How To: 5 Speed Swap in Convertibles (and other S13s)

Post by **Hijacker** » Sun Oct 29, 2006 5:23 pm

the O/D light will flash cause the car thinks that the O/D unit is broken. But it won't keep your car from starting.

As far as the reverse wiring goes. The car only needs to be in the on position, it doesn't have to be running. Are you sure you have the correct plug wired in? I've included the FSM diagram for the plugs just to be on the safe side. If you have, and you had working reverse lights before the swap, you may just have a bad sensor.

EDIT: Added this to the first post as well. I'm surprised I never mentioned which plug was the reverse switch

Post by **Didderson** » Mon Oct 30, 2006 4:12 pm

Ok man, I'm totally impressed. So, the O/d thing sounds good. And yeah, I did wire it to the wrong plug . I have it wired to the park neutral safety switch as of now, and i'll rewire it to the real reverse sensor tomorrow, woot!

Post by **white90esex** » Wed Nov 01, 2006 3:40 pm

ok. I did most the work on my auto to manual swap on my S13 when I did my SR swap.

ITs all bolted up, pedals are in, lines are in, new clutch, resurfaced flywheel. I finally found a MT drive shaft outta an S13 (I have a S14 with out ABS and i tried to fit the driveshaft and it doesnt fit, just to let you all know).

I also found a manual tranny x member. (thats not necessary cause you can drill a hole in your auto one and mount it in with just two bolts. Thats how my gray S13 with SR is.)

Anyways, I was looking at the wiring and there are like 5 different wiring things that go into the tranny. It looks like you need to wire alot of stuff but you say you only need to jump the one connector for neutral and then wire for reverse lights.

Im so confused and affraid to touch it cause i dont wanna **** anything up.

Please help cause I got a wiring mess. I will try to post pics tommarow sometime.

Post by **Hijacker** » Wed Nov 01, 2006 4:19 pm

only 2 bolts holding that x-member up? it may hold it up for now, but that's severely unsafe IMO.

anyways, you only need the reverse sensor and the speed sensor wired in off the trans. the other gear sensors are not really needed. the park/neutral safety switch is located under the fuse box on an S13, not sure where it is on an S14, but I can assume in the same spot.

Here's a link to an S14 swap FAQ off of 240sx.orghttp://www.240sx.org/links/ins...p.htm

Post by **slownslurious** » Wed Nov 01, 2006 4:29 pm

if you get the manual transmission harness you dont need to rewire anything for hte trans it just plugs into the main harness and voila, speed sensor and reverse lights.

the 2 bolts on the crossmember isn't ideal but the RB guys have been doing it for a while now.

Post by **white90esex** » Wed Nov 01, 2006 7:55 pm

ha ha!!! so if I go pull the harness off a junked car in the junk yard then it will save me the headache? I wonder how much it will be... U think if i bunch it all up it will fit in a cargo pocket on some pants or maby under a hoody?

Lately the local J-yard has been charging me **** tons for stuff. Like the charcoal canister... 6 bucks when back in the day I could get an arm full of parts for 6 bucks

Post by **JSvert240sx** » Mon Nov 27, 2006 5:41 pm

I'm sorry if this has been already answered, but can the S14 5 speed be used in an S13 with an S13 KA24?

Post by **IslandStyle** » Thu Dec 07, 2006 11:40 pm

^Yes the trannys are the same on the S13 and S14.

Now... I'm just getting to the wiring in this swap on my vert. Let me ask this in real IDIOT terms just so I don't screw something up.

By the previous instructions and posts etc., the harnesses hanging off of the 5spd tranny (which do NOT exist on the Auto tranny)- are we saying here that these harnesses (except the reverse light one) just sit there and do NOT need to be connected? Or are you saying that the wires for each harness just need to be cut and spliced together?

I just got really confused when I put the trannys side by side and realized the harnesses are totally different. So without changing to a 5spd lower harness, in real 2nd grade speaking... what the hell am I supposed to be doing?

Post by **Hijacker** » Fri Dec 08, 2006 10:52 am

With my how to, you don't need either harness. What I do is take the auto harness off the lower harness and toss it to the side. If I remember right, the speed sensor isn't part of the auto harness and runs into the rest of the lower harness. Then all you do is run a pair of wires from the inhibitor switch down to the reverse sensor and you have yourself working reverse lights.

Post by **IslandStyle** » Fri Dec 08, 2006 3:58 pm

So in your picture showing the transmission with all the sensors having arrows come out of them pointing to the little ipod looking thing above, what is that implying? I'm sorry if it sounds beginner, but I'm staring at the photo and it's just not clicking with me what the photo is telling me that I have to do.

But basically you mean I don't even need the harness? All the sensors on the new 5spd tranny are just going to sit there as they are now unhooked?

So the only thing I need to do is manually run wires to the tranny for the reverse lights, and I jump the convertible top wiring off of those... that's sounds easy enough. What about the speed sensor?

Post by **Hijacker** » Fri Dec 08, 2006 5:41 pm

that pic is just to show you locations of the sensors. Don't worry about the pic of the ohm meter (that's the iPod thing)

and yes. those sensors will hang there. they don't hurt performance or driveability being unplugged

Post by **IslandStyle** » Fri Dec 08, 2006 8:02 pm

Great! Thanks. I'm sure I'll check back in throughout the install. I only have a couple hours a day to work on it so it may be finished over the week. Thank you.

Post by **IslandStyle** » Sat Dec 09, 2006 2:09 pm

Well this project came to a screaming halt! You forgot to add how the hell you got the Automatic Pilot Busing off!!! I'm having a hell of a time and all I'm coming out with is scratches all over it, but I can't get it out.

?????

Post by **Dorifto12** » Mon Dec 25, 2006 1:33 pm

hey guys i went to buy a 5spd tranny for the swap and the guy that is selling me the tranny said i didnt need the 5spd C.M and the 5spd D.S, i have a 1990 240sx hatch,do i need those parts for the swap? btw he told me that he did the same swap to his 240sx.

Post by **Hijacker** » Mon Dec 25, 2006 5:41 pm

this is a bit late of a response...sorry island. i usually use a puller to get the pilot bushing out. i'm not sure if advance or autozone have those for rental though, i've typically used one from my friend's shop.

Post by **IslandStyle** » Sat Jan 06, 2007 4:38 pm

Dorifto12 wrote:hey guys i went to buy a 5spd tranny for the swap and the guy that is selling me the tranny said i didnt need the 5spd C.M and the 5spd D.S, i have a 1990 240sx hatch,do i need those parts for the swap? btw he told me that he did the same swap to his 240sx.

1> For the crossmember, please read the above posts^, they talk about it.

2> For the Driveshaft, YES you NEED the 5spd driveshaft. The output shaft on the automatic is 2 1/4" wide, whereas the manual is 2" wide, so they don't fit.

Post by **IslandStyle** » Sat Jan 06, 2007 4:43 pm

Okay, I finally had time to finish my 5spd swap. It works great, but I have a small issue. I also want to add some stuff to the main post in this thread due to the parts I used which I'll explain in the next post.

My problem: Everything worked perfectly, shifted fine, etc. However, My brake lights WILL NOT shut off!!! I have to unplug the battery when I shut the car off. They also remain on the whole time driving, so you can't tell when I'm actually braking LOL! I checked the harnesses on the brake pedal that I had to take off to remove it and they're still in tact, so I'm kinda stumped here? Any ideas?

Post by **IslandStyle** » Sat Jan 06, 2007 5:13 pm

I want to update some info that wasn't in this thread due to the combination of parts that I used which other people WILL run into.

My setup was an S14 transmission from a 1998 with an S13 driveshaft. This isn't uncommon since people will go for a later tranny due to lower mileage.

You'll run into 2 problems though that are easily fixable. First off is that the speed sensor for the S14 has a female plug that is built onto the sensor, it is not a running male wire like the S13. AND, the speed sensor for the S13 is different and WILL NOT fit in the new S14 transmission. So you CAN use the S14 speed sensor, but you need to cut the harness off of the S13 sensor, and splice the black and green wires to the pins on the S14 sensor. If you hold them side by side, they two wires are configured the same, I believe it was green on the left, black on the right. But it works fine.

Secondly is the transmission. It is the same tranny as any of the years for the KA24DE, but the S14 has a large black ring around output shaft the gets in the way of the bolts on the end of the driveshaft. Although it may be tricky, the piece slides right off. I hacked it, drilled it, bent it with pliers and when I was halfway through it with the hacksaw it just popped right off. So I guess you could probably just hammer it off.

Post by **love-240sx** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 1:56 pm

so, how long does it take?and how much did you spend?

Post by **94_240sx** » Fri Jan 19, 2007 5:15 am

I'm going to hit a junkyard next Monday(1/22/2007) to pick up tranny for the 5 speed swap. Have a couple of Qs.

1. Do I need 5-speed ECU?2. Do I need transmission harness?

I already have CM, DS & pedals. To me, it'll work without manual ECU and harness, but it they can make things easier, I'll pick them up too. Is there any other stuff I need? I know I need hardlines and cylinders BTW. Please let me know ASAP. Thanks!!!

Post by **easydet** » Thu Feb 08, 2007 5:31 am

i did a 5-speed swap last december in a vert and the top never went up to I have to jump out a switch or something???

Post by **nothingFancy** » Sun Feb 11, 2007 1:39 pm

how about the speedomiter? what wires do u need to splice to get some speed readings on the cluster? i have a 92 coupe with HUD. i wired everything write in the dash area, just dont know what to do to get some speed readings.

Post by **slownslurious** » Mon Feb 12, 2007 6:25 am

94 240sx-you don't need the ECU the auto one works fine. You do not NEED the manual transmission harness, but it will make installation/wiring smoother (you won't have to splice anything). The reason so many people are talking about all this custom wiring is because they do not have the correct harness or chose to use a later transmission that isn't compatible with the s13 wiring harness. If you are pulling the transmission yourself and have the option to get the harness I would defintely get it, even if it meant paying extra, for all the wiring headaches it saves. But, if you just get the bare tranny you can follow the wiring instructions in this thread.

Easydet- yes you have to wire an additional plug- its got pictures on the initial post. You have to wire the brown/yellow and green/blue wires. I never hooked this up to verify that it will allow the power top to function though. If you have been using the car without the power function make sure you remember to switch the valve back to power operation on the pump (if its been switched to manual operation).

nothing fancy- what did you wire in the dash? there shouldn't be any wiring in the dash for the auto swap. I would verify that you have a properly working HUD cluster to start with since they are so prone to failure. If your speed sensor is working then your speedometer should be working, but I've found that HUD speedos are tricky (my sohc HUD reads 0 since I swapped in a dohc motor).

Post by **webbmxer** » Tue Feb 20, 2007 8:13 pm

I noticed in one of the pictures on the first page that there is a yellow splice connecting the thick black wire with the thick tan wire which are on the trans harness plug.

So the two thick wires black w/white stripe and black w/yellow stripe do not get spliced together???? these are the wires that are on the chassis plug

heavy throttle performance says to splice black/white with black/yellow. Im very confused

PLEASE HELP

Post by **champride** » Wed Feb 28, 2007 4:23 pm

got a quick question about wiring color?

in the first page of this forum said i need the following wire color:Green/blue to complete the circuitBrown/yellow for parkGreen/white for reverse

....but on my inhibitor it show Green, Brown and green/white? i check the wire but i dont see Brown/yellow. should i just wire it or do i need to have the rite color wire?

and i cant take my key off the ignition..

Post by **viciou5240** » Mon Mar 19, 2007 5:37 am

i am about 2 purchase my friends 240. But his car is auto...my buddy and i reacently went to the local junk yard and saw a s14 manual. & i thought about it....wut if i part out the s14 and do da conversion swap in the s13....is this possible..??? and if so...wut do i need..???

PLZZZZ HELP...NO MANUAL one around my area all AUTO so dis is a SIGN from da HEAVENS' ABOVE!!! L8r!

Post by **94_240sx** » Mon Mar 19, 2007 5:58 am

viciou5240 wrote:wut if i part out the s14 and do da conversion swap in the s13....is this possible..??? and if so...wut do i need..???

I think you missed what IslandStyle posted on page 5. Yes, it's possible and this is what he said. I also bought s14 manual transmission. Junkyard had s13 and s14 tranny. s13 tranny had leaks all over the place, but s14 tranny shifted smoother and clean, so I got that one. I did some research before I bought it and learned that s14 would fit on s13 with no problem.

By IslandStyle ---------------------------------------------------------------I want to update some info that wasn't in this thread due to the combination of parts that I used which other people WILL run into. My setup was an S14 transmission from a 1998 with an S13 driveshaft. This isn't uncommon since people will go for a later tranny due to lower mileage.

You'll run into 2 problems though that are easily fixable. First off is that the speed sensor for the S14 has a female plug that is built onto the sensor, it is not a running male wire like the S13. AND, the speed sensor for the S13 is different and WILL NOT fit in the new S14 transmission. So you CAN use the S14 speed sensor, but you need to cut the harness off of the S13 sensor, and splice the black and green wires to the pins on the S14 sensor. If you hold them side by side, they two wires are configured the same, I believe it was green on the left, black on the right. But it works fine.

Secondly is the transmission. It is the same tranny as any of the years for the KA24DE, but the S14 has a large black ring around output shaft the gets in the way of the bolts on the end of the driveshaft. Although it may be tricky, the piece slides right off. I hacked it, drilled it, bent it with pliers and when I was halfway through it with the hacksaw it just popped right off. So I guess you could probably just hammer it off.

Post by **94_240sx** » Thu May 03, 2007 6:37 am

This is very helpful thread about ECU. I thought it won't hurt to add it here.

zerothread/247542

Post by **white91240** » Thu May 17, 2007 12:27 pm

owell this is my first post and i have just finished my swap. anyways there are a few problems i am having, first the car starts and it drives but the cluster gauge doesnt work, and i removed some stuff of the engine a couple of pipes from the back of the engine to the headers to the intake i dont know what it was but i was told its a cold start unit and since i live in the south i dont need it but now the car wont idle right and it will kill after a few seconds. help please anyone

Post by **FrankT** » Thu May 17, 2007 12:37 pm

Hi ,I need some help, my problem is no exactly the same but very similar...My main engine harness was fried a couple weeks ago and I had a spare harness from my previous 240sx that i kept for parts. The only problem was that my 240sx is a 5-speed and the harness that i swap it with is from an automatic. And now nothing seems to work except for a little light in the speedometer. Could i potentially use the same instruction from the 5 speed swap to fix this.

Please help, ne help would be GREATLY appreciatedTHANK YOU

How To: 5 Speed Swap in Convertibles (and other S13s)

Re: (tenkawa_akito)

Re: (Didderson)

Re: (slownslurious)

Re: (Dorifto12)

Re: How To: 5 Speed Swap in Convertibles (tenkawa_akito)

Re: How To: 5 Speed Swap in Convertibles (love-240sx)

Re: How To: 5 Speed Swap in Convertibles (tenkawa_akito)

Re: How To: 5 Speed Swap in Convertibles (tenkawa_akito)

Re: How To: 5 Speed Swap in Convertibles (webbmxer)

Re: How To: 5 Speed Swap in Convertibles (champride)

Re: How To: 5 Speed Swap in Convertibles (viciou5240)

Re: How To: 5 Speed Swap in Convertibles (94_240sx)

Re: How To: 5 Speed Swap in Convertibles (tenkawa_akito)

Nissan Forums

Infiniti Forums

Datsun Forums

Technical Forums

Classifieds / Marketplace

Nissan Motorsports

General Forums