The only thing I want to put into my 80 is the engine itself. I want to know if the engine will fit the 5 speed tranny, and also bolt right in. I should have probably searched first, but I really didn't know what to type in. Thanks.

 

Hey..the engine will bolt right in......

but considering the 79 engine is on points...and the 80 has these seperate igniters...

do what i did....

take your 79 engine, put in a later model dizzy..(82 and up)..with electronic ignition..and do the conversion..(its not really that hard..just some different wiring....)

the tranny will bolt right up no probs...

does anyone have the link for the conversion from points to electronic??

Hope it helps....

Paul

 

I just yanked an engine outa my 79...and stuck it into the 80...... it bolted right up to the 80 trans.....

And what I did was just leave the 80 distributer with the 80.... and stick it in the 79.... and it works perfect.....


LATERZ, Andrew

 

Upgrade the ignition and you're set.

 

do yourself a favor and swap the engine wiring harness while you are at it.. (while your 79 engine is out, put the 80 wiring harness on it)

 

Yes, that's what's under here....

 

It's the same engine. Direct swap.

UNLESS.... you have the uncommon California-spec '80, which had an EGR valve and its own specific housings.

 

WHY???? That means he cant reuse the 80 ignition..... I just stuck the 80's rats nest on there...... I dont even think that was neccesary...... Oh yeah.... stick the 80's alternator on there too.... it has an internal regulator..... instead of the 79's external regulator............. That should be it though....... LATERZ, Andrew

 

if he swaps the alt and not the harness, then it will not work properly. and with the 80 harnesses matching, he will be able to use the ignition.

you really need to have the engine bay harness and engine harness match, otherwise you get all sorts of weird things going on. (ask me how i know)

 

When you say switch the ignition, you guys mean the distributor, coils, and engine harness, right? I figured this would be an all day project, what does everyone else think?

 

Not really. Removing the old engine is just a bunch of unbolting accessories, removing a few cables and hoses, unplugging the wiring harness, and finally yanking the sucker out. (Take a couple hours with hand tools) Then you swap all of your old engine's stuff onto the new engine, drop the new engine in, and go about putting everything back on. Took me 6 hours the first time including a few hours trying to get the crappy Pacesetter header to work.

It's really not that difficult! The hardest parts will be removing the front oil cooler hose from the engine (need a thin open wrench, I think 23mm?, and not much room to maneuver), removing the A/C compressor (do not undo the lines, just swing it up out of the way, but the bolts are barely accessible), removing the cables going to the carb (tip: see if you can just remove the carb and swing it out of the way, instead of trying to undo the cables with the carb on the engine) and of course rusty exhaust nuts.

 

I am doing this swap in the morning. So can I basically just swap the block? You know, leave everything else in the car and just switch the blocks. Is there any websites in case I get into trouble? Thanks guys.

 

You *could*.... but it's easier to yank the engine with the manifolds and everything, then swap what you have to swap over.

 

I am going to ask this one more time. So I use the 80 wiring harness, coils, dizzy and alternator, and basically just stick the 79 block in there. I should probably just use the 79 carb right, because there is no difference I don't think, or should I use the 80's manifold and carb. I am sorry for all the questions, I am not incompetent, but everybody was basically arguing and it got a little confusing. Thanks again, keep an eye on this thread in the morning because I might have some questions.

 

I'd use whichever carb has been run the most recently. Less likely to give you problems. If you don't know then use the '80 carb so you know it has all the proper connections. The manifolds should be the same.

Yeah, sounds like you've got it then...

 

Thanks, I am a little worried, but I will take the blown engine out first and get used to that. I am taking the tranny and engine out as a whole too, hope there are no problems there.