Lookin for some help...

[March]

OK, i just bought my 1990 240SX auto. And i have just purchased an RB25DET. Ive been looking around for a while trying to find forums and sites on how to convert frome auto to manual, but all the ones i have found never seem to list the parts needed for this conversion. now my question to you guys is, if you can either point me in the righ direction, or list the parts needed to do this conversion. Sorry if this has been asked and answerd allredy and im just kicking the dead horse... but im in iraq, i dont have all day to call around or surf the net. Im just trying to get everything i need to get my RB25DET up and runnin when i get home, so any input you guys could give would be greatly appreciated... on all aspects of this project.

-March

[rotorimp]

kiCK *** TAKE NAMES AND COME HOME SAFE!!!!!

DID YOU BUY A MOTOR SET WITH THE TRANS? IT MAY COME WITH SOME OF THISyou NEEDRB FLYWHEEL/BOLTSMAXIMA/RB CLUTCH PLATE/BOLTS,DISK AND THROW OUT BEARING RB TRANSMISSION W/ TRANS BOLTS240 MASTER CYL. HARD LINE AND RB SLAVE CYLINDERDRIVE SHAFT--THIS WILL BE CUSTOM MADE/MCKINNEYPEDAL ASSY-- BRAKE AND CLUTCH PEDALCAN'T THINK OF ANYTHING MORE NOW

BTW--DONT GIVE THIS GUY CRAP ABOUT POSTING THIS/NOT SEARCHING OR POSTING IT HERE ---HE IS OVER IN A DUSTY TOILET BOWL PROBABLY NOT ENJOYING HIMSELF A WHOLE LOT--GIVE HIM A BREAK

[March]

Thanks for the feed back man, i relly appreciate it. I do have one more question... i was looking at the pics of my car... the auto portion (yes, ive only seen pics of my car ) and i was comparing it to a pic of a manual, the space for the shifter looks the same. now my question is, do i need to replace the centor console for the manual swap or can i use the existing one. o also if anyone knows where to get the diagram for the A/C and stuff, that wuld be awsome, cuz i cant find one at all, although it sounds like its gonna be a pain in the *** to do... well thanks again man.

o yea im only out here for one more month... then i get to go home and start the swap , hopefully i dont mess it up too bad. Later

-March

[Darius]

I've done the auto to manual RB swap on mine and really, don't even worry about it. There is a few manual swap guides in the 240 section (stickied I believe) and you can follow the wiring for that. Basically all you do is jumper the disable switch near the fuse box in the engine bay and then wire your speed sensor to the KA and reverse and neutral sensors to the RB ecu. I would recommend running the transmission sensor wiring through the bottom of the car under your console and keeping the wiring interior. Leave a little slack (12") to be able to connect and disconnect the plugs when installing the motor. Obviously, you will need clutch pedal from a 240 (S13 or S14, doesnt matter) and pull the clutch master cylinder and slave cylinder from the clip (if you get one).

In all honesty, I wouldn't rush the swap by trying to figure everything out in Iraq before you come home. There are way too many little details that you have to figure out for yourself during your install to get it to be the way you want it. Take your time when you get home, do your due diligence, and get it right the first time instead of throwing it in there and pissing to us that your car doesn't rev above 3000rpm or some other issue that has been covered 10,000 times. You'll take that much more pride in it too. There are a ton of knowledgeable guys here that are more than glad to help so get home safe and we'll help you get 'er done.

[March]

Hey thanks for the help. By no means am i gonna try and rush this swap, its my first one so im not expecting to just throw it in and drive away heh, and im expecting alot of little stuff to come up. The only thing im trying to do while im out here is get the basic items that will be needed for it. I bought my engine thrugh JARCO Inc., well my wife did, they emaild me everything it was comeing with...wich is all of the wiring, the ecu, sensors, piping, intercooler,downpipe, d-shaft and the fuel pump. i have alredy bought a new Timeing Belt and tensioner/idler pullies, oil pump, water pump, and TOPHAT mounts. and i have my friend picking up the items for the auto to manual conversion now that i know what i need "thanks again". I read that you can get a few of the belts from auto stores.. "if that is correct", so i will take care of that when i get home. But other than that, ive just been trying to find other big things that will be needed. the only big question's i have now that i relly dont understand is... the fans that people keep talking about. im not sure what people are reffering to, and the suspension, if it needs to be replaced when i do this swap or is the stock ok for now? Ok well i relly appreciate the info that you guys have provided me so far, its relly good stuff. ill continue to keep you guys posted on what im doing, and any further questions i have, as long as you guys dont mind answering them. Just cant wait to get home and start the project.....After some much needed lovin with the wife . thanks again guys. o yea, ill post some baby pics soon, if i get the time...

Later -March

[rotorimp]

the center consul is the same just pop that plastic piece out and buy a shift boot off e-bay.

The drive shaft is probably just hacked off and you will have to get one made or go the mckinney route.

[Darius]

hahahaha You two better go to your room and stay there for 24-48 hours unless it is for gatorade or viagra.

Suspension is always good to upgrade, but not necessary for the swap. Driveshaft is cheapest when it is custom made (i.e. not McKinney) Make sure you use the yolk from the DS they give you though.Accessory belts are pretty easy to size up at NAPA.FYI, do not change the head gasket unless you're taking the block entirely apart first. I learned this the hard way.The fan that comes on the motor is on the water pump and sticks out too far towards the radiator. It needs to be replaced by electric fans that are slimmer. A lot of guys run them as pullers between the radiator and motor. Others run them as pushers ahead of the radiator. Depends on what you want to do.AC is an issue that 99% of people have not dealt with. The RB25 ECU does not do the climate control as the KA ECU does. Therefore, the AC does not work without a custom setup.

[Gold Digger]

Hey March, where are you from in the states? I am sure if you ask around, you might be able to find some willing NICO-nauts that would probably give you a hand with your swap. There are many guys here that have done the RB swap and are pretty knowledgeable (<----Did I spell that right?)

All you have to do is ask around.

[rotorimp]

If you can get a drive shaft made. I took in part of a 300zx drive shaft and my old 240 shaft with a measurement between the diff and the trans. A week later I had a complete new driveshaft (everything new they gave back the reference parts). 250$ for everything.

[March]

Darius.. do you Have any info on the A/C systems? or do you you know anyone who does? and yes i am planning to upgrade the suspension, just gota get the money first, the engine components and the parts for the auto-manual swap are takeing alot. the good news is i think im about done, with the big parts atleast. i do have a few more questions though. One is concerning the fans... i need to know what type of fans, i know you said electric and slimmer but culd you refer me to any sites that i can find them.. or post a picture so i know what im lookgin for?. or if there is a post about it please link to it becuse i cant find anything. Ok, i remember reading about getting a custome downpipe made somewhere becuse it would not clear? now i am pretty sure i also read that if you used custom Mounts that you wont have that problem. I purchased TopHat mounts recently, and i was just wanted to clarify if or if not i need to get a custome downpipe made. C33- Ill be at Fort Campbell in about a month. It would be great if somone with some know how on the RB to help me out. but otherewise ill be doin it myself. I relly do apolagize for asking these questions.. I have never done a swap or rebuilt an engine... so this is just a big learning prcess for me. Ive been looking enuf thruout the year that i pretty much have a basic understanding i think, but alot of it is just gonna be trial and error for me. Im asking these questions just to make things clearer for me, and so that i can minimize ( as much as possible) the amount of times i mess something up. Thank you guys for answering my questions, it has relly given me a better idea of what needs to be done, and what im going to need to do it.Gota go guys ill post anymore questions i have later. thanks again

-March

[Darius]

I don't personally have info on the A/C system as I have not tried to get mine up and running. This is how I interpreted the discussion that was had a while back on this issue...

The thing with the RB is that the ECU only has a power output signal to the A/C compressor to kick in. From there, if everything is hooked up and charged with R134a, it will blow cold air until the compressor freezes up and explodes. BAD. What needs to be installed is a high/low pressure switch that interrupts the ECU signal if the pressure gets too high and turns the compressor off. I mean it wouldn't be difficult for a shop to install a working system for you. I would do your own research on this because very few people have hooked up their A/C.

As far as fans go, it depends on if you can fit fans between the radiator and engine. If you want a cleaner installation you can mount them in front of the radiator as pushers, but they are typically 66-75% as effective. I have two 10" Perma-cool fans set up as pushers. Look them up on SummitRacing or Jegs as they probably have the best price on these. You can also get a temperature relay system that will kick the fans on and off depending on the temp setting you select.

As far as the downpipe goes, I don't know if you have an S13 or S14. I have an S14 with McKinney downpipe and TopHat mounts and it fits fine. The turbo elbow may need to be notched a little bit to give a little more clearance for the steering shaft. But things like this are what you stumble across when you do your swap. There aren't posts about the little things like this because you kind of run into them, figure out something that works, and move on.

Go to a junkyard for the clutch pedal and other related things. They will usually just give that type of thing to you if you go pull it out yourself.

[March]

Well, im curently searching for some info on the A/C sytems.. i came up with a few things, but not much. i did look at those fans you were talkng about, however i only bought one of them, do i need 2? if so ill buy the second one... but that also raises a question i have. the controllers you can buy for the fans, so you have to buy 2 controllers? or can you operate 2 fans off 1 contoll unit?

As for the downpipe, i have a 1990 240SX S13, with tophat mounts so if that gives you a little more info on if ill need one or not...

but so far ive got the mounts, timeing belt, tensiner/idler pullies, oil pump, water pump, fans, engine, wireing harness, intercooler, downpipe (may need new one), sensors, fuel pump, ecu,

if you culd look over that and let me know anything else i culd possibly need, it would help me out alot. most of those are parts that other people have listed. yes i have been looking around before i posted.

gota go talk to ya guys later

-macrh

[Darius]

I would recommend running two fans for redundancy and for cooling purposes. You can run the fans in series off of the temp controller at least that is the way I have mine wired up. I haven't gotten it to operating temp yet, but that's the theory behind my setup.

I assume that you will need a new downpipe, but I'm not certain. I have an S14, so that's all I have experience with. Otherwise your parts list looks pretty good for an initial install setup. Just get the driveshaft measured up once you get the motor in so that you can get the right length as mentioned earlier in the thread.

[March]

well... i just got my engine, the whole front half of a skyline as well. ill post some pics.

i was sondering about the guages... can i use the sencer on the rb and hook it to the stock 240 guages so it will read right or do i need to purchase a diffrent part?

also i was talking to a buddy of mine and he was showing me a downpipe that is made for the Z's that actually has 2 pipes ran together comeing off the turbo to split the turbine and the wastegate (i think that is what it is) on the back of the turbo. I was sondering if any of you guys have come across this for the RB engines that will fit in a 240.

well i relly do have the front end of the car and i know that im not going to be useing all of that stuff, ie. dash, stering wheel, ect. so if you guys are looking for anything or know anyone who is let me know and ill see what i can do.

[jrb92se]

my car was an auto xat stuffed the rb in it. it fits . dont forget to cut your brake pedal!! i can start my car without pushing the clutch in so im cooler then anyone that has to!

[l0nestar]

March,

I am in a similar situation to you. I bought an R33 GTS-T half-cut from Jarco for my S-13 and prepping to put it in. I havent been able due to some medical issues recently. You actually did not need to TopHat mounts since you bought a clip! I found that out recently. You will also need to purchase an Air / Fuel converter (A'PexI S-AFC or S-AFC2 ($100-200) ). You can pick them up used on EBay or other Niconauts. You may want to replace the rear differential with an LSD or VLSD. Also, you are going to need to get your wiring done, you can do it yourself, or have Jon Powell (racebread.com) do it for $200. As far as the cluster, etc goes it is a pain, it _will_ fit, but the wiring is the problem Jon Powell said it would run about $300 *iirc* to do the wiring for the R33 cluster. There are a few people here who have done it, there is a guide floating around, I will search for it. Or you could spend around $100 and have LS-Auto send you a tach calibrated for 6cyl. Oh, for the boot, we have a sponsor Redline Goods, who makes sweet custom boots

zerothread/90783

I hope this helps. I am debating on wether or not to replace the oil pump as well. Your list looks very nice. Oh, about the A/C I know user Chaos the Xile has his AC hooked up as well as others. check out hsi profile and just ask him! . Again, HTH.

l0nestar

[March]

Hey man thanks for the info. sucks you cant get the motor in yet.

Ok i have a few more questions becuse you posted some things that i relly have no clue about. The LSD or VLSD..... what is that and do i need it right away for the swap...... and actually... is that so my rear tires wont be spinning out all the time?

The Air/Fuel converter... im not sure exactly what that is either.. i have not seen it mentioned in anny of the guides... or not that i remember anyways.

I thought that i wuld need the Mounts for the engine to sit right... and for the downpipe to clear... sucks if i dident need them.

thanks for the info on the A/C system, ill have to message that guy and see if he can help me out... someone shuld post a thread about that... since no one relly knows how to do it... it wuld be nice to finally shed some light on it.

and im gonna try and get the tach working mhyslef before i try and send the wireing of somewhere... i think i can do it... have a little skillz... not alot but enuf to do what i need to do i think. plus i got guides... and thats always a plus

Im replaceing my oil pump just becuse ill know its new..... and so i dont have to worry about it being bad.. same with the other parts. i figured if i just spend the extra money... get the stuff now and replace it while the engine is out, then ill save myself alot of hassle and time in the long run.

but anyways if you culd help me out with my questions that wuld be great.thanks agian for the info man... i relly appreciate it.

talk to you guys later

-March

[l0nestar]

March,

Yeah, it does.

Yes, VLSD or LSD enables both wheels to produce traction (albeit in different ways). I picked up the rear sub-frame that went with my half-cut which included the VLSD for $250. When mine is assembled I will have a complete Skyline drivetrain. Oh yeah, the accronyms are Viscous Limited Slip Differential and Limited Slip Differential. The stock (240SX SE hatch ) unit is Viscous LSD. Non SE's and Coupes had a 'One-wheel wonder-peel' as a friend would say (only one wheel gets traction) standard differential.

It modifies the a/f ratio so you don't lean out / rich your fuel ratio. Keeps it stoichiometric and helps with tuning. But since you and I are both stock it should not matter I guess.

Since you have the mounts, use them. They help by moving the motor I believe forward and down *somone verify this* by an inch or so.

I am also interested in the AC system. I (or you, or anyone) should email Chaos the Xile or topsecrt88 and ask about it. They made posts in the same thread about it. I couldnt find it, but only spent about 3 min searching.

Good luck on the tach. There is a device from Dakota Digital to modify the pulse and correct it. it was like $75 though, but Dakota Digital makes awesome equipment. (I think Darius purchased this device IIRC).

I want to find a way to test my oil pump before replacing it. I couldnt find a procedure in the R33 RB25 FSM though. There is a thread on the first page in the RB forum about replacement part #'s. I need to get a new water pump, just to be safe, possibly an oil pump while everything is out.

l0nestar.
Modified by l0nestar at 7:32 AM 8/23/2006

[March]

Thanks agian man. yea... dont feel bad, im still waiting to get home to even see my car and engine. my wife is flippin out about all the crap comeing to the house lol.... ill never hear the end of it. ok so where wuld i pick up the VLSD at... do you know a good company that isnt gonna overprice them? And yea i think the top hat mounts are suposed to even out the weight better. I read an article on that not to long ago... cant remember where it was at though, ill look it up and post it if your intersted in reading about it. i may have it on my pindrive so i can probly post the article actually. O yea... about the air/fuel converter, i dont buy off of ebay at all.... so wuld you happen to know a reliable company for that also? im not sure if i need one though... ill have to look them up. my power goals right now are 300hp... maybee more later on down the road but not right now.

ok about the tach... i thought all you had to do whas adjust the back of the clusters to recalibrate them... and do the wireing. i have never heard of the device your talking about and not exactly sure what your refering to.

Just a question....about how much are you guys spending on this project? all said and done ill have spent just under 10 grand.... i think thats pretty good. the only things i have left are.... the exhast... wich i compleatly forgot about....and the VLSD. im guessing that the exhaust will probly run me about 1000... thats full exhaust not includeng a downpipe, wich im still waitinig to see if its going to clear.

One more question, the exhaust.... im wanting to go 2.5 in and 2.25 out. will that mach up with the stock downpipe?

thanks again for the help. ill try and email that guy today, ill let you know what i ifind out.

-March

[March]

here is the info on the mounts... gives you a little idea.

If you're eating rice and beans just to pay for the engine, you'll be glad to hear it will bolt in using the R33 cross member and fit well enough to get you on the road, but the engine will sit a little higher and a little farther forward than is ideal. Some of the hood bracing will have to be removed to clear the throttle body and blow-off valve flange and the shifter will sit about an inch and a half forward of the center of the shifter hole in the floor. The cast-iron downpipe will also interfere with the steering shaft, and the transmission cross member won't quite bolt in properly. The severity of the steering shaft interference varies from car to car, depending on how all the manufacturing tolerances stack up, how worn out the mounts are and how bent the car is. In some cases, you may simply need to notch the downpipe a bit, in others; you may need to fabricate a new one. Just remember, the engine will move around when it's making torque and from cornering loads, so give the steering shaft some room. You don't want the steering locking up in a moment of hard acceleration and cornering.

Thats if you dont buy mounts for it.

Finally, if you want the engine to sit low enough to clear the hood bracing, the shifter to sit where it used to, the steering shaft not to hit the downpipe and everything to bolt in properly, there's a third option. McKinney Motorsports in San Diego, Calif., unStable Hybrids in Conyers, Ga., and by the time you read this, probably Super Tuner Motorsports in Ridgecrest, Calif., all make engine mount kits that move the engine down and back about an inch and a half. In addition to making everything fit better, moving the drive train, which weighs about 650 pounds, shifts the center of gravity in exactly the right direction. This is also the ideal option if you have an engine, transmission, harness and ECU, but no front clip.

TopHatperformance mounts are the same. so there is the info, just wanted to post it so you have an idea.

Later

-March

[l0nestar]

March,

Heh, I understand. I bought a house a few months ago, and my 240 is up on blocks inside and I have a big pile of parts that I have ripped out on the floor next to it. Plus a shiny new cherry picker and an engine stand, full Blitz exhaust, set of wheels, etc. Thankfully my wife *sorta* understands.. it helps that she has a 240 (vert) though The VLSD, there are a few options , find a wrecked SE fastback, or a NON-turbo Z32 (90-96 300 ZX) or an Infiniti J30 I believe. On some occasions you have to modify the shafts though. *anyone care to verify this* There are quite a few threads about this, just search for it man! sorry :-\ I got mine from Jarco with my half-cut (well, I had to pay extra for it... but I received it with my half-cut.) Yes, the mounts help, but dont HAVE to have them, you can 'make it work' without them. Kamin (moderator) clued me into that, just have to cut part of the hood skeleton.

I got my S-AFC2 off of a fellow niconaut. You should look in the For Sale section of Nico or one of our great sponsors! After reviewing some data, you may not need it at first (getting the engine started), but as soon as you start modifying / tuning it is very beneficial.

As far as HP is concerned I'm in the same boat as you (300 whp). Wait, are you talking whp or bhp? (At the wheels or at the crank?) For me since this will be a DD, I want reliability over speed.

Adjusting the tach is one option, you just need the proper equipment to do it.. I used to have access to them, but I graduated The wiring SUCKS! Here is a FS thread on the device I'm talking about: zerothread?id=179889 You may not need it, cant remember which dash you have.

So far I have spent around $6000.00 for the car, half-cut, Blitz exhaust, and S-AFC2. I still have a ways to go.. I'm going to have a local shop fab a down-pipe for me instead of spending something ridiculous on one from McKinney (however, I hear they are great parts / people.) $650 vs $150 local. Straight 3" from DP out. I only have a small resonator built in the exhaust. Dude, $1000.. Even enjukuracing.com has A'Pexi exhausts for $650. I can verify the diameter of the exhaust side of the downpipe, but I would _highly_ recommend not restricting the exhaust (going smaller OUT side) on it. Since we both have turbo vehicles, you want the least restrictive (lowest back pressure) system you can get. 3" seems to be the standard for RB's until you start to add serous power.

Awesome!

Oh yeah, one more thing,Thank you for serving our country.

Oh yeah, also, feel free to email me.

l0nestar.

[Darius]

Refer to this post for the tach signal modifier question:

zerothread/193392

I swear. I should get a monthly check from them for promoting their stuff.

[l0nestar]

Darius,

Not exactly what I was thinking of, but it works. Thans! Oh yeah, did you ever pick up that set of calipers? Sorry for being late, was AWOL for about 2 weeks

[Darius]

Yep I got both an inside and outside micrometer from mytoolstore.com. They had the best price I could find. I'm getting so close to reassembly that I can taste it. Maybe only one more month to wait for parts/tools etc.

[l0nestar]

Darius,

Sorry I could not be of more assistance. Congrats on everything else. When I was in the hospital I actually thought about selling my 240s, clip, everything. But now that I think about it, it wias either the insulin or morphine.. possibly a mix of the two =P

ps. which mic's did you get? Starrett? Just wondering.

l0nestar.

[l0nestar]

This thread is helpful as well.

zerothread/34102

l0nestar.

[BoostFab]

look at this page for the general info about atuo to manual. http://www.srswap.com/faq/index.asp#transswap

[March]

****in awsome. thanks alot for the info. my car is a DD also and i figured 300 WHP would be good. ok here is a funny question and ive looked around for some info on it and only found one source.... just wanting to cross refrence. is it possible to use the guages out the r34 and put them in the 240? im not sure if this would cause problems or not but i read that they wuld fit in there. then that would fix the tach problem right? since that cluster was made for the engine? you say around 600 for exhaust? im wanting to go with that BRM stainless steel exhaust... and the reason i was gonna go 2.25 is becuse someone was telling me that if i went to big, it wuld cause to much turbulance or somehting along those lines... so now im kinda confused on what size is right. but i just need to know if the BRM cat convert will fit on the stock downpipe.... that is whats stoping me from buying the exhaust. And if you can give me a deff yes on the 3" ill go with that. thats what i was originally wanting to do. and im not saying im spending 1000... just saying i set that much aside if needed.

I have a 1990 240SX fastback... so do those alredy have the VLSD? or are you refering to a diff model?

well i gota go, thank you guys for the information, this has been alot of help to me.

O yea, my E-Mail addy is [email protected] you want to email me there it is, im able to check that a little more often. thanks again. later

-March

[l0nestar]

Replied to via email.

[March]

ok well i just bought the BRM exhaust. so im happy ill be home soon to start the project... so that is good

o hey l0nestar i emaild you, did you get it?

later

-March