How To: convert your civic from an auto to a manual

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12.8:1 Ls/vtec

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Ok, I've done this to my car and have seen this question asked at least 50-100 times since I've been on this site. Probably even after I do this, I will still continue to see people asking blind questions, so if anyone asks, tell their sorry asses to search the how-to's b/c the info is reliable and complete.
Okay here is a list of what you will need for a 5th gen
  1. Shift linkage(specific to motor, I'll explain more later)
  2. brake/gas pedal assembly(92-00 civic,94-01 integra)
  3. clutch pedal assembly(92-00 civic,94-01 integra)
  4. clutch master cylinder and reservoir
  5. clutch slave cylinder
  6. clutch hard lines and soft line
  7. L bracket for trans from manual car(specific for motor)
  8. Rear engine mount from manual car
  9. Dot 4 brake fluid,soldering iron, solder, heat shrink, lighter, electrical tape, extra 16 Ga. wire
  10. manual trans, clutch kit, flywheel, manual car flywheel bolts( longer than the auto one)
  11. shift boot, shift knob, some nuts and bolts to mount the shift linkage inside the car(prefferably 12 mm head and a nut to fit it with lock washers
http://www.hondacivicforum.com/m_295187/tm.htm

This site will help you better understand what wires will need to go where, the important ones are the ones that fools your car into thinking it is always in park, the reverse lights WILL NOT work unless externally wired up from inside the car, there is also a way to get the car start only when the clutch pedal is pressed in. Your automatic car will not have the cruise control switch or the clutch interlock switch in the harnss under the dash so don't waste your time looking, I did for like 15 minutes until I looked in my hatch and saw it would have been visble and unhidden. Make sure when you get the pedal assemblies, that you take all the bolts with you or hope you know you have some at home that will work, also get the clutch interlock swith plug off the harness, just cut the wires a couple of inches out, and get the cruise control cutoff switch plug if you plan on running cruise control. If the car you took the pedals from doesn't have the cruise control, then you will have to get the switch that tells the unit to disengage the cruise control, also, you will need the gas pedal off a car with cruise control or use the part off you pedal tha it connects to and put it on the other pedal or just leave you pedal in place if you plan on just converting your D or B to manual and you already have a throttle cable that is for that car.

The throttle cables are quite different between the auto and manual cars, so are the upper parts of the gas pedals themselves.

Very important
The automatic body of the car that you have will have a different transmission bracket off the frame than the manual 5th gen body, I'm sure the 6th gens don't have this problem b/c of the same type of bolt on mount that goes on the frame, but if you are doing a 5th gen auto to manual, then you can buy an AVID auto-manual mount which is a solid mount that goes up to the higher bracket, Hasport makes one also, You can get the mounts off of ebay for about $135-$175. Your other option is to drill out the spot welds out and then chisle off the bracket from the car, do the same to a manual car, clean up the parts and prep them for welding with bare metal, then following up with weld though primer, then weld the spot welds, clean them up, bare metal primer, primer surfacer, scuff, prep and paint, or you could just buy a mount and call it a day. the manual mount from the manual car WILL NOT work on the automatic car b/c it won't reach the higher bracket.

Go to honda and buy 3 qt.s of manual trans fluid, and buy the shift linkage pin for the trans, should be less than $15. Also get the dust cover for the trans so no dirt of water gets thrown into the bell housing of the trans.

*I'll be specific with what shift linkages you can use
For the 92-00 civic D series, you can only use the 92-00 civic D series linkage
If you are going to a B series you can use a 99-00 civic Si linkage, a 92-95 sir2 b16 linkage,or a 94-01 integra linkage

*Del sols can only use Del sol linkages, not sure on whether the D is different in the Del sol, but If you are converting to a B series, then you MUST have a Del sol Vtec b16 linkage.

Pics of the different brackets.
manual
http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k75/Coelacanth007/manualmount.jpg
auto
http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k75/Coelacanth007/autobracket.jpg
You can see that the automatic one raises up and the manual one goes out straight, but only in the 5th gen.(this is the car I did my swap in, my dd)

Okay, so back to the wiring, and the install. The wiring info is in the site I posted earlier
Pedal installation, sorry for no pics of this but I scavenged someone elses from H-T and it should show you a little more than I can tell you

http://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=1337459
This is in a 6th gen so some of the sensors will be different like the cruise switch and the clutch interlock switch.

When you go to wiring, go to the hondacivicforum up there and look at the plug, this plug is the one that goes to the electrical part of the shifter, cut it between the plug and the part that goes to the mechanical part of the shifter
* cut 2 2.5-3 ft of wire for the clutch interlock switch and wire the big guage wire at points #11 and #12 and run the wires to the switch, I don't think it matters which side goes where b/c it is just carrying the power to the starter when the clutch pedal closes the circuit.
*Loop the Green/white wire at point #10 to the black wire that is not located at#7 so the car will always think that it is in park. (there are 2 black wires)
*Run the green wire at #4 and the yellow at #5 to the reverse plug b/c the reverse lights won't work unless you run the wires though the firewall to the plug.
*Cruise control I don't have, so I didn't have to use it but wire the #7 wire and the #13 wire to the switch on the clutch assembly.

*Also, you will need to drill out holes for where the shift linkage is going to have to bolt. The 2 shallow holes have a single piece of sheet metal that you will only need to drill a hole about 10 mm wide so your bolt will go through and your nut will sit nicely up on top. IF you have a 6th gen, you will have to cut a good chunk of metal out so the shifter will clear, but in a 5th gen you will just have a hole, weld it up or just clean it really well and put dynamat over the hole(what I did).

*Also, get your right axles and use the manual ecu b/c you will have a couple of codes for the tranny that isn't there. If you want to put a cluster with a tach in, all you have to do is plug it in, no questions asked, just bolt it in and your tach will work.

You really don't have to drop the steering wheel out to do this if you modify a screwdriver with a dremmel. Just put a slot in the screwdriver so you can put the springs that keep the tension on the pedals. Do the gas pedal/brake pedal first so you will have more room to work with. When you will have to do the clutch pedal, you will have to move the interlock assembly, just put it behind the carpet so you can take your key out of the ignition. If you want to pull the column, then you might have room to work with, but will have to move around the column. I can only say the worst part is putting the pedals in. Take the motor out before before putting the hydraulic lines in, and have plenty of tools. I didn't write any of the info I have links on, so I can't guarantee that it is perfect, or you comprehend it, but it is right. I am not responsible for your mess ups or if you can't follow directions. good luck and hope this helps you out with your swap. There are pics on the sites I have found the swaps on so just click the links.
 

12.8:1 Ls/vtec

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And to go back and say something, in the hondatech article, the interlock is unnecessary if you do the wiring I said and leave the interlock box plugged in behind the carpet.
 


hardcore97

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good info. tranny bracket is also different between manual and auto trannies on 6th gens
 

Szady

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good info. tranny bracket is also different between manual and auto trannies on 6th gens
Only the upper and front torque ones are. The rear one is the same. :thumbs up

Bump b/c I was going thru and looking on how to do a 5spd conversion on a 5th Gen...
 


Ceros

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Not sure, but don't you need a 5 speed intake manifold and a throttle body?
 

MyLittleTeg

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Great write up. Using this as a reference for my integra 5 speed swap. I've looked all over for a detailed guide of everything I need and all I got from everyone was wiring harness, ecu, and trans.
 
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