White'89,

LOL! Let's just say that this motor will look miniscule in the engine bay. Me and my cohort were able to pick this motor up and carry it with relative ease. If I weren't a gimp, I could probably pick it up and move it on my own.
Welcome to the asylum.

jersyboyy,

Welcome, and don't mind the padded walls.

 

The Saab 2.0l engines in the 2003 and up 9-3s are also ecotechs but they have been given the Saab treatment (like oil cooling jets, direct injection, etc.) and come turbo already. Just make sure to get the high pressure version (avoid the Linears, which are low pressure turbo--well low to Saab standards). Not sure on the bell housing pattern.

Or to step even further outside the Saab 2.3l engines in the 9-5s come from the factory with 240 hp, torque in the mid 200s and can be easily bumped up to the 300 range. They are also bullet proof. But they are Saab specific engines.

 

I think I can relate, because ten years ago, I was able to move a bare 454 block from one table to another. Those are in the 250-pound range. But no way I could do it now.
But we have engine hoists, so it's all good

 

Yeah, it would be fun but mine is a full tube frame pro street car. My dad bought it new and the car had 12k on it when my dad started the project oh.. late 70s? Its still on going. 6-71 blown 327/liberty 4 speed/dana 60. I do like that idea alot though. would be a nimble little road course car

 

same engine as the Solstice GXP/Sky Redline cars.. direct injection, turbo, all that jazz.

 

nosajwols,

The LK9, the 2.0L turbocharged Saab Ecotec, was a predecessor of both the LE5 and LNF which both have oil-squirters. I don't think the LK9 was direct-injection. I'm pretty sure the LNF was the first Ecotec to have that feature. If it's an Ecotec engine, they have the same bellhousing pattern.

The Saab 2.3L is a lot more of an unknown. I'm not saying they're a bad engine, but I just don't know if there's as much aftermarket support to throw them in a RWD format.

ronnjonn,

Yeah, I'm pretty sure just a few years ago, before the Army broke me, I'd have been able to pick up an Ecotec motor and carry it about 50 feet. I'm glad we got hoists, too. LOL!

72vega,

Hmmm...I'd leave that Vega alone...sounds like a great combo, as is. One of my Army-brothers wants to get a Vega wagon and do a turbo Ecotec swap for about 300WHP. He wants the "sleeper" look of the wagon, as well as the cargo capacity. Not my bag, but I can respect it.

 

This looks like a great build. I am considering buying a Buick Regal GS when they come out. I was looking into the weight and the Buick Regal Turbo cars weigh like 3800lbs. The GS will feature 0-60 in under 7 seconds. I am interested to see this and a performance video after it! PLEASE TAKE A LOT OF PROGRESS PICS!

It will be interesting to see the motor in the engine bay too. I can't say that I haven't considered this swap myself!

 

Wrenchp,

Welcome to my little nut-house. Pictures will be coming as soon as this project starts moving again, which should be soon. The bellhousing is on it's way, now...

 

I can't wait man!

 

subscribed

 

Man, I would have at least hung the engine in the car's engine bay, still chained to the engine hoist, just to look at it for a while. And may as well make a pic while it's there. Ya gotta see how it's gonna be, or either curiousity will kill ya, or you'll become disenchanted.
Otherwise, is just like marrying the girl in the cake, before she jumps out where you can see her.

 

^^LOL

But seriously, I wanna see this thing.

 

sk8r fer life,

Welcome to the funny-farm.

ronnjonn,

LOL! I, too, am very anxious to get this project back on the move. I just got the bellhousing a couple days ago. However, it looks like the T5 I have won't work at all. Apparently, the 4th-Gen F-body V6 T5's had a longer input-shaft than the usual 6.6" common on most T5's. It is looking more and more likely that a TKO-500 will be my next order. More updates to follow...

Steel Armadillo,

You're not the only one, and welcome to the psycho-party.

 

Yeah I have read several threads about how a 4th gen T-5 will NOT work in our 3rd gen cars. I tried that route too, as I am lookin' for a used one to throw in my project..

 

Okay, I've discovered that the T5's that came in 4th-Gen V6 F-body cars are similar to Ford T5's in bolt-pattern. Also, the input shaft is longer. The Ecotec to T5 bellhousing will work with V8 T5's and TKO-500's, I think.

 

After a bit of thinking and looking around, I believe that I have found a fairly cheap way to do a supercharged Ecotec that would work in a RWD set-up and be around 300WHP. The Eaton M90 supercharger used on the '89-'95 Ford Thunderbird SuperCoupe and the '89-'90 Mercury Cougar XR-7 had the air-inlet on the top of the supercharger. These superchargers could probably be found in junkyards for $200 or less. Someone could use the laminova-core charge-cooler set-up from a supercharged LSJ Ecotec engine, use an adapter between that and the Eaton M90 supercharger (McMillan Fabrication makes one, I believe), and then make an adapter on on the inlet that could accept the Ecotec throttle-body, or, maybe, even an LSx throttle-body. Hot Rod magazine did something like this a little while back:
http://www.hotrod.com/techarticles/e...ons/index.html
They made about 335hp and 285lb-ft of torque. Just sharing the knowledge...

 

You only want the final 2 years of that supercharger, and good luck scoring one in a yard, or for $200. Maybe $500 on ebay, if you're lucky.

 

Hey man, the Grand Prix GTPs also used the M90, FYI.
Anything that had a 3800 and was SC, probably had an M90 to the best of my knowledge.

 

But those are end feed. The final years of the Buick 3800 Series 3 had the most efficient M90 ever, but even that still responds well to proper porting.
There's no reason you can't use it if you build brackets, and add a jack shaft. Then it would be front feed, with the blower pulley toward the rear.

 

ronnjonn,

The earlier superchargers will still work. The later ones, 4th(?)-gen, are better, true. However, you could get one of the earlier superchargers and replace the rotors with the teflon-coated ones from the 5th-gen. The teflon-coated 4th(?)-gen style rotors are still being made, from what I understand. Also, I've been able to find the 4th(?)-gen M90's around here for $250-$550, depending on condition.

Steel Armadillo,

The Series I and Series II GM 3800's used an M62 supercharger, and the Series III used the M90 supercharger, I believe. The big hurdle with using the rear-inlet supercharger on a longitudinally-mounted Ecotec is that the inlet would be poking through the firewall.

 

got it in yet? lol

 

72vega,

LOL! Unfortunately, no. The T5 I have won't work. I could go out and find the correct T5, but I'd still have to worry about the mounting point on the transmission tailhousing. So, instead, the GM TKO-500 is virtually identical to a GM T5, especially, in all the areas that concern this swap, and the mounting point on the TKO-500 is meant for "straight-up" mounting. I'll be ordering up a TKO-500 and exchanging crossmembers as soon as I can.

 

So your saying you have a good v6 t5 for sale now?

 

19camaro83,

LOL! Possibly. PM if you're really interested in the T5.

 

PM sent.

 

PM returned.

 

UPDATE

It's been a busy couple weeks. Had to move my Camaro, all it's parts, and all my other gear into my new Man-Cave from my friend's place. Luckily, my dad was out of town, so I got to use his truck. On top of that, I managed to ace a couple exams for some college classes I'm taking over the summer.

However, on to the more interesting stuff.

I was able to pick up the second piece of my hybrid Ecotec motor, an LE5 2.4L engine. It's from an '06 HHR and had a little over 100,000 miles on it.



My roommate and I then proceeded to disassemble the LE5 and the L61 that I've had for a while, since I'll be using the bottom end from the LE5 and the top-end of the L61. Oh, and I officially hate "torque-to-yeild" bolts...



Luckily, my dad taught me there's no such thing as too much cheater bar.

This is what we got after disassembly.



My block already has oil-squirters.




And, even after 100,000 miles, the cylinder-bores are in great shape and still have the cross-hatching, all the bearings were in great shape, and the crank journals are all fine and will be even better after a quick honing.

Then, we plucked the cylinder-head off of the L61, since that'll be the cylinder-head I'm using for this hybrid. The L61 cylinder-head is on the right, and the LE5 cylinder-head is on the left. Again, nothing wrong with either cylinder-head.



After that, we put the main-girdle back on the block, and the oil-pan after that to give me an easy way to start getting mounts made.



Next up, I'll be exchanging the T5 crossmember I got from Spohn for a TKO crossmember, and then ordering up a TKO-500 when I get my next GI Bill payment.

More to come...

 

Glad to see this project moving forward. When its done I expect you can proof to a great many people that the newer inline 4 platforms can be worthy engines.

 

Hope your keeping a good record of cost

 

Thirdgen89GTA,

I'm not trying to prove anything to anyone with this swap. If there are people out there who can't, or won't realize that 4-cylinder engines, especially with forced-induction, are worthy performance engines, especially after the past two decades then nothing I say or do will contradict their pig-headedness. This swap is for me. Personally, I don't care what others think of it.

Pillsbry10,

So far...

$300 for the L61 Ecotec engine
$350 for the LE5 Ecotec engine
$625 for the Ecotec to T5 bellhousing
$445 for the Spohn torque-arm/crossmember and polyurethane transmission mount

Coming up...
$2200 for a TKO-500
$1800 for engine-block work with forged connecting-rods and pistons

This is not one of those really cheap "bang-for-the-buck" builds.

 

Looking good! Really want to see how this turns out. Probably going to be the only one around for a while I'm sure. Noticed you have a pretty healthy looking small block in the "breaker bar" pic....plans for that?

 

Just stumbled on this thread, I think this is an awsome idea, if for nothing else to be different. Why complain about the I4 when its making more than my V8? I'd consider this for a daily driver, you can get an ecotech for $350 at a junk yard?

 

Nothing cool is ever cheap

Are u going to call this motor the aluminum duke?

 

whitedevilTA,

Oh, that's my 383 stroker motor I had originally intended to throw in to the Camaro before I got this crazy idea of an Ecotec swap. That motor is probably making ~450BHP. It will be going in my '68 Chevelle after I finish up with the Camaro.

GerryCat09,

Welcome to my looney-bin. Yes, I think there are a lot of advantages to going this route. You get more power than a stock V8, shave a lot of weight off the nose, and get better mileage. You lose torque, though, as to be expected. Yes, I got the L61 for $300 and the LE5 for $350. These motors come in almost every car that GM made from '03-'10. The supercharged LSJ and turbocharged LNF will cost closer to $2,000 out of junkyard. Just jump on Car-Part.com and see what's around your area.

Pillsbry10,

True that. Besides, it's only money. What else am I gonna do with it.

LOL! The "aluminum duke"? I love it! You get the credit for that, man!

I can see that engraved in a custom plug cover right on top of the engine!

 

Ha the pic of you with the breaker bar makes the think of the quote "give me a big enough lever and ill move the world."

 

SCORE!! i expect to see that somwhere in the engine bay.

in my engine bay there is a "made in Mexico" sticker that someone stuck on there

 

travis401,

LMAO! That sounds about right!

Pillsbry10,

I've got the perfect place for it. Something like this:
http://www.zzperformance.com/cobalt_...1218&catid=180
But with:
ALUMINUM DUKE
TURBOCHARGED
engraved on it instead.

 

awesome build, cant wait to see it go down the road. I have all intentions of someday putting a quad 4 in a thirdgen, but with the kind of power you can get from an ecotec its hard to say no to. Keep up the good work

 

KagA152,

Thanks, man, and welcome to the lunacy. The Quad-4 is a good motor, but I think the Ecotec has it beat in just about every way, personally. I think it'd be a great swap, though. Roscoe? You're less than an hour away. If you ever decide to do an Ecotec swap, let me know.

 

I like any non V8 swap, especially the ones that most V8 guys hate.

As far as my GF's car is concerned, I think we've decided to go V6 with it, and same marque as the chassis, just about 40 years newer than the chassis.

I was hoping to see engine bay mock up pictures by now.

 

Six_Shooter,

LOL! I think there are plenty of V8 guys who suffer from a NotaV8aphobia that hate this swap. A few of them have already revealed their...disgust.

Cool beans. I'm very curious as to what your GF's car is and what you're swapping into it.

Ugh...you're not the only one that was hoping to have engine bay mock-up pictures by now.

 

I'm like the annoying little kid in the back seat who, every five minutes asks: "Are we there yet?"
I once drove a blue '87 or '88 Chrysler Conquest TSi ( Mitsu Starion ) with the turbo 2.6L 4-cylinder. I had some fun, I must admit. But I couldn't help but wonder about putting 2 of those turbos on a Dodge Magnum 5.2L V8 swap. Double the torque, double the fun, right? YES!
Someday I hope to build exactly that.
You bash me for hating I4s, why isn't fair for me to bash you for hating V8s?

 

LOL! I'm kinda the same way. I frequently have to bitch-slap my inner child and tell him to sit down, shut the **** up, and wait his damn turn.

Funny, my roommate owns both a Starion and a Conquest. He's...quite enamored with those cars. Why, I don't know, but they make him happy. I don't know if someone has done a 5.2L Magnum V8 into one of those cars. Personally, I think it would be a little much, especially twin-turbocharged, for that small of a car. But, that's just me...

Really? I hate V8's? Wow...I didn't know that.

Huh. I could of sworn I owned a V8. Yeah, I think I own a 383ci stroker SBC engine. That's a V8, isn't it?

 

well since ya hate v8s now, i will gladly take the 383 and chevelle off your hands LOL

 

LOL! Hands off perv. She's MINE!

 

Isn't the Quad 4 the basis of what later became the Ecotech? I think they even have that same weird bellhousing...

Anyway, did you make motor mounts yet??

 

No, the Ecotec and Quad-4 share many similar features, but the two engine families are not related as I understand it. The Ecotec is based off an engine designed by Opel which then got revamped by Lotus and Saab engineers. And, as far as I know, the Ecotec and Quad-4 do not have the same bellhousing pattern.

Unfortunately, not yet. I still have to get the TKO-500 and the Spohn crossmember for it before I can slip the drivetrain in. Hopefully, I will within the 4-6 weeks.

 

youd probably have enough room under the hood to run a massive turbo with no clearance issues....

 

Hell, I'll probably have enough room in there to run a turbocharger off each cylinder and a supercharger. That won't happen, but I'm fairly certain there'd be enough room for it. LOL!

 

now that would be an interesting set up.