3.8 supercharged (Page 1/1)
Castlerocco MAR 30, 10:57 AM
I'm looking at a 1997 Pontiac GTP with a supercharged 3.8, as a donor car for the engine swap. The car doesn't have the transmission, so I'll use my 4 speed. How hard or ready is it? I'm an aircraft mechanic, so I have skills. But I don't weld.

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Rocco:
My Project
86 Fiero SE, Stock 2.8L, 4 speed

[This message has been edited by Castlerocco (edited 03-30-2020).]

qwikgta MAR 30, 11:39 AM
its not that difficult to attach the motor/trans to the cradle. i've done a few swaps and never had to do any welding. if you make your own mounts, you may have to weld, but I got mine from West Coast Fieros, they need some "tweeking" but are a bolt on. pulling the old motor/trans, getting the engine bay all cleaned up, doing some painting to make it all look nice can all be done in a weekend. Putting the new motor/trans on the cradle (with pre-made mounts) and modifying the serpentine system (low mount alt) is another day. Long pole in the tent is the electrical, you can buy a pre-made harness or build your own. I've made a few using the pinouts on Sinisters website and asking questions in the Tech section. Lots of folks have done this swap and will provide you with all the data you need. Exhaust is something you can have done locally so you wont have to do any welding there. All in all you can do the whole swap without a welder.

Good luck and ask lots of questions.
Castlerocco MAR 30, 11:48 AM
Besides the engine, do I need anything else from the donor car?
Castlerocco MAR 30, 11:53 AM
I just found out the donor car I'm looking at has 178,000 miles on it. They guy says it runs great, but that sounds high. Would I be better off looking for something with lower miles, or do these motors last forever?

[This message has been edited by Castlerocco (edited 03-30-2020).]

blazin' MAR 30, 02:57 PM
Make sure the wiring harness is included and get the pcm as well.
qwikgta MAR 30, 03:03 PM
other than the motor/trans, you want the harness "un-cut", if you have to cut, make sure you don't have any wires that are the same color, if so, cut them at different spots, so the harness can be mended. you want the axle stubs that come out of the trans, save the whole axle assy b/c some swaps can use different parts of the axle. The ECM/PCM should be attached to the harness, so grab that too. When I pull a motor from the yard I grab the above stuff. Also get the A/C line from the car, you can sent both the Fiero and GP hoses off to have them made into one good assy so you can have A/C when done, also, remove the portion of the hard A/C line that has the green wire/sensor on it. You don't need the power steering pump as you will prob be redoing the pulley system if you go low alt route.

as for the mileage, when I pull a motor from the yard, I take the engine down to the block/crank. You can get a kit w/ all the gaskets, O rings and misc for cheap. I also get all new sensors, timing chain and oil pump. Remove the heads for new head gaskets, its good to clean it all up anyway. You may want to install new springs/rockers/lifters and push rods if you find an issue, if not a good clean and soak in oil is a must. Put the motor on a stand, flip it remove the pan and check the bottom end for wear. if your cylinders are in good shape you may not need to go any further, just clean it up, put all new gaskets/hardware in it and run it.

If you have not done this type of overhaul before, make sure to have a bunch of zip lock baggies, and sharpies. Bag and label everything. Take pic's with your phone and have a lot of rags too. Its actually kind of fun.

Rob

[This message has been edited by qwikgta (edited 03-30-2020).]

hnthomps MAR 31, 08:43 PM
Maybe this current thread will answer some of your questions. You may also want to distinguish what is necessary for functionality and what is required to "look good".

http://www.fiero.nl/forum/Forum2/HTML/139530.html

Nelson

[This message has been edited by hnthomps (edited 03-31-2020).]