My dad gave me his old van, an 88 chevy astro with a 4.3 v6 and a 5 speed manual, Not sure what tranny, gotta find that out still. Could I swap the engine into a 89 2.8? The 4.3 is fuel injected, But I'd swap it to carb'd just to get rid of all the mpfi ****. So, is this possible?

yupust Follow the V8 setup, IE V8 Radiato, tranny moter mounts ETC

Could I use a T5 as a tranny? Or would I need to use the tranny from the van?

Assuming the T5 fits that is.

4.3 has same bell housing as a small block. your 2.8 trans wont work. the vans a 5 speed? it might work with some work. driveshaft length may change.

The bell housing from the 4.3 won't fit on a T5 would it by any chance? would a T56 fit on a 4.3?

I don't know if the van 5spd would fit, I'd have to do a hefty bit of work to the car I think.

it would be a normal swap for the 5 speed i think. its a bit of work for sure. their are different T5's. 2.8 bellhousing T5's and small block T5's. A T56 was only ever behind a LTx and LSx so yes it would work.

Well I have a Spare T5 here with no bellhousing on it, All I'd need is a bellhousing for a SB T5 then would I?

to bolt it to the motor, yes. but you need to do alot of work to make it a manual from an auto.

It can be done, project89 was tossing around a turbo 4.3 idea for a while but I think that's been put on the backburner. You'll need a v8 radiator as stated, correct bellhousing, motor mounts and ecm/harness (or you could do a '165 or '730 ecm swap and tune it). You'll want to keep the fuel injection so you don't have to change fuel pumps. Have you looked into the 3x00 top end swaps as well?

My firebird is already a 5spd, So all the clutch master/slave **** is already there

The only thing that I am lost at is the ecm and harness stuff. I know very little about all that stuff. Everything else I think I can do. I plan on doing this swap in the winter at school, so I can do most of the stuff.

Whats the 3x00 top end swap? Haven't heard of it..

they sell carb'd intakes for 4.3's

If the van 5-speed is a 14 spline all you need to put the engine in your car is a v8 bellhouseing and v8 mounts and v8 radiator and you would be able to use your trans .

where can you find just a V8 5spd bellhousing? I can't find them in the local yard or craigslist, ebay, even summit

my guess would be out of a 1/2 ton truck.

3x00 top end swap is using the top end (heads, manifold, throttle, ect) off a fwd 3100, 3400 or 3500 on a rwd block like what's in your car already. You'll need to get a little more familiar with ecm's and get an external crank trigger for a 2.8 block, but it's worth the effort if you're comfortable with assembling a motor. Most stock 3x00 heads flow more on the exhaust side than the stock iron heads do on the intake. Go look for firstfirebird's 'what's a hybrid?' thread or check out 60degreev6.com. Why would you want to carb the 4.3 and loose all the tuneability you'll have with an ecm? And mileage?

Or out of a s-10 with a 4.3 . Also the van trans should be a t5 of some sort so the bellhousing on it may work . If I'm not mistaken the Astro and Safari vans use the same trans as a s-10 .

The last astro 4.3 5 speed that I worked on had the NV3500 pickup transmission in it.... not ideal for a 3rd gen...

I got my last T5 bellhousing right here on 3rd gen's classified section. Keep watching the parts listings and one will turn up!!

Anyway, with the V8 bellhousing and motor mounts, the engine ought to go in pretty easily.

Post pictures if you actually do this swap...

thanks for the info. I'll think about doing this prior to the 4.3 swap, if I go through with this. I would swap to a carb since I am more familiar with them over FI and all that ecm stuff. Its just way too over my head.

If I end up doing this swap I will be doing a complete write up on it so anyone else can do this.

The astro does have a nv3500 in it. Looked at it today. Now I gotta pull the engine out and see if its 14spline like the 2.8. If it is, I will be going through with this. Won't be till school starts so I can use nice tools.


Just to make sure I'm right here, When i do this swap i won't have to move the tranny or change driveshaft length, correct? would it be worth it to rebuild the tranny and rear-end when I do this too?

Make sure you use the firebird tailhousing whatever you do. If they're in good condition just use them as-is.

Don't try to use the astro NV3500 trans. It is a one piece trans from the bellhousing back. It won't work well at all and EVERYTHING will have to be changed.

You just need V8 parts. 14 spline doesn't mean anything. Look here; for your swap you need only a few things but you need them to do it right.

You need:

4.3 engine
Chevy 305 V8 bellhousing for a 3rd gen
T5 trans
V8 3rd gen radiator
V8 3rd gen front accessory drive and accessories
V8 3rd gen motor mounts
V8 third gen exhaust pipe to hook to your V6 manifolds

Now, all of this is on a tight budget, right? Well, you have the engine so far. Now you need to head to the junkyard and find a Camaro or Firebird from 82-92 with a V8. You need the exhaust Y-pipe and the front accessories, the radiator and the motor mounts.

You may be fortunate enough to find a V8 5speed third gen in the junkyard, too. Get the bellhouing and trans from it if it is there. You can get the T5 bellhousing from here in the classifieds if you can't find it locally. If you are using a V6 transmission then so be it. I think you should use a V8 transmission. I am running one in my 2.8 firebird right now because the V6 3rd gen transmissions just can't take any abuse at all.

Sell the NV3500 trans on eBay or craigslist and use the money to help get the parts you need.

Scrap out the van and sell everything you can off of it and junk the rest to make up the rest of your budget.

That is how us budget people do it.