i am thinking about changing my automatic LS to a 5spd and was wondering if this would be a good idea. I know someone that did this to their accord and he said that after a month or so the tranny was acting up and that an auto-to-5spd change just messed up his car.
I was wondering if many other have had problems with this and how much this would cost. Sorry if it's asking for too much, but what parts would I need and how much woudl this swap usually run for? Thanks for the help.

 

unless you are really confident in your ability I wouldn't do it due to complications. You could easily use the money you would spend on it and get a gsr. I was going to do it on my mx6, but then I saw friends who had done it who later had complications because of the work they did, and they were better with cars than me.

 

You might want to do a search first.

But overall I think it would be a better investment if you sold your car and get a car with a manual if you really want a 5-speed. In most cases, you're already looking at about 500-1000$ for the conversion. Also, installation could go easy or terrible. On top of all of this, durability of the swap. I remembering reading a post about someone having trouble a few weeks later with his 5-speed after the swap. =P

Either way, best of luck!

 

yea.. most people are telling me the same thing, to trade in my car. But I've had this car for a few years and would rather just keep it for sentimental reasons. I'm just tired and bored of the automatic.

 

is this all i'd need for this?

Manual pedal assembly
Shift linkage
Shifter
Clutch kit and flywheel
Clutch cable or Hydro lines ?
Clutch master + slave cylinders ?
and Manual tranny

do i need to change my automatic gauges? or anything else?

 

I did this on my Integra several years ago. I agree with what the other people are saying. Unless you are confident in your mechanical skills, or have a hookup with a shop/friend, then it might not be worth the effort, time, and money.

Parts alone will cost you about $700-1000. The main parts aren't that hard to find, but there are a few small things that might be a pain in the *** to find. For me, it took about 2 weeks to find an intermediate shaft. Do an archived post in my name and you'll see some posts about made about the swap.

Anyway, your list of "ingredients" is only partially complete. You'll also need:
1) 5-speed starter. The automatic one doesn't fit onto the 5-speed tranny.
2) Upper tranny mount AND bracket. The chassis under the hood of an automatic is actually different than a 5-speed. The bracket actually welded to the frame is in a different spot. It's too far forward in an automatic. Back when I did the swap, there were no aftermarket mounts available. You were forced to either fabricate a new mount (I did this), OR cut the exisit bracket from the frame and re-weld it in the 5-speed location. Now I heard there is a company that has a mount made especially for Integra automatic to 5-speed swaps. HAsport, maybe? ::shrugs::

Rest are optional:
1) 5-speed center console. The automatic one is slightly different, but you can do a little "customization" and get the automatic one to look fine. I did. Couldn't even tell I did anything.
2) 5-speed gauge cluster. It eliminates the PNRD2L lights. It's not really necessary at all, doesn't change anything really. I just took out the lights behind them.
3) 5-speed ECU. The Automatic ECU runs fine, but you get a Code 1668 (I believe). It's not even a listed code, it's one of those weird manufacturer only codes. Says that the Automatic Shift Solenoid is malfunctioning. This is because you have to secure the solenoid in the PARK position, that way you can remove the key. The car senses that it is driving in the PARK position....hence the code.

You're lucky it's late and I'm not tired. Hehe. Hope I helped a bit.

EDIT: The hardest part was getting all the wiring to work. Reverse lights, removing all the automatic wiring under the driver's side leg area and getting it all working again. Everything else is pretty much plug and play. Put on what fits, and that's it. Wiring was the hardest for me.

 

Thanks for the help.. but I have a friend that says he could probably do it.
Sounds like a lot of work though with a big chances of something going wrong.
Should I keep it as an automatic and just build up the tranny to support turbo? Or would a supercharger be a better bet? Some say that an LS auto integ with turbo can take out gsr's. I'm not sure if that's true or not though.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Johnytang &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Thanks for the help.. but I have a friend that says he could probably do it.
Sounds like a lot of work though with a big chances of something going wrong.
Should I keep it as an automatic and just build up the tranny to support turbo? Or would a supercharger be a better bet? Some say that an LS auto integ with turbo can take out gsr's. I'm not sure if that's true or not though.</TD></TR></TABLE>

LS's and GSR's aren't THAT different in terms of speed. Any moderately modified LS can take a GSR. However, not when we're talking about automatics.

Automatic with a turbo....yeah, I suppose. But having an automatic pretty much makes everything a waste if you want to modify it. I don't mean this as a flame or insult to you.

I had experience with both, since I had both. Just by doing the 5-speed swap, I gained 1 full second in the quarter mile. Think about that, ONE SECOND. That's a lot in a quarter mile at 85 or so mph.

A Civic EX 5-speed will beat an automatic LS, just to give you an idea of how much slower an automatic is than a 5-speed.

You know what? If you're serious about this stuff and you intend to be into cars for a while, go for it dude. Fork out a few bucks and have some fun. I know I did when I swapped. Made the car a pleasure to drive. Plus you learn stuff too.

An automatic transmission can't take much. Making it stronger might work, but it's still a slow automatic. ::Waits for the Level10 guys to flame me::