engine swap.
-
jamiedunlap
- LE Member
- Posts: 6
- Joined: Sat Jun 14, 2014 3:12 am
- Year and Trim: 2005 pontiac bonneville gxp
- Location: austin, texas
engine swap.
i wonder how hard it would be to swap the engine in a bonneville, whether it's a six , blown six, or a gxp eight, with a twin turbo out of a cadillac. that would be the 3.6 420 h.p. found in the xts and cts vsport. anyone care to speculate ?
Last edited by jamiedunlap on Tue Oct 21, 2014 12:54 am, edited 2 times in total.
- nos4blood70
- Certified Bonneville Nut

- Posts: 9522
- Joined: Mon May 10, 2010 6:11 pm
- Year and Trim: 2003 SLE
- Location: Chicago, IL
Re: engine swap.
Welcome.
There would be no point. You can easily turbo the stock 3800 to way more power than the 3.6.
There would be no point. You can easily turbo the stock 3800 to way more power than the 3.6.
-
00Beast
- Retired Site Developer

- Posts: 20960
- Joined: Tue May 27, 2008 10:30 pm
- Year and Trim: '17 Silverado 1500
- Location: MN/IA
- Contact:
Re: engine swap.
Answer? Very.
Bye Bye:

RIP sandrock

RIP sandrock
Sirius wrote:Think about it. You’re tooling down the road in your Prius, knowing full-well that this thing being green is as big a sham as federally mandated ethanol-enriched gas, Russia pulling out of Ukraine, and Obamacare.
- CMNTMXR57
- Certified Bonneville Nut

- Posts: 5841
- Joined: Wed May 13, 2009 10:45 pm
- Year and Trim: 2006 STS-V, 2004 GTO, 2009 G8 GT
- Location: CHICAGO
Re: engine swap.
I think you mean a CTS-V sport, NOT a CTS-V. That has a fire breathing, 556hp 6.2L Supercharged LSA (I.E. the LS9 from the ZR1 Corvette). So not sure I would want to swap ANYTHING from a Bonneville into that...
But to Ed's point, Very, and I'd add, why? What's the point?
But to Ed's point, Very, and I'd add, why? What's the point?

Retired Bonneville Owner and former GM Tech:
2004 Pontiac Bonneville GXP: Black/Ebony *SOLD*
Summer Toys: Combined 827 RWHP / 877lb/ft RWTQ
2004 Pontiac GTO: Impulse Blue Metallic/Black/M6: lots 'o mods, 415 RWHP / 405lb/ft RWTQ!
2006 Cadillac STS-V: Light Platinum Metallic/Light Gray/A6 - Spectre CAI, Magnaflow exhaust, Speed Inc. tune, 412 RWHP / 472lb/ft RWTQ
Daily Drivers:
2019 Chrysler Pacifica Limited: Mommy's new RGC
2015 Chrysler Town & Country Limited Platinum: Kids new RGC
2011 Camaro SS
2009 Pontiac G8 GT: L76, Sport Red Metallic
2004 GMC Sierra 2500HD: Victory Red - 8.1L Big Block and Allison
2003 Chevrolet Suburban 2500: Doeskin Tan - 8.1L Big Block... RIP
1999 Chevrolet Suburban: Sunset Gold Metallic - RIP
-
SuperHbody
- SSEi Member

- Posts: 156
- Joined: Thu Oct 31, 2013 9:59 pm
- Year and Trim: 1988 LE
- Location: Eugene, Oregon
Re: engine swap.
It's already a GXP and with a little assuming you have the N*. Enjoy it, mod if you want and thrash the crap outta it. Don't try to make it something it isn't.
- nos4blood70
- Certified Bonneville Nut

- Posts: 9522
- Joined: Mon May 10, 2010 6:11 pm
- Year and Trim: 2003 SLE
- Location: Chicago, IL
Re: engine swap.
Not much to mod in a N*, gotta love it as it comes. Luckily those motors loves to rev, and make a great noise.
But if you want to go fast in your GXP, you're gonna have to pluck the N* out and replace it with a turbo 3800. Well, at least if you're trying to break 400 horsepower in a daily drivable manner.
But if you want to go fast in your GXP, you're gonna have to pluck the N* out and replace it with a turbo 3800. Well, at least if you're trying to break 400 horsepower in a daily drivable manner.
-
jamiedunlap
- LE Member
- Posts: 6
- Joined: Sat Jun 14, 2014 3:12 am
- Year and Trim: 2005 pontiac bonneville gxp
- Location: austin, texas
Re: engine swap.
i agree with the 6.2 on what's the point. i was talking about the vsport as found in the xts. just wondering if it would be doable as the xts has a six speed transmission and decent power, not to mention also being a front wheel drive. seems like it would be an interesting swap.CMNTMXR57 wrote:I think you mean a CTS-V sport, NOT a CTS-V. That has a fire breathing, 556hp 6.2L Supercharged LSA (I.E. the LS9 from the ZR1 Corvette). So not sure I would want to swap ANYTHING from a Bonneville into that...
But to Ed's point, Very, and I'd add, why? What's the point?
- nos4blood70
- Certified Bonneville Nut

- Posts: 9522
- Joined: Mon May 10, 2010 6:11 pm
- Year and Trim: 2003 SLE
- Location: Chicago, IL
Re: engine swap.
No I meant the V6 from the V-Sport as well. You can stick a turbo on the 3800 and probably make more power than the 3.6.
- CMNTMXR57
- Certified Bonneville Nut

- Posts: 5841
- Joined: Wed May 13, 2009 10:45 pm
- Year and Trim: 2006 STS-V, 2004 GTO, 2009 G8 GT
- Location: CHICAGO
Re: engine swap.
But the initial point is... Why? This wouldn't be a weekend swap. This would be an involved, custom fabrication (I'm sure), swap of something that wasn't designed to be put between a Bonneville's strut towers. As such, donor parts might be hard (unless you got the whole engine/drivetrain/harness/etc), from a donor car, and again retro-fabbing stuff to make it work. Then there is the network. Any 3.6L vehicle is going to be a CANbus. So you will NEED ALL the operating systems from that donor car for it to even run.
At the end of the day, it would be cost prohibitive, and a backyard engineering nightmare for something that wouldn't net you monumentally siginificant results. Yes, the V-Sports 420hp looks spectacular. but add everything I posted above, with the fact that the CTS is a RWD car. So all the parts/packaging are also set for that.
Your better options... Buying an SSEi, modifying the blown 3800 and Eaton. Turbo'ing an L36, or just getting a car with the proper engine/drive layout and that already has, or can easily achieve the power goals you want?
Keeping it relatively simple (and on a budget), I would buy an SSEi personally and start my project there first before anything IF you're insistent on keeping it a Bonneville.
At the end of the day, it would be cost prohibitive, and a backyard engineering nightmare for something that wouldn't net you monumentally siginificant results. Yes, the V-Sports 420hp looks spectacular. but add everything I posted above, with the fact that the CTS is a RWD car. So all the parts/packaging are also set for that.
Your better options... Buying an SSEi, modifying the blown 3800 and Eaton. Turbo'ing an L36, or just getting a car with the proper engine/drive layout and that already has, or can easily achieve the power goals you want?
Keeping it relatively simple (and on a budget), I would buy an SSEi personally and start my project there first before anything IF you're insistent on keeping it a Bonneville.

Retired Bonneville Owner and former GM Tech:
2004 Pontiac Bonneville GXP: Black/Ebony *SOLD*
Summer Toys: Combined 827 RWHP / 877lb/ft RWTQ
2004 Pontiac GTO: Impulse Blue Metallic/Black/M6: lots 'o mods, 415 RWHP / 405lb/ft RWTQ!
2006 Cadillac STS-V: Light Platinum Metallic/Light Gray/A6 - Spectre CAI, Magnaflow exhaust, Speed Inc. tune, 412 RWHP / 472lb/ft RWTQ
Daily Drivers:
2019 Chrysler Pacifica Limited: Mommy's new RGC
2015 Chrysler Town & Country Limited Platinum: Kids new RGC
2011 Camaro SS
2009 Pontiac G8 GT: L76, Sport Red Metallic
2004 GMC Sierra 2500HD: Victory Red - 8.1L Big Block and Allison
2003 Chevrolet Suburban 2500: Doeskin Tan - 8.1L Big Block... RIP
1999 Chevrolet Suburban: Sunset Gold Metallic - RIP
-
00Beast
- Retired Site Developer

- Posts: 20960
- Joined: Tue May 27, 2008 10:30 pm
- Year and Trim: '17 Silverado 1500
- Location: MN/IA
- Contact:
Re: engine swap.
Not to mention the cost. Even an engine from a wrecked car would be very expensive since it's so new...
Bye Bye:

RIP sandrock

RIP sandrock
Sirius wrote:Think about it. You’re tooling down the road in your Prius, knowing full-well that this thing being green is as big a sham as federally mandated ethanol-enriched gas, Russia pulling out of Ukraine, and Obamacare.


