mscott

Here's the situation: I have an 89 T/A that has its interior gutted, no dashboard, electronics. The wires to the dashboard are laying spread out on the floor. I also have my brother's 90 Firebird completely working, with wrecked front passenger side.

Its going to cost about $1200 for me to have the parts switched off the 89 to repair the 90 Firebird, and have it painted up real nice. The 89 T/A's body is perfection, and if it weren't for the butchered wiring, I would just swap the engine/transmission into it (since the 89 is void of powertrain).

So, my primary question is whether or not there is any point in thinking about swapping the interior parts out of the 90 Firebird into the 89 T/A. All body panels are far better on the 89, no apparent rust damage, doors in better shape, etc. If its going to be an unmanageable hornet's to do this swap, and its better just to have the body parts on the 90 Firebird, I'd like to know.

Many thanks,

Mark

Bill/T/D/Y

1 Opinion right here.Personaly I'd totaly remove the harness from the older one discard or potentialy sell it.Pull the engine/drive train from the 90 and set it asside.Then put the COMPLETE harness in the 89.
You did say the 89 was str8 body/buttchered wireharness.Having done complete harness jobs b4 I know it's all actually modular.Very easy to do.Just have to take yer time and use alot of masking tape to mark what connections match to what on the engine/drivetrain.(IE coil ac coooalt temp sensor ect.)It all unbolts at the fuse block where the block runs thru the fire wall.
For myself I have no patience for realighning the doors and panels back up just right.I'd rather srtip -gut the good body and then carefully strip the bad bod and transplant it all into the good one.
Assumeing the engines are both the same cyl ya shouldn't have any probs gear ratio wise with the rear ends..And if ya set the cars basicaly side by side ya can just mark&remove the harness and swap it over to the better bod.
Please don't think it's a weekend job but I personally have had better and more satisfying results this way.When yer done ya even have a parts car for later probs and or sale.
The process is not that hard just requires patience and time.Everything will come out easier than go in but it all pretty much goes the same routes.
I have a 90 myself and know it has a non cable speedo.The speedo is electric.Dunno if the 89 is same.
Thats my 2 cents and I know others will disagree.But I'm not afraid of a lil work and hate to swap body panels and trying to realighn it all.For me if the 89 is straighter than the 90 then everything from the 90 goes into the 89.Good winter project.

Bill/T/D/Y

Something that would save time and work is check harness's if the cars are same engine tranny and harness's haven't jumped in anymajor way ya can just unplug from the 89 the bad sections and plug it in from the 90.Then drop the engine/tranny from the 90.But check the 2 harness's carefully with wire schematics and physically look to compare the two first.Complete dash/interiors do just about direct bolt.Complete dash assemblies.Ect.