i just recently aquired a 3.4l engine out of his 94 camaro from my cousin for 250 dollars, a pretty good deal seeings how it only has 55 000 miles on it. I have a 92 rs v6 3.1l and what im wondering is, how much on average a shop would charge to do the install, i would do the swap myself but im in school its my only car and i work and i cant go a day without a car. So i wanna weigh the cost of a shop doing it, because if its too expensive, ill just wait til this summer when i can do it myself. Thanks,
Jim

 

welcome to the board
dodn't know about a shop, but a home swap....
I'd say about $250. I'm probably overpriceing, but I've done more than just the engine swap.

gaskets, o-rings, vacuum tubing, threadlocker, jack & stands, cherrypicker (rent or borrow preferably), make better intake setup, newcap, rotor, wires plugs, bandaids, buying replacment tools because that 15mm w/ratchet mysteriously "walked off some where ".....

that should cover it & some of the little things that go w/it.

and now: All the others who have already finished the swap

 

Isn't that the frikin truth!

 

Yep that 15mm does everything when your under the car on your back, man o man those tranny to engine bolts with three 1 foot extantions just the job nicely but when you can't find that 15mm socket because it's stuck to a bolt head someplace or under the jack stand, the YELLING STARTS and those few choice words.

 

ME Charge?
I'd do it for $700.
WHY???
All the things ya gotta fix FIRST to make the swap right.
And the return visits for the second time fixes.
Those things happen.
Hour labor be damned, I "Rushed" and did my first swap in 1 month (the Firebird).
It cost me about $150-ish in gaskets & such, too.
BUT, majority of my stuff to swap over (timing chain, distributor, 3.4 injectors onto the 2.8/3.1 fuel rail) was operating perfectly before swap.
How worn out are those parts you have, currently & in future?
Rebuild Distributor is a $100 in parts & such, your own labor & sand paper, brake cleaner, hammer, thin, strong nail.
Chain is $40
gaskets are about $75 or less (buy complete engine rebuild kit gasket set fory YOUR CURRENT YEAR under hood engine-IMPORTANT DETAIL!).
Pump is $20
Thermostat is $3-5
Hoses is under $40
IF A REAL HIGH MILAGE ENGINE oil pump, too
So $700 I'd charge isn't bad deal....
BUT, I'd only do my work for me.
SWAP IS CUSTOM & every swap has good/bad visits, until you work out the "bugs"
Follow my suggestions & the problems are easier to solve & reduce your down time.
Gain is SO WORTH IT.
It's like a Freight Train, the power never stops.
Keep seeking solutions before you turn your wrenches.
WHAT IS THE CYLINDER COMPRESSION OF THE 3.4?
IF NOT 150 LBS or better, rebuild it, now.
I registered 150-175 cylinder compression on my first 44k 3.4 long block.
This current one, not at that compression checking stage yet.
I certainly hope I get atleast 150 PSI per cylinder. I was told I had bought a 1995 50K 3.4 long block for my S-10 Blazer.

BEST WISHES on a successful swap.
Welcome to the 3.4 Swap Boogie Club!
How is your tranny?
Have that rebuild in the budget, too?
Ask us why....

 

i have 86000 miles on the 3.1l engine, its a manual tranny, brand new everything, im in automotive tech school now, and have access to a shop, i put in a new performance clutch new flywheel new tranny mounts. Basically the things i didnt put in were in fine good working order. I think im gonna hold off til summer. Now that i think about it, with all this work i have done, might as well wait and do the swap myself. It will be my first swap by myself, but i have accompanied several of my friends in their respective swaps. Im not sure what i was thinking to pay a shop to take away all my fun

 

And Honestly, it is TRULY alot of fun
Not what I do everyday, but, I did do this swap & very successfully, too!
AND this is my first successful engine swap in four previous tries.
Hey practice....
Plan before you turn a wrench.
Figure out every short cut but be through & very detailed.
You'll be second stick tranny swap among us.
COOL!!

 

I think the better choice if your going to be keeping your F-body for a while is to go ahead and just get a rebuilt long block from jasper engines or somebody since you don't the the 3.4L stuff and if the 3.4L already has 50 or more thousd on it, it's not much of a bargin. It may cost a little more but "YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR" it will be all brand new.

 

Don't ask that TomP kid how much it'll cost, he'll bitch and moan that you should do it yourself.

You can see the pics of the 2.8/2.8 swap I helped a buddy do for his camaro at http://www.geocities.com/tomp_3rdgen . It took us a while, but we only worked on it a day or two a week, and most of that time was getting ready or putting stuff away- we worked in the street, not the garage.

And we -always- lost tools. I would get so annoyed when all three of the 10mm sockets would disappear! We were working out of three toolboxes, trying to find sockets. (In my garage, that never would've happened.)

 

Would you really use the word swap?? Won't doing a 2.8/2.8 be just called a "engine change"?? Just wondering.