Trimatic to Grey Motor Conversions

Includes clutch, transmission, propeller shaft,
universal joints, differential and rear axle.

Moderators: reidy, Blacky

mrs ratbox

Post by mrs ratbox »

i would assume it's welded to where the floor bracing that comes out from the inner sill where you would have cut out for floor mods that's where we've welded them before
Trev
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Post by Trev »

ratbox wrote:i would assume it's welded to where the floor bracing that comes out from the inner sill where you would have cut out for floor mods that's where we've welded them before
Bingo!

I just made sure it was going to work and welded it there :D , Trev 8) .
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mrs ratbox

Post by mrs ratbox »

Trev wrote:
ratbox wrote:i would assume it's welded to where the floor bracing that comes out from the inner sill where you would have cut out for floor mods that's where we've welded them before
Bingo!

I just made sure it was going to work and welded it there :D , Trev 8) .
one thing we found was to bring it as close to the gearbox (normal position) as you can or you may have to modify the position of the little wheels the cable runs on we've had the cable run off the wheel before
Trev
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Post by Trev »

I put it as close as it could be to the original spot so it works, made sure of this before welding it on.
When the front was sorted the rear cable was too short, so I extended the steel holder that joins the front bar to the cable, easy :D , Trev 8) .
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ek61
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Post by ek61 »

yeh nice work

will have a crack at it 8)

cheers dave
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FB MAD
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Post by FB MAD »

Trev wrote:
FB MAD wrote:Auto bodied EK should easy to fabricate a crossmember I'd guess as the auto rear crossmember floor braces are already there ready to make up the custom crossmember needed for trimatic rear mount.
Roger (the maker of the tri kit to grey) told me not to bother about a rear gearbox mount, just let it stick out the back! So thats what I have done.

With my hand brake I cut the mechanism off the manual cross member and welded it to the chassis near the gearbox, worked a treat :D , Trev 8) .
It would probably hang there without a rear gearbox support for twenty years with no problems at all encountered but I'd imagine that an engineer ( if the conversion ever had to be engineer scrutenised ) would probably have other ideas considering a trimatic is more than double the weight of a grey crashbox.

Just thought I'd mention it for thought if anyone was having to have a tri conversion approved by an engineer.

But if you can get away without having to fabricate one then all the more better :D :D :D
I can't think what to write here so this will do.
mrs ratbox

Post by mrs ratbox »

FB MAD wrote:
Trev wrote:
FB MAD wrote:Auto bodied EK should easy to fabricate a crossmember I'd guess as the auto rear crossmember floor braces are already there ready to make up the custom crossmember needed for trimatic rear mount.
Roger (the maker of the tri kit to grey) told me not to bother about a rear gearbox mount, just let it stick out the back! So thats what I have done.

With my hand brake I cut the mechanism off the manual cross member and welded it to the chassis near the gearbox, worked a treat :D , Trev 8) .
It would probably hang there without a rear gearbox support for twenty years with no problems at all encountered but I'd imagine that an engineer ( if the conversion ever had to be engineer scrutenised ) would probably have other ideas considering a trimatic is more than double the weight of a grey crashbox.

Just thought I'd mention it for thought if anyone was having to have a tri conversion approved by an engineer.

But if you can get away without having to fabricate one then all the more better :D :D :D
further to that i'm pretty sure the EJ autos had a rear crossmember same as the manuals in the earlier just a member under the rear of the box no actually attached, i would say as a precaution that the box cant drop if the front mount broke, figure there must be a reason why they started putting one on
EKjimmy
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Re: Trimatic to Grey Motor Conversions

Post by EKjimmy »

I've been scouring through all the trimatic conversion info i can find on the forum as well as FE/FC, and knowing me i've probably missed the bits i need.

As the hydramatic is slowly self destructing, i'll need to replace it before i get stuck on the side of the road. I'll be keeping the column shift.

from what i understand, i will need the following:
-Conversion kit from Rodger (got one already)
-Commodore torque converter with encapsulated nuts (apparently 360 degree bellhousing restricts access to other torque converters or something :roll: )
-Red motor starter motor
-Red motor flex plate (to be redrilled for grey crank)
-Hydramatic gearbox mounts-easy peasy :)
-360 degree bellhousing- i understand that these are found on 6 cyl commodores and late WB commercials. Are there any other models that have the right bellhousing. If i can't find the 360 degree one, or can't afford one, can the normal type be used (the one with the inspection plate etc)?
-Trimatic from any 6 cylinder commodore up to VK, or from a HZ-WB 6 cyl, or UC Torana (from what i know these are the ones with right hand side linkages for the column shift)
-Speedo cable from rares to suit trimatic/early holden (apparently not hard to get)


Now,
Do I need a different tailshaft, or does the EK Hydramatic one fit fine?
From what i've read it's not necessary to make a rear gearbox mount as the trimatic is lighter than the hydro, correct?
If i were to get a trimatic with the electric solenoid kickdown, will it present any problems.

The process itself seems pretty straightforward, it's figuring out what parts i need thats confusing for me.

Sorry to bring this topic up again, but like i said theres just a few questions i couldnt find definite answers for.

Cheers,
Jimmy
'The best engine in the world is a vagina. It can be started with only one finger. It is self-lubricating. It takes any size piston. And it changes it's own oil every four weeks. It is a pity that the management system is so f*$king temperamental.'
ekdoug67
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Re: Trimatic to Grey Motor Conversions

Post by ekdoug67 »

My trimatic is fitted to an EJ - Im guessing the EK is very similar. I fitted everything up first, did up all of the bolts ect, and left the driveshaft till last. It only needed one inch taken off so I took it to M & S driveshafts in Sunshine (Vic). I got them to change all of the bearings and uni's at the same time and all up it cost me around $300!
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EKjimmy
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Re: Trimatic to Grey Motor Conversions

Post by EKjimmy »

well i suppose $300 isn't too bad, it'd pretty much be like a new tailshaft anyway
'The best engine in the world is a vagina. It can be started with only one finger. It is self-lubricating. It takes any size piston. And it changes it's own oil every four weeks. It is a pity that the management system is so f*$king temperamental.'
ek61
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Re: Trimatic to Grey Motor Conversions

Post by ek61 »

ive just don this conversion as well

if u got the kit it should have had the flex plate in it drilled to suit

they recomended a lj auto shaft in the instructions but it is to short
so i will be getting the lh shaft i had in there shortened
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EKjimmy
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Re: Trimatic to Grey Motor Conversions

Post by EKjimmy »

yep got the kit with flex plate and kickdown linkage or whatever it is :lol:
can you still use electric solenoid kickdown? that's probably the last thing i'm a bit iffy on.
i know with vacuum kickdown it's just plumbed to the vacuum line, but wouldn't know what to do with electric solenoid one?
Jimmy
'The best engine in the world is a vagina. It can be started with only one finger. It is self-lubricating. It takes any size piston. And it changes it's own oil every four weeks. It is a pity that the management system is so f*$king temperamental.'
Trev
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Re: Trimatic to Grey Motor Conversions

Post by Trev »

I have just used the vacuum kick down and it works fine. Just leave the elec one unused!
It's a gear change linkage (if I'm thinking of the same thing).
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ek61
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Re: Trimatic to Grey Motor Conversions

Post by ek61 »

i reccon if it was electric you would have to fit a swich to the go pedal
like the hq j z style
i wouldnt think it would be to hard to do
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mrs ratbox

Re: Trimatic to Grey Motor Conversions

Post by mrs ratbox »

all trimatics have elec kickdown except maybe the very first ones so this won't affect you, i've fitted many trimatics to different cars and never hooked up the kickdown and they change fine and kickback fine (maybe a little later than normal) like trev said, the vacum line is for the modulator this needs to be hooked up or it won't change gears
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