Ok, so the supercharger is running really good right now, but I'm still not too sure about this 2nd auto tranny I'm using. I dread the day it will go out on me again and I would have to cough up another $2700 for a rebuild. I still feel bad that I didn't do the 5-spd conversion before the sc install, I could've saved myself the $2700. So now, I've been doing a lot of thinking and was wondering is it worth it to convert to a 5spd? I know I wouldn't have to worry about driver error in an auto when racing, but I seem to be missing all the shifting fun according to all the other manual guys. At the local meets I feel like I stil don't get the same respect because I'm auto. I really want to learn how to drive manual, but I don't really want to learn on my car because I think I might do some damage to something somehow. I thought of buying a beater car that was manual for me to learn on and also because I need a 2nd car to keep the miles low on the Max, but I'm not sure if I should just use that beater money towards the conversion. I know that the manual isn't invincible when it comes to holding power, but I'm pretty sure the costs of rebuilds or part replacements are a lot cheaper than the auto. Another thing is, I see that someone on the org is hitting 13's all motor in a 5-spd, where I had to drop like $4K to hit 13's, I'm pretty sure that guy didn't spend as much as I did to be as fast. So, at one point today I was thinking should I just sell my SC and use the money towards the conversion and to all the bolt-ons (MEVI, LSD, etc.). Right now I enjoy the boost and it still surprises me everytime I punch it. I don't even know how much the conversion will run me parts and labor. I'm not sure if I would do the removal and install myself, but the again that's what I said with the SC install and it came out perfectly, though I wouldn't want to go through with it again if I had to because of the time it takes. Where would I go to get parts and who could do the install and how much would everything cost me? Sorry for the long post, I hope to get a lot of opinions and views to my topic. Thanks.

-Ben

 

I was in the same situation. Supercharger took my first auto tranny from me. I bought a used one for 600 bucks. You should have gave me an email or something, I would have told you were to look and get one. I got all my conversion parts for 450(not including the performace extras)...dont ask long story You can get your parts at www.car-part.com . I sold my blower and got a JWT ecu and 5spd. MEVI is on the way. I think I will be just as fast as a s/c auto. One thing you WILL notice is how much lighter the front of your car is. Mine feels alot lighter than before. Good luck. If you have any questions dont hesitate to email me. wayne19_82@hotmail.com . I will be glad to help you out or find whatever you need.




-Wayne

 

Yea, I paniced when the tranny blew and since I totally was unprepared for it and I needed my car back asap, I took it to a local AAMCO where they got it done in like 2 days from when I dropped it off. They claimed to have strengthened it up a little and gave it a better torque converter than the stock one, but I would never know. I'd love to be in the 13's all-motor if I ever got that good in driving manual. The buyer of your blower is asking me to do his and I'm still unsure of doing a 2nd install, but I really need the money to pay off bills that's why I'm not sure if I should sell the SC to get out of debt or not.

-Ben

 

Yeh thats right, he told me you were gonna help or he was gonna ask you.I dont think its that big of a deal to install, just time consuming. Go for it, do the install if you want to make some extra cash. I dont regret selling mine. Helped me out with the bills , and also love driving the 5spd everyday.

 

That's what I'm talking about, being in debt from the SC and then from the auto rebuild is really taking pounding on me, and I know it would be more enjoyable to drive my car with a 5-spd instead of just gas, brake, gas, brake.

-Ben

 

Yeah very true. Its like night and day when it comes to auto and 5spd. Im going to bed, so just send you questions to wayne19_82@hotmail.com if you have any. Good luck...later

-Wayne

 

quick question... when searching on carparts.com for a 5-speed, which tranny do you want? the locking or non-locking differential? also, anybody in the midwest do their own 5-speed and would be willing to help out other .org members for a lil $?

 

if you can find a locking one then get it. locking is LSD

 

Doing the conversion was way more than worth it to me, and Ive never had boost... just a bit of juice... I'd do it if I were you, but don't get yourself in debt over it...

aznsap, get the locking one if you can, that's the one with vlsd, you have to do a lot of research though, as a lot of parts yards don't really know the difference...

 

your far down the rabbit whole in mods and money.....trade for a 5-speed..

 

are all the i30 5 speeds LSD?

 

i only regret doing the conversion because it put me in debt and i only had the car for a few months before it got totaled. I love stick and bought a 5 speed afterwards and if i didnt have 5 speed i would go for the conversion again, thats how much i love it even though i'm nowhere near the best at it, always room for improvement, thats what i like.

 

No, only I30t 5spds and canadian maxima SE's.

 

do the swap =) i done it. it's not too bad if you have few friends to help. if you got everything, it should only take about a day. good luck!

 

ya, im just scared of undergoin a project this big. i think it would be hard just finding all the parts i need, and definitely i would need help putting it all together

 

I recently just bought all the parts and I am on my way to doing the swap in 2 weeks.. it is more than worth it to me because I am tired of everyday automagic driving, even though its nice in traffic it just gets boring and i can't really "drive" the car.

plus i don't want an auto turbo..

jason

 

well, i've got a small oil leak (at least it seems to be one) in my auto. so it's either 5-spd swap, or just swap a used auto out of another max. so i'm kinda in the same boat. can anyone tell me how long of a project this is? my maxima's just getting outta the shop here soon, so... i'd prefer little downtime. (of course, swapping out either will take awhile...)

 

your best bet is to find a whole car. you might not have to buy the whole car, but it's just easier to find everything you need. i found everything for 800.

 

Ok, so I know of a local junkyard that has a 95 5-spd, the guy says the tranny isn't worth getting because it has 200K miles on it, should I still at least get other parts from that car? Should I see how much it would be to actually have the whole car? What do you guys think? I guess I'm gonna start shopping for parts now, but need to know what to not get.

-Ben

 

How much $$$ apprx. are we talking about?

 

800 for everything?? is that for non-locking 5 speed? i was looking through car-part.com and it seems like jus a 5-speed VLSD isn't much less than that.... so with all the other parts it would be more than 800. any special tips on getting good deals?

 

i didn't use car-parts.com I bust my trusty yellow pages, and called every damn salvage yard. usually there is about 15... call the import one or the obvious ones first. no it's not lsd though =)

 

around how much does it cost to do a 5 spd conversion

 

read the whole post. 800 parts. the rest is up to you. you do your own labor or someone else do it.

 

I want LSD!!! I hope the junkyards I emailed get back to me, if not I'll have to just go with the non-lsd that one junkyard claimed to have all the parts for less than $800 shipped.

-Ben

 

whoa shipped??? that's some expensive shipping. 800 is pretty cheap already. LSDs are hard to find =P

 

i WANT LSD TOO!!! how long does it take to gather all the parts you need? im still a student, so im thinkin i would have to undergo this project, if ever, over a summer.

 

about the locking pin and nuts and bolts listed on hlh's site, do you have to buy those from nissan? wouldn't it jus be easier to take them from the donor vehicle, so you at least know you have the correct parts?

 

well, i took as much bolts and nuts as i could =) as far as locking pin goes, you should buy a new ones. they break easily =)

 

Ok, so I have one junkyard offering me $1100 shipped for an LSD tranny with 80K miles but they don't have the other parts. I guess I'm gonna go ahead and get it since a quaife later would be about that much. I then hope this other junkyard isn't bullsh!tting me about having all the other parts, though doesn't $650 shipped for everything except the transmission sound a little high?

-Ben

 

650 for everything else other than tranny? hmm.... let's see.... two axles, master cylinder, slave cylinder, lines, ecu..... don't remember what else... oh yeah... pedals (brake and clutch).... yes... i would say it's a bit much =)

 

Yea, that's what I was thinking, I sent him this list and that's what he quoted me.

Both Manual drive shafts (ABS specific)
2 shifting rods (support rod + control rod) (acquire used w/ all the hardware)
1 5spd starter
1 shifter (Acquire used to get nuts and bolts (buy with the shifter rods)
1 shifter console piece (interior)
1 shift console bracket (interior) (dealer name plate bolt and transaxle hole cover)
1 brake pedal
1 clutch pedal
Hydraulic lines for clutch
1 extra set of tranny harnesses (might come w/ 5spd tranny)
Assorted cotter pin set.
1 Manual Fly wheel
1 Manual motor mount

Even if I added in the clutch, slave cylinder, master cylinder, and Locking pin and clip for the clutch pedal to the master cylinder, would $650 still be high? He was saying he had the whole car, maybe he thought i wanted those too and was being lazy and charging for removal of all those parts? I don't know, I guess he'll be my last resort, I gotta check out more junkyards.

-Ben

 

they removed everything for me when i went to the yard =) i got all the parts for 800 including tranny. i didn't get abs though hehe... make sure you get ecu while you are at it. it's best to find a donor car, and call them and make a deal with them. local is the best, since you can pay cash, and it'll be cheaper that way.

 

Ben,

That does not seem too high to me. Have you tried Brandywine? When I was looking for my tranny a couple of weeks ago they had 2 5-speeds with about 40K on them. BUT they were not VLSD trannys so I don't really think that will help you.

Oh and if you sell the SC you got a local buyer right here!
Good Luck!

Jason

 

just a little =)

 

I'll let you know if it's worth it in about 3-4 hours...as soon as I'm done.

:P

 

Ben, we should meet up this weekend and ill show you how much fun a converted car can be.

 

Yea, I went to brandywine just about an hour ago and they are removing everything I need minus the axles, clutch and tranny for $260. The guy wants to make sure I have the LSD tranny before he starts removing the axles. His computer was saying theres no difference between an auto starter and a manual one, is that true? Hopefully I could save some money and use my current one. Now I have to get a new clutch but don't know which one and I'm still wondering if I should get the short throw shifter now or later since I still have to learn how to drive stick. Which is easier to learn, short or stock? So as of right now, looks like I spent $1360, and still need a clutch and few little items.

-Ben

 

$1,360.00 is not really that bad. You did not get the LSD tranny from Brandywine did you? Contact PJ from MAXX Tuning about the EXEDY stage 1 clutch he is running a GD for $225.00. I have a little over 200 miles on it and it feels very good. You may want to call Nissan Service and tell them to refrence the part numbers for the auto and manual starters and see if they are the same part numbers. Best of luck man! Let me know if I can help in any way.

Jason

 

Get STS and clutch for swap... Some peeps seem to have regretted not doing this