Celica Forums General Discussion Exterior auto to manual

Is there a way to change an auto to a manual. Im pretty sure there is. If so, how hard is it to install. I know that manual Celicas are faster, so after Im done with auto,I want to tranfer to a manual.

it is possible, but it is much more feasible to just trade in your auto for a manual. myself, being an auto driver, would just reccomend you trade in right now if you really wanna do stuff. the auto is very dissapointing performance wise. but to answer your question, you would have to get a new transmission obviously, a new ECU, run clutch lines, and install the clutch, so a lot of work

Usually when people switch over form auto to manual , there are a lot of problems involved because they have never really got it working "to satisfactory conditions" . U get a lot of problems and dissapointments with the swtich over

This auto-manual idea is pointless. Buy a stickshift instead of grandma automatic next time!

hey hey hey dont knock autos. but i wish i learned manual b4 getting my car . but either way it'll cost whether to trade or tranny swap. Just wait till you get a brand new car.

yeah just get a manual. It is way better than auto

i have a broken hand at the moment and its hard to drive but i still would rather die than drive an auto

My rodeo is a manual. There are times when I can almost beat a mini-van.

Therefore, manuals are the best. I personally don't enjoy an automatic as much. I don't feel like the work i'm doing (steering) is really contributing to the ride.

But seriously, I can almost beat a mini-van.

these threads make me laugh

All right, I admit, I embellished. I actually only almost beat a mini-van once.




The other times weren't even close.


...and worse...It's actually true.

hey isaac pass the popcorn...lol

Autos are not bad tho. I used to drive an Auto GT, it was great while it lasted. If you want a stick shift, sell it and get a stick shift, don't try to convert it. But both ways you win since no matter what you do you are still driving a Celi

learn to love it. think about it like this, if you have a girl sittin next to you, you can fondle her with ur free hand =]

^^^ heh.. I can drive a manual AND fondle at the same time!!
I'm going to have a play with a vid camera soon, I'll post some driving videos to freak you out with some abnormal left handed gearstick action (but no fondling!)

Left handed gearstick action, o shit, lol.

The Celica is a small car, I can still fondle with my girl when driving the 6 Speed. The passenger seat is right next to the shifter, not like those weird new Civic SI HB where the shifter is in the center console.

TEST DRIVE THE DAMN THING BEFORE YOU BUY!

Oh well. Ill just drive it for 2-3 years then trade it in and get an 05 GTS manual. Its not that big a deal for me.

It's not hard at all. Just a simple plug and play mod. Unplug your old transmission and plug a new one in.

Takes under 5 minutes if you know what you are doing.


Once you have the manual transmission in, hook up a PC to your car via the ECU where you can manually change/edit your gear ratios, just like in GT3.

slidr... I think you forget to add the " " to your post

Let us know how you like that 05' GTS

Heheh, yeah I did.




*Waiting for someone to post a thread about this, inquiring how to go about this easy mod*

Are there any guides to this process. My dad is a really good engineer and can do many things. Im not worried on the dificulty of the task. I just need to know how. And my big brother works for Toyota as head of the parts department, so I have connections. He is also a good mechanic. I wont be mentioning this to my dad though right now. He doesnt like the idea of manual. He can drive manual, but he just doesnt want to spend the money on the clutch when they go out and the chance of me ruining my engine cause of mis-shifting. That is one of the biggest reasons I have auto right now. If I want low insurance, $375, I have to go through my dad. So Im at his mercy for now. But I do plan on getting manual, one way or another. Plus I still need to learn how to drive manual.

Just trade it in. I don't care for I know this person and that person can hook me up and this person will, and that one is a mechanical engineering genius, and this and that talk. It would be more in your interest just to ditch the auto if you want a manual.
Not to sound harse, but you should've gotten a stick to begin with.
You're not the only one and this has been going on for some time. It usually has to deal with young people not experienced with a manual. Just get the Celica with a stick and learn. It's not hard and not like going to college and planning the rest of your life out. It's not like I like that girl, but. It's not even where can we hang out and drink these beers I stole from my dad hard.
Just to put it into more of a perspective. I buy something for $1,000. I better know damn sure what I'm buying and what I'm getting into. Without going into it blindly.
That's called experience. You just had one of those moments in life. Live and learn.

A used tranny & everything you need would be about $1200. You would probably want to put in an aftermarket clutch while you have it apart, so price that as well.

Its a fair bit of work. It would take about 20 hours of shop labour at a garage, a lot more if you don't have the tools & know-how. If you serious, I can give you more details.

Yes I would like more info but I wont be doing this for 2 years. I appresiate the info very much. And Hephaestus, I didnt buy this car. My dad bought it for me and if I wanted it and low insurance cost, I had to get the auto. I REALLY HAD NOT CHOICE IN THAT PART OF THE MATTER!!! This is also one of my first cars. I dont think Ive told yal but im 18 and havnt driven long AT ALL (few months). If I wanted a Celica given to me, I had to get auto. Everything else was my choice alone. I myself dont have money to buy a car. So I choose this. I dont really mind having auto so im NOT regreting getting it. I just like to think ahead and I know I will want to drive manual in the future (not right now, I barly have my license long)but I love my Celica and I will lose more money in trading my car in than if I just convert it. And learning how to drive manual wont be hard. It all in the rythem, im not driving auto cause I think manual is too hard!! Now I will apologize if I sounded very mad.

Wait till you do it, its a lot of typing for a hypethetical situation.

In short, you pretty much have to pull your motor at the same time, or at least do all the same work, drop your drive shafts & all that. Change your shifter, linkages & hook up your hydraulic clutch, change your ECU to an M/T version.

@Haulin_A_Doo, I have a 2001 GT with an Auto-Trans, and I want to do the swap to a Manual 6-Speed. Will a J160 work for this?

Shoot me a PM when you get a chance, would love to pick your brain!

(The vehicle is getting ready to be torn down to the bare bones, so pulling the motor & current trans is not a problem!)