Diesel Swap - '87 300TD Donor to 230TE Recipient

[punkinfair]

I have a rusty '87 300TD with low miles - only 160,000kms. mechanically very good also, has been very well maintained. I have a european 230TE with a very good body and chassis, next to no rust. also well maintained but i prefer the 603 engine over the 2.3l gas engine. the 230TE is stored at the moment, not being driven but needs nothing much to put on the road. it's a second car for schlepping and so forth. we had an '87 300TD, recently sold and replaced with an '04 E320. the '87 was high miles and still a very solid car but engine getting old and decided to sell while it was still worth something. had planned to do an engine swap from new '87 to old one, but the low miles rusty car came too late and the old car is already gone. had the 230TE in the back pocket all along and now it's time to decide what to do next.

is it feasible to do the engine swap given i have the complete '87? i believe the whole driveline has to be swapped? the front brakes on the 230TE are different - non-vented rotors and different callipers, this can be swapped also. climate control could be an issue because the 230TE lacks ACC but in some ways this is a good thing to have the simpler manual heat. the 230TE also has all manual controls everywhere - seats, windows etc. the only electric thing is the sunroof. 230TE is a decent running and driving car. i realize the swap is a lot of work. there could be licensing issues with the swap but i will research this before doing it if i go that route.