The Official Auto-to-Manual Transmission Swap Thread

[ReVsHoT]

can someone please post pics of the whole swap?!?!?!

what happened to the guy who had 60 pics of it?

[JLac]

How did you guys connect the reverse lights to the little reverse light switch on the transmission? I found he 2 wires i need to run down to the little metal switch on the tranmission but how did you guys connect the wires to the little switch? Is there a female end that I can buy that will plug right into the reverse switch? TIA!

[al_r]

I used blue butt connectors - the ID is real tight to the pins of the switch. Also trimmed the plastic back to the metal sleeve, about 1/8".

[artmanm3]

anyone have pics or illustrations of this?

[artmanm3]

anyone with pics

[dustent]

Okay,
So I just finished my tranny swap in my 1995 supercharged 318is. I got the reverse lights wired okay, but the cruise control will not work. I will try the fix posted on this thread.

I come with another few questions:
Since the swap the car is having trouble holding proper idle.
1) Could this be a DME issue?
2) Is the main computer specific to transmission?
3) Can I swap out EPROMS ( Manual EPROM to AUTO EPROM) if there is such a thing atranny specific DME units.

I was not sure if the lightened rotating mass of the flywheel and clutch as compared to the torch converter are not properly compensated for in the old AUTO ECU programming.

ANy info on this would be great. I call ed the dealer and they said I could get a PROM chip for use with a manual tranny, but they were not sure if it would work with my current auto based system....Any thoughts???

Bump....

Any updates from anyone that did the swap?? I am going to be doing the swap later this month on my '97 318ti. Anything I should be ready for?

[Boosted318is]

While you are at it, use a 96+ M3 clutch and flywheel. I did it to my car and it works great.

Also, be aware that you need to wire the cruise control fix posted in this thread to get your cruise to work.

I have also heard that OBDII cars have issues with Check Engine Lights

[BRUNO]

My swap
www.eurowerkz.com/tran2

btw how do you get the cruise control to work. I haven't looked into that.

[Boosted318is]

The fix is listed on this thread under cruise control fix - it works great!!

[jimmyjoe]

The kicker with the cruise control for me was the wires that you connect together from the harness of the auto shifter. You have to have them connected to start the car but disconnected to engage cruise control...

[avus3]

what did you guys do with that extra button behind the gas pedal?

[Boosted318is]

The kicker with the cruise control for me was the wires that you connect together from the harness of the auto shifter. You have to have them connected to start the car but disconnected to engage cruise control...

The "cruise control fix" uses an auto relay to fix this problem so you se your clutch to engange and disengage the old shift selector electronics. You need to puch your clutch in to start the car and when the clutch is out it thinks it is in drive so you can use your cruise...no further switching needed.

This fix is on this post.

[SecretAznSauce]

i just fixed my cruise/start issue with 1 wire

http://bimmerforums.com/forum/showth...66#post3743566

[///M RACER 415]

I WANT YOU ALL TO KNOW:

This thread will be printed, and will be by my side as I begin my tranny conversion!

Thanks a million to all who contributed, and I will be posting soon when I run in to a problem!!!!

[EMMM TREE]

when I run in to a problem!!!!

lol, its inevitable

[JLac]

Agreed. You WILL run into many problems, but goodluck!

[pianoman90]

Agreed. You WILL run into many problems, but goodluck!

Ditto. Hey, after all is said and done, you will be pleased with the results. Good luck.

[jimmyjoe]

I would highly recommend getting that conversion howto cd from ZIONSVILLE. Saved my butt a few times!

[str8 gone]

You guys are killin' me......I thought the swap would be fairly straightforward.My pedals are already in, and I tought that would be the hardest part of the swap.(I still have faith)

[pianoman90]

I would highly recommend getting that conversion howto cd from ZIONSVILLE. Saved my butt a few times!

Come on, he doesn't need the CD... that's what we're here for.

[Boosted318is]

Ya, it is really not that hard. I had mine done in a day after spending a few weeks collecting parts and reading about the procedure.

I do have one question for the MASTERS

I have the bimmerforums "cruise control fix" in my car which essentially switches my car from park to drive when the clutch is released ( Clutch in park - clutch out drive). I have noticed that the idle of the car changes when the clutch position is changed at idle.

For instance, If I let the car idle with the clutch pedal out and MANUALLY depress the clutch pedal switch (not using the clutch pedal)the idle changes. The clutch is still out the entire time, I am just switching the electronics in this case. I notice a big idle droop when I release the switch after depressing it for some time.

Are there 2 idle control programs on automatic cars...one for park and one for drive?? If so, can I get a manual chip and align it to my car so it only has one idle control loop??

Do any other guys out there have an issue where if they flip their "cruise control fix" switch that the idle varies accordingly??

[SecretAznSauce]

Ya, it is really not that hard. I had mine done in a day after spending a few weeks collecting parts and reading about the procedure.

I do have one question for the MASTERS

I have the bimmerforums "cruise control fix" in my car which essentially switches my car from park to drive when the clutch is released ( Clutch in park - clutch out drive). I have noticed that the idle of the car changes when the clutch position is changed at idle.

For instance, If I let the car idle with the clutch pedal out and MANUALLY depress the clutch pedal switch (not using the clutch pedal)the idle changes. The clutch is still out the entire time, I am just switching the electronics in this case. I notice a big idle droop when I release the switch after depressing it for some time.

Are there 2 idle control programs on automatic cars...one for park and one for drive?? If so, can I get a manual chip and align it to my car so it only has one idle control loop??

Do any other guys out there have an issue where if they flip their "cruise control fix" switch that the idle varies accordingly??

ok i did the cruise fix my own way, tapped into the brake switch. anyways ii noticed this today too! at a stop if i press on the brake, the idle drops about 250 RPM. then when i let go of the brake it climbs back up. I noticed before in automatic cars that if at a light you push into N or P, the revs would aslo do up and drop when u placed it in gear, but I always thought it was due to the fact that there was a load introduced. I dunno, but i will find out

[Boosted318is]

I was wondering if the idle control information is in the EPROM. If so, the dealer offers the stock chips for 15 dollars plus 60 dollars in "alignment" programming for the EWS system.

Did you remove the tranny control module or leave it in place? I left mine in place, so it could be manipulating the idle signal somehow. I will have to look into my Bently manual. My idle drop is very pronounced sometimes and irritating

[SecretAznSauce]

yeah in stop and go traffiic (like this morning) it was quite annoying, anywho I didnt do the swap, this used to be jimmyjoes car. andh e did the swap. The car runs great but little things like this really annoys me oh congrats on fixing your stalling/starting problem

[Boosted318is]

yeah in stop and go traffiic (like this morning) it was quite annoying, anywho I didnt do the swap, this used to be jimmyjoes car. andh e did the swap. The car runs great but little things like this really annoys me oh congrats on fixing your stalling/starting problem

I feel the same way. Thats why I want to fix the issue. I want to fixure out what is different on the idle control with a manual vs an automatic.

As for the starting issue. I think it was the starter for sure. If so, Theskill was the first to present the issue so he can claim his 50 bucks! Thanks for the help on that issue as well.