I am liking the Ecotec idea for my engine swap. Now do I go with a Saab 9-3 turbo or supercharger. Both engines have about the same horsepower. The supercharged version is a whole lot more expensive ($1200) and they are pretty rare. The Saab 9-3 version is really inexpensive ($500) for the HP and there are plenty out there. If anybody knows about the transmission in the Saab ( fit in fiero on what). Bring on the opinions.

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The beginning of a man's love for a car

You'd be better off spending more money and getting a Gen 2 LNF motor out of a Cobalt. 260 BHP (290 with factory tune) and the sky is the limit from there. Much better than the cheaper, older, lower output Saab mill.

I can't afford that path. Those engines are going for 1500 or more used.

The Saab Ecotec with high pressure turbo gets 207 hp add a tuned exhaust and computer tuning I can get that up to 220 or more. With less money than the LNF I can about the same hp or more. The LNF is a great engine with its modern improvements but i can't go there at that price.

Yes the SAAB engine is GREAT!!! Sadly the auto trans's suck but the manuals 5 or 6 speed are also GREAT
I am looking for a 2005 Saab 9-3 Arc W/ the 2.3 and 5 speed.

Go with the turbo motor. A lot. More capability .. if and when you do get one CHANGE the timing chain... they are know to fail..... just a fyi. Good luck!

I would not suggest an LNF because of the direct injection and even fancier electronics. How different are the Saab motors compared to the Gen 1 boosted Ecotecs in the Cobalt and Ion (LSJ)?

quote Originally posted by fieropunk: I am liking the Ecotec idea for my engine swap. Now do I go with a Saab 9-3 turbo or supercharger. Both engines have about the same horsepower. The supercharged version is a whole lot more expensive ($1200) and they are pretty rare. The Saab 9-3 version is really inexpensive ($500) for the HP and there are plenty out there. If anybody knows about the transmission in the Saab ( fit in fiero on what). Bring on the opinions.

That 2.8 turbo that came in the 9-3 Aero's is very appealing. First I've seen/heard of it....wonder if anybody's consider trying that swap and if it's as involved as some THINK the LNF is (it's a thread on this forum where I shared the wisdom gleaned from a conversation I had directly w/ an old GM master certified tech who worked on development of Ecotec platform. To reiterate, he said as along as the entire wire harness and BCM / PCM from the actual car from which the motor was pulled are included, there shouldn't be ANY problem w/ running it, extremely high fuel pressure, VVT, and all). Only barrier I see is the cost to purchase an LNF considering the rarity of the motor.

FYI: Looks like the saab uses:

1. F35 5-speed w/ RPO code: MC6

and

2. F40 6-speed w/ RPO code: MU9

http://www.xtremethings.com...GM-Transmissions.pdf

[This message has been edited by akademikjeanius (edited 10-21-2012).]

quote Originally posted by fieropunk: I can't afford that path. Those engines are going for 1500 or more used. The Saab Ecotec with high pressure turbo gets 207 hp add a tuned exhaust and computer tuning I can get that up to 220 or more. With less money than the LNF I can about the same hp or more. The LNF is a great engine with its modern improvements but i can't go there at that price.

Uh - when was the last time you saw an LNF putting out only 220 BHP?

Stock is 260, stage kit retune = 290 and well over 300 is easy just with tuning. You won't touch that with the Saab version. More money, I grant you, but worth it.

quote Originally posted by BillS: Uh - when was the last time you saw an LNF putting out only 220 BHP? Stock is 260, stage kit retune = 290 and well over 300 is easy just with tuning. You won't touch that with the Saab version. More money, I grant you, but worth it.

+1

quote Originally posted by BillS: Uh - when was the last time you saw an LNF putting out only 220 BHP?

HHR SS w/ autotragic transmission.

quote Originally posted by Will: HHR SS w/ autotragic transmission.

Nope, they put out 235 BHP, detuned to prevent slagging the weak transmission. The regular manual trans put out the full 260.

Has anyone even gotten the tuning worked out for the Bosch Motronic with the LNF for swapping into a Fiero or something other than a car that came with an LNF?

the easiest way to do any new , currently in production motor is to get the entire donor cars wiring harness with the steering column and key in it , the ECM and matching BCM , get both fuel pumps and all the associated plumbing and adapt it to the fiero .doing it this way , you do not try to tie the fiero wiring to the ecotec , the ecotec becomes sort of stand alone within the fiero .they share a common battery and that is about it .the high pressure direct injection does not add any further complication as it is all self contained on the engine .the fuel pressure from the tank is close to what is on a stock fiero .you do not adapt the steering collumn to the fiero , but you need the matching key and switch until you can figure a way to eliminate the VATS .with my 2.2 , i used HP tuners to shut it off .not all models can be done with HP tuners , you have to check their list .the 2.0 litre turbo ecotec is now an option engine on a wide variety of GM vehicles .in 5 years , the wreckers will be full of them .lets hope they are smart enough to keep the electronics intact and with the engine .

I disagree about the easiest part. IMO the easiest way to do it is get the engine, and throw a stand alone EMS on it like a MegaSquirt MS3. Bye bye, BCM, VATS, OBD2 etc..

[This message has been edited by BV MotorSports (edited 10-24-2012).]

i dont think MS3 will handle the HPDI functions .For anything without direct injection , there are a variety of stand alones that can be used but MS3 is the cheapest .i found that the plug and play nature of factory wiring harnesses and the fact that i did not have to completely write my own tune to be simple and easy .

Having built a few MS boxes.. I can easily say that even building the stupid MS box is harder than any complete GM swap tune/harness/wiring job I have ever done.

quote Originally posted by darkhorizon: Having built a few MS boxes.. I can easily say that even building the stupid MS box is harder than any complete GM swap tune/harness/wiring job I have ever done.

MS3, no assembly required. Anyhoo, there are tons of options out there. I have used AEM, PECTEL, PowerFC, Hydra etc...

quote Originally posted by BV MotorSports: PECTEL

I had a quote for an SQ6 to use with my S62 swap... *NOT* cheap.

quote Originally posted by wftb: the easiest way to do any new , currently in production motor is to get the entire donor cars wiring harness with the steering column and key in it , the ECM and matching BCM , get both fuel pumps and all the associated plumbing and adapt it to the fiero .doing it this way , you do not try to tie the fiero wiring to the ecotec , the ecotec becomes sort of stand alone within the fiero .they share a common battery and that is about it .the high pressure direct injection does not add any further complication as it is all self contained on the engine .the fuel pressure from the tank is close to what is on a stock fiero .you do not adapt the steering collumn to the fiero , but you need the matching key and switch until you can figure a way to eliminate the VATS .with my 2.2 , i used HP tuners to shut it off .not all models can be done with HP tuners , you have to check their list .the 2.0 litre turbo ecotec is now an option engine on a wide variety of GM vehicles .in 5 years , the wreckers will be full of them .lets hope they are smart enough to keep the electronics intact and with the engine .

Glad an actual eco-tec swap car builder / owner confirmed those suspicions @ not as difficult/nigh-impossible as once thought to be if all engine management pieces pulled along w/ engine from donor vehicle.