Unholy FD3S

I came across a really cheap FD with low miles but its an auto.

I was wondering how does the auto tranny hold up ?

oh and sorry, i would have searched but im at 56k right now. It would take forever.

BobfisH

i heard the auto trannys only take up to about 300-350bhp. Apart from that not sure how they last. Got a 70k auto in the garage atm, but its a none runner....currently rebuilding it.

P.s you can convert auto to MT, i heard you need gearbox (obviously) rear plate, started, TPS and a couple of other bits. Should be doable for $1000 if you do it yourserlf.

Unholy FD3S

i would actually keep it auto, i already have a 5 speed FD.

Not sure if there are any other people like me but i get pissed driving a manual all day long in a city that doesnt give a ****.

People come inches next your bumper on a uphill.

bajaman

it holds up pretty well, really. After all, it was put in a 4000 lb. minivan with a high-torque V6 powering it and held up good, a search on Mazda MPVs shows no history of problems.
Weaklink and a few others have made some BIG hp on autos, there is a company called Level 10 that can make 'em hold up to 500 hp. So there are some options for above average mods for sure.
I myself am in the 300 hp range and (knock wood) have no problems. They can be a lot of fun, when used right.

Unholy FD3S

woah thanks for the reply, im gonna look into level 10 once i start modifing the car but it might be a while.

d1rx7

i have a auto, not as fun as my 5 speed fd, but when i just want to listen to sounds a just take it easy i take it out. the car is near stock and no problems with it so far

'85GSL-SE

iTrader: (2)

Well the only reason why I switched was due to a hard launch from a stand still onto the highway in a U-Turn and I crunched the Auto. I have mods done to it, but If you are going to take it light I suggest keeping it auto for the simple pleasures but if you want to hardcore race it I suggest manual. I switched so I can have more control of my car in the mountains thats all. Keep off of the bfreaks going down hill and all.

I have Pro's and con's to the auto. More pro's than con's. If it isn't broken i would keep it until it breaks like mine then swap it out.

Cheers

jeff p

no problems for me yet! get the 4.3 gears in the rear end and you will love it. it will hold up to 350 HP if maintained with synthetic oil.
Jeff

RotaryResurrection

iTrader: (8)

The trans itself seems to hold up well from a maintenance standpoint. The older FC auto's were a totally different story, and a different trans. I've never driven an FD that had a slipping or toasted trans, even seen a couple get near 200k.

Now the gearing and control of said trans is a different story. The gears are not spaced as well as they could be, and the shifting control acts a little funny compared to most other cars on the road. Pulling away from a stop is the worst part, as it takes a little while for them to get going up to 20mph unless you want to go into boost.

For instance, they usually tend to shift too quickly, keeping the rpm's down too far, and making the car a real slug since the rotary makes no useable torque down there. You then have to make up for this with extra throttle, which puts you near or into boost really quickly, so it seems like the car surges a lot and it's hard to drive it perfectly smoothly like you might in a standard daily driver auto car. Driving through my 25mph neighborhood the cars I've driven would normally try to go into 3rd gear unless I throttled them enough to stay in 2nd. OF course this can be overcome by using the manual HOLD feature, but then what is the point of an automatic if you have to shift.

Another thing I've noticed is that they tend to kick when they shift, almost like they have a shift kit. This is nice for WOT shifting, but it sucks when someone else is in the car and you're just trying to pull away from a stop gently and it jerks their neck. Again, nothing unlivable, but different from a "regular" auto trans car.

All in all they can make a fine daily driver that looks sweet and is relatively quick, but it's still not as smooth as something like a honda with an automatic.

Les

RR,

Interesting comments on the auto, that is just what it is like. I have found that letting up on the gas just before it is going to shift makes the transition much smoother- you can even make ti shift that way because the sucker will do it just getting off the gas. What the thing needs is someway to put the shift point at a higher rpm so it doesn't shift so early. Similar to the cars that have the econ or power switch. A different rear end sounds good but the mpgs are bad enough. I also find that my car doesn't always shift before it hits the read line or rev limiter which causes a nice hesitation. I don't know if that is normal or a problem with my car.

Nice to hear people comments.

Speed of light

iTrader: (8)

What's the stall speed on the stock FD convertor?

bajaman

^ If memory serves, it is about 3200 plus or minus 200.

a3dcadman

iTrader: (1)

The auto is a different animal with the rear end changed. One of my first projects with my 7 was to put in a 4.10 LSD. Made a world of difference. Much more responsive and more torque, on full boost shifts it willl squeal the tires (10 - 11 psi boost).

-chuck

RotaryResurrection

iTrader: (8)

according to the FSM, 2200.

bajaman

Hmmmmm...according to page K-11 of the FSM, it says 3000 - 3300....

SayNoToPistons

Not really high torque lol... my old gen 1 MPV had 155hp and 170lb ft tq. if you maintain them well they will last a long time. if not.. well... you know what will happen .

bajaman

Yeah, you are right. The later MPVs had the 220 hp, 210 ft lbs V6. Still NOT "high torque"....but relatively speaking it was a pretty robust unit, all in all.