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4sp to 5sp in 86 brat 4wd?


nevbrat
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what are the benefits of changing from 4 sp to 5 sp? is this a direct swap? i have an 86 brat. what cars should i be looking at? i was going to get a tranny out of a 86 turbo however i read thats a mistake? thanks for any & all help & sorry if anyone is repeating themselves. take care

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Don't use a turbo 5 speed unless you want to mess around with axle splines. They are different then your 86 brat's (23 and 25 but search to confirm).

 

You will need to modify the mounts off your 4 Speed and put them onto the 5 speed. Also the driveshaft will ether have to get elongated or you need a 2 piece one from the 5 speed car.

 

You also need all the shifter linkages from teh donor car.

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Don't use a turbo 5 speed unless you want to mess around with axle splines. They are different then your 86 brat's (23 and 25 but search to confirm).

 

You will need to modify the mounts off your 4 Speed and put them onto the 5 speed. Also the driveshaft will ether have to get elongated or you need a 2 piece one from the 5 speed car.

 

You also need all the shifter linkages from teh donor car.

 

i was wondering about the axles. they looked different than mine. i thought my 86 brat was a ea82? i saw a 92 Legacy at junk yard today that was 4wd non turbo. would i have less problems than with the 86 turbo? thanks

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Your brat is an EA81. You want an EA82 5spd. Stick with non-Turbo, and your axles are fine as is.

 

Legacies are different animals.

 

Search for a 5spd D/R swap. There's an article in the USRM on it. Read the article in the USRM, then contact bratsrus1 (Jerry) and get your crossmember and shifter linkage modified. This way you don't have to bash the tunnel.

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you don't have to "bash" the tunnel ,at least i didn't on my brat and i went with the linkage from the 5spd.make sure when you grab the tranny,that you get the flywheel from the donor car as well.

you will have to grind the bottom part of the bellhousing on the motor.you will understand when you place the ea82 flywheel on your ea81 engine.

 

if you are not a fabricator,i would suggest a kit.and a lengthened driveline.otherwise ,tear it apart,and go to town.it is all common sense once you dive in.

some folks say that you should get your driveline stretched(:grin: )i have never had a problem with mine shimmying or shaking.at least not from the driveline:headbang: i have driven on a two piece driveline for a long damn time now.several trips across state and out of state.romped the piss out of it,and i am still driving it.

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thanks for the help guys im starting to get the picture. i thought i had an ea82 since it was an 86 but not my luck. im going to try to do this in the next week. i already have my tranny out of the brat & i thought it was long & barely fit in. i took the tranny out from the bottom. will i be able to put 5 speed in on the bottom? i dropped the engine down an inch. im going to do a search. i do have some welding experinced so im going to go with 2 piece driveline to save some money. when u say linkage do you mean the cable or the 2 wd shifter or 4 wd shifter? im going to search on this site again there is alot of info. tomorrow im going to search in junk yards again? also any suggestion on years of cars? what cars? what trannys? any stamps on the tranny i need? thanks for all help sincerely john

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if i did use a 5 speed turbo transmission with the doj's what would be the down side? i heard the 5th gear ratio is different. what does that mean? higher rms in 5th compared to non turbo? thanks

 

You have to build custom axles - 2WD EA81 axles + Legacy 25 spline DOJ.

 

Downsides: 3.7:1 rear end, and crappy low range (1.2:1). Basically a really stupid combo for a Brat.

 

GD

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thanks for the help i will not get the turbo. the car is slow enough already. it does do decent on the freeway though. i hit 70 at about 3000. i would like to bump it up to 80 or 85 though. am i asking to much? any non turbo trannys 85-90 for sale around vegas.

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thanks for the help i will not get the turbo. the car is slow enough already. it does do decent on the freeway though. i hit 70 at about 3000. i would like to bump it up to 80 or 85 though. am i asking to much? any non turbo trannys 85-90 for sale around vegas.

 

There aren't any tranny's that will do that other than the 4 speed auto's. So yes, I guess you could say you are asking too much.

 

Check local junk yards. 85 to 89 5 speed, dual range is what you are after.

 

GD

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I also want to do the 5 spd D/R swap. My 84 Turbo BRAT with 3AT has a 3.7 rear diff and 23 spline DOJs up front. I thought turbos had 25 splines?

 

So, I need a non-turbo 5 spd D/R with the 3.9 rear diff, right? Is there any chance I can find a 3.9 LSD?

 

If anyone has a 5 spd D/R or knows of one in SoCal, please let me know.

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  • 2 weeks later...

i bought the 5sp non turbo off of ebay from canada & recieved it today with linkage & shifter. my brat has been down for 3 weeks at least & i cant wait to put it back together. in fact im going to start tonight. im hoping to have it done in a week. i still have to buy the drive line. do the fabricating. im doing this essentially one handed due to a nagging tendon injury so its a little harder. ill keep everyone update & im sure ill have plenty of questions. i cant wait to drive but i guess there is no choice. thanks john

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