Ok guys, I have decided to do the conversion, I just cant stand driving the auto anymore (I have been using our Mirage every opurtunity i get because its manual).

Now, the trickiest thing that I can think of is moving the handbrake up to its normal position so it doesnt get in the way of the clutch (wouldnt that be fun!).

• R32/3 GTR/GTS4 gearbox (because of 4WD? or can I use the Gtst one?)
  
• Pedal Set (Any car really eh?)
  
• Clutch master cylinder and all brackets etc
  
• Clutch (bleugh)
  
• 260RS centre console trim and handbrake lever (otherwise I will just hack mine up i guess)

What else is there?

So looking forward to doing this...

Christian!

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hey prank

well heres the best info i can describe in words to ya, and probably forgot some of it too

gtr 5 speed box
gtr clutch master cylinder
gtr clutch vacuum booster
gtr clutch vacuum canister
gtr slave cylinder
r33 gts-t handbrake (fits perfect)

first thing is to mount the vacuum booster and clutch master cylinder to the firewall and with my rb26 engine (not sure on rb25) it wouldnt clear the plenum, so, the vacuum booster had to be recessed into the firewall about 40mm to give clearance, and we got a piece of 4" exhuast pipe, cut it to 40mm length, then welded a flat plate onto one end of it for the pedal box to bolt onto, and the other end has a flange about 10mm all the way around the outside of the pipe. needs a centre hole cutout about the size of a 20c peice and then two holes need to be drilled for the studs on the clutch vacuum booster.

now to find the right place to cut the firewall go under the dash and look where the clutch should be and there is only 1 panel thickness hole for the clutch, but i used that hole as the centre point for the 4" hole, now cut the hole once marked and then the peice i made earlier slips snug into the firewall leaving only a outer flange visable, and we decided to screw it in rather than weld because otherwise it wrecks the paint, and carpet and underfelt dont like flames

now the clutch pedal box will bolt onto the peice i made, and the top bolt holes from the old footbrake are used, only 1 lines up with the help of filing the pedal box hole abit bigger, and then we welded abit of steel bar off the side to drill a hole in it to bolt it up in the 2 factory spots pedal lines up perfect with the rest.

the r33 gts-t handbrake is easy to install i used two decent sized bolts to mount it, had to remove drivers side seat to get the drill in to drill the two holes i aint sorted out the console surround yet but i presume a 260rs one is the best bet, or chop the factory auto one

ill post up bits and pieces as i remember

hope it helps
cheers

Brad

This is gunna be a great thread.

Would be great if we can get a parts list together and a 'how to' for the tricky bits that pop up in the swap over

If it takes off maybe we should sticky it ??

J

I heard the tail shaft needs to be replaced aswell?

You could patent the "Stagea manual conversion kit" and make money.. oh wait, give it to us first though

the stagea auto tailshaft fits perfecto the gtr manual box and stagea auto r exactly the same length

also a hole needs to be cut for the shifter (i did one about 2.5" round in the centre of the plate under the console)

with the wiring side of things i just been doin yesterday, the neutral safety switch is one of the four plugs that are on the drivers side chassis in the engine bay (left from the auto gearbox wiring), it has 2 fat thick wires, well u just need to join the 2 and ya sweet :wassup:

reverse lights are one of the other 3 plugs (the grey one which has about 7 wires) and the reverse lights r the green wire and the black wire which join to the switch on the manual gearbox to activate reverse lights

r33 handbrake is a peice of piss to fit, and the cable is exactly the right length when u disconnect it under the car, and join the first section from the r33 handbrake onto the 2 pins under the car for the rear half of the stagea cables

once ive got my car on the road and i have some spare time ill draw up a diagram of the clutch vacuum booster holder thing i made

oh also for the clutch system u need to get hold of a gtr clutch/brake vacuum canister which sites in the bay hard against the drivers side gaurd closest to the firewall (about 4" in diameter and 200mm long with 2 outlets). u need a one way valve also so it doesnt explode on boost

ill get the exact part number of the vacuum canister in the next few days and ill post it up

cheers and hope it helps guys

Brad

How much do you all think this will cost?

do you need to change the ecu or is the auto ecu the same as the man ecu ???

hey guys well im not sure about the auto ecu and whether it can run correctly without the gearbox, maybe sydneykid knows, and i remember him saying that i couldnt run the stagea auto ecu with my rb25 (stagea engine) in the VL becuase it was manual, i used a normal rb25 engine ecu from a gts-t manual and it runs the engine exactly same as stagea, BUT engine loom would have to be the gts-t manual one and that means u got to intergrate it into the stagea stock harness becuase they also have wires running non engine related stuff like passenger indicator, abs, etc.

sounds like alot of hasle for a manual conversion but id say its worth it and u are gonna mod more in the future then u can get a power fc for rb25 gts-t manual and it will plug straight in

costs well i paid $1K for gtr 5 speed, and clutch depends on ya $$ situation cause twin plate 800hp from direct clutch in QLD cost me $1600 but its brilliant and light as hell and ally flywheel also

then ya got:

clutch pedal box from stagea 260rs would be the best cause it will definately fit and available from nissan brand new, not sure on $$$.

clutch vacuum booster same as above
clutch master cylinder as above
i got a autech genuine pedal so i dunno what will fit...
master to slave steel line
gtr slave cylinder
r33 handbrake

thats about all

i bought my manual conversion stuff off the forums and got a bloody bargain even got about 20-30 genuine nissan washers individually wrapped haha what a waste of $$$ for the poor guy who bought it all originally

anyway thats it

Brad

Stock 32 GTR and 32 GTS4 5 speed gearbox should be identical external and internal.
I think I have master clutch cilinder with booster in garage somewhere.

The ecu is a nightmare of a job to get a plug and play tem such as power fc..... anything else piggy back, no problems... I have put a power fc in my stagea ( with alot of messing around )and it is good. Only real drama was the a/c and a few sensors. Unfortunately Apexi dont make a power fc for a manual rb25 stagea, they do however make one for the rb26 stagea. Go figure. I too did the manual conversion, its a bit of a job.... you need as mnay hands as you can get..
Its fun to drive now, i've even chopped a few GTR's and they don't like it, but you do get the good one who compliments your car and say's ' i can't believe i got owned by a wagon'...........music to my ears...lol

Cheers
Gary

Any details of the process or pricing... or even pics Gary? I'm seriously considering this as one of my first mods on the stagea.

Pricing, I paid too much as i think i was the first person un Aus to try i t so there was a bit of trial and error..lol
Pickies, yeah i can take a few and post them up no worries, won't be until tomorrow tho.

Cheers
Gary

Yea Im also goin to do this conversion. Should be good. So Gray1, how well does your stegea go now? Compared to when it was auto?

Car goes much better and much better to drive..... I hate auto's.......New turbo and plenum and manifold are the next mods..