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Another CEG'r doing a MPV 3.0 swap

Pblack003

Veteran CEG'er
Joined
Feb 24, 2011
Messages
548
Location
Tampa fl
so i found a decent Mazda MPV 3.0 L locally for about the same price as a Taurus motor and for less than a 2.5 CSVT motor that i found... my brother a previous ford mechanic is going through my stock 2.5L motor to make sure its gone before i drop 1K on an engine swap but if its gone tomorrow he'll give me the word and i'll be picking up my MPV motor.

as for the swap .. I'm not a fan of cutting the heads to port match .. just not that confident yet ... so I'm doing the full swap for now if the uim fits. As for the port match maybe svttour will help me on this later since were both in Florida...

just to go over my intentions more or less I understand that this is a direct replacement with our stock
2.5L i may have to mod the egr valve or do a delete kit on it ???

As for the alternator i think I'm going to use my contour bracket and just shave the tabs off like a normal 3.0L swap ... since i already have a newer alternator and a contour bracket available...

not to quote the man himself but sam .. is this really all i need to do to do a direct drop in ???

You are right about one thing... This engine is a DIRECT drop in.*

I took more pics but my photo bucket was taking forever to load so I will do the rest later.

Looks like a 2.5L timing cover because IT IS.... 2001 COUGAR timing cover.
Factory DMD
Engine mount already placed between the heads.
SVT spec oil cooler
2001 Cougar alt bracket
No tabs to cut and there is NO pilot bushing on this engine.


FOR a full 3L there isnt much else you have to do. If the UIM clears the engine bay then an EGR VALVE integration looks to be much easier than the taurus one since its pointing toward the rear of the engine bay. A custom tube would be much easier to fab at this point.

Similarities to the 04-05 taurus... pcv valvs is on the same location...

observations... comes with blue injectors returnless style, vacuum system has changed from brittle plastic tubes to rubber vac lines.

please your the only one to do it so far that ive seen you input would be highly valued !!!! oh and do u have a link to your photo bucket i can have so i can see more of the MPV pics on ur swap???
 
Decisions decisions ... so i have 2 MPV motors available to me both have 28K on them. first thought same motor. but has 2 different vin #'s one is local 850.00 plus 100.00 core (950) total plus fuel to go get it... the other is 850.00 shipped to shop at the corner no core so 850.00 OTD. keeping in mind i dont have anything outta the tour yet, the 2.5 is still in it nothing has been removed yet .. should i be patient and wait 5-10 business days or get the local one today??? idk im leaning towards the one shipped to me..
 
That core thing is bull crap so go with the one shipped to you and you can scrap your old motor for between $50 and $85, so that's money in your pocket! Be prepared to pull off a valve cover so you can check for sludge in the heads. If it is nice and clean, take it home - If it's sludged up, make the truck driver take it back with him ;).
 
Great advice Fuz ... another good thing about the one shipped it has a 1 year warranty if that means anything the one local has 30 days warranty .. since im planning on a full swap i should be able to sell my SVT UIM, LIM, Timing Cover, TB assembly among other stuff or the whole motor because it's just a rod tapping still runs great just has that noise.. even though the end is near for the 2.5 I assume it could be salvaged or rebuilt or reused for parts on a non svt tour or a cougar.. but yeah im thinking the one shipped is a better deal .. i told the local guys to price match it for me to like 700 otd for me having to go to Orlando to get it ..
 
you are off to a great start... this engine car go in as soon as you unload it from the truck.
 
Even if the MPV UIM doesn't fit there are other options to avoid porting, you could pick up a different 3L UIM that would fit. Personally I deleted the EGR because I just didn't want to deal with it, that was the only reason. I think if you retain the EGR on a full 3L you need to do some fabricating for the EGR tube to reach.

Based on the quote from Svttour it sounds like there are no tabs to cut, that's a bonus.

I think with the MPV UIM and any full 3L UIM your issue may be with the throttle body and cable bracket. I want to see what you end up doing because the MPV UIM has a similar bracket setup as the Escape UIM. I had some trouble finding people who used the Escape UIM along with the stock Contour throttle cable. I don't think many have done it and if they have I couldn't find it. I ended up with a Taurus TB and a fabricated bracket made from the Contour and Taurus brackets.

Best of luck, the swap is well worth it.
 
warrenty is void for you because your putting in a vehicle its not specified for, so the warrenty is a mute point. but def get the shipped one.
 
Even if the MPV UIM doesn't fit there are other options to avoid porting, you could pick up a different 3L UIM that would fit. Personally I deleted the EGR because I just didn't want to deal with it, that was the only reason. I think if you retain the EGR on a full 3L you need to do some fabricating for the EGR tube to reach.

Based on the quote from Svttour it sounds like there are no tabs to cut, that's a bonus.

I think with the MPV UIM and any full 3L UIM your issue may be with the throttle body and cable bracket. I want to see what you end up doing because the MPV UIM has a similar bracket setup as the Escape UIM. I had some trouble finding people who used the Escape UIM along with the stock Contour throttle cable. I don't think many have done it and if they have I couldn't find it. I ended up with a Taurus TB and a fabricated bracket made from the Contour and Taurus brackets.

Best of luck, the swap is well worth it.

yoy are corect he will source a taurus tb since the MPV and escape tbs are reversed therefore the cable goes the opposite way.
 
you are correct he will source a Taurus tb since the MPV and escape tbs are reversed therefore the cable goes the opposite way.

Sam is my master .. he knows my every move before I do lol ok well he told me in pm to get a Taurus TB so i just got back from the scrap yard no luck there only 99 and later duratec motors .. maybe i'll look on here or ebay has them for about 45.00
 
I found this on neco it's a pretty fresh write up / how to on a 3L swap I thought I would post it!


Originally Posted by Turbo Zetec Tour On NECO

for a full oval port going into a returnless car.

swap timing covers - use new gaskets, scrape off the old RTV at the 8 spots (making sure not to get any in the oil pan) and apply new RTV. within 15 minutes of applying the RTV install the 2.5L timing cover. dont forget to rotate the pulse wheel to the other position before you install the cover.

valve covers - inspect the valve cover gaskets and use new gaskets if they look old or torn. scrape off the old RTV at the locations (4 on the front bank and 2 for the rear bank) and apply new RTV. install the valve covers and tighten the bolts to spec (correct order and torque)

cut off the tabs that keep the alternator bracket from mounting - with the timing cover on the tabs will be very obvious but if your not positive just try to hold the alternator bracket into position and you will see them then.

install the alternator bracket and alternator

swap over the axle support bracket - do this before the manifolds so its easy to get to

install the stock 2.5L exhaust manifolds or headers - headers are easy to do while the engine is out and they make a big difference. if you buy headers, dont use the gaskets that come with them, they suck. use either the stock multi-layer metal gaskets (if they havent been leaking) or brand new Fel-pro or Ford gaskets.

remove the pilot bushing - on the trans side of the engine in the center of the crankshaft is the pilot bushing. it needs to be dealt with so that the MTX75 input shaft doesnt hit it. you can either remove it or grind it flush with the crank. i prefer to remove it, the easiest way i have found is to take a dremel tool with the cut-off wheel and cut 2 notches into opposite sides of the bushing. then use a bearing puller and crank down on the bolts so it grabs the bushing in those 2 notches. use the puller to pull out the bushing.

move the transmission guide dowel - there are 2 alignment dowels on the back side of the engine, the one on the left (when looking at the back of the block) needs to be moved. you can see the other hole where it can go, and thats where it needs to go. there are 2 ways to go about removing it. the first is to just grab it with some big channel locks and twist it until it comes out, sometimes this is easy while others its not. the second option is to take the dremel again and cut part of the ear that its mounted in off. that ear is not used ont he MTX75 so its not an issue to cut it off. if you grab it with pliers, you are going to score it, so before you hammer it into the other hole, turn it around so the scored end goes into the engine and the clean end into the transmission.

install the shim plate - the shim plate thats between the engine and trans, thin piece of metal, just rests on the alignment dowels.

install flywheel - the flywheel only goes on one way, install it and torque the bolts to spec.

clutch and pressure plate - go ahead and install these as well, making sure the clutch disc is centered (an alignment tool makes it easy). torque the pressure plate bolts to spec.

bolt on transmission - get the splines lined up for the clutch, and then rotate the trans as needed to get the dowels lined up. give it a good push and it should go on most of the way. use the bolts to pull it in the rest of the way, but dont use the one that is a through bolt on the lower front (radiator side) as you will likely break the ear off, save that one until all the others are tight. it may take a little bit of wiggling to get it lined up and on.

bolt on the starter.

coolant crossover pipe - you can do this before the transmission but i like to wait till afterwards as the bolts for the trans are easier to get to with it off.

drivers motor mount - remove the mount from the 2.5L engine (this will require removing one of the heads). try and fit it between the heads of the 3L, it wont fit but take notice of where it doesnt fit. grind down those areas and try again. keep going until you can consistantly install and remove it from between the heads, once you are there you can either just install it as is or paint it and then install it.

reinstall the LIM

flip the 3L fuel rail around and install it so it points out the back (drivers side)

install any other brackets - things like engine lifting eyes that you may not have transfered over yet.

if you are going to delete the EGR no is the time to install the cap on the rear manifold and the delete plate (with a new gasket) onto the intake manifold. if you want to keep EGR then mount the UIM and modify the tubes to make it work. you will have to remove the UIM before you install the engine.

install the main engine harness and hook up what connections you can - things like the alternator, O2 sensors, knock sensor (if your car has one) etc.

install the engine - once its in the engine bay, install the passenger motor mount, then the power steering pump (if you didnt disconnect it from the lines and install it out of the car, it only goes in 1 way) then the drivers motor mount. you can then let it hang from them, thats what they are designed for anyways. then install the front and rear roll resistors. now that you know the engine isnt going anywhere you can start hooking everything back up.

install the fuel injection harness - this will have to be modified slightly to fit under the 3L manifold. you should be able to figure out how to move the connectors to make them line up with the fuel injectors. use electrical tape to keep them all together.

mount the coil pack - you will have to make a mount for the coil pack. either off the front valve cover on the drivers side, or off the firewall using 2 L brackets (make sure its far enough down it doesnt hit the UIM before you drill holes though)

once you have all the wiring hooked up and the coil pack mounted, you install the UIM. make sure you dont pinch any of the wires for the fuel injectors.

if you are using the NPG fuel mod then you will use your stock fuel pressure sensor on the NPG block and hook up the connector for it. vacuum will come in a little bit. if you would rather fabricate a new fuel line let me know and i can help you out (this is what i did and i have pictures of how to do it, its not easy but can be done for less than $10)

vacuum - find your vacuum tubes from the 2.5L, remove the rubber L that has 3 small coming out of it and remove those lines. use that rubber piece on the port on the passenger side of the UIM. then find 3 of the small lines with the bends you want to connect to the following. 1 line goes the fuel pressure sensor, 1 line goes the grey HVAC, and 1 line goes to the EVAP purge solenoid. those last 2 likely have the connections hiding between the UIM and the firewall somewhere. the big port on the bottom of the UIM goes to the PCV valve in the rear valve cover with a short piece of hose (probably already mounted on the UIM). take the stock brake booster hose, carefully cut off the tube on the end of check valve thats in the middle, the side that went to the UIM on the 2.5L is the end you cut off. using some hose, hook it up to the large port on the top of the UIM. finally, you have the brass port behind the IAC valve. hopefully you still have some of the plastic fittings that came with the UIM, the one that was on the brass fitting to begin with ideally. that fitting is perfect as the stock 2.5L fitting fits onto the end of it and then it fits onto the brass fitting.

next is the throttle body and cables. im not sure what the best way to hook up the cables is without an SVT throttle cable bracket but you should be able to modify yours to work, or use pieces from both the 3L and 2.5L brackets to make it work.

once you have that done, hook up the shift cables, AC compressor (leave it hooked up and in the car when you remove the 2.5L), y-pipe, fill it with fluids, and double check that you have all of the connections installed (dont forget the speed sensor). bleed the clutch, install the battery and put it on a battery charger (even if its not dead, you dont want ti give out while installing the tune). install the tune and fire it up.


there will likely be some other misc things that i forgot so dont be afraid to ask questions. pictures of what you are having problems with help as well.


Even if the MPV UIM doesn't fit there are other options to avoid porting, you could pick up a different 3L UIM that would fit. Personally I deleted the EGR because I just didn't want to deal with it, that was the only reason. I think if you retain the EGR on a full 3L you need to do some fabricating for the EGR tube to reach.

Based on the quote from Svttour it sounds like there are no tabs to cut, that's a bonus.

I think with the MPV UIM and any full 3L UIM your issue may be with the throttle body and cable bracket. I want to see what you end up doing because the MPV UIM has a similar bracket setup as the Escape UIM. I had some trouble finding people who used the Escape UIM along with the stock Contour throttle cable. I don't think many have done it and if they have I couldn't find it. I ended up with a Taurus TB and a fabricated bracket made from the Contour and Taurus brackets.

Best of luck, the swap is well worth it.

thanks much !!!

As for the EGR i plan on deleting it as for any lines that go to the egr valve what did you do with them ? also did u buy an egr delete kit off here or fab your own?
As for the UIM im gonna make it work ... im motivated, I'll get a hood to make it fit.. i want it to fit ... I like the CSVT's because there unique and uncommon .. my future full 3.0 MPV motor will be the same a unique and uncommon ;)
As for the throttle body .. well Sam answered that question .. I'm swapping it out for a Taurus TB.
 
just throwing this out there because i don't have the tour around me it's about 40 miles away at brothers house ..

idk if i have a return less fuel rail or a fuel rail with a return .. either way this question is for anyone but kinda directed @ sam can i use my CSVT fuel rail on the 3.0 MPV motor regardless if it's the return style or return less style ? or does the Mazda MPV fuel rail just plug and play im reviewing your post on ur MPV build to see pics but if you have or anyone knows im just running through things i'll need to do or order before i start the swap..
 
Sam is my master .. he knows my every move before I do lol ok well he told me in pm to get a Taurus TB so i just got back from the scrap yard no luck there only 99 and later duratec motors .. maybe i'll look on here or ebay has them for about 45.00

did you go to the u-pull it LKQ in tampa? they have tons of duratecs
 
thanks much !!!

As for the EGR i plan on deleting it as for any lines that go to the egr valve what did you do with them ? also did u buy an egr delete kit off here or fab your own?
As for the UIM im gonna make it work ... im motivated, I'll get a hood to make it fit.. i want it to fit ... I like the CSVT's because there unique and uncommon .. my future full 3.0 MPV motor will be the same a unique and uncommon ;)
As for the throttle body .. well Sam answered that question .. I'm swapping it out for a Taurus TB.

Looks like the EGR delete kit comes with all you need. I ended up making my own because the one on here wasn't ready when I did my swap. One thing to keep in mind is when you run without the EGR the DPFE might throw a cel, even if you have the EGR tuned out you may need to keep that DPFE thing plugged in. It's just a little box so it's not hard to hide out of sight. From what I've read some people need it and some don't.

That's cool you're keeping the UIM, post lots of pics. Oh the Nautilus fuel rail mod is great, totally worth money, it's plug and play and it works perfectly.
 
did you go to the u-pull it LKQ in Tampa? they have tons of duratecs

i haven't been there recently, no way that i can take my kid with me on my Suzuki SV, but they do have lots of them. As for the motor, the best one ive found all day is 37K miles Mazda MPV 3L for 745.00 including tax and $50.00 core charge included im more or less interested in doing the MPV swap because to my knowledge a full 3L MPV swap hasn't been done. only Sam's MPV swap with the CSVT upper and lower Intake Manifolds. i am on a 1200.00 budget for the swap so this motor @ 745.00 plus a Taurus T.B. @ 45.00 along with the EGR delete kit @ 35.00 I'm $830.00 so far, not to mention the items i need from nautilus performance if i have a return style fuel system. I should end up under budget but well see. I'm not a fan of going outside my budget on my daily driver :)
 
Looks like the EGR delete kit comes with all you need. I ended up making my own because the one on here wasn't ready when I did my swap. One thing to keep in mind is when you run without the EGR the DPFE might throw a cel, even if you have the EGR tuned out you may need to keep that DPFE thing plugged in. It's just a little box so it's not hard to hide out of sight. From what I've read some people need it and some don't.

That's cool you're keeping the UIM, post lots of pics. Oh the Nautilus fuel rail mod is great, totally worth money, it's plug and play and it works perfectly.

yeah my luck it won't fit but thats what a big Ole hammer is for lol... as for the Nautilus parts which part do i need from this page ? http://nautilusperformance.com/catalog/c17_p1.html
obviously there is no MPV option and maybe thats why my last 3L blew up i just modded the fuel rail and added a return side to the Taurus fuel rail ... anyway i'll for sure grab that nautilus mod as soon as i know what i need and yeah i'll be a pic whore on this swap .. i promise ;)
 
Basically it will depend on if the MPV fuel rail has the same end on it as the Taurus or Escape. If you can get a good look at where the fuel line connects to the fuel rail I'm sure Joey at Nautilus can get you the correct connector.
 
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