Best candidate for the 3400? What would you put it in?

[luckydog]

I may have the opportunity of inheriting my mom's 1998 Olds Minivan, with a 3400. I love the power of that motor, it scoots even in a heavy van. I'd love to put it in a small gm fwd car. The van is rusty already and it has alot of mi, so I wouldn't be dismantling a good vehicle if I used the motor as a donor.

If I did a swap, I would have to have a 5 sp car. I like the looks of the grand prix the most, but it's pretty hard to find 5 sp. prix's.

So what would you guys put this motor in? Beretta? Grand am? Grand Prix?

Edit: I just had a thought. In order for this motor to work with a 5sp trans, I would have to have a 5sp pcm. Does a 5sp 3400 pcm even exist?

[SappySE107]

If its gotta be a FWD 5 speed...cavalier/sunbird hands down. Lightest vehicle, especially the 87. Beretta wouldn't be bad. Grand am wont have a 5 speed setup unless its a 4 banger which is more work. Grand prix is heavy (what I have).

87-94 cavalier would be a good swap. v6z24.com has a quite a few swap owners, and domesticcrew.com is dedicated to the 3rd gen 60V6 swap into a J body.

[Doubt_Incarnate]

motorcycle... J/K.

a fiero, a j-body. i'd put one in mine if i had one. but i don't and my fab skills are limited to grilled cheese sandwiches. some people swap them into MG's or other brit cars.

[korbendallas68]

Depends on what you like. I prefer 92-95 Grand Am GT bodies (N-Bodies), so that was the obvious choice for me.

On a side note,
You can also take 5-speeds from other cars (Beretta, cavi, ect...) and install them into a GA. The only thing that you would need is the interior pieces for the GA's shifter console (4-banger).

[Doubt_Incarnate]

i almost forgot the coolest one, especialy with summer on the way,
SAND RAIL BUGGY! it weighs like 1500lbs, with 185hp and a 5speed mounted in the rear. how awesomwe would that be? especialy since you could do a little off roading.

[jp_grasshopper_007]

Put it in a 72' nova that would be badass!!!!!!

[luckydog]

Hmm, I like the 92-95 GA's. But would a 5 sp. from a different car be compatible with the auto 3400 pcm from the van?

[korbendallas68]

You don't use the ECU (PCM) from the Van. You would use a older 3100 or 3.1 ECU. There are many people that could answer this better too.

Check out my site: www.3400swap.com and download the guide to get a little more info.

Also, the a 5-speed has been swapped into many Beretta's (Which are almost exactly the same as the GA's). If I can get a place with a garage soon, I'm pulling it off and writing another guide, unless someone else beats me. :P

[RednBlack]

Uh, put in an 87 Cavy Wagon.

[jp_grasshopper_007]

Uh, put in an 87 Cavy Wagon.

With 20"s that would be a sick getto sleeper.

[Manitcor]

Fiero, 5-speed

RWD + proper weight distrubution + light as hell

[LeftVentricle]

Put it in a 72' nova that would be badass!!!!!!

Pardon?

Uh, put in an 87 Cavy Wagon.

Quoted for truth. THAT'S a hell of a sleeper.

With 20"s that would be a sick getto sleeper.

20's wouldn't even fit under an old Cavalier.

[jp_grasshopper_007]

yes they would

[jp_grasshopper_007]

72' nova.............

there's a guy wanting to put a 3800 in 1

[RednBlack]

20's wouldn't even fit under an old Cavalier.

With fabrication, all things are possible. And I meant to say 87 Celebrity Wagon. My bad..