Rant: Stop calling every engine swap a 'simple weekend project'

I swear I see it every week on this forum, someone says they're swapping a 5.3 into a square body and it'll take two days. I just helped a buddy finish one that took 6 months because we had to redo the wiring harness twice and fab new motor mounts. When did everyone forget that nothing on a 40 year old truck bolts up exactly the way you think it will?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_kevin11d ago

lol yeah and nobody ever talks about the hidden cost of time spent just figuring out what year parts work together. You think you're buying a simple SBC swap and then find out the bellhousing pattern changed halfway through the model year. Six months sounds about right once you factor in all the head scratching and return trips to the parts store.

alice_palmer201mo ago

Three owners and a hackjob wiring harness is pretty much guaranteed. My buddy's truck had wires twisted together with electrical tape from some half-baked alarm system install. Rusted frame bolts too, had to torch two of them out. A weekend project is when you're putting together an engine that already matches the chassis. Not fabricating everything from scratch. People forget that part.

walker.max1mo ago

Man, tell me about it. I've been there more times than I can count. That whole "weekend project" thing is a straight up fantasy unless you've got a full fab shop and a parts cannon sitting in the driveway. People forget that older trucks have rust, stripped bolts, and wiring that's been hacked up by three different owners before you. I'm glad your buddy had you to help, because doing that kind of stuff alone is a recipe for a breakdown in the garage.