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How to put 2WD 5-Spd Tranny in a '79 Brat?


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Hey fellas,

 

I have toyed with the idea of putting a 2WD 5-spd transmission in my brat. And now it seems like I have located a transmission, I'm trying to figure out if I should go for it or not. I have read some varying opinions of the difficulty of the swap. I have heard that its a "bolt-on" job, I have also heard that some fabrication is required.

 

Can anybody give me the skinny on exactly what this will take? And can you also take a look at the picture and let me know if I am looking at the right transmission, if it will mate to my EA71? The seller only describes it as a "77-84 1600/1800/Brat trans"

 

Thanks, Crabman

post-22799-136027627619_thumb.jpg

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Only question i would have is why go from 4wd to 2wd? If you want one extra gear i believe its possible to convert to a Dual range 5 speed (not sure on this though since yours is a gen 1).

 

Yeah I have no good answer for you. Just because? No truth is I do a lot of freeway driving and I can tell my brat would love one more gear to shift into at those highway speeds. It should help with mpgs. I don't really have much off-road use for the car. I don't really know if I want to make the conversion yet. Once I find out what is involved, I'll have a better idea.

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I believe you will encounter issues with the rear crossmember/trans mounts, as they differ, the exhaust hangers and the position of the opening in the floor. If you have access to a 2 wd pats car, you will have it made.

 

Todd

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OK finally attached a better picture. Does that look like a Gen 1 tranny to you fellas?

 

Well changing exhaust hangers wouldn't br a big deal, but if I needed crossmember/trans mounts of a gen 1 2wd, I think I would be out of luck. Gen 1s are almost non existent out here. And its outside my ability to fabricate that sort of thing.

 

Guess I will let this one go, and focus on other improvements.

post-22799-136027627621_thumb.jpg

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It looks like a late EA71 trans. Like a gen 2. The rubber mount is different on Gen 1/2WDs, but I think you could make it work.

 

The 2WD rubber mounts on Gen 2/ 2wd's are the same as the Gen 1 4wds. But the Gen 1 2wds had a rubber mount that was on the bottom, not the sides of the trans.

 

Todd

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Hey Todd,

 

Thanks for the response. I'm trying to get the gist of what you are saying. So, would I have better luck putting a 2WD tranny from a Gen 2 in my Gen 1 Brat? If so, would it be a 'bolt-on" operation, or would there be other special considerations, fabrication and what not involved?

 

Thanks,

Crabman

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No truth is I do a lot of freeway driving and I can tell my brat would love one more gear to shift into at those highway speeds. It should help with mpgs.
I will attest that you will get better mpg's with 2WD. Every summer I remove the rear driveshaft [it alone weighs about 40 lbs.] from my 4WD Sentra and put the transfer case in 2WD. The car not only gets about 2 or 3 mpg more, but the performance increase [less drag] is very noticable as well. If you really don't need 4WD, you're better off without it.

 

Mike

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