can you put a 91 1.6 miata engine in 87 mazda 323?

no,a lot of difference.

i disagree, you can put any engine into any car. all it takes is alot of "know-how" and alot of $$$$. although on this car it shouldnt be too bad since the 323 GTX came with the 1.6L short nose crank engine that is in the '90's and about half of the '91's the only difference is that it was turbocharged and was all wheel drive. the only thing that i think would be a problem is finding a tranny to fit the engine and the drivetrain. other than that it would be just like any other engine swap with the normal PITA stuff. my suggestion: dont swap your miata engine into your 323, it would cost less to just buy a 323 GTX (if you can find one) and have the same engine, all wheel drive and a turbo

agreed, any motor can go in anything just the time,patience and $ is involved, especially when it comes to making engine and transmission mounts, plus the room for the motor, sometimes the firewall or the radiator support can be moved, sometimes not, we put a 460 in a 88 mercury cougar and it was a tight fit, and alot of things needed to be done, save yourself the time and headache just find a GTX like the other dude said.

Actually, I believe you can. Get the mount kit for a 323 GTX and you're halfway there already. The GTX and the Miata used the same engine, but with minor differences. You'll have to fab up your own intake and exhaust systems but the hard parts should slip right in. Transmission may even bolt up. Just make sure the engine you've obtained has the "long-nose" crankshaft. Otherwise, it will fail.

well technically "yes"... but realistically no. Miata is RWD and 323 is FWD. You need custom motor mounts for the Miata's engine, I'd reccomend a transmission brace,wiring harness, ecu, etc and driveshaft at least.