Mazderati

iTrader: (3)

I'm considering swapping a 13B into a 1985 GSL from which the donor car would be a 1988 GXL. The transmissions differ, however, as the 85' is a 5 speed and the 88' is an auto. I am wondering how involved this tast might be. Some questions I am considering:

Will the 85' transmission hold up to the power of the 13B, and will it directly bolt up?

Would I have to find a computer out of a 5spd to run the 13B since it came from an auto?

How about wiring and what not; is it very complicated to those that have performed something similar to this?

Basically, what might I need in order for this to work and how time consuming would it be vs. rebuildint the 12A?

I am not wanting to get into this project if it becomes monetarily expensive. I have these two cars laying around, and am just considering the swap if it is easy enough.

Thanks in advance.

-Kyle

diabolical1

iTrader: (3)

the transmission will bolt up to the engine just fine. you will have to use the front counterweight and flywheel from your 12A though - unless for some reason you feel you MUST have the 13B parts.
far as i know, the computer should be fine to run your engine. the electronic control of the '88 automatic was very limited.
well, unlike most people, you're a step ahead of the game because you have the donor car in your possession, so you have all you need right there. no need to go out to find odds and ends that might be missing.
the time is going to depend on how well you are at figuring out the wiring harnesses, and planning the best place to lay them in the Gen I chassis. i would imagine that it's not going to be a weekend-thing, but if you're pretty good with wiring my guess is you should have it running in a couple months, maybe sooner if you're not just limited to weekends.

Redwood

I just finished putting my 88 13B into my 85 GSL. Huh, weird.

Anyway, since you have a fully functional 1st gen, the swap will be pretty easy. The problems will arise from the ECU of course. You must make sure that you use EVERY sensor from the stock 88 ECU or you'll regret it. I thought I was tough **** and cut into the harness, getting rid of anything that I thought I didn't need. I didn't need it, but the ECU did. I then had to buy a stand alone ECU to control everything (which is bad ***, but not too cheap). I'd recommend just pulling the entire harness from the 88 and putting it in. If you think something can be removed, leave it in anyway, at least until you have the car running.

As far as stuff you'll need, GSL-SE oil pan, GSL-SE front cover (any first gen front cover will do, but the GSL-SE cover allows use of the stock 88 OMP. Much easier this way), GSL-SE front engine mount (available from Mazdatrix, RB, or you can mod your 12a one, but that's not recommended), and a weekend.

Pretty easy swap, all in all. If you have any specific questions about it, feel free to ask me via PM or just make a post. I hit every possible problem and encountered every possible error along the way, so this is my field of RX-7 expertise.

Directfreak

iTrader: (2)

Here are the answers to your questions.

Mazderati

iTrader: (3)

Thanks for the replies. They have been helpful.

-Kyle

Manntis

Redwood, I'd give you kudos for knowing this stuff now. Learn-to-do-by-doing can be very effective, especially if you remember your mistakes