Hi everyone,
Ihave a question about parts and swapability of the ecotec and 2.0ohv. I can get parts real cheap where I am at and and just wish to do some experimenting with my little indestructable toy motor. Does anyone know if any of the ecotec parts ie intake manifold, heads, pumps, or even starters will swap out tween them twine? Or if at all possible, will the entire engine swap out without any cutting, welding, hammers, or violence? I hope it will just take custom mounts and some wiring. Perhaps even a matching transmission. Price does not matter! The question is, can it be done?
No they are completly different engines. Nothing will interchange. You could put one in a second gen but it would require a completly custom install including making all new motor mount locations on the body and new wiring / ecu.
even installing an ecotec into a non eco 3rd gen requires cutting and welding. nothing is interchangable.
better off swapping a 3400 or if you must have a 4 cyl, a quad 4 HO (or w41 if you find it).
i dunno... ive heard nothing but @!#$ from GM Mechanics about the Quad 4..... all that ive talked to says the best motors that'll go in to a second gen are the 3x00 series excluding 3400 DOHC
Also on here and v6z24... ive heard people talk @!#$ about the 3800, 3800 Series II, and 3800 Series III in a J-body....
Ive also heard bad things about the Vortec 3300.
3400 is ure best bet, if your gonna swap motors
thank you much for your replies. Well, finding a good 3400/2001+3100 is very rare. If I were to do a swap, that would definitely be it.
Cullen Sabbs wrote:thank you much for your replies. Well, finding a good 3400/2001+3100 is very rare. If I were to do a swap, that would definitely be it.
Rare? Hardly. Any junkyard will have a couple of them laying around, they are the most popular GM car engine. they come in a bunch of cars. check out www.domesticcrew.com for more info on the swap
I'll share a counter point...
I'm no stranger to engine swaps. I've done a few and helped with a few more, from 327 chebby inna 72 240Z to a 455 Buick in a 79 Monte, to a 350 Chevy in a F150 to a TBI 4.3 V6 in a Suzuki Samurai and even a J spec sr20DET in a Nissan something or other.
After working in GM dealerships for about 5 years, I got over any urge that I had to swap a v6 into a J car. They're a beech to work on for regular maintenance. And they're heavy compared to a 4. And after getting into turbo cars, it's obvious that there's an easy replacement for the power of an NA6 in the form of a turbocharged 4. (a turbo v6 is not as easy to assemble).
The Ecotec engine is going to be supported by GM for several years (if they stay out of bankruptcy!) . Imo, it's going to become the "smallblock Chevy" of the next few decades. It's already used in Saab, Saturn, Pontiac, Chevy, and Buick as well as Vauxhall in Europe and Holden in Australia. Lots of performance parts are available from GM, something that they haven't ever really done before. And they're sponsoring race efforts, which is also good. According to GM, the Eco can handle 400 hp in stock form, something the 60 degree v6 isn't able to do. These engines are already available for $500 from junkyards, and after some looking around at wiring diagrams I think it would be fairly easy retrofit OBDI controls and run a 2nd gen J ecm.
My thought is that it would be better to find a donor Eco car, strip engine and trans, install using the ecm from a 1227749 turbo Sunbird, and go forced induction. Either tune it yourself, or pay a pro to spend some time with the car. You'll have something with parts available for years, with better, stronger, faster parts available any time you want to spend the $$, somethign unique. And you can put anything you don't use from the donor car on Ebay. If it says "Ecotec" in the title, it sells.
I realize that not everyone has the time, the tools, or the experience to make this swap. But that's what I'd do.
-->Slow
slowolej wrote:I'll share a counter point...
I'm no stranger to engine swaps. I've done a few and helped with a few more, from 327 chebby inna 72 240Z to a 455 Buick in a 79 Monte, to a 350 Chevy in a F150 to a TBI 4.3 V6 in a Suzuki Samurai and even a J spec sr20DET in a Nissan something or other.
After working in GM dealerships for about 5 years, I got over any urge that I had to swap a v6 into a J car. They're a beech to work on for regular maintenance. And they're heavy compared to a 4. And after getting into turbo cars, it's obvious that there's an easy replacement for the power of an NA6 in the form of a turbocharged 4. (a turbo v6 is not as easy to assemble).
The Ecotec engine is going to be supported by GM for several years (if they stay out of bankruptcy!) . Imo, it's going to become the "smallblock Chevy" of the next few decades. It's already used in Saab, Saturn, Pontiac, Chevy, and Buick as well as Vauxhall in Europe and Holden in Australia. Lots of performance parts are available from GM, something that they haven't ever really done before. And they're sponsoring race efforts, which is also good. According to GM, the Eco can handle 400 hp in stock form, something the 60 degree v6 isn't able to do. These engines are already available for $500 from junkyards, and after some looking around at wiring diagrams I think it would be fairly easy retrofit OBDI controls and run a 2nd gen J ecm.
My thought is that it would be better to find a donor Eco car, strip engine and trans, install using the ecm from a 1227749 turbo Sunbird, and go forced induction. Either tune it yourself, or pay a pro to spend some time with the car. You'll have something with parts available for years, with better, stronger, faster parts available any time you want to spend the $$, somethign unique. And you can put anything you don't use from the donor car on Ebay. If it says "Ecotec" in the title, it sells.
I realize that not everyone has the time, the tools, or the experience to make this swap. But that's what I'd do.
-->Slow
Care to share with us what regular maintenance is so hard on a V6? I've never had any trouble.
Sure...
R+R radiator
or cooling fan
Or lower rad hose
Or a/c condenser (they rot out here in the northeast)
or try removing the rear plugs when the engine's warm (not even hot, just warm). I bought a hot sleeve just for this, along with a couple of different styles of ratchet.
How about installing the new plugs without a problem? I've had to replace 2 rear cylinder heads for people who didn't get the plug installed correctly and ended up destroying the head.
Replace that thermostat in less than 10 minutes? Not usually. And it's even worse if the die cast quick-connect fitting for the coolant hose breaks.
Or maybe try to get to the ignition module without a hoist.
Even replacing the belt can turn into a fight.
What about the gasket at the coolant hose/ water pump housing connection which loves to blow during long trips? Definitely not a "must have" for me.
If you like your V6 car, then you probably don't mind taking extra time to do those jobs. It probably doesn't even seem like extra work to you, it's just part of owning the car. The engine's probably clean and not too corroded, which helps a bunch. As far as replacing a 2.8 with a 3.4 or 3.4, I think it makes a ton of sense. But the vehicle asked about isn't v6 equipped, so I offered an alternate opinion.
Now I've gotta go out to the barn and see if I can start and run a '36 Plymouth that's been sitting for 47 years. I'm having a little trouble figuring out where to connect my scan tool.
-->Slow
Wow! He has a point, but as stated before, you have to completely remodel the inside of your car's engine bay to get that thing in. But it would be incredibly unique! Imagine if once you have all that done, you patent the parts you used and sell it as a professional conversion kit. Professional meaning that you have to have a pro to install it.
