Swapping an 89 turbo engine into an 85 non turbo

AustinandTrotsky

AustinandTrotsky

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Hey all! I am new to the world of pontiacs and semi new to the world of engine swaps. I recently bought a 1985 sunbird convertible. Ive never loved a car more. Unfortunately, I loved it a bit to much and the crankshaft broke. Stores don't really stock those parts anymore so if I want this car to run again I need a new engine.

I bought an 89 sunbird for 700 bucks. A great deal due to a pretty gross interior and the owner's lack of passion towards fixing it up (it wasn't running when I purchased it but was assured it would).
My mechanic said hell do it but the wiring has proven to be pretty complicated. On top of that I am trying to put a turbo engine into a non turbo car. is that going to be possible?

I am looking for any guidance. If people tell me to give up and go a different way then I will but I am hoping to make this work.

Thanks in advance!
 
Are you swapping the engine, transmission, engine wire harness and ECM? Is your mechanic doing the work?
 
melsg5 said:
Are you swapping the engine, transmission, engine wire harness and ECM? Is your mechanic doing the work?
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My mechanic is doing the work. keeping the same transmission and I want to keep as much from the 85 as possible as I know more of the history behind this specific car than the 89. He's saying were going to have to splice a lot of the wiring together to make it work though
 
You have to determine if you have confidence in your mechanic to do the swap and whether it is worth doing it financially.
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melsg5 said:
You have to determine if you have confidence in your mechanic to do the swap and whether it is worth doing it financially.
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He is definitely capable. What hidden costs do you think I will run into?
 
Well sure its taken longer than expected but I have time. I am wondering is if anyone has any guidance on the execution of it. We are getting a little stumped with the wiring
melsg5 said:
The time he needs to complete the job.
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Are the speedometer gauge clusters interchangeable? You may want to swap them to make the wiring changes easier. Better to exchange whole harnesses rather than splicing wires.
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That is a nightmare waiting to happen, you are going from a TBI injection car to MPFI car.....fuel pump, tank, lines , wiring harness, computer, trans ( unless the exact same) , cluster,.....etc.. all wiring has to come out of the donor car and go in the current car.... It's all different..

Doug in P.R.😎
 
92 Sunbird LE said:
That is a nightmare waiting to happen, you are going from a TBI injection car to MPFI car.....fuel pump, tank, lines , wiring harness, computer, trans ( unless the exact same) , cluster,.....etc.. all wiring has to come out of the donor car and go in the current car.... It's all different..

Doug in P.R.😎
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That was the kind of answer i was dreading/looking for, thanks Doug. I found an 84 for cheap that ill just transplant in
 
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