I have a 1998 2WD 4 door S10 Blazer with an automatic transmission and somewhere around 175k miles. The transmission is shot, the dashboard is ripped apart, seats don't recline, and door panels are coming off. However, the engine is in great mechanical shape, just like every other 98 Blazer on the road.

I was considering trying to find a parts truck to rip everything out of and put into mine if I could do it for under a grand, but I came across a 99 Blazer with a blown head gasket and supposedly everything else in moderate to good condition with a recently replaced flywheel and torque converter. Truck is said to crank up but die after running for 5 minutes, and the owner is only asking $750, where as I was looking at a minimum of $500 for just a transmission. This 99 has 164k miles on it, but I'm waiting on a response as to if it is a 2 door, 4 door, automatic, manual, 2WD or 4WD.

If I were to seriously consider trying this swap, first off, what am I getting myself into? I have some basic mechanical skill and can read a Chilton labor manual, as well as a friend with a rather large mechanics' tool set, but have not yet tackled this big of a project.

For that matter, CAN I swap out what is needed? I know there are differences when suspension, transmission, and many other parts are concerned, but is there a difference between the 2WD, 4WD, 2 door, 4 door, or going from an automatic to a manual with the engine in these two model years? Can I pull this off without actually pulling the engines out, and/or should I go to the effort of pulling both engines out of the trucks, setting them on the ground, and pulling the best parts from both to put together the final product?

Anyone have any tips or suggestions, what should I be looking for here, and is this even worth my time? If all else fails I have no problem just selling my 98 Blazer to a scrap yard and buying an Envoy or Trailblazer in a year or two.

 

The engines are for all practical purposes identical. They will swap over between the two without a concern as far as fitment and operation. You will be keeping the PCM and wiring in each vehicle and swapping just the engine.

 

while i haven't done any 2nd gen swaps (yet!), i know there isn't anything mechanically different between a 2 door or a 4 door. but aren't the oil pans still different between a 2WD & a 4WD truck? also the oil pump is deeper (longer) to sit @ the bottom of the sump.

and you would need to install a pilot bushing in the rear of your crank (in your '98 engine) if the '99 truck has a manual trans.

it may sound like a big job, but really, just be thorough with documenting what you're disconnecting (pic's & masking tape labels), but the electrical connections really are fool proof.

even a novice like yourself could knock it out in a weekend. it'd be a full weekend, but you could do it. just be sure to double (even triple) check everything before finally lifting out the engine.

*don't forget the ground strap hidden @ the back of the cylinder head! (almost everyone seems to forget that one )

GL.

 

There is nothing prohibiting the swapping of pans. Just as there is nothing prohibiting the installation of a pilot bearing/bushing in end of the crank. I would hope that anyone doing a swap such as this would do a visual on the engines before dropping the donor down in.

 

Check the 8th digit on both vehicles. If they are the same the motors will swap out. There still may be some differences, oil pans, manifolds, sensor locations. Ask as many questions as you can and learn all you can before buying. I have a 2000 S-10 Blazer and was told that a late 99 and 2000 motor was the only one I could use in mine but no one knew why. I'm still asking questions and learning myself.

 

someone told me an old wives tale about water pumps not being the same from a certain # of years, but i've never found any proof of that.

biggest issue, IMO, is the 2WD/4WD. just need to swap pans............and i'd put a new oil pump in if either engine has higher mileage on it. alot easier to do with the engine out of the truck already.