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Which transmissions bolt into the 1200, and what is involved in swapping them? Basically any B110, B210 or B310 gearbox will bolt to any Nissan A Engine, but minor fabrication is needed in some cases. In no case will a custom driveshaft be needed - if you can source the appropriate factory shaft.
Contents |
See Also
- For swapping of automatic transmissions, see Automatic#Interchange
- 5-Speeds
Overview
Interchange
Only these interchange, meaning they can be bolted in place and used as-is with each other no matter which car they came from:
* four-speeds for A14/A15 engines * four-speeds for A12/A13/A12A engines
The 56 and 60 series transmissions all swap with each other and use the same driveshaft - except the crossmember mounting bolt hole locations differ. Make a simple bracket to adapt the mount. The location of the Reverse Switch can differ though.
Note that this simple interchange list does not include:
- emission control interchange
- RHD vs LHD
Swapping
There are several minor differences between most A-series transmissions that prevent a strict interchange, although they can all be swapped with some additional parts sourcing or minor fabrication. Differences include:
* gearbox mount location * reverse lamp location * transmission length and output spline * Strength (torque rating) * emission fittings (top swith and/or neutral switch) * Cable-operated clutch (most RHD) vs Hydraulic clutch
More involved swaps include:
* T50 Transmission Swap for countries where Datsun 5-speeds are rare * 6-speed Swap
Strength
Gearboxes are rated for maximum torque (twisting force). The HP is irrelevant unless engine capacity or RPM are known, from which the torque can be deduced.
* 60-Series Transmission add lightness for best performance suitable for the torque of an A12 or A13 engine
* 60-Series Transmission are stronger, but heavier suitable for the torque of an A14 or A15
* 63-Series Transmission are larger and very heavy Fitted to five-speed B210 with A14 engine suitable for supercharged A-series engines
The 63 5-speed gearbox was designed for the 1.6/1.8/2.0 liter class, but used in the B210 because a lighter 5-speed was not available in 1976.
Sources
B10
Datsun 1000 uses 56-Series Transmission, but employ a unique bell-crank clutch release lever system. For this reason they are not swapped with other A-series engined cars.
B110
Datsun 1200 used:
* 3W56R - three-speed column shift * F4W56L - early 1200s 1971 USA used either the L or A type. See Hollander. * F4W56A - lates 1200s * FS5C56A - Datsun 1200 GX-5
B210
A12-powered * F4W56A - B210 with A12 engine * FS5C56A - B210 with A12 engine, five-speed
A14-powered * F4W60 - 60-Series Transmission, four-speed * FS5W63A - 63-Series Transmission, five-speed
B310
B310 (markedted as Datsun Sunny, 210 or 140Y/150Y) used these gearboxes:
A12/A12A/A13-powered: 56-Series Transmission * F4W56A
A14/A15-powered: 60-Series Transmission * F4W60 - four-speed * FS5W60L - five-speed dogleg shifter (1977-1979) * FS5W60A - five-speed standard shifter (1980-1982)
A10
1977-1981 Nissan A10 ("Nissan Violet/Auster/Stanza") in Japan were fitted with base A14 engine and used the F4W60 gearbox.
Vanette
C10, C20, C22, C120 Vanette used remote shift (R) gearboxes which can be converted to floor shift (S) by swapping the rear housing.
Swap Notes
60-series gearboxes are same length (both 4-speeds and 5-speeds). The output splines are same. Ditto for the lighter 56-series 4-speed. You only need to fabricate a mount adapter to swap between these transmissions. B310 came with 3 different crossmembers which will bolt to any B310 so factory parts can be used.
See:
5-speeds * 56-series 5-speed Swap Notes * 60-series 5-speed Swap Notes * 63-series 5-speed Swap Notes
4-speeds - F4W60 fitted to A14/A15 - F4W56A fitted to A12A The mount points for the crossmember differ
5-speeds - FS5W63A fitted to B210 - FS5W60 fitted to B310 The mount points for the crossmember differ The output spline and length differs
Driveshaft
All manual gearboxes use the same driveshaft (tailshaft), except for the 63-series. So with most swaps it is no problem.
63-series
The 63-Series Transmission is shorter and so requires a longer driveshaft. It also has larger output splines. The automatic transmission driveshaft will work when swapping this 5-speed into a 4-speed car (except for B310). See 63-Series_5-speed_Swap_Note.
Australia
Australia-assembled B110 and B210 sedans used a BW rear axle assembly, so require the matching driveshafts. For this reason when swapping to a 63-series gearbox a custom driveshaft will be required.
Reverse Switch
The location of the Reverse Switch can differ between all the different transmission. It is generally a problem when fitting any 60-series or 63-series gearbox in to the small 1200 manual tunnel. The reverse-light switch is right where the Datsun 1200 chassis x-member mount is. Options include:
- Remove the Reverse Switch, discard it, then plug the hole. A spare A12 engine-block drain plug fits (from the side of the engine block). Optionally you can fit a switch to the shifter to activate the reverse lamp.
- Use a big hammer to beat the chassis out to make room
- Cut a hole in the side of the tunnel and let the switch protrude into the cabin. Then cover/enclose the switch with custom-bent sheet metal
- Fit a larger Tunnel
See Reverse Switch
Speedometer Cable
Emissions
Note that this simple interchange list does not include emission control interchange. Some year/model/market transmissions include a Neutral Switch or Top Switch - and some include both. For example, a Datsun 210 with same engine, same year, the transmission differs between California and Federal markets. If you need to pass emissions, be careful in sourcing the transmission.
If the transmission has extra switches, just leave them disconnected.
If you need more switches, get the right transmission. In some cases you can drill and tap the boss (if it exists) to install the switch.
Hydraulic vs Cable
Right-hand drive vehicles generally have Cable-operated clutch, while Left-hand drive cars all utlize a Hydraulic clutch system.
Exception: the B210.A14 five-speed is same RHD and LHD Both use hydraulic clutch system
To swap the others RHD to LHD, you will need:
* Clutch Release LeverLHD
:RHD * To use hydraulic gearbox in cable car, cut out the lever hole
* To use cable gearbox in hydraulic car, cut out the lever hole AND drill and tap the boss to mount the slave cylinder
See main article: Release_Lever#Converting