[botch]

:AAHHH:
:AAHHH: yeah ive done it now :AAHHH:

just put an AU gearbox into my NA !!

biiiiiiig job but. where do i start ??

the main prob is that the gearbox crossmember is a bout 6" further back than the origianl 3 speed mount, whihc means that i had to cut away a bit of the original mount to fit the box in, and make up a couple of extension brackets out of angle iron to hold the crossmember. 3 and 4 speeds are same length so you dont need another tailshaft.

the au box that i put in also had different bellhousing and the inspection cover and the support arms wouldnt fit.

also had to change the throttle body (mpi) becase the extra tps required for the gearbox ecu would not mount to the original throttle body.

also had to cut the loom apart to get teh gearbox wires separte to the general car electrics (they all go in one loom throught the firewall)

had to change the shifter (extra psoitition for D), and the surround, as well as running wires to p/e switch, changing dash cluster and wiring up signal for tacho, p/e light / speed / ignition / battery power etc.

it took me approx 1 day to wire it up, and onther day to fit the gearbox.

ive still gotta do a couple of things, such as top up the fluid (which is a bitch now cos ive gotta drop the crossmember to get to the fill plug....AU's have no dipstick !!) and aslo sort out where the crossmember hits the exhasust sometimes.

also gotta chance the diff over (differnt ratio) and put the eb gears onto the extension housing that run the speedo.


i wouldnt recomemed this if you didnt have any idea on what you were doing.

if i was to do another one, i would get a smashed car that was mpi & 4 speed and just transfer over all the stuff....ecu, looms, throttle body etc. the only thing that wouldnt go straigt in would be the crossmember.


The end result is a car that now idles smoother, runs great, and should have good fuel economy once i change the diff & speedo gears. If i was planning on getting rid of the car, i wouldnt have bothered with a conversion this big & expensive, but since i plan to hang onto it for a while, it will be a good thing.

NEXT PROJECT.....NL FRONT AND REAR PANEL CUT ONTO THE NA , AND NF / NL TRIM CONVERSION!!!!


cheers

botch

 

[galapogos01]

hey dude

are you sure the NC crossmember wouldnt have fitted? Ive heard of people fitting 3spds to 4spd EA-EFs and have used an EA 3spd crossmember to do it (apparently the crossmembers 3spd-4spd are different) - so i thought the reverse would work? Should save a lot of mucking about - and wouldnt require an engineers...

Was that all that was required for the 4spd auto ECU? power speedo and tacho? did you change engine looms or ECU looms for the 4spd one, or just add the extra wiring for the 4spd?

Good work with the conversion, its definately a move for the better

Jase

 

[botch]

just had a look under my NC (factory 4 speed). it has a larger body mould thing spot welded to the underfloor where the gearbox crossmember mounts too...it is longer and as the extra holes to put a 3 speed in.

so.....early models have either 3 speed floor moulds, 4 speeds have both

the 4 speed crossmember is thinner than the 3 speed one.


the wiring job was fairly major, i cut the loom out of a wreck and made it up myself and fitted it in addition to the exisiting looms.(im a auto elec by trade). Picked up tacho & speedo signal from behind the dash cluster.

had to change the whole throttle body too because it didnt have the right shaft to accept the additonal tps switch !!!

the only other prob was the mounting of the trans ecu.....on a factory job there mounted on the pedal box, above where the clutch would be, but my NA already a computer there for the cruise control, so i relocated the trans computer to the drivers footwell above the kickpanel.

hmmm, maybe i should make some looms and flog them off.

even after doing this conversion and knowing whats involved, im quite tempted to put another 4 speed auto into my XY when i get it together.

 

[Rollin]

blimey..thats some dogged determination! good work!

i have a question, not related entirely to your conversion, but along the same lines.

myself and OED666 are going to purchase complete AU motors in the very near future, and fit them to our cars.

im going full aftermarket engine management and have a T5 and no smartlock, so my car should be fairly easy.

OED666 has smartlock and a 4speed auto with lock-up torque converter.

we want to use the entire AU engine. BBM, wiring loom etc.

assuming we get a AU computer and loom from a auto AU, will the AU computer be able to run the ED 4 speed or will it have a spac? do the plugs fit or will we have to modify looms and such?

any advice appreiciated...

 

[botch]

the plugs are the same, change the bellhousing though (use yor ed bellhousing) as the au's bolt directly to the sump and do not fit in pre au.

the wiring is exaclty the same !! i have an EA computer running this AU box !!!

this means if you put in AU engine & ecu then it will run your ed box no prob!

not sure how you will go with the au Body module as the wiring / actuators are differnet than e-series
good luck !!

 

[Rollin]

what do you think we should do about the body module?

what does it run on a ED futura? he has cruise, but normal AC (not climate control) ABS and smartlock, i gather the ED smartlock is compatible with the AU version, but what wires from the AU setup will we have to play with to make sure everything still works?

thanks heaps for your help too - its great being able to ask people if things will work before tearing apart a car and hoping for the best!!!

 

[botch]

hmm, not real sure about the body module...i guess it would run things like the dash dimming, intermittent wipers, central locking etc etc.

maybe if you just separated the engine / trans wiring and added that to the normal car wiring would be better idea, rather than swapping over AU modules into things that definatly wont be compatible with.

also with the gearbox, before you change the bellhousing, check to see that the little channel things where the bellhousing meets the box all line up and are the same.
i still have the AU bellhousing on my NA at the moment and havnt got around to pulling out the box to put the EA bellhousing on yet, but somebody told me to check it before swapping over....i.e if the fluid galleries dont line up then the box wont work properly.!! = MORE GODDAM DRAMAS !!!!#@!#$!#$

 

[Rollin]

we are keeping all the ED stuff except for the engine computer, i meant what wires from that will have to be connected to other stuff if any - do you know?

why do you have to swap the bellhousings over? dont all the bolt holes line up? how many do line up, and by how much do the others miss?

 

[botch]

The top of the bellhousing is not a problem, all the bolt holes line up spot on that screw into the block. the problem is with the bottom of the bellhousing as the AU bellhousings bolts directly onto the AU alloy sump, and the e-series have teh two alloy brackets that come down from the side of the block and bolt up to the two big bolts on the bellhousing, which dont line up with the AU ones.

also the inspeciton plate is diffent, i think the AU box uses a one-pice cover that has to go on before box gets bolted up.

im not much help on the wiring to the AU engine. i guess that smartlock will have to be conencted up, and all your engine sensors etc, fuel pump, ignition etc etc. id have to sit down with wiring diagram to work it out.

do you know anyone else thats done the same mod?

 

[Rollin]

not in brisbane

the plan is:

remove ED engine and computer and engine wiring harness from car.

drop in AU engine, with AU harness and computer.

obviously thats a very very shortened version of what we are planning, but you get the drift.

i think it should be ok from the electrical side of things, with just hoses and brackets etc not lining up.

 

[Cobra]

botch how do you know so much. Are you a mehcanic or just bored and like trying new things?

 

[buzz]

how fast's that limo now man

 

[Moran]

botch how do you know so much. Are you a mehcanic or just bored and like trying new things?

didnt you read one of his earlier posts

(im a auto elec by trade)

 

[botch]

i now know why i retired from auto elec trade at age of 25 !!

Box has been in limo for nearly 3 months now and runs sweet as. I have left the AU bellhousing on it (no vibration dampner things going from block to bellhousing like EB has)

I had a lot of trouble with oil leaks initially, and replaced filters and seals, and it mustve drank bout $200 worth of tranny fluid. Eventually found a hairline crack in the side of the alloy casing (box was out of a crashed car, or my method of transproting it with it rolling around in the boot). Anyway i bought some stuff from autobarn called COLD WELD, which mixes like araldite, and stuck that on, and hasnt leaked a drop since.

 

[buzz]

So you've decided to put oil in this one, ay?