FTO AUSTRALIA

hey, i really want to convert my fto to manual, i have heard it isnt worth it, but i just dont like the auto box's, like theyre fun and all, but not when they break. sensors cost quite a few pennies.
money isnt a issue for me converting it, and i dont wanna convert it at home, i want the job to be done properly, so if anyone knows of anywhere in brissy that can do that for me. or even some prices from people who have converted this before, please throw me some tips =)

when you say sensors are you talking about the sensors used when shifting between gears? how much are they, i think mine might be playing up..

Its not that hard to do & it makes a huge difference.

Check out Max's conversion diary

http://www.ftoaustralia.com/modules.php ... ic&t=10124

once i had input and output speed sensors damaged, which i was told was auto tip box sensors which means if its reading at a abnormal rotation speed it will start your transmission at a higher gear.. which with the fto starts it in 3rd gear and doesnt leave 3rd for the 1995 4-speed tiptronic box's. but usually before the sensor is at such a bad reading it will let you choose your gears normally with D or tiptronic changing, but when that happens you get a nice CLUNK when you change into D or R.

And another time i had the DCC (damper clutch control) soleniod sensor go on the car which is reasonably cheep at around $100-200, but the main money comes from the labouring cost if you get a trans shop to fit it for you.

BTW what problems are you experiencing with your auto box, i have had many problems with my old fto auto and have gained quite some knowledge because of that.

oh i thought of a new question here for some people who have gone through the conversion.. what is everything i need to convert the thing, so far i have been told the box and clutch etc all the usual conversion things.. but also i have been told the auto fto wont run with a manual with the original wiring because the auto wiring is different to the manual setup (lame).. and because it is smart im gonna change my shocks, struts and engine mounts (only cause one of my mounts looks a bit weak and theres a bit too much mobitily in the engine itself.. so besides my question to all the parts i need for the conversion - is there any other things i should do while i have my box and engine out of the car.... because during this conversion i am fitting a new kit and getting a silver pearl respray =)

natebase wrote:once i had input and output speed sensors damaged, which i was told was auto tip box sensors which means if its reading at a abnormal rotation speed it will start your transmission at a higher gear.. which with the fto starts it in 3rd gear and doesnt leave 3rd for the 1995 4-speed tiptronic box's. but usually before the sensor is at such a bad reading it will let you choose your gears normally with D or tiptronic changing, but when that happens you get a nice CLUNK when you change into D or R.

And another time i had the DCC (damper clutch control) soleniod sensor go on the car which is reasonably cheep at around $100-200, but the main money comes from the labouring cost if you get a trans shop to fit it for you.

BTW what problems are you experiencing with your auto box, i have had many problems with my old fto auto and have gained quite some knowledge because of that.

when you say it starts in 3rd, do you mean when you slow down(quite slow) say for a speed bump and then accelerate off it will start from 3rd not 2nd? thats what mine does but i don't think thats really a problem?

mine mainly has problems in the tiptronic mode, sometimes when i shift from 1st to 2nd and ease of the throttle it will drop back into first even though i have enough revs for 2nd gear and sometimes it won't even allow me to shift from 2nd to 3rd at all.

You sound like you have had a sensor failure which has put the box into safe mode (IE stuck in third) which is no real hassle if you know which sensor is playing up. easy to find if you do an error code check.

Once you have got round to changing your box you need to get the wires leading to the gear selection switch on top of the auto box and connect a pair of them together to fool the ECU into thinking the car is permenantly in PARK so it starts and runs okay.

Unfortunatly I cant remember which wires they are at the moment.

Bill

Im not aware of having to change over the wiring. I believe you have to swap the ECU though. You need the pedals, the instrument cluster as well as a few other things. All these things are listed in past threads though. Do a search for manual conversion and you should get the list.

dstocks wrote:Im not aware of having to change over the wiring. I believe you have to swap the ECU though. You need the pedals, the instrument cluster as well as a few other things. All these things are listed in past threads though. Do a search for manual conversion and you should get the list.

If you keep all the wiring and both ECUs in place all you need to do is fool the gearbox ECU into thinking it is in Park, it tells the engine ECU everything is normal and neither of them actually notice that you never change gears.

It's a bit like the communication in my marraige, one lie and we haven't spoke for years

Exact listing of parts required:

Clutch pedal assembly
Brake pedal assembly
gear selector
selector cables
gaitor
gear knob
Gearbox
gearbox mount
master cylinder and pipes inc.slave cylinder and all brackets
Flywheel, clutch, pressure plate etc.
Rev counter
All nuts, bolts. clips etc
Plug that goes onto the reverse sensor with a bit of loom.

Its all a very straight forward fit with the only wiring that needs to be done being on the original gearbox loom (large black plug). you will need to join the two bigger wires (black with yellow stripe and black with red stripe) together and also you will need to wire in the reverse sensor to the red with blue stripe and black with yellow stripe (small wires), these are positioned next to each other.

you also need the driveshaft ends from the manual...

its not a very fun conversion to do in your backyard...

i did it last year... in hindsight i should've paid $500 for a mechanic to do it

jono & ben,

wheres the best place to source all these parts in NSW? wreckers?

also which mechanic shop is recommended by you blokes and approx $$$ for the conversion?

dont do it. save yourself the trouble and sell the auto and buy a manual. my conversion was an absolute moneypit and shithole. Although I love the results, for me personally it wasnt worth the six months and associated costs/headaches.

hey steve, thanks for your input man.

...yeah i was thinking of the same thing i will most likely sell my vehicle for a manual in the end. white one (face-lift) of course !

yea i heard from a couple people about hassles in converting it... but seeing my car is a bare shell with zero interior, nothing in the bay, only thing i havnt bothered with yet is the boot... so i thought while there is nothing but the wiring running through the thing i might as well get it converted.. and its not gonna be a backyard job, got the mech doing it, i just gotta supply the parts getting fitted...

got some pics, but im going to load up pics from start to finish in about 6 months when its rolling and insured again =P

i got my stuff from panelhouse http://www.panelhouse.com.au/

and dstocks

its not that much of a headache if you have a hoist...

but trying to lift a gearbox up when your lying on the floor is a headache

my conversion was a piece of piss haha mine you I had no motor in my engine bay. Also had all the parts their and got all the correct ones 2. Love the heavy duty clutch.

jonowong wrote:i got my stuff from panelhouse http://www.panelhouse.com.au/

and dstocks

its not that much of a headache if you have a hoist...

but trying to lift a gearbox up when your lying on the floor is a headache

Why didnt you just use a jack???

natebase wrote:but usually before the sensor is at such a bad reading it will let you choose your gears normally with D or tiptronic changing, but when that happens you get a nice CLUNK when you change into D or R.

ah shitte.... mines been doing this for a while now. well, when i change from d to r straight after stopping...

hey robbie, check out your engine mounts, i had my rear one go and whenever i went into d and r it would clunk, so i thought i would get a mate to change it for me while i was looking in the engine bay... and i saw my engine move like 4inchs when the clunk occured.. lol loose engine mount. easily solved.