U660E Transmission conversion: Auto -> Semi-Auto

[450HP/tonne]

Difficulty of this question: Expert

I purchased an AT-X to remove the engine/transmission and use in a chassis that I will build.

For those of you who have driven the Aurion in S-Mode, you understand that limits the transmission to a particular range (from 1st to Nth gear, where N is the selection). What I want to do is have the transmission in the gear I select (N), not the range.

The new Bolwell Nagari achieves this with the 2GR and U660E. Here is the drive.com.au review (sorry about the ad, scroll to the end to skip it):

http://media.drive.com.au/cars/car-reviews...car-794090.html?

Has anyone tried to do this using an aftermarket tool, or the vehicle speed input to the transmission ECU? I have wiring diagrams to keep me going, but I thought I should check that I am not reinventing the wheel. If then I have trouble I might have to ask someone / buy something from Bolwell.

[e240]

I think its more in the Transmission ECU, the way its programmed rather than sensors or wiring.

Difficulty of this question: Expert

I purchased an AT-X to remove the engine/transmission and use in a chassis that I will build.

For those of you who have driven the Aurion in S-Mode, you understand that limits the transmission to a particular range (from 1st to Nth gear, where N is the selection). What I want to do is have the transmission in the gear I select (N), not the range.

The new Bolwell Nagari achieves this with the 2GR and U660E. Here is the drive.com.au review (sorry about the ad, scroll to the end to skip it):

http://media.drive.com.au/cars/car-reviews...car-794090.html?

Has anyone tried to do this using an aftermarket tool, or the vehicle speed input to the transmission ECU? I have wiring diagrams to keep me going, but I thought I should check that I am not reinventing the wheel. If then I have trouble I might have to ask someone / buy something from Bolwell.

[450HP/tonne]

I think its more in the Transmission ECU, the way its programmed rather than sensors or wiring.

True, there are two strategies for achieving this, here is an example as to how tricking the speed input may work:

I have just gone from S-1 to S-2 and I am doing 40 km/h at 100% throttle with the engine at full operating temperature. Usually this means 1st gear, but I want to be in the gear I choose - 2nd in this case.

If I change the inputs to the transmission ECU so that it thinks the car is travelling at 60 km/h, then 1st is a not a suitable option according to the ECU programming logic. But 2nd gear still is still an OK option and shifts accordingly.

I am also happy to look at software solutions, but I can't find any ... suggestions please?

Edited November 15, 2009 by 450HP/tonne

[SecaBoy]

i understand what you're trying to do (and if you achieve it, i'll be the first to purchase it!), but from the little research i've done, you'd have to basically bypass the auto ecu completely...

now, if you're not running the stock engine/car ecu, then it shouldnt be any issue for you... but from what i understand the ecu's are connected and the car wont work without both of them...

(could possibly trick the engine ecu to think its in neutral, but dont know if that would work)

i had a setup in my S13 silvia with an rb20det...

it was the normal auto gearbox but connected via this little black box to the ecu...

so i would have to manual select each gear i wanted to be in... ie, 1 = 1st gear, 2 = 2nd gear, D = 3rd gear and overdrive = 4th gear... (did that make sense? lol)

the guys that made that little black box were in Adelaide and they were called MV Automatics... (absolute geniuses, imo!)

dont know if that makes any sense to ya or not... hopefully its not just a big page of rambling...

[cranky]

if you talk to bolwell ask them how they got the extra power from the engine aswell.

i found this on one site.

"Bolwell is buying complete Toyota Aurion cars straight off Toyota's Altona production line and stripping them of their 3.5-litre engines, gearboxes and other parts before using them in the Nagari."

Edited November 17, 2009 by cranky

[450HP/tonne]

if you talk to bolwell ask them how they got the extra power from the engine aswell.

i found this on one site.

"Bolwell is buying complete Toyota Aurion cars straight off Toyota's Altona production line and stripping them of their 3.5-litre engines, gearboxes and other parts before using them in the Nagari."

We all know adding a supercharger adds about 40kW from stock ... But if you also add an intercooler, the gain goes up over 80kW (as tested during TRD development).

There is also an off-road modification for about $25,000 ... You get at twin turbo setup with 600HP!

But I digress.

The transmission failsafe, when the ECU detects a speed input error, is limiting shifting to 1st and 3rd - We can't have that!

So I'm studying the wiring digrams and shift patterns right now ...

[Freddo]

you can get a full ecu to control engine and trans... like a motec.

[450HP/tonne]

you can get a full ecu to control engine and trans... like a motec.

The difficulty then is getting it registered to run on the road in that condition ... emissions are the problem here.

And the cost of buying such a system adds up to about the same as the value of the entire powertrain :(

[Foss]

You get at twin turbo setup with 600HP!

In a FRONT WHEEL DRIVE?!?!

Um...... no thank you.... I value my life.

"Bolwell is buying complete Toyota Aurion cars straight off Toyota's Altona production line and stripping them of their 3.5-litre engines, gearboxes and other parts before using them in the Nagari."

Do we know whether "engines, gearboxes and other parts" includes the stock ECUs? I'm certainly no expert, but if they used a modified stock tranny ECU, wouldn't it be possible to reflash ours with Bolwell's software?

Though I daresay they would charge a mint for it.

[450HP/tonne]

You get at twin turbo setup with 600HP!

In a FRONT WHEEL DRIVE?!?!

Um...... no thank you.... I value my life.

Heavily modified, but my mistake: 600kW (805HP) at the flywheel!

Not front wheel drive ...

Toyota Jimco 2000

"Bolwell is buying complete Toyota Aurion cars straight off Toyota's Altona production line and stripping them of their 3.5-litre engines, gearboxes and other parts before using them in the Nagari."

Do we know whether "engines, gearboxes and other parts" includes the stock ECUs? I'm certainly no expert, but if they used a modified stock tranny ECU, wouldn't it be possible to reflash ours with Bolwell's software?

Though I daresay they would charge a mint for it.

Unfortunately, I think I'll be finding out through Bolwell. The control circuit for what I want to do is getting more and more complicated :(

[Foss]

Holy sh!t, Batman! 600kw... Thats madness.

My FWD point, though, was assuming the engine was still in an Aurion.

I'll be interested to hear how you go with Bolwell. Not that I wanna go ripping anything outta my ZR6, but like probably many others here, I would like my 'sports' mode to give me manual control like it should be.

[httttt]

but like probably many others here, I would like my 'sports' mode to give me manual control like it should be.

This is a really interesting thread.

My wish isnt so much manual selection of gears but rather when in sports mode it completely forgets about the 'learning ecu' and actually puts the ecu into 'sports mode'. Like the new Holden Calais do.

[Foss]

...but rather when in sports mode it completely forgets about the 'learning ecu' and actually puts the ecu into 'sports mode'. Like the new Holden Calais do.

How so? I've not driven a new Calais.

[httttt]

How so? I've not driven a new Calais.

When in normal drive it is in conservative mode, when in 'sports' mode it is not conservative at all.

[Foss]

When in normal drive it is in conservative mode, when in 'sports' mode it is not conservative at all.

So in normal mode you can drive like a nanna, but if you bang it in 'sports' and fair hammer it, it wont try and keep driving that way when you chuck it back to normal mode?

[httttt]

Not exactly.

D Drive = Nana

S Sports = 200 killer wasps

back into D Drive = Nana again

[Foss]

Ah. Though personally I'd still prefer manual selection in 'S' mode, rather than range limitation. But even the Calais style setup would be better than what we have now. The only use I have found so far for 'S' mode is to keep it in 3rd while turning at intersections, because it tends to drop to 3rd when I back off to turn, but then when trying to accelerate out of the corner, it goes straight back to 4th half way thru. With a manual selection mode, I get to tell the car what to do all the time. I'm an IT bloke, but if theres one place where I don't want a computer doing everything for me, its my car.

[450HP/tonne]

Ah. Though personally I'd still prefer manual selection in 'S' mode, rather than range limitation. But even the Calais style setup would be better than what we have now. The only use I have found so far for 'S' mode is to keep it in 3rd while turning at intersections, because it tends to drop to 3rd when I back off to turn, but then when trying to accelerate out of the corner, it goes straight back to 4th half way thru. With a manual selection mode, I get to tell the car what to do all the time. I'm an IT bloke, but if theres one place where I don't want a computer doing everything for me, its my car.

This is another example of a scenario of what I would like to do.

Yes, the Holden's currently do it better. Particularly when I was working on the 2010 Chev Camaro (at Holden), it had a manual mode that would change how you wanted unless it would stall the engine or go over the redline. It was the same case when I drove a Lexus IS-F

As I'm removing the engine and gearbox to build my own car ... I want what I want when I want!

Still thinking about how to achieve this.

[terryo]

did anything ever come of this??. i'm using an Aurion engine and maybe the auto in a project race car.

[450HP/tonne]

did anything ever come of this??. i'm using an Aurion engine and maybe the auto in a project race car.

Nothing yet. If you want it, you'll have to build it yourself.

Else get your hands on a Toyota EA60 manual, as used by the Lotus Evora. The catch: that transaxle is only available in Europe and New Zealand ...

[CHA54]

you could always make an SW20 E series box fit with a bit of fabrication, like the MR2 guys do with their 2gr swaps.

Or give the guys at PCS the technical info on the box and have it supported by the TCM-2000: http://www.powertraincontrolsolutions.com/transcontrol.php

[450HP/tonne]

you could always make an SW20 E series box fit with a bit of fabrication, like the MR2 guys do with their 2gr swaps.

Or give the guys at PCS the technical info on the box and have it supported by the TCM-2000: http://www.powertraincontrolsolutions.com/transcontrol.php

Yes, you could use an E153 (also available on Camry) work ... but us racers usually tend to buy new parts. More reliable you see. You know some learner driver hasn't been crashing through the gears.

[Guest]

get an E153 and get it reco?

[CHA54]

you can still buy E153's brand new from toyota.... Can even buy them online eg http://www.monkeywre...roducts_id=1176

MWR can also sell the Evora 6 speeds and do ship internationally: http://www.monkeywrenchracing.com/index.php?cPath=326_327_340

Edited April 26, 2012 by CHA54

[trentmeyer23]

Toyota prices are insane and Monkey Wrench would kill you in shipping. I agree with Mick on the Reco.