Bored with your automatic car and want to manual-swap it? Learn from my mistakes

Picture this: you have a functional automatic car that does its job fine. But, after a few years of driving an automatic, coupled with the #SaveTheManuals movement, you figured: “Why not swap my car to a manual?”

Well, on paper at least, it seems like a simple enough idea, correct? Well, not quite.

I was in this particular boat, as I swapped my car’s four-speed automatic in favour of a five-speed manual. After going through some interesting experience, here's some tips to avoid mistakes and time-wasting mis-steps.

It's never plug and play

First things first, converting your automatic car into a manual isn't quite plug-and-play. Often times, there will be issues to iron out, no matter how good the workshop. With enough time, patience, and money, any problem can be solved, it's only a matter of whether can you live with the issues or not. 

What issues you ask? Anything from an automatic ECU AT trying to communicate with a no longer existing AT box, and weird warning lights in the instrument cluster. An incorrect speed sensor in my Swift also resulted in an inaccurate speedometer and a non-functioning VVT.

Depending on car, it is also crucial to find out where the manual transmission conversion kit is from. In some cases, importers may bring in a left-hand drive manual transmission set, which will pose as a headache in the future. Insist on a right-hand drive manual conversion kit when possible.

You should also find out if there are any difference between a facelift and pre-facelift model? Depending on car, generally a facelifted model half-cut is preferred, but fitment might be an issue, so it’s best to go in with your eyes wide open. 

In the case of the Swift Sport, the facelifted model has a slightly higher redline (6,800 rpm to 7,200 rpm), revised gear ratios, and various other differences. Some of these parts are not interchangeable, despite being the same model. 

After you’ve done your necessary homework, you should also expect things to break or fail even if it’s plug and play. At the end of the day, these are used parts, not brand-new, and parts breaking are part of the experience.

The headache-free way is not the cheap way

Now, it may sound a tad bit overkill, sourcing for an entire half-cut just for a transmission swap, but coming from me who has done both, this is the way to go.

With a half-cut in hand (or rather in the workshop), converting your car to a manual is as simple as removing your car’s current powertrain and replacing it with the half-cut unit. Cutting wires or missing parts? No such thing, as the half-cut has all the necessary wiring and parts required for the job.

For the parts necessary for a conversion, these are the general list: brake master pump, slave pump, clutch pedal assembly, gear console trim, and gear shifter with linkage. The manual transmission side should include the drive shafts, flywheel, and clutch.

In my case, when converting from my 1.5-litre engine to the Swift Sport's 1.6-litre unit, it was also necessary to replace the rims in the process, as the regular Swift has a four-lug wheel, while the Sport has a five-lug wheel. You will need to factor in the cost to get a new set of rims as well.

Has anyone else done a similar job?

Before putting your money down for the conversion job, find out and see if anyone else has done a similar job on the same car as yours. 

Those who has done a similar job can also recommend you a workshop to do the conversion.

Workshop said it can be done, but do they have the experience?

Another aspect I want to stress about is getting a specialist workshop to do the job. While some workshops can do a trouble-free swap, a specialist would know things that a general workshop wouldn’t, such as parts that need custom fabrication.

If there are parts that require custom fabrication, you need to be aware of the material, cost, and quality.

It is also worth noting that for an automatic-to-manual transmission swap, it is necessary to drill a hole in the firewall for the clutch pump. Automatic cars do not have a clutch pump hole, as there is no clutch to speak of.

As such, it is crucial to ensure that the hole the workshop drilled is treated with antirust, or else you could get a rusted firewall over time. Depending on car, reinforcement where the clutch pump is also necessary.

Not all half-cuts are the same

We can’t stress this enough. It is crucial to get your half-cut from a trustworthy shop, and not some random fella who posted an ad on Facebook. Doing so will lessen the possibility of ending up with a damaged gearbox.

When purchasing your half-cut, you should also ask for the warranty. Warranty period differs from shop to shop, so it’s best to be a smart consumer and compare the warranty period. Although some shops allow you to start the engine before buying, they may not offer a warranty. Other half-cut shops do offer a return policy if the engine has issues, so it's best to shop around, compare, and ask. 

Where is the engine?

Going for the gearbox alone option only makes sense if you can’t source for an entire half-cut. Converting some automatic cars in Malaysia to a manual isn’t quite as straightforward, since manual versions of these cars were never sold here, and those importing the gearboxes only bring in the bare necessary.

This was the initial path I ventured when I got my car. At that time, it seemed like a pretty straightforward method, no?

Evidently not, as apart from the gearbox, pedal, gear shifter, and meter cluster, there was nothing else included, not even a manual ECU or wiring harness. The latter two are crucial for a trouble-free conversion.

This certainly opened a can of worms, as without the correct manual ECU and wiring harness, the car’s original automatic ECU (or TCU, depending on car), kept thinking that the car was in Neutral. Granted, barring the confused ECU, the rest of my car worked well enough.

Cheap and lousy workmanship could burn your car

Think of the car’s wiring harness like its your nervous system. One mistake and it could potentially cripple your car.

When it comes to a transmission swap, it is crucial not to mess up your wiring harness. Just because the automatic shifter linkage is no longer in use, don’t just remove it without consulting with your workshop, as removing various wiring could lead to bigger problems down the road.

In fact, cutting and joining wires are not recommended – unless done right. A workshop that takes time to splice the wiring correctly shows the experience level of said workshop. Ideally, you will want to find for a workshop that has done such conversion jobs on a model similar to your car in the past, as this can eliminate any future issues.

If and when possible however, you can avoid this step altogether by opting for an entire half-cut and don’t cheap out.

Don't let excitement ruin your car

A good job takes time and rushing will not quicken things up. We get it, you are excited to try out your new manual transmission, but you should never rush your workshop.

Let your workshop take their time to complete the conversion job properly. Your wallet and bank account will thank you, as it will minimize future visits to the workshop.

There are other things to consider as well

Another potential headache is replacement clutches. In the case of my car, sourcing for a clutch kit wasn’t as straightforward as I thought, owing to the fact that my car was never offered with a manual in Malaysia.

My only option was to import a clutch from overseas, incurring massive postage and possibly getting taxed along the way. The same can be said for a lot of manual-converted cars out there, as clutch replacements aren’t readily available at most part stockists.

Then there’s smaller things like the meter cluster. Some manual conversion kits exclude the meter cluster, which seems fine to most people, but in some cases, you might encounter weird issues, like the shift light blinking.

As for me, after a few years of driving around with the swapped transmission and ECU that’s perpetually confused, I opted for a full half-cut. Not only did opting for a full half-cut solved the clutch sourcing issue, it also gave my car a little power bump.