeast. As a result, the scale is not the same, nor is the support infrastructure surrounding it, which is all reflected in pricing and availability of both engines and parts, especially if you travel outside the Northwest or Northeast.
Not based on a rebuilt engine
One excellent analogy to something as invasive as an engine rebuild is major surgery. Despite what the surgeons will have you believe, it will never be as good as pre-condition no matter who the surgeons are. Engine rebuilds are the same, the surgeons will tell you it's as good as new, and even provide a warranty (read the fine print it won't be as rosy as you think either). For our bodies you can't get a replacement. For your vanagon you can. Instead of paying your way out of a bad situation into a less bad situation, take the opportunity and move into a good or great situation. You can do this by sticking with a new or used factory sealed engine (meaning the head has never been removed after factory installation). Rebuilds typically fail much earlier than sealed factory engines. No matter who the rebuilder is, they do not have the kind of capability or consistency that the original manufacturer does down to even the most basic levels of metallic composition of the constituent parts.
Engine management
E85 ethanol out of the box
High speed logging/Analysis
Pleases and calms rednecks, and some cops
We've also been pulled over while out testing and... ahem... perhaps bending some local traffic laws (specifically the ones that tell you how fast you're allowed to drive). The cop was equally intrigued when we told him we were out testing the Ford engine in the back, and he asked to see it. I really wish we had the dashcam video of that stop. He was so interested he forgot all about telling us why we got stopped, but he did tell us he was a Ford guy.
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General
| Bostig 2010 | Subaru EJ22 | Subaru EJ25 | Subaru EG33 | VW Inline | TDI | |
| 5yr/50,000 mile warranty | ||||||
| 100% new parts usage possible | ||||||
| Single party development, active primary engineering resources | ||||||
| 3 zone development method: engine mechanicals, engine management, and operator information | ||||||
| Brand new engines available | ||||||
| Stainless steel fasteners/components | ||||||
| Production model exists/consistency |
Engine Mechanicals
| Bostig 2010 | Subaru EJ22 | Subaru EJ25 | Subaru EG33 | VW Inline | TDI | |
| Non-interference | ||||||
| Fully closed deck |
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| Low mileage engines(<30k) for under 600 dollars commonplace | ||||||
| Less moving and non-moving parts than original engine | ||||||
| Lowest hose count | ||||||
| Based on a highly successful "World engine" program, more than 3 million engines produced, potent economies of scale |
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| 6 Quart oilpan |
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| Increase in engine weight less than 70lbs | ||||||
| Import numbers higher than original engine | ||||||
| Never unseal the longblock, no internal work, deal only w/ complete engines | ||||||
| Highest engine reliability index of any conversion | ||||||
| Steel oilpan |
Engine Management
| Bostig 2010 | Subaru EJ22 | Subaru EJ25 | Subaru EG33 | VW Inline | TDI | |
| Engine management calibrated to hardware configuration | ||||||
| 100% Brand new, never installed, purpose-built wiring harnesses | ||||||
| Engine management updates via email and web(with SCT X3 option) | ||||||
| No diagnostic trouble codes for missing subsystems | ||||||
| Lowest wire count of any conversion |
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| Comes Bio-fuel capable |
Maintenance
| Bostig 2010 | Subaru EJ22 | Subaru EJ25 | Subaru EG33 | VW Inline | TDI | |
| Parts available everywhere, including mid-western US, central/south America, Africa, Europe and Australia | | | | | | |
| Largest existing parts infrastructure of any conversion | | | | | | |
| Least expensive parts of any conversion | | | | | | |
| Lowest maintenance times of any conversion | | | | | | |
| Replace/refresh the engine for under 600 dollars | | | | | | |
Operator Information
| Bostig 2010 | Subaru EJ22 | Subaru EJ25 | Subaru EG33 | VW Inline | TDI | |
| Holistic approach, embracing the importance of education and self-sufficiency as part of the total reliability equation and core value proposition | | | | | | |
| Video based educational and instructional materials | | | | | | |
| Standardized procedures in every area of assembly/install | | | | | | |
| Online support community | | | | | | |
| Guided learning | | | | | | |
Upgradability
| Bostig 2010 | Subaru EJ22 | Subaru EJ25 | Subaru EG33 | VW Inline | TDI | |
| Bolt-on turbocharger upgrade | ||||||
| Engine management fully upgradeable, customizable | | | | | | |
| Development methodology always maintains upgrade paths for all customers | | | | | | |
Drivability
| Bostig 2010 | Subaru EJ22 | Subaru EJ25 | Subaru EG33 | VW Inline | TDI | |
| Well suited to stock gearing | | | | | | |
| Significant low end torque over stock | ||||||
| Wide power band | | | | | | |
| 7k rpm redline | | | | | | |
| Q. How much does it cost? | A. Total cost of conversion as installed by a DIYer. $5.4k-$6.7k with a low mileage used engine, $7k-8k with a brand new engine. The kit itself starts at $4830 of that currently. |
| Q. How long does it take to install? | A. If you have everything collected/ready to go, 2-3 days. 3-5 days if your pace is on the slow side. The current record is 9 hours. |
| Q. What is included in the kit? | A. Everything but the engine, engine peripherals, and parts in the Rock Auto order list (See support documentation). |
| Q. That's more expensive than other kits out there isn't it? | A. If you consider something that any vendor calls a kit to be exactly the same as anything else called a kit, then yes. If you consider the completeness of the kit, and the information/support provided to be of value then no. There is no equivalent engine swap kit this complete available for any other vehicle, let alone the vanagon. |
| Q. Do you do installs? | A. No. The kit is designed for the DIYer, and there is huge value in doing the conversion yourself and learning to be self-sufficient which happens as part of the conversion process. We *only* support the installer of the conversion, which could be a problem for you down the road if you have it installed by someone else but are unable to return to them for service/assistance. |
| Q. How can I get one? | A. Simply complete the form on the top of this page, add to cart, and checkout. |



