'86-'87 engine in my '85...

[jgonzales]

I still have several things left to buy for my stock engine so that I can put it back in the car. I think it's probably about $500-600 worth of parts, plus I wanted to get an intercooler setup which is close to $1000. I could probably get an engine from an '86-'87 for under $1000 and it would run better than mine, have more parts available and already have an intercooler. How much trouble is it to put a newer engine & computer in my car? What extra parts would I need to buy? Anyone who has done this, please give me your opinion. Thanks....

 

[NASSTY]

I did the 87conversion on my 85GN One thing that you have to consider if you get an 86-7 engine is how complete is it?Does it have intake,plenum,throttle body,fuel rail,exhaust manifolds and crossover,downpipe and cat. convertor,accessory bracket,altenator and brackets,a/c compressor or delete pulley,power steering pump and resevoir,throttle cable cruise cable,oil cooler adapter and oil cooler and heater hoses?Other stuff you need wiring harness?Don't have to have it but it has MAT and fan wiring , ecm,electric fan and relays,heater core,radiator unless you get an external oil cooler,radiator top support cover,turbo and intercooler brackets.The 84-5 trannys will work but there are some slight differences,they don't shift quite as firm??It could be costly if you have to shop around for lots of these parts.
When I did mine I had a wrecked 87GN I picked up so it wasn't too bad I had everything I needed.