- Edited
My primary questions are; Can this be done? Is it worth it? How much should I expect to pay?
Converting a 244 Auto to 244 manual?
1. Absolutely.
2. Absolutely.
3. I have answered the first 2 questions, someone else can take over from here :)
2. Absolutely.
3. I have answered the first 2 questions, someone else can take over from here :)
3. Do you have a donor car/motor, box etc and how muuch is your time worth?
- Edited
Agreed with Robs comments.
Cost will vary with which box you'd like to use.
If you want to use a volvo box, you have 3 real options.
M45 - straight 4 speed
M46 - 4 speed +OD. Probably the most common now. Overdrive is electric and finding a decent one is becoming a little harder as they age.
M47 - 5 speed. alloy case. found in later cars.
LH2.4 flywheel for M47 is becoming harder to get, but you may not need it depending on the year of your car.
You'll need:
* Box
* crossmember
* front tailshaft section
* pedal assembly
* master cyl
* slave cyl
* hard hydraulic lines
* clutch kit
You'd probably want to put a new clutch in it while its apart.
Expect $280 - $380 or so, depending on which box you choose and brand of clutch. LUK and Sachs are good and have a good service life.
For a complete M47 with everything you need (except for a new clutch, see above) - $450 - $650 would be reasonable I'd think
For a complete M46 with everything you need (except for a new clutch, see above) - $300 - $500
For a complete M45 with everything you need (except for a new clutch, see above) - $250 - $400
They're ballpark, someone else may chime in, but I think this would be reasonable.
Front tailshaft section for M47 is becoming difficult to get, as is LH2.4 flywheel (as per above).
If you came across a box at a generic wrecker (pick-a-part, etc), they're likely to be cheaper than that and you may even have some luck on one of their 'specials' days where all gearboxs cost X.
If you choose to go outside of Volvo options, Dellow do a kit for the Toyota W55 & W58 boxes.
Mixed reviews on the completeness of the kit, but it is suitable/usable.
Cost will vary with which box you'd like to use.
If you want to use a volvo box, you have 3 real options.
M45 - straight 4 speed
M46 - 4 speed +OD. Probably the most common now. Overdrive is electric and finding a decent one is becoming a little harder as they age.
M47 - 5 speed. alloy case. found in later cars.
LH2.4 flywheel for M47 is becoming harder to get, but you may not need it depending on the year of your car.
You'll need:
* Box
* crossmember
* front tailshaft section
* pedal assembly
* master cyl
* slave cyl
* hard hydraulic lines
* clutch kit
You'd probably want to put a new clutch in it while its apart.
Expect $280 - $380 or so, depending on which box you choose and brand of clutch. LUK and Sachs are good and have a good service life.
For a complete M47 with everything you need (except for a new clutch, see above) - $450 - $650 would be reasonable I'd think
For a complete M46 with everything you need (except for a new clutch, see above) - $300 - $500
For a complete M45 with everything you need (except for a new clutch, see above) - $250 - $400
They're ballpark, someone else may chime in, but I think this would be reasonable.
Front tailshaft section for M47 is becoming difficult to get, as is LH2.4 flywheel (as per above).
If you came across a box at a generic wrecker (pick-a-part, etc), they're likely to be cheaper than that and you may even have some luck on one of their 'specials' days where all gearboxs cost X.
If you choose to go outside of Volvo options, Dellow do a kit for the Toyota W55 & W58 boxes.
Mixed reviews on the completeness of the kit, but it is suitable/usable.
- Edited
Quite a straight-forward job, really. There are a few traps for the unwary, however:
1. Flywheels change depending on the intake.
Carburettor and mechanically injected (K-Jetronic) motors use the same flat FW.
LH2.2 and Motronic share the same dished FW that has one (two?) crank position indicator.
LH2.4 uses a dished FW that has a series of holes on its OD for crank position and speed.
If you have a LH2.2 or 2.4 car, you must use the correct FW to suit your car.
2. 1986+ model gearboxes don't have a speedo cable drive. These boxes were fitted to cars with electronic speedos, on the differential cover - if you fit a later gearbox to a -85 car, you won't have anything to connect the car's speedo cable to.
(Some 86 and possibly 87 model 240s have the older M46 [4-speed plus electric overdrive] gearboxes in them. I'm not sure if they have a speedo drive or not - I assume so.)
Everything else is pretty much a direct bolt in. The pedal box is a time-consuming pain to change over, but not actually difficult.
It is amazing how much better they go with a manual gearbox.
1. Flywheels change depending on the intake.
Carburettor and mechanically injected (K-Jetronic) motors use the same flat FW.
LH2.2 and Motronic share the same dished FW that has one (two?) crank position indicator.
LH2.4 uses a dished FW that has a series of holes on its OD for crank position and speed.
If you have a LH2.2 or 2.4 car, you must use the correct FW to suit your car.
2. 1986+ model gearboxes don't have a speedo cable drive. These boxes were fitted to cars with electronic speedos, on the differential cover - if you fit a later gearbox to a -85 car, you won't have anything to connect the car's speedo cable to.
(Some 86 and possibly 87 model 240s have the older M46 [4-speed plus electric overdrive] gearboxes in them. I'm not sure if they have a speedo drive or not - I assume so.)
Everything else is pretty much a direct bolt in. The pedal box is a time-consuming pain to change over, but not actually difficult.
It is amazing how much better they go with a manual gearbox.
More generally...
There are a few different manual gearboxes that came fitted to 240 Volvos:
1. M40. 4-speed. 1975 only. Same basic gearbox as fitted to the 1972+ 140s. Cast iron case. Easily identified by NOT have a reverse lock-out ring on the gear lever.
2. M45. 4-speed from 1976 onward. Bigger and stronger than the M40. Cast iron case. Slightly better shifting, but there's not much in it. Late ones have aluminium main cases.
These are the bread-and-butter 240 manual boxes.
3. M46. 4-speed plus electric overdrive. These are basically an M45 with the OD unit added. Cast iron case.
ODs can be unreliable and expensive to fix.
4. M47. From about 1986, but with some overlap as noted in the previous post. Basically a proper 5-speed version of the M45. Aluminium case.
There has been some speculation around the reduced strength of the alloy-cased versions compared to their earlier steel-cased versions, but it seems that the differences are minimal, and that the box' history makes a larger difference.
They're all decent gearboxes that are pretty well unkillable behind a standard motor, but none will handle big power with much grace...
If you have a lot of power, and/or abuse the gearbox, then I'd suggest looking at a T5/Tremec or Supra gearbox conversion.
There are a few different manual gearboxes that came fitted to 240 Volvos:
1. M40. 4-speed. 1975 only. Same basic gearbox as fitted to the 1972+ 140s. Cast iron case. Easily identified by NOT have a reverse lock-out ring on the gear lever.
2. M45. 4-speed from 1976 onward. Bigger and stronger than the M40. Cast iron case. Slightly better shifting, but there's not much in it. Late ones have aluminium main cases.
These are the bread-and-butter 240 manual boxes.
3. M46. 4-speed plus electric overdrive. These are basically an M45 with the OD unit added. Cast iron case.
ODs can be unreliable and expensive to fix.
4. M47. From about 1986, but with some overlap as noted in the previous post. Basically a proper 5-speed version of the M45. Aluminium case.
There has been some speculation around the reduced strength of the alloy-cased versions compared to their earlier steel-cased versions, but it seems that the differences are minimal, and that the box' history makes a larger difference.
They're all decent gearboxes that are pretty well unkillable behind a standard motor, but none will handle big power with much grace...
If you have a lot of power, and/or abuse the gearbox, then I'd suggest looking at a T5/Tremec or Supra gearbox conversion.
I recently converted a 1977 244DL (see my sig) from auto (BW55) to manual (M46). The process is fairly straightforward:beema41 wroteMy primary questions are; Can this be done? Is it worth it? How much should I expect to pay?
1. From the donor car, take the gearbox, pedal box, speedo cable, flywheel, clutch master, clutch slave, clutch hardline mounting bracket in the engine bay near the passenger-side wheel well, take the propshaft and support plate and take the gearbox crossmember.
2. Remove the old auto gearbox and prop shaft. This is much easier if you just remove the whole engine.
3. Get some degreaser and a scourer and clean away all the pebblecoat from around the new crossmember bolt holes (they'll be fore of the auto gearbox bolt holes). Then turn the bolts in and out to finish cleaning the threads out.
4. Separate the old auto gearbox from the engine. Remove the flexplate, and finally remove the metal bush from the back of the crank (it sticks out, just put some wd40 on it and work it free with a pipe wrench or a bearing puller if you have one)
5. Install the new spigot bearing where that metal bush was
6. BUY A CLUTCH KIT
7. Assemble the clutch kit to the flywheel and bolt it all on.
8. Put the engine and gearbox back together. Now is a good time to replace the the gearbox oil if you haven't already, as it's much more annoying to do it when the gearbox is installed.
9. Replace the old speedo cable with the one from the donor car - once you put the crossmember back this is very difficult to do, so do it now.
10. Install the pedal box and clutch master. Install the clutch slave on the engine.
11. Put engine back in, connect propshaft, baton all hatches, etc etc.
12. Bleed the clutch. The clutch will not release its remaining air without a fight. @VolvoHordz once told me to disassemble the slave and remove the piston and let gravity pull fluid into the bore, then put the piston back in, and that worked for me. You'll need circlip pliers if that's the case (you'll need them anyway though I think, to remove the slave from its mount on the bellhousing).
13. Do things I forgot to put here
14. Try to start car. Cry because it won't start. Realise you've forgotten to bridge the neutral safety switch circuit. Do that. Start car. Stall it. Start again, drive away happily.
15. Left foot in, right foot in, left foot out, slide it all about.
Oh and your only costs aside from tools are the donor car (I got mine for $300) and the clutch kit (something like $200). I would budget two weekends. One weekend to liberate the parts from the donor car, and one weekend to install it in the new car.
Exactly as mentioned above. I just swapped an AW70 to a M47 on a LH2.4 wagon and it was almost too easy.
Just remember that flywheel bolts are torque-to-yield so should be replaced. You can get them from your local Volvo parts guy with part number #946379 (~$64). Or just be a cheapass and use the old bolts and some red locktite.
TB has some good threads on converting older flywheels to LH2.4 if you get stuck, and the greenbooks on k-jet.org basically walk you through the whole thing with pictures.
Just remember that flywheel bolts are torque-to-yield so should be replaced. You can get them from your local Volvo parts guy with part number #946379 (~$64). Or just be a cheapass and use the old bolts and some red locktite.
TB has some good threads on converting older flywheels to LH2.4 if you get stuck, and the greenbooks on k-jet.org basically walk you through the whole thing with pictures.
I have an M46 from an 86 model, it does not have a speedo output and cannot be readily converted. The hole where it is normally fitted in the overdrive unit is not machined.Spac;11521 wroteSome 86 and possibly 87 model 240s have the older M46 [4-speed plus electric overdrive] gearboxes in them. I'm not sure if they have a speedo drive or not - I assume so
83ish to 85ish is the crossover period where Volvo went from box/cable Speedo to diff sensor ring/electronic Speedo, hence why there are different boxes and configs.
I've got a 4 speed and a 4 speed w/overdrive. I am leaning towards the non-overdrive option. Will I have speedo issues in my '84?
If it's all cable drive, then no.
Actually the back section of the overdrive can be swapped for an earlier one with the drive etc. One from a 1 series and earlier 2 series does the trick. I assume triumph, rover etc bits can be used too.VolvoHordz;12247 wroteI have an M46 from an 86 model, it does not have a speedo output and cannot be readily converted. The hole where it is normally fitted in the overdrive unit is not machined.Spac;11521 wroteSome 86 and possibly 87 model 240s have the older M46 [4-speed plus electric overdrive] gearboxes in them. I'm not sure if they have a speedo drive or not - I assume so
Anything is of course possible but given its not that hard to find one with the speedo output already, I cant imagine it would be worth the effort.volvodriverman;12366 wroteActually the back section of the overdrive can be swapped for an earlier one with the drive etc. One from a 1 series and earlier 2 series does the trick. I assume triumph, rover etc bits can be used too.
As they are a reasonably common OD unit there is a fair bit amount of info online for them if one desires to pull one apart. With a bit of time and a few basic tools you can replace all the seals and gaskets. There is all of a couple $ of o-rings, a few gaskets you can cut yourself if your motivated, and a output seal worth a few $.
2 months later
- Edited
Did you have to drill a hole in the firewall?jamesinc;11533 wrote10. Install the pedal box and clutch master. Install the clutch slave on the engine.
11. Put engine back in, connect propshaft, baton all hatches, etc etc.
12. Bleed the clutch. The clutch will not release its remaining air without a fight. @VolvoHordz once told me to disassemble the slave and remove the piston and let gravity pull fluid into the bore, then put the piston back in, and that worked for me. You'll need circlip pliers if that's the case (you'll need them anyway though I think, to remove the slave from its mount on the bellhousing).
13. Do things I forgot to put here
I helped a mate convert his BW35 242GT to M46; we had to drill a pretty big hole, using a hole-saw, to fit the master cylinder (either that or remove the steering gear & heaps of other stuff to swap the "insert" in the firewall over). Volvo Oz must have swapped that "insert" panel outta the auto-gearbox donor-car when they did the conversions Back In The Day.
No, there was a blanking plate bolted where the clutch master went.
my 1993 required the use of a very large drill bit followed by effort with a die grinder
Also...
If wanting to convert a 240... just buy my nicly running 88 (in for sale) and use it a parts bin
Also...
If wanting to convert a 240... just buy my nicly running 88 (in for sale) and use it a parts bin
I'd love to know "why" in cases like this - why can you see cars that look so much the same, and they're different?jamesinc;17656 wroteNo, there was a blanking plate bolted where the clutch master went.
It's going to be something simple like "they all had holes, and fitted blanking-plates, in Oz-built cars up until 1981" or something like that. But it'd just be interesting to know. :)
Every single automatic Volvo i've owned just had a blanking plate, good place to run 0 gauge stereo wire.