I have some questions regarding an s4 turbo II swap into my 1982 gs. This has proven pretty overwhelming to think about so I am trying to collect my thoughts all in one place here as well as clarify some of my existing assumptions. For the first part of this build I am hoping to swap in my s4 TII motor as close to stock as possible and use my stock trans (I heard a custom driveshaft is needed to run the TII trans, if someone could confirm that would be great).

I would like to thank anyone with helpful input in advance! Also please feel free to shoot down my assumptions, I would rather plan this out correctly before diving in head first and wasting a bunch of money doing things twice.

Some clarification questions I have about physical fitment of parts:

-I’m pretty sure that I can run a 12a front cover (saw on a rad potential video) and the CAS will fit in place of the distributor. What mount do I have to buy or what modifications would I have to make to a stock mount if I am using the 12a front cover?

-Also with the 12a front cover what options do I have for oil and water pump? (I think I can run the TII oil pump, and I have both the 12a and TII water pump but not familiar with either honestly. open to suggestions here.)

-I read I have to use a TII flywheel (due it being balanced to the rotating assembly) and I’m pretty sure that means I need a TII starter. Not sure why not but will that fit in the 12a bell housing?

-I have a brand new rx8 clutch/pressure plate laying around, is there any reason I can’t run that with the rest of the setup I have described?

-I also know I need a gslse oil pan, is there any unaddressed issues I’ve overlooked physically fitting the engine in my car?

I’ll probably have a second post about any specific electrical, fuel, ignition questions I still have once I figure this stuff out, thanks again guys!

 

welcome to the board.

you can use the 12A front cover, but if you can source the GSL-SE front cover, it would be better. the 12A will cause issues when you go to put on the oil pan. the T2 front does not have any provisions to mount the engine (because it mounts from the intermediate housing in the Gen 2 cars), so that is why you need a front cover that allows you to mount it in your '82.

you will need this: https://www.racingbeat.com/RX7-1975-...nal/11832.html

the T2 tranny requires you to find a way to mount it, and yes you will need to have a driveshaft made.

if you're going to use the T2 flywheel and Rx-8 clutch, then you have to use the T2 tranny.

there is NO NEED to mess with the oil pump!

water pump is up to you. you can use either. using the S4 pump will require you to get creative with the hoses. they are close, but not perfect. it's not a huge deal though. the water neck has to be removed. it interferes with the hood.

the swap (i'm speaking only of the part where you get the engine in the car) is pretty simple and straightforward. also, there's tons of info on the board that can help you out. obviously, any other questions you may have will get answered as well.

 

I fabricate all new T2 transmission swap mount/crossmembers using a energy suspension transmission mount for 79-80 SA & 81-85 FBs.
You will need to modify the shift rod and use your 5speed shifter housing so the shifter is in the proper location. All that is documented on this site.

 

I really appreciate the reply, and I am trying to absorb as much knowledge possible before jumping into this. Thanks for answering about the oil pump, I promise I won't touch it And I will just use whatever water pump gives me the least troubles.

I think I understand what needs to happen to mate the 13bt to the 12a trans now, please correct me if I am wrong. I would need lightened 12a flywheel (NOT oem) using the counter weight already on the 13bt. Oh and a 12a clutch. Also absolutely no launches if I want to keep the trans more than a couple weeks.

I was aware of the different mounting points but could you elaborate on the oil pan issue? I found a thread where multiple people had 12a front covers on various 13b swaps and I didn't see anything mentioned about the oil pan. I appreciate you mentioning it because I would have been blindsided by that. I will acknowledge that the gslse front cover would be better just off the fact the turbo drain is easy, but I have a 12a front cover just laying around. Willing to give that idea up as it is sounding increasingly difficult.

Thanks again for the help

 

Do you have a website showing the parts you sell? I did this swap about 13 years ago, and then unfortunately let the car sit idle until now. I'm just getting around to getting the car up and running again. I believe I made some type of rigid block adapter that mounted to the stock mount to get the T2 tranny in. I used the old write up on here where someone put a T2 motor into a GSL-SE and I did the swap myself, but it was so long ago, I don't remember all of the specifics. The mount you fabricate looks interesting.

 

Here ya go, this is the thread I got most of my info from to do my swap back in the day. Some of the pictures may be missing these days.

https://www.rx7club.com/1st-gen-arch...i-swap-255020/

 

^ Damn that link is a trip down memory lane! I used info from that thread for my first T2 swap back in 2006 lol.

 

Haha! Yup, that thread was super helpful back in the day for anyone thinking about doing a TII swap into their FB's. I had to do some searching to find that bad boy!

 

Just to add to this, MTheory's products are great. Order them. Also I used this thread for the driveshaft.

https://www.rx7club.com/2nd-generati...shaft-1081644/

Got my flanges through Northern Drivetrain.

 

Thanks for the pics! Those mounts look great. I'm definitely going to contact MTtheory in the next week or so to pick up the T2 trans into FB mount. It will be nice to do away with the aluminum blocks I used as spacers to be able to use the stock trannny mount.

 

Yeah I'm confused as hell too.

I've run 12a front covers for decades across multiple platforms and multiple engines. Never had any oil pan issues.