They did not ask me at the parts house if I had manual or electronic controls, so I'm guessing no difference. I think the parts counter guy said the motor fit 95-99.

Chris...is there more to the upcoming work that you'd like to mention?

Thanks for all the info posted here. Just changed my blower motor out today on my '97 SSEi. I should've searched the forums here first but I guess a break was needed half way thru the job anyway. The insulating cover and cooling hose on mine were shot so I'll be replacing those too. The cover basically crumbled when I touched it around the hose opening. So for now the motor is in and I taped up the cover and hose opening. Not bad considering the motor latest 201k miles!