8v in 16v car

[Guest 89MaserTC]

I have an 89 8v with low miles that a got wrecked(not my fault) , and an 89 16v with bad engine, what kind of problems will I encounter installing the 8v in the 16v with getrag 5 speed ? I put the engine in the car only to find numerous things that appear to be different, mainly throttle body , vacuum hoses , and wiring ! Am I looking at changing half the wiring harness and the nightmare of figuring out vacuum ? Thanks for any help or tips !!

Anybody want to buy 2 1/2 89 TC's in VA ?16v 112000 miles yellow bad engine , 8v great interior and top odo broke shows 30,000 prob 60,000 red/black,this car was in great shape , front was "swiped" bumper and hood messed up the rest intact, but front is pushed 3 inches to the left .8v parts car everything gone from doors forward .

[89TC-16V]

pretty much a straight swap, you need to change exchange flywheels between the two motors and im pretty sure u probly can run the 8v on the 16v engine computer but it may not run optimally. wiring is the same

[Guest Jim_McNally]

Almost makes me wish I still lived in MD...

The SMECs are definitely different, just take the one out of the 8V and swap it in. You will need to source a flywheel from another chrysler product - someone familiar with this chime in?

Jim

[Guest 89MaserTC]

The engine is in the car used flywheel etc from the 16v. I have 3 8v smecs so no problem there, my concern is mostly vacuum hoses , there are definitely differences there, and a couple wiring diffs as well. the throttle body hookups and how they mount are diff too. I'm about ready to sell and buy something with twice the power, maybe a good ole mopar v8 convertible comes to mind LOL !! TRADES ???

[Guest pnsurfin]

It is sacreligious to put a 8v motor in a 16 v car. People usually want to do the opposite. You will be disappointed by the lack of torque and horsepower. I've owned both.

Patrick

[89TC-16V]

the vacuum and wiring harness is essentially the same just in different locations, you may want to lengthen wires, shorten wires and or hoses. the flywheel the 16V is the one you need and you just bolt it up to the 8V in place of the auto flywheel and torque converter, its a easy swap. i wired a 16V motor into my 92 dodge daytona use a 2.5 8V wiring harness, so it know there really isnt any differences that will give you any problems. ive heard Alan say the wiring is the same before, vacuum harness is essentialluy the same also. shop manual for the motors can be of help

[Guest 89MaserTC]

I agree it's not right to put an 8v in a 16 v car , but the alternative would be to let the 16v car that is in otherwise good shape sit and rot for lack of an engine , when an engine is available . I believe that to be even worse ! I have driven both , and realize the 8v will have less power, but it should be a lot better than the sucky automatic!!! That said , my 16 v engine had been rebuilt 15,000 miles before it lost oil pressure , the main and rod bearings are shot , cams and bearings are fine. Does anyone know , can I install the 16v head and all associated parts on the 8v that is in good shape ?

[TwinCamFan]

Anything is possible Maser:cool: Since you have already put the 8v into the 16v TC engine bay(which of course means you pulled the broken 16v motor) I'd venture to guess that you have the skills needs for most swaps:D Good job!

The swaps I've done focused mostly on swapping out the original 284 Getrag transmissions (from the 16V cars) with more commonly available 523 transmissions. The serviceable parts (clutches and seals) are just too hard to find for the 284's IMO. I am curious about something in your swap, did the 'tin' from the 16v car fit with your 8V swap? I'm talking about the thin formed stamped sheet metal between the engine and transmission, it didn't quite fit on my swaps and I had to use one from the donor 8 V car.

As far as the 16V head on the 8v motor, sure it will bolt right on and 'fit' but it's not that simple. Pistons need to be changed to the 16v units (or go custom which is easier IMO) then there is the issue of common block vs non common block engines. For your swap it mostly pertains to the cogged crank sprocket that drives the distrib and cam gears. The snout sizes are a different diameter in the two motors. However, if you are changing pistons, you'd be better off just to rebuild the shot 16V motor at that point. Some parts (rod bearings) are nearly impossible to come by (I've had them made at about $180/set) so it's just easier to swap to an 8V crank and rods onto some 16v pistons. I don't recall the stock 16V rod pin diameter so not sure if that could work even with machining.

We're with you on this project, don't sell them and buy an older Mopar, consider instead fixing the TC and make it drivable/enjoyable *then* get that RWD Mopar (I'm partial to 69-70 Darts myself;)

[Lkvr]

The Chicagoland president of SDAC has put a 16V motor up on Ebay.

Chrysler TC by Maserati 16 Valve Complete Engine and Transmission 77,290 miles | eBay

I do not know what his reserve price is, but this would solve you from having to worry about the issue of differences between 8V vs 16V cables

[yellowdog]

I'm on the opposite side of that equation. I found a rotted out 16v car and had the engine pulled and rebuilt to be put into my 8v baby. The guy doing it gave me 3 boxes of parts--including wiring looms, belts, etc--to hold onto because they are probably not interchangeable with the 8v.

I'm hoping his work schedule will open up soon so we can complete the transfer.

[Hemi Dude]

I have an 89 8v with low miles that a got wrecked (not my fault) , and an 89 16v with bad engine, what kind of problems will I encounter installing the 8v in the 16v with Getrag 5 speed ? I put the engine in the car only to find numerous things that appear to be different, mainly throttle body , vacuum hoses , and wiring ! Am I looking at changing half the wiring harness and the nightmare of figuring out vacuum ? Thanks for any help or tips !!

You guys make a big thing about this swap. It is no problem replacing the 16V engine in that 89 with an 8V.

My 85 Laser came with a 2.2 TBI engine and the 5 speed 525 transaxle. Initially I installed a 2.5L turbo intercooled engine in that car with the same transaxle. Some years later I installed the Getrag transaxle in this car using the shifter, cables, etc in that Laser.

The swap of the 8V into the 16V car only involves the engine it's vacuum lines and electrical wiring. (wiring is NOT the same) It is just a matter of pulling out one harness and installing the other. Use the 8V SMEC. The flywheel and clutch bolts on to the 2.2L 8V engine exactly the same way and the Getrag trans fits the 8V engine similarly.

The car will run almost as well as it did with the 16V engine, believe me. Both my 5 speed (converted from automatic) 89 TC with the original 250,000+ mile 8 VALVE engine and my 2.5L Getrag backed Laser are FAST and a lot of fun to drive. Some of you EXTREME enthusiasts may disagree but for normal driving either car will 'kick the butt' of 90% of the drivers on the road currently.

If the owner of the car wants to contact me privately, be my guest.