Hey guys, I recently bought my first Mazda b2200 carbed and auto, and I just picked up a manual trans, driveshaft, pedals, shift linkage, master cylinder, lines, and slave for a decent price. I just have to order a clutch kit, flywheel and bolts now. I've scoured this forum (and the rest of google) for a full parts list to do this swap and I haven't found anything. So if I missed it here I apologize in advance, but if not I'd like to put together a thread on how to do this. I come from working on Nissans and have done a bunch of auto-to-manual swaps, so I'm pretty confident that I can do this, but there are a few discrepancies that I've wondered about.

I'll list some small considerations that I'm currently unsure of below:
-is there a difference in the exhaust system between auto and manual?
-will I need to modify any vacuum lines?
-is it safe to assume the auto starter motor will need to be swapped?
-will the auto trans crossmember work with the manual?

I've only just begun planning this, so I may think of more to consider, but any sources of info are greatly appreciated and if you've ever done this swap yourself I'd love to have your input. My goal is to write a master parts list and document photos to keep here as a guide for anyone else. My apologies again if this has already been covered and I somehow missed it. Thanks for taking the time to read.

cheers guys

also here's a pic of my truck. It's not perfect but it had a previous owner that loved doing body work and before that it was sitting in a barn.

 

I'm in the middle of doing the same thing. We should chat. I am mostly through mine.

 

Hey frankenmazda I am also doing the swap as well on my 88. I was Hoping you could give me some advice and Any up front knowledge on things that may need modified to work. I have all manual parts pretty much a complete donor truck. My main question is the wiring I see that the auto trans has a ton of plugs on it.

 

Boy am I going to save you some time here. Lol. That drove me crazy. There are two plugs going to to auto trans. You only need the bigger of the two that has four wires. There are two big wires on one side of that connector. One blk/red and one blk/ylw. Those two are your neutral safety. Either jump them together to bypass the neutral safety switch or wire from there into the cab to the clutch pedal NSW. I bypassed mine. I always push in the clutch to start out of habit anyway. I feel it's just something else to leave you stranded if the switch breaks. Now the otger two wires on that plug are small. One is R/W and the other blk/ylw. Those two are your reverse light switch. Now on your trans the reverse light switch has bullet connectors and is on the drivers side. The neutral safety switch has spade connectors and is on the passenger side. They are both just switches so they just complete a circuit. So as long as the two small wires go to the reverse and the two big ones go to a switch or are contacted together you will be good. There are a couple of plugs under the auto shifter. You will not nees those. Leave them empty. One is for the OD and one is for the illumination for the auto gear selector. If you have any issues let me know. For this swap you have to have the right length driveshaft. The auto driveline is 2" shorter than the manual. It won't work. You also need the entire pedal bracket with clutch pedal if not you will not be able to mount the clutch master. (Through bolts vs welded bolts) you also need to clutch hard line that runs along the firewall. You need the manual crossmember. There are two brackets that bolt on the side of the engine to the trans. You need the manual ones. The auto are different. Other than the hole in the floor where the shifter comes through being a little off that's it. I just used some sheet metal and self tapping screws to cover the extra part of the hole. If you have any more questions just drop them here. I hope this helps!

 

Hi Frankenmazda,
I am also thinking of doing a tranny swap. I just bought a 91 B2600i with bad auto tranny. I have access to a parts truck thats I think an 86 or 87 with manual. Its a different engine so I was wandering if the flywheel, clutch and starter will interchange between the two. I am thinking its a totally different engine so I'm worried it won't swap.
Any advice you have would be greatly appreciated.

 

Awesome information! I greatly appreciate it frankenmazda. Gonna do some more wrenching in the next few days that sums up all my questions though thanks again!

 

Hi, having a issue with the flywheel,I bolt it to the crank and torque it and the flywheel still losses,my question is do I need a shim? My automatic transmission came with a spacer or shim that I tried but the flywheel is to far off the starter.

 

Hmmm - does the auto transmission use a different flywheel ???? They do use different starters.

 

YES!
Make sure you have the B2200 flywheel for a manual trans and do not use the shim(s) that was behind the auto trans flex plate.