[SixSick6]

Tools needed: A whole damn box

This job is alot less painful with an impact wrench.

If you're doing it in a driveway/garage/parking lot (basically any place without a lift) you're going to need some good stuff that you can MAKE WORK.

I used two jackstands, a hydraulic floor jack (as a tranny jack) and a crappy OE trunk/spare tire jack.

You're going to be working mainly on the drivers side, so start removing everything on top. This includes the airbox, throttle body boot, vaf boot, vaf, turbo hoses/piping for the GT's-bypass valve, positive and negative battery cables, negative ground, main fuse wiring, speedometer cable, basically anything in the way.



You obviously want to have a resurfaced flywheel before you start. You have a couple options here, buy one from a member on the boards and have it resurfaced and (lightened if you wish) at a reputable shop, OR you can buy a refurbished flywheel from your local parts store (probably alot less headache going this route)

Kragen/PartsAmerica shows:Standard Flywheels 905 for $45.99 plus $40.00 "core charge" for the GT's

I got mine from MSGT-R for an 18 pack of MGD in bottles Plus mine as a core

Next you're gonna want a CLUTCH ASSEMBLY which includes the pressure plate, pilot/throwout bearing, centering tool, and clutch disk.

I went with an OE Exedy/Daikin combo from http://www.clutchcityonline.com

$140 for the whole thing, which isnt a bad price considering that the same combo at Mazda costs over $500 and it isnt even a "performance clutch"


Nice setup for the price, and considering that the original lasted 145K and could have/would have lasted a few more miles.



Front and backside of pressure plate



Anytime that you are going to be underneath a motor and messing with things like motor mounts, it's always a good idea to brace it from above as well as underneath. A good friend of mine in highschool died because he went to a junkyard by himself and tried to pull a motor, it fell on him and needless to say he spent a few weeks in ICU before he finally passed

Not that this 2x4 is the greatest idea But when we were pulling the transmission, the hydraulic jack underneath DID slip and the 2x4's saved it from coming all the way down. Well, the 2x4's AND the passenger side motor mount....but you get the idea.

This is that pesky speedo cable and driven gear that always seems to not want to budgewhen you need it to

The speedo cable unscrews but you can leave the driven gear in, untill you are ready to add new fluid.

I highly recommend Valvoline 80-90 Synthetic, it costs less than the $8.99 a quart Ryal Purple that I had in, and is basically the same except it is BRIGHT YELLW....betcha thought the Lakers would win ehhh?

Anyways, onto the starter, it must also be removed.

But first you need to remove the intake manifold bracket

Now is also a good time to loosen the lower transmission mount, two 17mm bolts on the outside that go through the transaxle case and mate with a thin bracket on the other side, and one 17mm nut on the inside that is attached to the center bolt in the mount itself.

While you're underneath, you're going to want to remove the shift linkage and probably should replace the shifter bushings while you're at it (part numbers are listed on the site via search option and you can get everything for around $30 from the dealership)

One thing to remember when changing the shift linkage is that the bolt that connects the shift linkage to the transaxle is threaded with a non threaded section in the middle of the bolt (what does this mean you ask?)

Well, the shift linkage bracket that the bolt slips through has thread on both sides. So when you remove the nut and try to pull the bolt out, it won't budge untill you reverse it out with a socket. When you get the threads out, you'll try to pull it out again and won't be able to, it will reach the top section where it must be reversed once again.

This little feature assures that the bolt never slips out entirely and you don't lose your shift linkage while in the drivers seat at 120mph when your diamond floor mats are flying out the window.

Moving along, you have a whole new animal to conquer "THE WHEEL HUBS"

This is where having an impact wrench really comes in handy. You'll need a 32mm socket, and since it is on with 160-180FPT, you're going to need some muscle if you don't have an impact wrench.

You're also going to want to remove you drivers side endlink, strut section, brake caliper (hang on the splash guard holes with a few twist ties) ball joint and tie rod end.

The strut section is 17mm bolts and nuts, the ball joint bolt is 12 or 14mm? And you'll need some type of wedge to spread the bracket while you raise it off the ball joint.

You'll need a tie rod seperator for the tie rod, available for rent at Autozone.

Make sure you align it correctly, and it'll come off with a few turns.

Once you get the wheel hubs off, you can start concentrating on the front and rear motor mounts as well as loosening all of the transaxles bolts (19mm's) and removing both axles.

Once you have the bolts all loosened and removed (with the exception of the two top bolts) you can take brace the motor and underside of the transmission in preparation for removing the front and rear tranny mounts.
Once you get the tranny mounts out and the transaxle is secured, remove the two top bolts and start the process of seperating the transaxle from the block. It helps if you have a few hands for help at this point, any uneven movement is going to cause it to shift and make it harder to seperate at some points, and easier at others.