I am thinking about swapping my manual 1983 Bronco tranny with a 1983 Manual.....should I? and if not why?

Ryan

 

Why do you want to? What do you use your truck for? Is your auto dying? Do you have a manual lying around to put in? Do you know what parts you'll have to get & swap out in addition to the transmission itself? How much experience do you have working on trucks? Do you have all the tools you'll need, a place to do it, and a spare vehicle to drive while the truck is down?

 

The reason I want to swap the tranny is my auto has a little over 150K on it. IT is getting tired and working the brand new engine really hard. I mostly use my truck for off-road and winter weather so having the manual would allow me to have the granny gear. My uncle has a garage so all the tools would be supplied and he is very knowledgable in tranny swapping. I just wanted to get some more opinions. Let me know what you think!

Ryan

 

An auto has a built-in granny gear - the torque converter does virtually the same thing when it's unlocked & multiplying torque, but it's much smoother than shifting a manual. I wouldn't swap just for that.

An auto has some advantages over a manual off-road, and they really show up on snow & ice when smooth power REALLY works better than the direct mechanical connection of a manual.

An auto DOES require a little more engine power than a manual, as indicated by all the waste heat that has to be radiated by the oil cooler, but it's not really significant enough to notice in off-road or regular on-road driving.

Personally, I preferr a manual, but swapping requires you to change the pedals out from under the dash, cut a hole in the firewall & install a clutch master cylinder (don't use a mechanical linkage), and buy a transmission. You might even have to have your driveshafts cut & welded. It's an expensive & time-consuming process, so make sure you know what you're getting into and that your needs justify all the work.

 

I would do it. I am currently looking for a NP435 to put in mine with a 205 X case. The auto does have a granny gear but it is no where near what the grannt gear in a manual is. The auto with my setup give me like 60:1 and the NP435 is like 140:1. THat is with my setup, but it will help out the crawl ratio in with any set up. Manuals are far better then autos in my opinion. Of course I have the crappyest tranny ever made. E40D. I hate this thing!!!!!!

 

Before ~'93, the E4OD had serious problems, but any competent rebuilder knows what they are and will incorporate ALL the upgrade parts in a regular rebuild, making it one of the better autos.

I don't know how you're calculating the crawl ratio of an auto since, with the TC unlocked, there is no direct mechanical connection, so no "ratio" to calculate. And I think your number on the 435 is a little high. I haven't looked up all the ratios to see what it actually is, but I know granny is near 7:1, the t-case is around 3:1, and your rear probably isn't more than 4.1:1, making it ~80:1 from engine to wheels.

 

[updated:LAST EDITED ON 29-Dec-02 AT 04:03 PM (EST)]I didnt add I am doing to 203/205 x case and i run 4:88 gears. My bad. Yes i have the 91 E4od and have had it rebuilt with every heavy duty part on earth. It is still a POS. I have had more problem with it then i care to get into to. Also NP435 granny is 6.69:1, just to get specific. But also my bronco is not really a road machine. I drive it to a trail and home and that is about it. I would never do this to a daily driver!

 

I prefer a manual tranny as well, but my E4OD is excellent. I have 146k on this tranny, with no problems ever. It runs smooth, doesn't slip, and shifts nicely (thanks to the B&M kit). I would like to swap in a manual, but until the auto dies, I cannot justify it. If I have to remove the auto for a rebuild, I may then consider a manual swap.

 

i am sure the E4od is a nice tranny, but not for what i use my Bronco for.

 

 

So have any of you or anyone you know actually swaped a manual and and auto? As I said, we have the garage and the gear head that say they will have no problem doing it. But I still have not made up my mind. I agree that I am not going to swap untill the Auto dies its true that there is nothing to justify it. I would just LOVE to talk or hear from somone who has actually done this to find out what problems they have run into.

Thanks!......HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!




Ryan

 

[updated:LAST EDITED ON 31-Dec-02 AT 07:04 PM (EST)]Yeah, I helped havack at brocodata.com swap his E4OD to an M5OD a few months ago. I don't think he has the writeup on the site yet, but he'll be happy to answer any questions you have about it. There's a lot of other good info on http://www.broncodata.com/ .

 

I would definitely do it. My buddy and I swapped A C-6 for a NP435. It wasn't really that difficult. We are very pleased with the results. The truck runs a lot better with the new tranny. We originally found the tranny in a junk yard. We also found almost all of the other pieces required to complete the job. We spent maybe $500 on everything. It took us about a day to do it. Now, unless you knew that we did it, it looks like the truck came with a stick from the factory. I would be glad to anwer any questions and I'm pretty sure my buddy would be willing to help you as well.

 

Awsome!
My biggest concern is with all the little things that I might not think about, did you have to make anything custom or move certian things to fit the Broncos automatic tranny features, like the clutch pedal, master cyl, FWD features?


Thanks Again!
Ryan