Project- Bills Buggy

I'll even it out by saying I'd wait on the new engine until next winter, just for the reasons you just said. Being so close to spring now, I wouldn't want to risk not having a car to drive this summer (or for part of it), having new bugs to work out and so on. Unless there's something wrong with what you have now, and it's fun to drive as-is, why not just leave it? Get the Cordoba done (I LOVE Cordobas, want one so bad!), get your interior & shifter worked out, then it will be spring driving weather! But, that's just me. Maybe you work faster than I do. I have a whole lot bigger of a project with my engine swap, since I have to swap brakes, rear, radiator etc at same time, so that could be influencing my feeling about your swap unnecessarily also.