UPDATE: 3800 sunfire swap

[IsaacCarlson]

Things are progressing. I am going to use BOTH cv shafts from a 1994 grand am so I can use factory seals on the tranny. I need to move some things around in the shed to make more room and I am working on getting the fuel tank out of the olds today.

[IsaacCarlson]

I got the fuel tank out the other day and then was told that the sunfire pump should work for the 3800. I want to put the olds pump in the sunfire anyway, but I will have to do some checking to see if I can swap just the pump or if I will have to swap sending units as well.

I picked up my new axle shafts today. The scrap yard could not find any good ones. $130 for both sides is not as bad as it could have been. Now I need to get a trans filter and some fluid. The motor will get cleaned up as soon as I can get the wiring labeled and pulled out of the olds. I have half of the wiring out already, but I need to label what is out and then do the rest. A good portion of the wiring will be removed, since the sunfire only has half the electronics of the olds. I won't need the keyless entry wires/module, the window wires/module, or the door lock wires/module. I can get rid of a lot of the relays since they will be useless, and the whole harness can go on a diet. The VATS system will be removed and replaced with a small chip.

[RobertISaar]

use the sending unit that's intended for the car, otherwise you'll likely run into guage issues. GM changed a lot of stuff around in that era, resistance specs likely wouldn't match up.

[IsaacCarlson]

Originally Posted by RobertISaar

use the sending unit that's intended for the car, otherwise you'll likely run into guage issues. GM changed a lot of stuff around in that era, resistance specs likely wouldn't match up.

Both cars are supposed to be 40-250 ohm, but the sunfire runs lower pressure and less volume, so I might swap anyway.

[RobertISaar]

Originally Posted by IsaacCarlson

Both cars are supposed to be 40-250 ohm, but the sunfire runs lower pressure and less volume, so I might swap anyway.

alldata shows the 02 sunfire as a 40-250, but the 96 88 as 0-90.

it's been wrong before, but it wouldn't hurt to throw a multimeter on it and verify.

[LeanBurn]

I have to say there are some dedicated people on this site when they have an idea....this seems like quite a project. Most people would have tried to find a way to shave 700lbs off the Olds...

[IsaacCarlson]

I will test it just to be sure. The sender from the olds is only a few years old, but I hate to swap them out if the sunfire pump will work. But then again, I don't know if the sunfire pump puts out enough fuel. GRRR

Just have to do a flow test on both and see what happens.

I don't see how anyone could shave 700 lbs off the olds without doing major surgery. It is rusted out anyway, so the sunfire is the better deal. I can't even pick the car up anymore because the jack goes right through the bottom. I tried picking it up by the hitch and it came off. WI does not need to use salt.

[IsaacCarlson]

Yup.....0-90, dang. But YAY! I guess it is a diamond in the rough. I now get (have) to use the better pump anyway.

Ok, so the pumps get swapped. Then I can make sure the inside of the tank is clean.

[Christ]

What'd you do for wiring changes and ECM when you swapped this?

I don't believe I ever read about it.

Reason I ask is that I just picked up an S10 with TWO T5's behind a 2.2 that needs main bearings and for the cost of a rebuild, I can buy a low-mile 3800SC and have similar fuel economy and a metric buttload of extra power [to the tune of 290HP and 310tq].

I know additional wires need to be added for the SC engines [I think I know...] but I can handle that, it'd just be nice to have a starting point from someone else's swap so I'm not going in blind.

[IsaacCarlson]

Originally Posted by Christ

What'd you do for wiring changes and ECM when you swapped this?

I don't believe I ever read about it.

Reason I ask is that I just picked up an S10 with TWO T5's behind a 2.2 that needs main bearings and for the cost of a rebuild, I can buy a low-mile 3800SC and have similar fuel economy and a metric buttload of extra power [to the tune of 290HP and 310tq].

I know additional wires need to be added for the SC engines [I think I know...] but I can handle that, it'd just be nice to have a starting point from someone else's swap so I'm not going in blind.

I am still working on the swap. The wiring is coming along, but I am only working on it part time. The wiring should be pretty straight forward, but we will see for sure.

I don't know if the 3800 will bolt up to the t5. If it will, great, but You will need a custom flywheel, unless your 3800 is out of a manual car already. I think camaros used the 3800 and they were rwd, so you could look into that.
Maybe just use a camaro tranny or get the whole thing from a junk yard and drop it in to the truck.