1984 944 5.3 swap

This is the second 944 that I have owned and unfortunately the motor went. But...... this means I can jam some bald eagles under the hood. I am still a student in my senior year of high school but have done swaps before but never one on a non American car. I have all the free labor in the world thanks to my friends but I'm on a tight budget. I eventually want to buy the TPC kit but don't have the money together yet. I have a motor so that's not a problem. I know that I will need more than comes in the kit but has anyone done a bare minimum on parts just to get the engine in so I can gradually start building the kit around it? Also I already have the 4cyl out of the car and want to start prepping the engine bay. Should I use stock harness and splice in the 5.3 one? Also what needs to be taken out completely? I Have read plenty of forums already but they usually end with no straight answer or veer off into another conversation. From what I've heard this swap can be challenging so I want to make sure I can get all the information I need before I start.

zach.wassman wrote:This is the second 944 that I have owned and unfortunately the motor went. But...... this means I can jam some bald eagles under the hood. I am still a student in my senior year of high school but have done swaps before but never one on a non American car. I have all the free labor in the world thanks to my friends but I'm on a tight budget. I eventually want to buy the TPC kit but don't have the money together yet. I have a motor so that's not a problem. I know that I will need more than comes in the kit but has anyone done a bare minimum on parts just to get the engine in so I can gradually start building the kit around it? Also I already have the 4cyl out of the car and want to start prepping the engine bay. Should I use stock harness and splice in the 5.3 one? Also what needs to be taken out completely? I Have read plenty of forums already but they usually end with no straight answer or veer off into another conversation. From what I've heard this swap can be challenging so I want to make sure I can get all the information I need before I start.

It's really hard to tell you what you're going to need. Almost every one of these I built was different, based on customer requirements. Kent at TPC has basic kits that can at least get the engine in the car. You won't reuse any of the existing 944 engine harness. You will be using a standalone harness specific to the LS engine you are putting in the car. Only a handful of wires will be tied into the 944 body harness.
It's actually not that hard of a swap to do.

Is there any alternative oil pan that i could use rather than the 600 dollar one ?

zach.wassman wrote:Is there any alternative oil pan that i could use rather than the 600 dollar one ?

Quick answer, No. There are people here who have bought moroso oil pans and modified to fit. Requires fab skills and equipment. Still not really that cheap.

Thank you, Is there anything else i should do while the motor is still out of the car? Also what is recommended for the exhaust? I have read that you can do a y pipe down from the tpc headers to the original exhaust is this true?

You will need to remove the vacuum brake booster and clutch master cylinder. These will be replaced with a mustang hydroboost and larger clutch master. You need to retain your brake master, as it will be reused.

As far as exhaust goes, yes you will use a y pipe to hook up to whatever exhaust you plan to use. Be sure and use flex joints in the pipes going to the y off of the manifolds. I don't recommend using the stock exhaust. It's made for a 4 cylinder and won't flow well for a V8. If you are using a stock 5.3 liter engine, then the stock exhaust would be ok but not ideal.

Look at all of the swap posts on this forum. Lots of good pics and info that will help you along the way.