1983 engine going into 1989 mustang lx

Mustangkid1989

New Member
Feb 22, 2019
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Canada
Hey guys, I recently bought an 1989 mustang lx with the automatic 2.3. I bought the car with a blown head gasket and decided to pull the old automatic engine to swap it with a 2.3 manual engine. ( I'm converting the car to manual). So my question is, the new engine came out of an 1983. What would I have to do in order to make the 83 engine compatable with the 1989? Any information would be helpful, thank you in advance!
 
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Mustang5L5 makes a good point.

If you feel the lower end is toasted for some reason, though, then in reality the blocks and heads are the same, so it should just be a matter of swapping parts from the old engine to the new one. Er, older one, er... you know what I mean ;)
 
The old engine, was completely full of sludge so I got this new engine and transmission for 300 canadian. It would have been cheaper and faster to just buy this engine then spend the time and money to rebuild the old one. "The new" engine is fuel injected, and is identical to the old automatic engine. Would there be any wiring differences or engine mount differences between the two? Thanks for any information
 
You will have to remove the distributor, lower intake with injectors, the harness (basically everything bolted to the 89 engine minus the cylinder head), swap it to the "new" engine. IT might look identical but it's highly likely that it isn't. Better to swap it while it's on the floor or stand than the fight it in the car. Is the 83 engine a turbo engine (does it have a fitting in the passenger side of the block?)

By the way, a 8993 head gasket (for 2.3) is like $6.