While it's apart for new seals and such, I figured I may as well make it look nice under the hood too.

 

Very nice. I restored a car once, and what I learned is that every little bit you do, no matter how small, adds to the appearance.

Wish I still had it. There is a period of about 5-7 years where an old vehicle is considered junk. Then it becomes a classic. I let go of that restored vehicle at year 19, but I wish I still had it now.

The same could be said about my 1992 van the last 7 years. And people WERE telling me to junk it. Now it's a classic. It's like you just have to ride out years 18-25 and you're all good!

 

Getting the engine together.

Hopefully finish it up tonight, then tomorrow the swap begins.

 

Got the swap all buttoned up last night. Everything went very smoothly.
Pulled the old engine, swapped the engine bay harness:


New engine harness ready to go in.



AHH! NAKED!

Got the new Engine dropped in:


Got everything bolted back up, plugged in, and fluids filled. Took her for a quick drive:


All works as it should. The new engine is smooth as silk, transmission shifts crisp and smooth, she got quite a bit more grunt now too.
All in all, I'm calling it a win.

 

Definitely a win! You got what you wanted out of this. Nice job all around. Glad it went so smoothly. Thanks for sharing the pics!