Toyspeed.org.nz Message Board

by **shogun** » Sat Sep 21, 2013 1:08 pm

I just bought a silvertop AE101 Corolla FXGT and it has an MR2 gearbox in it that has been converted to FWD. It is not working properly.

The car cannot engage gears 1,3,4 or 5. (grinding/crunching sound when I try to engage these)
2 works fine
reverse works fine
There is no neutral (when in neutral, the car reverses)
The reverse light is always on (even when engine is not running)

I have retraced the steps of the swap using online guides (including Malcolm's guide on toyspeed) and everything looks right. The selector shaft has been swapped over from the stock corolla C52 and the gear lever can move to 'select' each gear.

Can anyone think of any ways to diagnose and/or resolve the problem? I am in Christchurch so if you have some spare time and are willing to check it out (compensation in the form of beverages....or cash), let me know. Any help is appreciated.

by **whynot** » Sat Sep 21, 2013 4:22 pm

the mr2 box is an e series box. you will need to find a selector out of a e52 box. I have done this recently and found the c52 selector wouldnt work so I went and used a selector out of a gze levin. I was checking various selectors out at the time and I believe celica and rav ones would work as well, I just had a choice and went with that one.

by **shogun** » Sat Sep 21, 2013 4:50 pm

ok I will head down to pick-a-part today. Can it be from any year celica or how would I identify the correct e series shifter?

Pick-a-part currently has
"Celica Model No 35GE 2door Coupe - 1996 - White - Petrol - Manual 2000cc"

Is that suitable?

I assume the bze levin and rav (4?) gearboxes would be less common thatn celicas.

by **Grrrrrrr!** » Sat Sep 21, 2013 4:58 pm

What sort of Mr2 was the box out of? It could be a c52, an E51, an E153 or a S54 depending on what the donor car was. Since it bolted up to a 4a I would assume its either a C52 or an E51.

by **shogun** » Sat Sep 21, 2013 5:10 pm

I'm not sure but i think it is a C52 using this http://www.padandwheels.com/mr2/blackto ... 3/c56.html Is there a physical difference between the C52 and E51?

by **shogun** » Sat Sep 21, 2013 5:30 pm

Gearbox currently in car:

old gearbox:

e51 vs my gearbox

by **Grrrrrrr!** » Sat Sep 21, 2013 5:33 pm

Yes, the E-series boxes are generally used on supercharged/turbocharged applications, they are freaking heavy, and strong as hell. Would be noticably bigger than the c-series you took out.

by **shogun** » Sat Sep 21, 2013 5:59 pm

I updated my previous post with pictures and it looks like I've got a c52 in the car currently. I included a picture of the old gearbox which is where I assume the selector shaft came from during the swap.

Does this mean that an e series selector will not solve this problem?

by **whynot** » Sat Sep 21, 2013 8:14 pm

So it's not a mr2 box then? If it's a c52 with the correct selector then it could have been assembled incorrectly. I would also check the clutch is operating properly.

by **shogun** » Sat Sep 21, 2013 8:29 pm

It is a mr2 box because the end nearest to the front bumper has been plugged and there is longer selector which was swapped out. What points should i check for correct assembly? Im fairly sure the selector shaft and gear linkages are correct.

I was told the clutch recently had a new pressure plate and thrust bearing. I can drive the car forward in second gear (got it onto the trailer in second gear). Does this mean it is functioning properly and is there another way to check?

by **whynot** » Sat Sep 21, 2013 8:47 pm

If you managed to drive it in second then the clutch is probably fine in terms of operation. The selector is supposed to be inserted with all the "forks" or whatever they are pointing down and the the overall guide part pointing up. There is a bolt which holds the guide in place by sitting in a key hole in it. This bolt is on top of the selector housing. Hard to explain but you should be able to figure it out when you see it. If you pull the selector out make sure the gear box is in neutral or it can be difficult to get out of gear. If it's not that then I'm out of Easy fix ideas.

by **shogun** » Sun Sep 22, 2013 12:55 am

yep I made sure the bolt lined up inside the hole on the selector.

No worries, cheers for your help.

Anyone else have any ideas?

by **ee904age** » Mon Sep 23, 2013 8:19 pm

Dumb question, but are the shifter cables connected to the right selector arms? ie: not the wrong way round?

by **shogun** » Mon Sep 23, 2013 8:42 pm

Hi, there aren't any dumb questions for me. I'm new, so the simplest of things for you guys is the stuff I'm still learning.

I'm fairly sure this is right, best to double check though

by **Lloyd** » Mon Sep 23, 2013 9:20 pm

ee904age wrote:Dumb question, but are the shifter cables connected to the right selector arms? ie: not the wrong way round?

This is what I first thought too.

The pic wont help if saying if it's right or not really.

One of the levers out of the box should lock in to place when you give them a solid push in either direction (Which would select 3rd or 4th depending which direction you push it). Get someone to move the gearstick in that direction and make sure it's on to the right one on the gearbox.

The other one on the box should spring back to centre when you push it either direction (When you move the gearstick in the left/right direction when sitting in the car). This is the one that moves when you shift the gearstick over so you can engage 1/2 or 5/R.

If those are around the wrong way then you could be getting the problems you're talking about.

by **shogun** » Mon Sep 23, 2013 9:34 pm

Yes I thought this may have been a problem as well. I have tested it in the way you specified. One moves when the shifter is moved forwards and backwards, the other moves when the shifter is moving side to side.

I also tried to switch the cables and they physically could not be on the opposite selector arms.

Additionally, I went to pick-a-part and got a mate to video the selector arms moving while I was calling out "1,2,3,4,5,Reverse" Then when we go back, we compared the video to my car while I was changing gears and calling out the numbers.

by **crispy'86** » Tue Sep 24, 2013 7:41 am

What gear linkage out of what gearbox did you use in the box you've got in the car?? I'd have thought you could swap the shifter linkage off the original box into the donor one. Relatively fiddly to do in place in the car

by **shogun** » Tue Sep 24, 2013 8:53 am

I assume its the original but not 100% as i bought the car post gearbox swap. I wanted to try swapping shifter cables so i went to pickapart and found out that you need to remove the ecu assembly to pull the cables out so i decided against it.
Is there really a chance that the original cables are slightly longer or shorter than the donor gearbox needs?

by **crispy'86** » Tue Sep 24, 2013 9:19 pm

It maybe but i'd thought the ae101 there would have the loom and ecu long removed from it./ There maybe an issue with longer shifter cables but I doubt it. Would be more like the shifter mechanism bolted to the gearbox, the way you say when it's meant to be in neutral it engages second. I wouldn't be surprised if the selector shafts weren't all aligned in the neutral position before the mechanism was fitted

by **whynot** » Wed Sep 25, 2013 11:12 am

Just a point to check but if you disconnect the selector cables can you put it in other gears? Try for first and see if it works. There could be nothing wrong with the gearbox internals but a mismatch of parts on the outside.

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Only 2nd and reverse engaging, no neutral - gearbox swap

Only 2nd and reverse engaging, no neutral - gearbox swap

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