It is always Thorsday here at DT, but today is also All Saints Day, so you might expect the next car to be a Volvo P1800...but SURPRISE, it isn't. It is, however, powered by a later model turbo engine and in serious need of a coat of paint that doesn't look like a used piece of chewing gum and a set of shoes with an appropriate offset. Find this 1975 Saab 99 here on eBay bidding for $2499 CAD ($1910 USD) with 4 days to go, located in North York, Ontario, Canada. Tip from Bill.
The trick of doing a good engine swap is simple...just follow these two rules: (1) pick a sweet vehicle with plenty of street cred, but maybe down a few ponies on power & (2) juice it up with something that keeps alive the spirit of the original automobile, but turns the dial up to 11. (3...wait...3?) Bonus points if the swap involves complex alpha-numerics that nobody except real fanboys understand -- yo dawg, is that a Z15N? No quite, its a Z15N-GT...dude, straight GDM man. Hawt. I think that shoving an S62 V8 from a later M5 into a E34 5-series meets both of those rules. Find this 1995 BMW 540i E34 S52 Swap offered for $12000 in Fresno, CA via craigslist. Tip from Sean.
Many engine and body swapped Fiero's have graced the pages of DT. What is it about the Fiero that gives off the Rodney Dangerfield no respect persona? For starters, the highest level 2.8 60 HO V6 was fine in the 1980's, but hardly cuts the mustard by 2018 standards. The final year 1988 cars are most desirable cars as the final year brought a much improved suspension design and cleaner aesthetics. Today's feature is without a Italian body conversion, is in pristine condition, has a 300hp Cadillac Northstar engine, and is up for sale at less than half of the build cost. Find this 1988 Pontiac Fiero GT for sale in place, NM for $10,000 via craigslist. Tip from Fuel Truck.
In 1970 GM's General Manager John Z. DeLorean directed his engineering staff the develop a high performance 4-cylinder engine for the compact Vega chassis. Within a few years a combination of GM's alloy block and a Cosworth Engineering designed head was mounted into a Chevy Vega that cost nearly as much as new Corvette. The Cosworth Vega was hand built on a special assembly line in a limited run of 4000 machines (the original plan was 4000, but , but today's example is missing the one piece that made the car special...does it still make the cut? Find this 1976 Cosworth Vega offered for $11,000 in Graham, NC via craigslist. Tip from Rock On!
Back in 1984, Cadillac was not trying to ape German car makers to make the fastest sedan to run the Nurburgring. They primarily focused on making large cars that got middling better gas mileage than the parade floats of the 1970's. No one would mistake a Coupe DeVille for an Audi or BMW back in these days. Today's feature has a late model LT1 engine swap though the seller here is optimistically thinking this 5.7 came from a Vette as the engine cover looks like it was from a late model Fleetwood/Roadmonster/Caprice. Either way, the current engine provides significantly more motivation than the stock unit. Find this 1984 Cadillac Coupe DeVille for sale in Columbus, OH for $5,500 via craigslist. 
Most any V8 swapped rwd Volvo is worthy of being featured here at DT, but today's example is the creme de la creme of the breed. This wagon has it all and it's turbo charged 5.0 Ford goes the extra mile to poo-poo any naysayer who says these swaps are not that fast by 2018 measures. I am not sure how much boost a Fox body era 302 can withstand, but it would be a lot of fun to find out. Find this 1989 Volvo 245 wagon for sale in Blacksburg, VA for $5,500 via craigslist. Tip from Molotovmotors.
Nearly everyone has some version of a smartphone so you would think it would be relatively simple task to post clear photos of a car for sale. I am continually amazed at sellers indifference to posting decent photos. From time to time, you get a seller that thinks just because they are selling a cheap car that it gives them a free pass to post no photos or to get indignant when asked for more. A Cadillac Northstar V8 swapped Fiero gets people's attention around the pages of DT, but it appears the seller this car applied a coating of Crisco to the lense of his camera before shooting these pics. Find this 1987 Pontiac Fiero for sale in Rotterdam, NY for $2,900 via craigslist. 
First generation AW11 Toyota MR2's used to be a common sight on the road, but in 2018 they are rarely seen (east coast observation). The folded paper wedge styling is more distinctive now now that cars have window sills up to your ears. Nothing says 1980's like a set of pop up headlights. The original 4 cylinder 4A-GE was a hell of an engine back in the day as normal and most exotic cars from this era could not sniff a 7500 rpm redline. Today's car has a resto-mod 2ZZ-GE 4 cylinder and 6 speed trans swap into it to liven things up. This engine was fitted in the much lauded Lotus Elise and revs to a motorcycle like 8600 rpms while making the better part of 190 hp depending on the level of tune. Find this 1986 Toyota MR2 for sale in Glens Falls, NY for $6,500 via craigslist. 
If you drove most any GM full size product from the late 1970's and well into the 1980's, performance from the carbed V8 engines was asthmatic at best. Fortunately in 2018, it is simple as pie to double or even triple the stock power level with a modern V8 engine swap and suspension packages can turn most any body on frame car into a decent handling ride. Today's seller has created a very thoughtful sleeper that belies it's pedestrian Brougham looks and very mediocre wheel choice (where's the Vette sawblades?). A traditional 350 HO crate engine should be good for the better part of 330+ hp and some well thought out suspension mods should make this one handle better than the factory 9C1 police package. Find this 1987 Chevy Caprice Classic for sale in Swansea, MA for $4,600 via craigslist. 
This next car comes as a tip from Zach Z, who asks "So what would you swap into this shell and why?". The actual car doesn't look that bad, but the asking price is optimistic for something without an engine...but who am I to predict the future market value of a Hayabusa powered Triumph Stag?!? Find this 1971 Triumph Stag without engine offered for $4800 in Las Cruces, NM via craigslist.
It happens three or four times a month without fail, strangers approach me in hushed tones and ask "what is the best platform for an engine swap?" At first, I'm taken back by the fact that I'm being asked such a strange question in the middle of Sunday Mass, but then I shrug my shoulders and whisper in a hoarse but brief reply-- "Chevy Astro Van". Really...as if there is any other answer to this question. Find this 1992 Chevrolet Astro LT offered for $9995 in Colorado Springs, CO via craigslist. Tip from Barbpaddles via engineswapdepot. 
The second generation of the VW GTI soldiered on until 1992 in the USA. The later MK2 cars benefited from a roarty 16V 4 cylinder engine which made a respectable 134 hp. Today's GTI rewrote the playbook for what can be done with one of these cars. It's close to 300 hp 3.6 V-6 engine comes from a late model VW CC and has cool custom touches everywhere you look. The custom GTI modifications are so well executed that it is hard to believe there is a reasonable asking price. In the metro NYC area, there are tons of slammed VW's with stretched tires that literally are on different planet than this beast. Find this 1991 VW GTI for sale in Lake Hopatcong, NJ for $9,800 via craigslist. 
In 2018 the number of two door coupes available from car manufacturers are few and far between, but back in the 1980s they were literally everywhere. The General Motors G-body cars included the Chevy Monte Carlo, Buick Regal, Oldsmobile Cutlass, and Pontiac Grand Prix. With the exception of the Grand National and T-Type, these were not particularly sporting or fast cars. However, they coupes are one of the last rwd body on frame designs which make them desirable to muscle car fans without a baller budget. Starting about ten years after these cars were discontinued, V8 engines started making a ton more power stock than the roughly 140 hp wheezed out from the factory. Today's Monte features a 300hp engine/trans swap from a 1996 Corvette. The G-body cars now also have a host of modern suspension components via the aftermarket that can turn these into a decent handling and much more modern feeling car. Find this 1987 Chevy Monte Carlo for sale in West Babylon, NY for $6,000 via craigslist. 
Turbo diesel engines large fan base out there love their ability to rack up miles and produce stump pulling amounts of torque. VW and Mercedes were the only two brands who offered passenger cars with diesel engines back in 1998. Today's GTI has had the venerable 2 point slow engine swapped for the same year TDI power plant. It would seem to be an unusual move for all but a die hard diesel fan, but when you dig into the numbers further it makes more sense. The stock 2.0 8-valve gasser was good for 115 hp and 120 lb-ft of torque, while the TDI engine made 90 and 150. This TDI engine has a Malone stage 1 tune that takes things up to 110 hp and 188 lb-ft so this should be a good bit quicker than stock due to that mountain of torque. Find this 1998 VW GTI for sale in New Fairfield, CT for $5,500 via craigslist. 
If you are allergic to the "all show and no go" ethos commonly found on modern cars, we have a sleeper Volvo 960 sedan right up your alley today. The seller has quite possibly the most understated V8 Volvo to ever grace these pages. This 960 is quite the find despite not being a wagon, not being brown, and having an auto transmission. The trump card here is the universally lauded GM 5.3L V8 engine and the complete absence of other clues saying this car is a anything other than your college professor's daily driver. It takes a lot of restraint to pull of a sleeper build of this magnitude. You won't find a prancing moose badge on the front fenders, up-sized aftermarket wheels, menacing dual exhaust pipes, or any tinkering with the trunk badge to reflect more displacement. Find this 1992 Volvo 960 for sale in Norton, MA for $7,000 via craigslist. 
V8 engine swaps into square edged 240/740/940 rear wheel drive Volvos never get old or go out of style here at DT. A certain something about any of these swaps makes them quite delicious. It could be the Letterman/Newman connection or that these are the ultimate Walter Mitty car. Today's example is on the lower end of the price range for one of these swaps and has a few minuses against it in terms of scoring and desirability- not a wagon, has an auto transmission, and uses a relatively mild Ford 302 engine. Find this 1984 Volvo 240 for sale in Montauk, NY for $3,500 via craigslist. 
Compact trucks are a thing of past here in the US despite the ongoing SUV and truck boom. Ford pulled the plug on the Ranger after the 2011 model year. Rangers were made from 1983-2011 and were only available with four cylinder or V6 engines. Ford's 302 5.0 push rod V8 is a popular engine swap option into a host of cars because of its compact dimensions. Today's Ranger sports a 5.0 V8 transplant and can likely light up its rear tires for days with the lightweight unloaded rear end. The truck's 3200 lb curb weight is actually very comparable to a same year Fox body 'Stang. Find this 1993 Ford Ranger for sale in Ellenburg Center, NY for $4,000 via craigslist. 