Swapping a 03 engine into a 96 GT

Did you get an awesome deal on the engine or something? You think you would look into it a bit more before you went and bought an engine...

Good call. Your motor is definately a PI motor and with new exhoust manifolds the stock exhaust should work I belive. Clutch will work to and tranny will bolt up.

Man you people need to search, there is at least one of this exact thread every week or two. Having completed this swap recently I remember it well. You need to swap the 96's oil pan to the 03 engine, there is a sensor in the 96's pan thats not in the 03 engine's pan. You need to swap the 96's front cover and coil packs on the the 03, the 03 uses a COP setup and has no provisions for the coil pack brackets, there is an idler pulley in the way. You need to swap the valve covers off the 96 onto the 03, there is another sensor or crossover (i cant remember which) on the 96 that isnt on the 03. There is a sensor near the oil filter that has a different end on it on the 96 then on the 03, so you need to take the end of the sensor off the 96 and put it on the 03. You need to drill and tap the aluminum crossover on the 03's intake for a sensor that is on the 96 but not on the 04, I believe its 3/8 npt tap. You will end up swapping basically the entire top half of the 96's engine and wiring harness to the 03, this includes fuel rails etc. The 03 had a returnless fuel system and the 96 had a return style. Yes the T45 will work fine as will your exhaust, the manifolds are exactly the same. I recommend a handheld tuner such as a SCT Xcalibrator II or a Diablo Predator with a custom tune on it for the PI engine for you (since you need to re-use the 96's pcm), will make the most of the swap powerwise and keep driveability the best it can be. If you have any questions please let me know.