Manual transmission swap?

Gtin · Post by **Gtin** » 02 Feb 2019, 15:22

Hey guys, some of you may remember my 98 v70 I've posted about quite a bit. Recently I got in an Accident in it and bent the frame a bit. Given its physical state and the recent re-emergence of head gasket symptom I've decided it's really not worth repairing so i picked up 98 v70-xc for a mere 650 dollars. 145k on the dash I was told it just needed q radiator. After paying for it and putting the radiator in in the freezing cold in the middle of the night It started displaying more symptoms so I was unfortunately not able to make it the 330 mile drive home. But that's a topic for another post after I get it here and can diagnose it properly. I'm hoping it's nothing major.

My current question is this: my old volvo is a base model fwd with a 5 speed transmission. The XC is obviously AWD automatic. It does have the rear driveshaft removed as appears to be common. Given that I have complete parts car how hard would it be to put the manual tranny in the XC? And would it be possible to still reconnect the AWD?

My understanding is I'll definately need an ECU flash for it. As far as physically getting the transmission out and in I'm pretty confident in my abilities, I've done transmissions and clutches on other cars before. But is there anything else I need to be aware of going in?

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 02 Feb 2019, 15:42

To the best of my knowledge it should fit right in. You are correct that the ECU should be reprogrammed to take away the communication with the TCU and also the manual ECU has different throttle off characteristics in that the engine speed ramps down more slowly when you lift the accelerator on a manual when compared to the automatic. They specify different axles for the manual vs the automatic as well but they may actually interchange. On my '99 I had trouble getting new boots for one of the axles and the final solution was to get boots for a manual axle on one side. If they don't directly exchange you at least have them on the parts car and you can move the axles along with the transmission. While you are replacing the flex plate with the flywheel I would highly recommend replacing the rear main seal on the engine since you are right there.

I know that there is a European version of the programming for the high pressure turbos with a manual and there should be a version for the low pressure turbo as well. I don't know who has the LPT mapping off the top of my head but a few phone calls or emails should get you pointed in the right direction.

...Lee

Gtin · Post by **Gtin** » 02 Feb 2019, 15:59

Thanks for the input. Who even does tuning? All the threads I've read were old and very mixed reviews on the different options. Also the way is the same right? So I should be able to drive on the one I have woth the auto and send my old one off to be flashed and have it ready to go for the swap?

Post by **bmdubya1198** » 02 Feb 2019, 19:13

I recently completed a manual swap on my 2000 V70R using an M56 out of a '96 850. It was pretty straightforward, albeit a little more challenging than starting with a FWD P80. Luckily it's only a LITTLE more challenging.
Fortunately, in your case both cars are '98 and complete. That saves you a ton of time sourcing parts!

Polskamafia MJL has an awesome writeup, I highly recommend you give that thread a read. viewtopic.php?f=1&t=70637

It really is basically removing the automatic and installing the manual. I would recommend replacing the clutch and release bearing (I believe your '98 will have an internal slave cylinder) while you're in there as well as the rear crank seal to ensure you won't be pulling the transmission back out again in the near future.
There are two ways you can remove/replace the trans... option 1 being pull the engine/trans from the top using an engine hoist, or option 2 (which is what I did) which involves supporting the engine/trans with a support bar (https://www.harborfreight.com/1000-lb-c ... 96524.html) and dropping the subframe. Most say option 2 is easier since you don't have to remove any of the accessories or very much wiring at all.

As for the pedals, you're using a '98+ donor car, so you don't have to worry about the pedal bracket type (older 850 style doesn't fit X70 cars). Installation of the shifter and cables are straightforward, as well as the clutch master cylinder. All of the other basic stuff is covered pretty well in the thread I linked, also the wiring.

Now since you're using the M56 transmission, you won't be able to use the AWD. You could go with an M58 or M66 AWD transmission, but that will require some different parts from this swap. Here are the specific parts you'll need to go from AWD to FWD. You should already have all of these parts on the donor car.
-Rear engine mount (you'll need the complete setup, I believe it's 3 pieces) The AWD cars use a side transmission mount, you're just going to remove that.
-FWD rack and pinion (the FWD rack has the mount for the rear engine mount, AWD models do not have this)
-FWD axles, or at the very least the passenger side axle (auto or manual axles will work, if your old axles are good by all means reuse them!)

That should be everything, I can't think of anything else off the top of my head.

As for a tune, look into Vast (http://vasttuning.com/). He is highly regarded over on Volvospeed for tuning M4.4. Being a '98, you can just get a T5 manual ECU, but it's much better to get an actual tune on your current ECU for the manual swap.

Gtin · Post by **Gtin** » 03 Feb 2019, 10:43

Right on. I'm a little disappointed about losing the AWD option, but i think id rather have the manual transmission, loads more fun that way. and I'll have to buy a new passenger side axle, the one on my base model has been needing replaced for some time, driver side is nearly brand new though maybe 10k on it so it will get moved over.

Post by **erikv11** » 03 Feb 2019, 12:17

Buying replacement axles for a P80 is almost universally a bad news, downward spiral of poorly built parts and recurring hassle. Keep the old FWD axle if you can, what's wrong with it (unless you are $helling out for a Volvo part)? As long as you keep sealed boots on them, these CV axles last a very long time (300k +).

Post by **bmdubya1198** » 03 Feb 2019, 15:17

erikv11 wrote: 03 Feb 2019, 12:17 Buying replacement axles for a P80 is almost universally a bad news, downward spiral of poorly built parts and recurring hassle. Keep the old FWD axle if you can, what's wrong with it (unless you are $helling out for a Volvo part)? As long as you keep sealed boots on them, these CV axles last a very long time (300k +).

Yeah, definitely be careful buying new axles. It's best to rebuild (as in re-grease and replace the boot(s)) the original Volvo axles. I just went through an awful time sourcing axles for my R. Eventually I bought a used axle on eBay that needs new boots, because the new TrackMotive axle I had didn't even fit.

Post by **FlyingVolvo** » 03 Feb 2019, 15:22

bmdubya1198 wrote: 03 Feb 2019, 15:17
erikv11 wrote: 03 Feb 2019, 12:17 Buying replacement axles for a P80 is almost universally a bad news, downward spiral of poorly built parts and recurring hassle. Keep the old FWD axle if you can, what's wrong with it (unless you are $helling out for a Volvo part)? As long as you keep sealed boots on them, these CV axles last a very long time (300k +).
Yeah, definitely be careful buying new axles. It's best to rebuild (as in re-grease and replace the boot(s)) the original Volvo axles. I just went through an awful time sourcing axles for my R. Eventually I bought a used axle on eBay that needs new boots, because the new TrackMotive axle I had didn't even fit.

I'll third all of this. I'm on I think my 4th set of axles in about 8 years. I've always gotten brand new ones from the usual places and they're all garbage after a while. I regret not just spending the money the first time to get OEM axles.

Post by **bmdubya1198** » 04 Feb 2019, 08:17

I've had a leak from my passenger axle seal on my GLT since I installed my reman NAPA axle. I just haven't gotten around to replacing it yet (mainly because the junkyards haven't had any P80s lately), but I need to do that soon because the leak is getting worse.
I think when they remanufactured it they machined the axle too small in diameter where it rides on the seal. It just sucks since there is a warranty, but I highly doubt they're going to just refund my money. And I certainly don't want another leaky axle.

Gtin · Post by **Gtin** » 06 Feb 2019, 12:07

Had to replace the driverside with an AutoZone part on my old volvo unfortunately, rebuilding wasn't an option after my control arm popped ouy and the axle got torn apart. I mean i probably could have rebuilt it if I could have found all the pieces. I guess I got lucky on the part though I haven't had any issues out of it.