1.9 to 1.8 swap..how hard?

Alright I'm looking to get an 1.8l dohc motor to swap into my base Tracer, how hard is the swap? Do the trannies (I have a 5-speed manual) match up? Will I need a grippier clutch? I know I'll need the motor, and the ECU, are the sensors the same? Anyone who has done this, give me a few pointers...I'm looking to do this mid February, have access to a garage and tools, anything else? I'm swapping cuz I'm tired of not being able to accelerate uphill :P My car doesn't even have 150k miles on it yet (1996 Mercury Tracer (Trio?) Sedan) and while it does ok on flatland, it just doesn't have the oomph I'm used to...(my former cars were an 1987 Mazda RX-7 SE (1.3l Rotary) and a 1991 Chevy Beretta GTZ (3.1l V-6))....


Thanks!

The 1.8 Escort motor is all mazda, including the tranny and every thing under the hood. The 1.9 motor is a Ford. The tranny's are not the same. Every thing under the hood is different. Every thing.

If you want a cheap/easy swap, go with the 97 SPI SOHC motor. It has more tq then the 1.8 motor and 110hp instead of the 88hp motor your used to.
It's almost a direct swap, you can reuse your tranny and computer/harness. I can do a 1.9 to 2.0 SPI swap in one afternoon.

There is a whole slue of Mazda/Ford motor's that will fit your motor mounts, but the SPI swap is the easyest.

Alright, thanx for the info, on to more questions, I have 2 parts cars, a 91 and 93, is there much room in the 1.9 to go bigger? bore/stroke etc.? Or is a swap about the only way to make more power? I don't want this to be a monster car, I just want it to be able to get out of it's own way.....and not spend a fortune doing it...

The 1.8 Escort motor is all mazda, including the tranny and every thing under the hood. The 1.9 motor is a Ford. The tranny's are not the same. Every thing under the hood is different. Every thing.

If you want a cheap/easy swap, go with the 97 SPI SOHC motor. It has more tq then the 1.8 motor and 110hp instead of the 88hp motor your used to.
It's almost a direct swap, you can reuse your tranny and computer/harness. I can do a 1.9 to 2.0 SPI swap in one afternoon.

There is a whole slue of Mazda/Ford motor's that will fit your motor mounts, but the SPI swap is the easyest.




WRONG THE 1.8 DOCH HAS 127 HP

What I meant by that post is I'm thinking of pulling one of the other 1.9's from my parts cars (one runs and one needs some work, as I think the piston rings are damn near gone) and having it bored a bit and stroked, I ought to be able to pull about 20+ hp out of it by enlarging it a bit, hopefully? I know this means new pistons/rings, etc....Can I get any power by upping the compression (keep in mind I'm fairly new to adding power to engines, mostly I just maintained my other cars..)...

wrong The 1.8 Doch Has 127 Hp

Sorry Its Dohc

I have no idea if it would fit in or not.
At this moment my engine is at Mississauga engines being boared, biger pistons and rings, port and polish, re-machine the angles on the cams, water pump re-build. When Im going to have more money im planning on getting a turbo. Ask a car shop it is posible.

thanx for the little bit of info gt 1.8, if I can ask, how much is that running you?

WRONG THE 1.8 DOCH HAS 127 HP
Dude your caps lock is on.

I never said the 1.8 GT did'nt have 127hp.
But I did say the 2.0SPI has 110hp, but it also has 125ftlbs, that is more tq then a 1.8 DOHC GT. The 1.9 motor he is used to has 88hp.

Alright, thanx for the info, on to more questions, I have 2 parts cars, a 91 and 93, is there much room in the 1.9 to go bigger? bore/stroke etc.? Or is a swap about the only way to make more power? I don't want this to be a monster car, I just want it to be able to get out of it's own way.....and not spend a fortune doing it...
To bore/stroke these motor's is the fastest way to spend a crap load of money to get little results.
Just go to the salvage yard, pick up a low milage 97 2.0 SPI Escort motor for 300 bucks and drop it in place of your 1.9, there you go instant 25% gain in power for 300 bucks and and a afternoon of work.

Now try to take that same $300 and go to a machine shop with your 1.9 and tell them you want 25% more power by having them bore/stroke it and there gonna laugh in your face.

You were advised "If you want a cheap/easy swap, go with the 97 SPI SOHC motor". I would take it over the Mazda for the ease of installation, the extra real power from increased displacement, and retaining an SOHC valve train which is a non-interferance engine and won't self-destruct when the timing belt fails.

so the 2.0 SPI is an exact replacement? Won't need a new tranny, etc.? WIll I still need the ECU (I assume I will) or part of the wiring harness? thanx for the info so far :)

All you need is the motor (long block) and complete intake manifold with 97 fuel rail.
Every thing else get's reused from your 1.9. Tranny, flywheel, clutch, wiring harness and ECU. Even the oil pan and exshaust manifold can be reused from the 1.9.

You will need a RPM switch to control the split ports, but that's no big deal.
Follow the link in my sig for directions.

The 2.0 SPI has a less hp then the 1.8 DOHC GT motor, but more touq. It will make you just as quick as the GT motor, but a hell of a lot easyer to swap in.

Thanx much, I don't know what I'm going to do, I might just leave it stock and fix the other Escort and give it to my brother..blah