2.8lL 3.8L swap S-10

i have read that a 3.8 olds 60deg. and a 2.8 chevy will interchange.
i have found a 1987 olds 88 with a healthy 3.8 its port injected, and is crank fired. so what i want to know is: what sensers need to be kept to make it run? how would i hook up the cable for trany(700R4)? can i use a older intake(carb) and use a regular hei igniton on that motor? any help will be welcome
james

to use a carb you'll have to get the intake manifold and carb from a carbed 3.8, if you do carb it you won't need any sensors. Trans mounting spot shouldn't be any different.

i thought the 3.8L was a 90 degree v6. Also, you won't be able to carb that particular 3.8 engine. In 1987 they used the DIS ignition system. There is no way to install a distributor so you will have to keep the computer and its related sensors. The only way to get around that is to find a really old 3.8L that does not have DIS. I believe that before 1986 all the 3.8's were carbed and non DIS, but i'll have to check to be sure.

It's almost always a bad idea to swap engines with what you have lying around.
All 3.8's use a different transmission bolt pattern, so the 3.8 will not fit your trans.
You could use a transmission from a RWD car that had a 3.8, like an early '80's Cutlass or Regal.
However, if you go to all this trouble, you would get better results installing a 4.3 V6 or a Chevy 350 V8.
The S-10 section in this forum has about 100 engine swap threads. Check it out.

well id like to swap in a 4.3 but the bolt pattern is differint. from other sorces ive read that the 2.8 and the 3.8 do have the same bolt pattern, the reason my blazer has a 700r4 is that its a 4x4. and its not allways a bad idea to swap parts. ive put a 360 HO/727 in a 83 dodge D50. it was a pain, but talk about a sleeper! ive just heard that the 3.8 was a very good/relyable power plant. if im wrong let me know and ill go with one of my other ideas. 318/727 devorsed transfer and toyota 4runner axels 4.11s or mabe go with my fwd 501 caddy,(big finder flares) so many choices so few weilding rods. :biggrin:

The 2.8 has the metric Chevy bell housing bolt pattern used ONLY in the 2.8/3.1/3.4 L engine family.
The 3.8 uses the BOP pattern. They are NOT interchangable. Just look in the Pontiac Fiero threads in this forum. There are dozens of threads about just this problem.
Save yourself lots of hassle and get a kit to put an SBC 350 and a 700R4 in your truck. A trans from a 4.3 V6 truck will fit a small block chev and bolt up to your existing transfer case.

well the conventional answer is/was:

the 2.8 has rwd mounting bosses cast into it and no 3800 does (since the demise of the 3.8L turbo)

the 2.8 bell wont fit a 700r4/4L60

any 3.8 with the right mounting bosses wont accept DIS and the balance shaft and a whole slew of improvements



then GM did us a favor and put a 3800 in the camaro.

now you know what to look for.