Hi there, thought I would ask you guys some advice on a "project" I'm helping a friend with.

Basically he's planned a complete engine/tranny swap from a '82 5 speed RX-7 (GSL) into his '73 auto RX-2. Currently the engine/tranny are in the '2 but we're running into a few typical problems. I'm just curious what most people do about these situations:

1) Tranny crossmember - does this have to be custom fab'd or does anything fit?

2) Driveshaft - is the stock RX-2 driveshaft the proper length? Preliminary measurements reveal it's within 1-2" of where the original tranny/diff was but we haven't actually tried mounting it yet. Any tips?

3) Shifter hole/tranny tunnel - what do people usually do about this? The hole for the shifter doesn't exactly line up, it's a few inches behind the hole closer to the e-brake. I have heard that 79/80 trannys fit properly but we don't have one of those so this '82 will have to do. I think he would prefer having a 5 spd. anyway. Is bustin' out the jigsaw the only alternative?

4) Pedal assembly - I think we've figured this out. Unfortunately it seems impossible to mount the RX-7 pedals so we're trying to buy a manual tranny RX-2 pedal assembly off a guy so we can save some headaches.

That's about covers it I think. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Also, anyone have a complete RB RX-2 exhaust or even just a 12A header they want to sell? He's also interested in any sort of aftermarket intake/carb system for the 12A.

Thanks,
Mike

 

1. tranny crossmember needs to be fabed. ( very easy, just get a thick enough piece of metal and drill the right holes )
2.driveshaft will work, no fabbing! the shifter on the 79-80 is forward about 4 inches but the overall lenth is the same as your 82. F.Y.I. 79-80 did come in 5 spd as well, thats what I used to use. You can make the 82 tranny work but you need to move the shifter up 4 inches, this is complicated and involves opening up the tranny. I did this on my 85 SE tranny.
3. without the above mod..........you will need to cut the shifter hole! this leaves the shifter very close to the E-brake. You can shorten the E-brake with some cutting and fabbing. The best thing is to get ahold of a RX-3,4,5,cosmo tranny. This is the 13b ribcase tranny and was the strongest tranny up until the Turbo 2. this will mount no mods.
4.NOTHINGS IMPOSSIBLE. I aslo have a RX-2 and mine was an auto also. your right, a RX-7 assembly won't bolt right in to the RX-2. What is possible is to take just the Clutch pedal and mount that to whats already there. So you will need to use the long stud thats off of an RX_7. This is what i did and it works just fine. Good luck finding a whole RX-2 assembly.
5. Why not go 13b if he's doing all this? The car came with a 12a to boot! Installing the 13b involves moving the motor mounts up a little, and thats a bout it. You get alot more power and parts availability. Just a thought. Other things to think about: Cooling!!!!! If he is still using the stock radiator its time to upgrade! I had my stock radiator recored with a higher capacity 3 row. He will also need a very good electric fan,1600cfm should be the minimum. Please do not mount the fan with push through mounting pieces! They will rub a whole in the new radiator. Get the radiator shop to weld on mounting pieces for you. Without a good radiator and good fan the engine will over-heat while sitting in traffic! bye-bye coolant seal.......hello rebuild. This is just personal experience. Hope this helped and good luck.

Mann

 

Too quick

 

Ah, thanks much for the info/advice. To answer your question, I'm not really sure why he's not going 13B. I think he's trying to do this whole thing on a fairly small budget. He did mention putting a 13B in it, but that's a future project.

Mike

 

Check out the driveshaft in my avatar. It's the one I had shortened for my rotary MG Midget project. I went from a '73 4 speed and 12A to a '74 4 speed and 13B.

Your driveshaft will be 40mm too long if the front cover motor mount remains in the stock location. That's what I've discovered in my '73 12A to '74 13B swap. The 13B's extra length was absorbed rearward which of course required my driveshaft to be shortened by 60mm. So basically, the '74 to '85 manual trannies are 40mm longer than the '73 (top mounted starter) manual trannies. However, I'm not sure if the old '2's automatics were the same length as their manual counterparts, or as the '74 and later units. I think '74 to '78 manuals and autos were the same length, and I think FB autos with overdrive are longer altogether? Not sure by how much.

Hope that helped

 

Well we're sticking with 12A for now so the driveshaft shouldn't be a problem, right? I hope not. I don't think he has the money to have a driveshaft custom made and/or shortened. I managed to find a stock RX-2 manual pedal assembly, just need to get it shipped out now.

Mike

 

I had to do the tranny mod for the '83 tranny in my rx3, there's a couple of ways to do it depending on which shifter u want to use. I wanted the short shifter so I shortened the shifter rod, guide tube and shifter support bracked to move the whole thing up aprox 4 inches. The other way is to just swap the tail housing and shift rod from pre '82 tranny.

 

Oh yeah, I also had to move my shift boot further rearward so it would look all nice and stuff. Again, this is for a ribcase 4 speed. The ribcase 5 speeds and later smoothcase trannies had mounts located further rearward to accomodate the 5th gear. I would have to redo my tranny mount if I wanted to use a 5 speed.

 

hey Mann what kinda Brembos do you have on your RX2 and what did you have to do to get them to fit?

 

There is a guy around MD that races his RX-3 and he owns a shop. He bought all the Brembo rotors that they had in there wharehouse for his car. They are stock size rotors made by Brembo, they bolt right in and work great with the racing pads! He charges me 50.00 a piece.

 

Hey send me his contact info some time. I'm interested since it looks like I might need to get new brakes soon. My email is bpielock@hotmail.com

Thanks!
Bob

 

Here's pictures of the car pre mods.

http://candid.scurvy.net/?a=s&keywords=rx2&page=1