manual 'box for a mopar?

[daveaspley]

I don't like automatics, especially when there is a cracking little small block v8 being strangled by one

Soooooo..... Anyone in old car land point me in a manual trans for my 318ci dodge without having to bend over and import one from the states? Ie lt77 or some odd van 'box that'll go on with clever pick n mix parts.

Ta much. Will try hard to attach a piccy but on my phone so don't hold ya breath

[akku]

How many cogs are you looking to juggle? Theres a few 4 speeds floating about in the UK from time to time. Watch out as truck ones may have wide spaced ratios. Remember big block and small block have a different bell housing but the box (assuming its not integral, I forget) should be the same.

A less-rare solution would be the Toyota supra box. I believe its the one from the Turbo Mk3 that you want. This apparently mounts to the bellhousing from a manual V6 Dodge Durango. The V6 has the same bolt pattern to the bell from the block as the small block V8 does.

You will need a manual flywheel and then the clutch requires some kind of spacer machining up

This is second hand info from a guy who did it on a forum ages ago.

Sadly the Supra boxes are getting rare in good condition.

Castlemain Rod Shop do a range of conversion kits you need to add shipping and taxes and a suitable gearbox to that price obviously.

I bet an LT77 would last about a week behind a 318

I suspect your smallblock is being strangled more by the Carter BBD carburettor it its still in place (and the smog spec distributor, likewise) than by the box.

A shift kit in the box and a decent shifter will make a noticable improvement while you plan you r 3 pedal swap in...

[edwell]

My cousin has a big block '68 charger with one of the a-fore mentioned "truck" manual boxes, and from memory it isn't the nicest gearbox in the World.

[bortaf]

Back in the day the box to use a a celica twincam box but they are just as rare as a manual factory V8 box by now i recon ?

[akku]

I can't imagine a Celica box holding up to that kind of torque? They must have been hella over engineered if they did...

[bortaf]

Celica GT came with the w50 box

found here
users.tpg.com.au/users/loats/technical/ma61/gearboxes.html
This is the same as the 4 spd version but you'll note that the rear housing, which contains fifth and reverse, is bulkier. All the details about the position of the shifter, the tailshaft yoke and the bolt-up pattern are the same as for the 4 spd. In the trade, they're commonly known as a steel-case Toyota. They came on 18R, or 2 litre engines in hatchback or mustang lookalike Celicas. They were also used in 6 cylinder Coronas and imported CROWNs and in these applications they were fitted with a heavier-duty needle roller bearing in the front cluster. Unfortunately, you can't tell if this is the case until you pull it apart, but if you do and you find the roller bearing, you know the box has been in a 6 cylinder, a turbo model, or a diesel. Hopefully, you'll find a ball bearing which indicates that is was fitted to a NA 4 cylinder and has had much less power put through it. Finding the lower rated box and refitting it with the stronger roller bearing is ideal. They come in 3 first gear ratios. Versions fitted to the 18RG engines, which were Yamaha headed engines, were fitted with a 3.0:1 ratio, which is very high. These versions are fairly rare but can still be found if you look hard enough. There are also 3.25:1 and 3.5:1 versions available. As with the 4 spd, people fit them to V8's, but its not a great idea because, unlike the 4 spd, they're quite expensive ($400). A better choice is the Supra, which is stronger and doesn't cost much more.


As it says the supra box is better but then back in the day the supra was not a viable spares car being new or not out yet ( mid 80s)
That site has a fair bit about toyota boxrd might be worth a read

[akku]

every day is a school day

[ToolsnTrack]

If you do go down the supra gearbox route, take care. The non turbo manual box, although very pleasant to use, is a W58, and is a very weak tame beast compared to the turbo box. It also, if I'm right, has an integral bellhousing.

The box code you seek is R154, but as mentioned the Doooorifto boys have put a premium on them recently for manual conversions and such. They command up to 600 quid upwards for a decent one. They can also be killed, don't let the reputation fool you, so shop wary.

R154s are found in uk AND import mk3 supras, but turbo format only. The mk4 supra uses a 6 speed, and they go post 1k for one.

[akku]

www.moparuk.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=37808

You just missed a real Mopar manual box...

[Bozwell]

says back for sale in the last post of that thread?

[akku]

Maybe he's not missed a real mopar one then....

[popuptoaster]

Does anyone do swops with the late Volvo 940 gearbox? According to the guys on Turbo bricks the M90 will hold up on 500bhp engines if its in good condition, I dunno if they are any good for other engines, i know they don't have a speedo drive, but have no other experience of them really yet.