4.11 VTD transmission swap complete!

[Nevin]

Ok, so this has all been a long time coming. I'd like to give you some background first to help get things explained as to why on earth I even attemped such an obscure swap in the first place.

There are NOT many pictures, because most of the work is just an average tranny swap and there are plenty of threads about that, so mine are a bit more specific.

A little over 2 years ago I saw a 4.11 JDM tranny from a board member in the for sale forum. He'd gotten it when he purchased a JDM WRX motor, and had no need for the transmission. So, lucky for me I got it cheap. Having been told it was a 4.11 transmission, I then purchased a ready-to-go 4.11 LSD rear differential from young tom and figured I was golden.

I then attempted to put the transmission in one fine weekend. Yes, I said attempted. After I finally got the old tranny and everything out, I realzed that it would in fact NOT work with what I had. The thing that I noticed was the rear mount being different. Then began a storm of text and picture messages to tom asking him what on earth I should do. I felt bad for the guy, honestly.

So, I put the old trans back in that same weekend and was very sad because it wasn't what I thought it was. What I thought it was? It was indeed a 4.11 JDM transmission, but there's more to it. The JDM transmission was unlike the USDM one because of a few things. 1. It had a gear-type center diff, which was the only thing I could notice from the outside. This meant that I needed a different rear transmission mount to mount it correctly. 2. It was a constant 35f/65r split which meant I needed the right TCU to run the thing, or I'd be up a creek in no time.

Here are the two transmissions sitting side by side. The only physical difference is the rear snout. The US tranny is nearer, while the JDM one is further away.



After I figured this out I didn't know what to do. The project was put on the backburner while I was doing other projects. I made an intake for the car, exhaust, and swaybars had begun to eat up a lot of SVX time. After a while, the swaybars are what allowed me to make the connections I needed to get the correct parts to run the tranny in the car.

My hats off to ron (needforspeed) because without his help, I would not have gotten the parts I needed. We traded a few swaybars and transmission components and I think we both came out with a good deal in the end!

So, I finally had the correct rear mounts and the correct TCU. Now what to do? Spend more money on the project, of course! My next contacts were to Michael at ECUtune. Running his 1v5 ECU had given my car some nice pep, so I figured I'd try out a few more of his parts. I shipped the JDM TCU to him and had him work his magic on it. Also, the valvebody was removed and shipped to him so he could perform his upgrades. I want to eventually throw another 30-40% more power at the car, so I wanted the transmission to be able to take it. I figured these things were good insurance. Also purchased (not from ECUtune) was an auxilliary transmission cooler complete with its own 10" fan and thermostat. The stock cooler will be bypassed, but these parts have yet to be installed. That will be another winter project.

So now I had all the parts I needed and I felt I had made the right upgrades, so it was time to put up or shut up! I was attempting the 2nd known tranny swap of this kind in the U.S. (the first being ron)

So, last weekend was the date to do it.

Here's the car all the work was happening to.



Here's a shot of the tranny out, the rear main seal replaced, and the "kidney" plate taken off and re-sealed, and the flexplate re-installed.



A shot of one of the rear mounts used in the swap. I say one because the VTD rear mount is actually a 3-piece unit. The amazing thing is that everything bolts exactly into place. I was flabberghasted! I thought for sure I'd have to drill a hole or something, but no. Everything was there waiting for the other parts to be attached. No mods at all to the cradle that held the mounts.





And sorry, I forgot to take pictures of the rear of the tranny in the car at the time, but here's everything all tucked up in there.





And next, me swapping around the TCU components.



So, really that about wrapped it up. One mistake I made was accidentally installing the WRX tcu instead of the correct one that Michael had burned me, but once I got that replaced there were really no problems at all.

This was about as easy as a swap as someone could do. Really. The worst part was...I really don't know! All we basically did was take the old one out, put the new mounts on the new tranny, and put it right in. It took us about 5 hours to get it all in, but we really weren't pushing it in any way. Actually, there was lots of standing around and general shooting of the breeze while this was taking place.

I don't have any vids of the car at the track yet, but before the swap it ran a 15.5. I'd really like to run a solid 14, and the way it feels I don't think that's out of line at all.

So, would I recommend the VTD swap to others? Yes, absolutely. Mine was entirely painless once I finally got all the right parts. That would be the trick, actually. You need a JDM TCU to run the thing, and the mounts. I emailed a dealership a while back before I ran into ron, and to get the appropriate mounts was something like $220 shipped to me here in Iowa. Not a horrible price, but not amazing. And keep in mind that when i got mine, I really had no idea what it was. It more or less fell into my posession.

Here are the rough prices (my memory isn't the best) of things that I needed to do the swap. These were prices paid, so I have no idea what the going rate is, because some of the things I traded for, and others were purchased.

Tranny: $400 shipped
4.11 LSD rear diff: $250 shipped
JDM TCU: traded a swaybar kit for
JDM rear mounts: traded another rear swaybar kit for
ECUtune TCU upgrade: $259
ECUtune valve body upgrade: $349
+miscellaneous fluids, etc...

TO BE INSTALLED:
remote tranny cooler + fan, controls, etc... $220

So all in all I spent probably around $1,500 USD + the value of the swaybars traded for parts. However, if you wanted, and you could find the tranny for as cheap as I did, you could get by for around $1,000 USD. The ECUtune stuff added a bit of cost, but I figured that now was the time.

So anyway, here's the vid of me driving the car tonight. If there are any more questions please ask! I'd like to help someone else wanting to do this swap.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d27_QwlZk2Q

Like I've commented in the video, there is bit of binding, but the more I think about it, the more I'm leaning towards the fact that the LSD sat in my garage for 2 years, and I'm probably just getting a bit of popping when I'm turning hard. Other than that, it doesn't make any unusual noises, and it really does run great. Once it's broken in a bit, I'm sure it will be just fine.

As always, check back for updates!

-nevin

[Nevin]

Finally took the car out tonight and gave it the beans.

It launches like I thought the car would never do! Stall speed is about 2900 rpms, which I think is very good for the gearing. I used the SVX convertor hoping it would raise it up a bit with the wrx tranny, and it seems like it worked well! Full throttle shifts are very quick, and it just grabs the next gear and keeps on going. These ratios are very well suited to the car and motor I think, too! When it shifts, you're right in the power for the next gear, and it doesn't seem like it runs out of breath at the top of 2nd like it did before. Didn't really push it past 75-80, but I am very pleased with how it is performing.

Just thought I'd post it up and let you know.

And if the weather is nice on new year's day, I will probably take the car to the drag strip and see how it does. If I can't, no biggie, but I am curious to say the least.

[Nevin]

Well I have some news. Not necessarily good or bad news yet, but news.

I decided to take the car drag racing today as is a january 1st tradition at the local (80 miles away) drag strip known as Hangoverfest! The news is that about 35 miles into the trip, we were about ready to get on interstate and I heard a funny whir-ish kinda grindy sound. Didn't sound good at all. Slowed down, and there was a gas station to pull in to, so I did and as I came to a stop in a parking space there was a horrible screeching sound and some general bad sounding grinding noises. Now when I put it in reverse it does nothing, and when I put it in drive it makes horrible sounds.

So, the car came home on a flatbed (thank you, girlfriend's AAA) and I'll take a look at it this week if I can. I'm not in an enormous hurry or anything as it's not my daily, but if anyone has any suggestions, I would love to hear them. I guess I'll know for sure once I get it apart.

[SVXRide]

Nevin,

Are you sure that the rear diff and trans are both 4.11 geared?? Sorry about the bad news. My guess is that the trans is going to need some serious attention.

-Bill

[Nevin]

Bill, these were my first thoughts as well.

How do I tell the ratios for the front differential? I guess I had assumed that what the seller told me was true since I wasn't sure myself on how to verify. I was told that it was a WRX 4.11 transmission. Is that even a possibility? I had YT do a 4.11 rear diff for me, so I'm pretty sure that's all peachy keen. If it IS the front differential, could I just swap in a front diff from an American car that has a 4.11? Are they interchangeable?

I think for the time being I am just going to put the stock trans back in, then diagnose the VTD trans and fix it then get it back in. It does sound like the noise is coming from the front diff though.

[Nevin]

Well, I started today at noon and by 6:30 the stock tranny was back in, with about an hour break in the middle.

Anyway, now that the VTD is out, I can tear into it and see what happened.

[SVXRide]

Start counting teeth!
-Bill

[Nevin]

Haven't gotten into it yet, but there was actually a bunch of floaties in the tranny fluid when I took the pan off. So... that doesn't seem good.

[longassname]

I just got a JDM engine and transmission. The transmission has the right hand mount 41022PA110. I know the # for the jdm lh mount is 41022pa120 and the # for the jdm center mount is 41022pa130 but are there US mounts than can be substituted?



Also, do the jdm mounts match the US crossmember or is the jdm crossmember different too?

[Conn SVX]

What happened to Nevin? Was it a 4:11? I thought WRX was a 3:90 Mine is

[1986nate]

Originally Posted by Conn SVX

What happened to Nevin? Was it a 4:11? I thought WRX was a 3:90 Mine is

Yours is a 5 spd, this is from a mid 90's JDM WRX and is an auto

Also, not even every US WRX 5 spd is a 3.90. Newer ones are a 3.70

[longassname]

Thank god for that. I got the 3.7 lsd for my car from an 06 wrx 5 spd.

Originally Posted by 1986nate

Yours is a 5 spd, this is from a mid 90's JDM WRX and is an auto

Also, not even every US WRX 5 spd is a 3.90. Newer ones are a 3.70

[Tapani]

Could someone please confirm what I have figured out by browsing thru a number of posts related to this topic: A Japanese market VTD trans is the only reasonable choice to swap into a US spec OBD1 vechicle. A UK spec trans has a number of wiring differneces and is "too much" of a hassle. How about swapping the tail section from a UK (or other european) spec car? Can the US TCU be modified for this? Could I swap in a Japanese TCU? I know this has been done in Phase 2 Foresters.... Thanks, Tapani