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btw if you can, you can get a wiring harness from a 92-93sohc mx3 and a bp05 ecu. You will have the best setup for the bp and your cutoff will be a 7500rpm. and dont forget to use the BP injector and MAF

for your clutch, i recommend buying a ACT since you plan on going turbo eventually.

http://www.psituning.ca/store/product_i ... cts_id/146

Got the interior wiring done. Just need to put the dash back in (and the seats and the steering column) and then I can move on to pulling the tranny. After that, I'll put the new motor in with the new tranny already attached.

OK...I have a question about the shifter assembly...the shifter fell out the bottom of the assembly today. The bracket that holds it all in is still bolted to the car, but the spring/boot part and the shifter and knob fell through the round hole. I guess they were just sitting in there from what it looks like? Will all that stay in place when it's all bolted to the tranny, or do I have to get some replacement parts (I'm going to get a short shifter anyway...)?

dont bother using the manual ecu.... just get the harness for the manual and the ecu, clean it all up real nice, and put it away in your closet. all your plugs are going to plug right into the BP engine, the only thing is your going to have to use the TB from your 1.6 if the plug is different. Dont mess things up my screwing around with the wireing for only temporary use. When your ready to put the manual tranny, then you will change the wiring harness and the ecu. that way you wont cut / splice wires now, and then try to re- do them later....

Well, I'm doing the auto-manual swap at the same time, so I need the manual harness. And it's really best to use the ECU that comes with the engine, because it will be tuned to the BP, whereas my old ECU is tuned to the B6.

And update though:

I got a manual MX-3 harness from a buddy who works at the junk yard. They got a new MX-3 in yesterday, and while working under the hood, he pulled the harness and dropped it by, knowing that it would make my life easier. So now everything plugs in correctly, all my plugs and wires match up where they should, and everything is ready to be put back together in the interior.

So in the next few days, I will start pulling the old tranny, and then on to the actual SWAP, finally...

Today I picked up the manual BP starter, flywheel, alt. pulley, and distributor. So all I have to get now parts-wise is a clutch kit and a passenger side axle.

I pulled the old tranny today as well, so now I get to start putting everything together and getting it ready to put back in the car. I still want a short shifter too, but that's not on my must-have list.

BTW...does anyone know how to hook up the plug wires on the BP? The wires weren't attached or labled when I got the motor, so I don't know which wires go to which plugs on the distributor.

I picked up the rest of the parts I needed (pass. side axle and clutch kit), so in the next few days, I will be putting the motor together and getting ready to drop it in. I have Saturday off, so hopefully it will be ready to go into the car by then. I'm hoping to at least get it started Saturday, and if I don't get finished, I'll finish up on Monday since I have that off too.

Today I ran the wires for the VICS system, and changed out the injector harness so it would plug in to my MX-3 engine harness. I cut the fuel send and return lines so I can connect the MX-3 fuel hoses with hose clamps and not have to worry about the weird Ford connector that came on the motor.

Alright...tomorrow's the big day!

I got the engine and the transmission put together, and all the brackets, nuts, and bolts that go on them. Getting the clutch aligned was a pain, at first but once I figured out how to use the tool correctly, it wasn't that bad. So everything's in place, all my tools are organized (sort of), and the BP is ready to drop in.

I still have to get some hoses and belts and stuff, but those will go on after the motor is in the car. I'm going to take some pictures after I eat something (I'm starving!)...I'll post them in a minute.

Here are some pics of the new motor all painted and put together...

Here's one of my engine bay with no engine...and no transmission...



YAY! No more automatic! Now I just gotta learn how to drive a stick...

Oh...and this one's the best...it's my garage...looks like a mini-junkyard...parts everywhere...

Well I got the new motor in today. Everything is pretty much together...except I have a little problem. The axles seem to have some kind of ring around them to hold them into the tranny. I can't seem to get the axles in with the rings in place. Any tips?

Other than that, everything's all good. Tomorrow is belts, fluids, and hopefully solve my axle problem. I will post pics from today sometime tomorrow...I'm too tired to do it now.

Here it goes...

Axles...check.

Shift Linkage...check.

Belts...WTF?

I got the belts for the car, but I guess since I have sort of a frankenstein under the hood the belts don't fit. I'm using the BP motor with the B6 power steering pump and compressor, and the alternator from a GS.

So I guess I have to go to the parts store and get some belts that are a little bit larger. It'll have to be trial and error from here on out. I just want to get it done so I can put the wheels back on and get the car on all fours again.

I'm going to go do some research here and find out if anyone on the boards has any suggestions for my belt problem.

Excellent swap notes. Did you get the belt situation figured out?

Thanks...yeah I got the right belts after 4 trips to the auto store.

For anyone wondering...

- I'm using a Ford BP
- MX-3 GS alternator with the pulley from the Ford BP alternator
- MX-3 RS power steering pump
- MX-3 RS A/C compressor

V-belt size: 36.5 inches (Dayco part #17365)
Serp. belt size: 40 inches (Dayco part #5040400)

OK...so here the REALLY BIG news...I STARTED THE CAR TODAY!

It felt so good to get it running. It was a little rough for about 10-15 minutes, but then, all of a sudden, all the loud noises stopped and it just purred. I guess it just needed to get re-lubricated after sitting without fluids for so long.

I do have a slight problem...not so much a motor problem, but a cosmetic problem. I painted the exaust manifold with some high temp. paint...and I guess the paint wasn't high temp. enough, so the paint is just baking off...and giving off a lot of smoke. Kinda annoying, especially since I put more than a few layers of paint on the sucker. Oh well...it will all bake off eventually...then no more smoke...hopefully...

So my other problem is motor related...the cooling fans don't come on. Sometimes when I give it gas the temp. rises to about 3/4 (not to the mark beore the red mark). It doesn't get any hotter, and I'm sure the temp. wouldn't get so high if the fans worked, so I have to figure that out tomorrow.

Also, I need to bleed the clutch lines...there's still some air in there I think, because the clutch isn't working. It has basically no pressure whatsoever, and the fluid level in the resivoir hasn't gone down at all.

Other than that, the new BP runs great. A little loud (need a new manifold to exaust pipe gasket, none on there as of now...), but very very throaty. It sounds beautiful. I'll post more when I get my problems fixed hopefully tomorrow. Maybe some pics too.