Hi, I'm transplanting a VH41DE into my 87 Laurel Medalist hardtop, and have encountered the problem of no aftermarket flywheels being immediately available.

Thusly, I have designed my own and had it fabricated out of aircraft aluminium with a high wear resistance steel friction insert, and am using high tensile fasteners to hold it all together.

My engineering software calculates the final assembled weight to be just under 5kg.

Once the assembly is in and the car is rolling I will provide an update on how well it goes, but I'm expecting good things.

If anyone else is interested in my flywheel, I'd be happy to manufacture more and supply them at a reasonable price, provided you can supply me the ring gear off the automatic flexplate. I would also be happy to arrange a full kit: light flywheel, 9.1/2" ceramic clutch and 1080kg pressure plate, for a good deal.

Keep in mind it's made out of the highest quality and strongest available materials, and is equivalent to some of the best aftermarket stuff you can get.

This thread is just to see what kind of interest there is out there, hopefully my creation is of use to people.

The 300ZX Z32 one bolts straight on to the VH45, don't know if it fits the VH41 though.

The VH41 and VH45 mounting PCD is the same, as is the whole flexplate. I've been in communication with someone who has a VH45DE, and they should be interchangeable.

The Z32 flywheel however, probably doesn't have the same O.D. or ring gear, and quite probably not the same positioning along the Z axis either. I think the Z32 starter motor is on the gearbox, not the engine.

What I'm offering is a significantly superior piece of kit, for around the same price as a Z32 flywheel. (In my country anyway.)

Mettler wrote:(In my country anyway.)

Which would be?????

*Click to read profile*

In New Zealand, I priced up a used Z32 flywheel for NZD$700, the price for me to construct my own flywheel is close to that, only mine's equivalent to a high performance, lightened aftermarket flywheel.

And here she is, the beauty I have spent a considerable investment in time designing... you know you want one:

Modified by Mettler at 10:57 AM 1/26/2006
Modified by Mettler at 12:05 PM 3/26/2006

Mettler wrote:
The Z32 flywheel however, probably doesn't have the same O.D. or ring gear, and quite probably not the same positioning along the Z axis either. I think the Z32 starter motor is on the gearbox, not the engine.

Yes, you are correct about the difference in the ring gears between the Z32 and Q45. It is very slight but could cause headaches down the road.

Your flywheel looks very good. You remind me of a proud father holding his newborn. LOL.

Anyway, I might be interested in the part.

What transmission are you planning to use for the engine? I would like to see a 6 speed such as the Tremec T56 or maybe the one from the newer G35 (Skyline).

Are you going to be using an adapter plate? If so, will the additional distance cause any problems in getting the trans. input shaft to mate with the clutch discs?

Here's a picture of a T56 trans. connected to a VH45DE. The guy is installing it in his old school 240z. He mentioned to me that he had to have a custom flywheel made to compensate for the thickness of the adapter plate. He also said that the Z32 ring gear doesn't line up perfectly with the Q45 starter. I think it was off by a 1/4 inch. I am not too sure on that variation.

I am glad to see other transmission options for the VH45DE open up.

Regards,

-Siju

sijoko wrote:Yes, you are correct about the difference in the ring gears between the Z32 and Q45. It is very slight but could cause headaches down the road.

Your flywheel looks very good. You remind me of a proud father holding his newborn. LOL.

Anyway, I might be interested in the part.

What transmission are you planning to use for the engine? I would like to see a 6 speed such as the Tremec T56 or maybe the one from the newer G35 (Skyline).

Are you going to be using an adapter plate? If so, will the additional distance cause any problems in getting the trans. input shaft to mate with the clutch discs?

Here's a picture of a T56 trans. connected to a VH45DE. The guy is installing it in his old school 240z. He mentioned to me that he had to have a custom flywheel made to compensate for the thickness of the adapter plate. He also said that the Z32 ring gear doesn't line up perfectly with the Q45 starter. I think it was off by a 1/4 inch. I am not too sure on that variation.

I am glad to see other transmission options for the VH45DE open up.

Regards,

-Siju

I blanched when I heard the price of the Z32 flywheel, irrespective of being able to use it or not, I decided making my own would mean it's 100% compatible and designed to be how I want it.

Hahah I was definitely feeling like a proud father that day

I've opted to go for a Toyota W57 gearbox, primarily because of their good reputation for use in V8 conversions, their strengthened input shaft, and because they're so damn cheap & accessible compared to any other good manuals.

The only other option for me would have been the R33 GTS25-t 5 speed, because they're nigh indestructible, having dual ring synchros for each gear. This is what I wanted, they are very expensive in NZ however, costing over NZD$2000.

My bellhousing mod is happening a little bit differently to how you might imagine. What you need to remember is that no matter what manual gearbox you choose, it always has to sit with the spigot shaft inside the spigot bearing in the end of the crank, and the splines on the input shaft will always be roughly in the same place relative to the end of the shaft.

This means you could technically adapt any manual to any engine, providing you are using a clutch disc with the correct center to match the input shaft's splines.

If I wanted to change gearbox, I'd retain my flywheel & pressure plate, and simply get another 9.1/2" clutch disc with the right center to match the new gearbox. (I may yet do this if I get an R33 GTS25-t tranny) Of course, this would mean a new spigot bearing & bellhousing mod to suit, but the flywheel/pressure plate combo remains untouched.

My fabricator is going to graft the Toyota bellhousing to the VH41DE automatic bellhousing somewhere in the middle, with the correct Z axis spacing to position the spigot shaft exactly in the spigot bearing.

I designed the flywheel to suit a 1080kg (1 tonne) pressure plate which I selected & purchased beforehand, utilizing the maximum diameter clutch plate available within the inside diameter of the ring gear. This turned out to be 9.1/2", and the pressure plate has a perfectly matching outside diameter for this.

Any 9.1/2" pressure plate should also be usable with this, I'd just need to change the positioning of the mounting holes & thread type, allowing it to be assembled.

I'm using an Xtreme pressure plate in mine, with an Xtreme 6 puck ceramic button clutch with a sprung center, to allow it a bit of give.http://www.xtremeclutch.com.au/flash.htm

Basically, if you're keen for a manual conversion, figure out what clutch and gearbox combo you want to use, and if there's a design change required on the flywheel, I can do that for you... but I foresee there's very little left to change about it.

I'm very intriged! How are you going about wiring/ECU/TCU/tranny for your 41?I'm am very curious?

I've already re-loomed the engine with the help of my mate Scotty, and floor started the engine. Impressively, it's so well balanced that it sat still on its sump, on a sub box, whilst idling & revving.

Trans is all adapted now, will post pics soon as I take some.

What exactly are you curious about ? I'm documenting the entire process and will be presenting a big write-up about it when it's done, but for now I prefer to keep work in progress under wraps.

I am most curious about how you will be wiring a non 5 speed ecu to shift with your manual tranny? I am getting parts and info together for my own vh41 swap into a 92 240 vert.

jrsink wrote:I am most curious about how you will be wiring a non 5 speed ecu to shift with your manual tranny? I am getting parts and info together for my own vh41 swap into a 92 240 vert.

I'm not sure I understand your question.

We've just rigged the loom to bypass the automatic inhibitor switch, so the engine always think it's in P/N. That way it can rev freely. The ECU figures things out based on throttle position, RPMs, cam angle, etc... The engine & ecu run independently of the transmission, the ECU doesn't need to know what the trans is up to, the motor just needs to rev, rev, REV !!

AH HAAAAA!!! all right then! thnak you buddy!

Anyone know the dimensions of the flywheel bolts and the thread diameter / pitch.Thanks

M10 fine pitch thread (1.5mm I think)

I can't remember the thread pitch, it's written in my diary but I'm not at home.

Mettler wrote:

Picture links dead.

Not anymore. Project car is nearly complete, I shall do a big writeup on all the custom stuff once I get the car back !

if you sell these, what price are you looking for?

i got a 1987 nissan cedric with a vh41de and ive called a bunch of places and the answer always comes back that it hasnt been done in aus and a 300zx box and fly wheel is similar but its too risky to find out if it will work or not.

and also jsut wondering what pedal box are you using with your set up?

im looking into doing this convesion in a cupple of months and your clutch/fly wheel set up sounds pretty good to me.

im also looking into using the vg30det gear box, but im also willing to go the w57 if i cant afford the other. ive see the w57 box for 450 odd here so might be the better choise.

xcedricx wrote:if you sell these, what price are you looking for?

i got a 1987 nissan cedric with a vh41de and ive called a bunch of places and the answer always comes back that it hasnt been done in aus and a 300zx box and fly wheel is similar but its too risky to find out if it will work or not.

and also jsut wondering what pedal box are you using with your set up?

im looking into doing this convesion in a cupple of months and your clutch/fly wheel set up sounds pretty good to me.

im also looking into using the vg30det gear box, but im also willing to go the w57 if i cant afford the other. ive see the w57 box for 450 odd here so might be the better choise.

Hey dude... my car came out of the factory as a manual, so I have no pedal box concerns. Since the cedric is so similar to the laurel & skyline, try getting a pedal box out of either of those.

You can buy my flywheel for NZD$1000, I'll need your factory flexplate for the ring gear, and you'd need to pay for shipping. Overall, it's not that great-a cost considering you're getting a custom engineered flywheel using the strongest available materials and fasteners on the market, and top quality lightweight aftermarket flywheels retail for around this price also.

I only have enough material left for one more flywheel, so if you're interested, by all means get in contact with me and I can arrange it for you.

I'd recommend using the W57 mainly because it's the cheaper option, and you can retain the factory starter motor position.

If you are keen on using my flywheel/clutch combo, I could arrange the thing as a package, alternatively, I can give you the part numbers and you can source the clutch & pressure plate set from australia.

Hi, sorry to stick my 2 cents worth on yor thread, Mettler.Just finnished Vh41 to W58 gearbox conversion. made steel flywheel, alloy adapter onto auto bell housing, 2000lb toyota clutch, hilux fork/slave. Will post pix when i work out how. Materials & engineering cost me nz$1500. Just in the process of mounts, wiring, plumbing etc. Should make our work ute get around a bit better

I hate to bring this thread back to life but the picture that was posted of the T-56 tranny on the vh45de I need some info on because Im doing a T-5 on my VH45DE. The spline count is around I think 14 for the clutch and I need to know what clutch will fit a z32 flywheel and pressure plate? Also what is the overall outside dimension of the z32 flywheel NA or TT does not matter. Once this swap is done I will be post the auto cad and Solid works prints 2D & 3D of the adapter plate and flywheel spacer to utilize a roller bearing for the input shaft rather then the standard brass one. Thanks.

Are you trying to install a T5 from a Z31? If so, the starter location is going to take a lot of work. I tried doing the front mounted starter VG bellhousing on my VH45 and eventually just switched to a Z32 bellhousing.

Its a T-5 from a 2001 mustang. And the adapter plate looks like it is going to work. My problem is that the clutch from this T-5 is a 10 spline count and is 10.5" in dia and mounts to a flywheel that is 14.2" in dia. This setup is too large for the VH45 and does not clear the bolts to mount to the block. Im looking for a 10 spline clutch that will fit a Z32 flywheel/pressure plate combo. Thanks for responding.

you could use a clutch disc from an old z31 turbo (84-87) as they used t5 boxes with bellhousings to adapt to the vg.240mm clutch too i think.

I thought about that but I read somewhere that the T-5 from the old school Z uses a 14 spline input shaft instead of the 10 spline the mustangs use. Also I found a 10" dia clutch that's a 10 spline and I need to know if it will fit on a z32 flywheel because they use a 9 7/8" dia clutch. Thanks to whom ever can answer this for me.
Modified by tkmhkm at 10:49 PM 4/1/2009

1000 bucks sounds pretty good,was wondering if you come with the flywheel?

Hahahaha!

I'm not really offering them up for sale now, that was years ago... but if you want the design I can send it to you so you can get one made up!

Lol, I've already been asked if I come with the flywheel... depends on your bra size :p

Hi Mettler,

I've been following nico forums for a few months now while preparing form my vh45 into s1 rx7 build. I guess you could say long time reader, first time poster.

Anyway my original intention was to use the auto gearbox which came together with the vh I brought. But, I always like to make things difficult for myself.. and it just so happens that I have a W58 sitting on the garage floor with nothing much to do.

So... was wondering how well the flywheel/gearbox/diff combination was working out for you? I presently have a 3.45:1 M78 solid rear axle and looking to swap in a gearset to 3.9:1 from a R31.

Seriously considering this instead of the slushy box...

Thanks,Wes

i have a 98' Y33 and im looking to put a Z33 transmission into it i have everything i need located and priced out but for the life of me cannot grab a flywheel. is there anything readily available or will i have to swim deep into my pockets to get one?

Hey man

Just an fyi on my setup

US Vh41de - ka24/vg30 pilot - Collins adapter - oem
Vq30de two piece flywheel + clutch pressure plate. Extended release bearing(thickness equal to adapter plate). Works great, oem flywheel requires clearencing block, aftermarket would not. Two piece makes it easier to pull motor. Will have to clearance the bell slightly for starter, that for a ka transthough. Not sure on starter a z33. Colins adpter will accept a z33 as well. I read that the z33 fly bolts up, but you may have the trigger wheel deal with. Hope this helps