Well, so far no luck in sourcing a replacement used engine yet, I may just rebuild my existing engine. From what I have read, 1995 was a strange year for the GM 3800, with both series I and II produced simultaneously, and I read an article where the 95 model year used some Series II internals in the series I.
In any event, I am in the process of removing the engine/transaxle assembly, and have a few questions to pose to those who may done this before:
-can the engine be removed with the exhaust manifolds in place. It will a lot easier to address them when out and mounted on an engine stand
- is it feasible to just remove the A/C compressor from the engine and wire it in place to the body rather than disconnecting the plumbing? I was planning on removing the rad to prevent damage, can the compressor be tucked somewhere out of the way? Sure don't want to open up the A/C if it can be avoided
-the rear seal shows a special tool to install it. Is there another way to do that without this special tool? I know some used tools are on Ebay, and if I need to get one, fine, but again shipping is more than the tool, plus it would only be used once.
-part suppliers list 2 different size main bearing cap bolts, one 1/2 inch, another 7/16 inch. Again are these the difference between the 2 series of engines?
Thanks
Jeff