Hi all,

Just picked up a high mileage VIII this weekend. After a few months of telling the wife I wanted a project one popped up within an hour from us and she was open to taking it on. The previous owner turned up the boost too high last winter and blew a decent sized hole in the block. He had rebuilt the entire drivetrain after the motor in 2022 before putting a sunroof in the block and was able to provide receipts prior to me picking up the car. I haven't had a chance to pull the motor ( would love a link to a DIY thread on that if you have one readily available. No lift so just jacks and hoists in my garage). While looking for motors online I keep seeing Outlander motors cross referenced with EVO 7/8. Are those blocks a plug and play with an Evo 8 head? That seems to be the cheapest/quickest route to take if my head is not damaged as well...and the wife would like to see this project at least drivable by early summer. If the head is damaged I will just buy a JDM motor and be done with it (after resealing and inspecting of course).

Current car specs for anyone wondering:
03 Tarmac Black with 190K
Stock internals
MAP manifold and external WG
Sheptrans stage 2 transfer case (2022)
Rebuilt 5 speed (2022)
ACT Streetlight Prolite flywheel (2022)
Exedy Hyper multi series SDF Twin clutch (2022)
HKS Exhaust
Coilovers (unknown brand at this moment)
Seibon carbon hood