AOD to Manual conversion

[Crigano]

Hello all,

I have a 93 lx 5.0 with an AOD. I’m considering converting the car to manual but would like some advice on:

1. Does this affect the price if I decide to ever sell this car (not likely but ya never know).

2. Is there a kit I could buy that has all the parts?

3. Do I need to change the ECU?

4. Is it worth it? Or is it a giant pain in the a**.

Thanks for the advice in advance.

 

[Mustang5L5]

1.). Depends. Low mileage original stocker? Maybe. Clean non-collectable car? Prob increase value depending on how clean a job you do.

2) used to be but not sure anymore. A lot of the parts you need are available used only like clutch pedal assembly and such.

3). You don’t need to but there is a difference in the ECU and some wiring. I swapped mine and left the AOD ECU I late swapped the ECU to a 5-spd model and changed the wiring to match. . Again one of those questions that leads back to 1) when it comes to how completely/thorough a job you do.

4) definitely worth it. I swapped mine 15 years ago and forget sometimes my car used to be an AOD. So much more fun to drive.

 

[limp]

4) definitely worth it. I swapped mine 15 years ago and forget sometimes my car used to be an AOD. So much more fun to drive.

I inherited the 83 I now own.. If it would of been an automatic I would not have taken the car...
This goes back to when I was 19 ( 1974) and I had a 69 Corvette.. It was a 350/Turbo 350 automatic.... Most BORING car I have ever owned...

 

[Crigano]

1.). Depends. Low mileage original stocker? Maybe. Clean non-collectable car? Prob increase value depending on how clean a job you do.

2) used to be but not sure anymore. A lot of the parts you need are available used only like clutch pedal assembly and such.

3). You don’t need to but there is a difference in the ECU and some wiring. I swapped mine and left the AOD ECU I late swapped the ECU to a 5-spd model and changed the wiring to match. . Again one of those questions that leads back to 1) when it comes to how completely/thorough a job you do.

4) definitely worth it. I swapped mine 15 years ago and forget sometimes my car used to be an AOD. So much more fun to drive.

The car has 101,000 miles on it. It’s stock except for x-pipe and mufflers. It’s reef blue but aside from that, nothing special.

Good to know about the ecu. I would like to do it properly and convert the computer and wiring. Do you know what wiring and ecu I would need ?

 

[keel]

You're going to need an engine harness from a manual 92 1/2 or a 93 car, it is the only harness that has a single brown plug on the drivers side to connect to the body harness. You will also need to swap out your O2 sensor harness but these can be purchased new no problem. Harnesses from other model years can be converted but getting the correct one is going to be by far the easiest and closest to OEM. Any mass-air computer from a manual car should work.

 

[Crigano]

You're going to need an engine harness from a manual 92 1/2 or a 93 car, it is the only harness that has a single brown plug on the drivers side to connect to the body harness. You will also need to swap out your O2 sensor harness but these can be purchased new no problem. Harnesses from other model years can be converted but getting the correct one is going to be by far the easiest and closest to OEM. Any mass-air computer from a manual car should work.

I’d probably look for a 93 specific harness. Is this the entire harness or just a part of the harness?

 

[keel]

You'll need the entire engine harness which is all one piece that connects to the ECU. You can re-use your injector harness, the one that sits on top of the engine and connects to the dual 10 pin connectors at the firewall (aka the "salt and pepper shakers").

You will also want to get a T5 trans harness and reverse light harness which go through the floor of the car next to the trans on the drivers side. The automatic transmission harness does not have a connector for the neutral sensing switch in the T5. The automatic reverse light harness contains a neutral safety switch that does not exist on the T5 and is jumped on the manual version of the harness (this circuit left open will not allow you to start the car).

When you install the clutch pedal assembly, you will also need to plug in the neutral gear switch and clutch safety switch if you want those to function properly. You can find these under the dash. In the auto cars, the clutch safety switch is bypassed with a plug that basically just closes the circuit so you just need to unplug that first. The clutch safety switch can be left bypassed if you want to be able to start the car without pushing the clutch in, but the neutral gear switch is important because it affects idle strategy and allows you to pull KOEO codes.

 

[AeroCoupe]

Guys, it's an original 5.0 car so no engine harness is required. Do a search as there are a few threads on here with AOD to T5 swaps.

 

[keel]

Guys, it's an original 5.0 car so no engine harness is required. Do a search as there are a few threads on here with AOD to T5 swaps.

You are right, I was thinking that it was a 2.3 auto to stick 5.0 conversion. All the other stuff I mentioned will still be necessary though.

 

[Mustang5L5]

ECU. Swap the o2 sensor jumper to match the ECU and install a transmission harness so you can hook up the NGS. Or you can opt to run 2 wires to the drivers kick panel to tie the NGS in.

That’s it. I’ve done it. Simple.

 

[Monkeybutt2000]

THE hardest part is the pedals,everything else is easy.

 

[revhead347]

Yes, manual cars demand a much higher resale value.

Kurt

 

[Crigano]

Anyone have a recommendation for a transmission? I'd like to get a tremec but there seem to be a few options. T56 would be nice but i'm not sure I can justify the cost.

 

[Mustang5L5]

The Tremex TKX 5-spd would be a slightly cheaper alternative to the T56

 

[Crigano]

Any experience with that tremec? someone mentioned to me that the t56 could have fitment issues. not sure if this is with all tremecs or just that model.

 

[keel]

Why not just get a T5? That would probably be the easiest bolt-in choice since it was OE in manual cars. And there are used ones all over the place for relatively cheap.

 

[Crigano]

If i'm going to do the swap, i wanted to put something in that could handle more power than a stock T5. I'm not sure of the HP and TQ but i believe it was relativly low and once you start doing upgrades, you might need to replace \ repair it if you destroy the synchros.

But honestly, i'm not set in stone for a tremec, just looking for a nice upgrade when i'm going to do it.

 

[keel]

Yeah, the T5 is pretty weak, rated for only 300ft-lb although I hear you can put more through it as long as you take it easy with the clutch. TKO/TR3550 transmissions are not a bad option either.