Robert.
Nobody inferred that you were a "teenage punkk". In fact, nobody even said those words, except for you.
I am sorry to hear about your grandfather passing, and I am glad that you are able to get joy out of driving and maintaining the car that was passed on to you.
The recent statements of "+1" were a double meaning.
The first, and foremost, was to emphasize that OUR OPINION was to save money. Spending the money to upgrade the car simply to further your grandfather's legacy and memory wouldn't be the greatest idea. Upgrading the car because you wish to enjoy it in that manner is your call, however.
The second, and perhaps harder to ascertain, reason was a play on the fact that it is getting really popular for people to quote posts in such a manner. As a moderator, I have to see this umpteen times a day and it was more of a humorous venting on that subject matter. If you haven't been active for a while, or haven't been actively participating in posts with such actions, you wouldn't have noticed the joke/venting.
Now, on to the matter at hand:
I wouldn't think that anyone would recommend the standard duratec, or even the SVT 2.5 over the 3L duratec. The 3L will give you more horsepower and GOBS more torque for LESS money. It is more expensive to purchase and swap an SVT 2.5 than a 3L ANY day (barring a free SVT engine, somehow)
The swap from OBD-i (your 95) to OBD-II is possible, and CAN be done, though the depth of the conversion will MORE than cover anything you can anticipate. As alluded, the major stumbling blocks would be the wiring harness (including most of the behind-the-dash wiring, the secondaries being converted, and the return-style to return-less conversion. Plan on converting to a manual, as well? Factor in a new subframe, and the conversion costs associated with that, as well. All costs aren't monetary, and this is going to be a VERY big project. Quite frankly, few people have the drive to embark on a project of this nature without giving up (or at least wanting to) mid-way through it.
Now.. If you'd like more detailed information on the swap, should you come to a concrete decision, I am sure that all of CEG would be more than willing to help you. Until then, you are merely speculating and asking our opinions, which you can see are mostly in agreement.
Ask around in the 3L forum for more detailed and technical answers.. We, as a community are more than happy to help (that is... all of us who aren't teenage punks..)
Ray
