Decided to post here, since there is no performance section in 2G CL. Kind of in a unique situation wherein I have an spare CLS 6 speed gear set with 3.285 final drive gear... And 8th gen accord 6spd trans with 3.55 final drive. I was already planning to tear down the latter of the two, being it has an issue shifting into 2nd gear.

To add to the mix, the 8GA is also currently running shorter than normal 255/40/17 tires, which paired with the 3.55 FD makes the speedo read higher than actual speed. In turn I have to rev higher and use more gas to reach the speed I actually want...

So that said, I've been considering swapping in the spare 3.285 FD, gearset and oil drive gear to the 8GA trans, which will yield more mph at lower rpms for hopefully better gas mileage.

Second, the 3.55 FD, mainshaft and oil drive gear, will go into the CLS trans for better off the line response. However, on the flip side, I either have to use the 8GA open diff or order another LSD and custom drilled final drive gear. Such as the one from p2r.

Labor will all be done by me, so no issues there.
​
Thoughts?

 

Made a typo above, countershaft (p/n 23221-R89-000) meshes with final drive.

Also, link to P2r custom drilled gear:
https://www.powerrevracing.com/P2R-J...ear-p/p759.htm

 

619rcr, not sure if you have considered it; however, if possible, you may want to reach out to forum member Bense.
He's the self-professed 'OEM Frankenstein geared Honda transmission' guru & may be able to recommend alternative gearing to get a better overall gear set ratio for your needs?
Bense's J-series Manual Transmission modifications thread (BenseBuilt Close-Ratio) - AcuraZine - Acura Enthusiast Community

 

Thanks Zeta, I have had some interaction with Bense in the past on another forum. But, the last time I tried to pm him, he didn't reply. Likely he's too busy with his business to get on the forums. Thus. I haven't inquired with him about this particular swap.

In my research here, I did come across a 3.8 FD swap thread on the 3G side. But, it was seemingly experimental at the time:
https://acurazine.com/forums/3g-tl-p...-drive-910949/

I also found a clip from youtuber Sancho Sevy discussing a CLS 12bolt LSD being mated to an 14 bolt 8GA 3.55 ring gear.


In both cases the individuals had the ring gear drilled for the non-matching holes. However, I think it would be simpler to use the p2r off the shelf ring gear.

 

So continuing on the last post. I'm going to first remove the CLS trans. However, this time I decided to try a variation of the 'brother technique' to remove the trans from the top, while still leaving the engine and subframe in. Guess what, it works.

Overview of the process:
1) Drain trans, drain coolant, remove fans & radiator, remove battery (mine is in the trunk), remove starter, disconnect throttle body, unbolt and remove intake manifold.
2) Disconnect all plugs around and on trans, disconnect and move shifter cables. Unbolt and move slave cylinder out of the way.
3) Remove axles and intermediate shaft. Remove driver side trans mounts and lower bolts connecting engine to trans.
4) Support trans from the top two hooks, but do not place too much stress on bolts. Unbolt remaining top bolts from trans and leave in place.
5) Support front head with brace over front corner near the cam cover. Be careful to select something that will not move and crack the oil cap. Unbolt the front mount bracket and remove.
6) Unbolt and remove the reverse lockout solenoid. Be careful not to lose the spring and plunger when separating the housing from the trans.
7) This is where is gets messy, put a pan under the thermostat housing. Then unbolt and remove the coolant inlet/outlet with thermostat housing assy from the heads.

Now it should look something like this
​​​​​​


The rest can be explained with pics...


Trans pushed back

Alternate angle.

Clutch removed

Flywheel removed

Up, up and away.

 

Thanks for all the pictures and nice to see the brother technique can be applied to the swapped Accord!
@Acura TL Builder would be proud of your hybrid endeavor.

Just curious, what did you end up using to protect the oil cap at the yellow arrow?
It appears to be an extension of the strap on top of the red brace?

 

Thanks Zeta,

Yes, the accord is pretty open and easy to work on. Back when I employed the original technique for my 3G TLS clutch replacement, I left the trans in and it took me more than a day to swap the clutch. Primarily because the engine bay space was so constrained, the TLS trans also seemed bigger. It took forever to line the trans back up.

As for your question about supporting the front head, I used the hook end of a hold down strap. The strap was not needed so I balled it up to keep it out of the way. The hook itself was connected to a spare lift point eyelet and bolt I had laying around.


A few other times I've used chain attached to the same bolt hole. But, under the weight of the engine the chain was pressing up against the cap, so I removed the cap and covered the oil fill hole with masking tape.

 

Minor update, ordered a few parts: P2R custom ring gear for the CLS trans. Also a stage 1 clutch and LSD diff for the 8GA. Clutch is backordered. Meanwhile I have some suspension work to do on the 8GA.

 

Got a call from P2R today. 3.55 Final drive gear is out of stock. Another batch is in-work and estimated to be done in a couple weeks. Coincidently, the stage 1 clutch for the 8GA, also got delayed another 2 weeks.

On the plus side, the used LSD I ordered for the 8GA got here today. From what I could tell by temporarily inserting the intermediate shaft, it seems to work. So, hopefully this weekend I can at least start on that portion of the swap.

 

Second trans was a bit more difficult to remove. But, it's finally out.

And yes, the grease covered sub-frame is still in.

Found broken front motor mount in the process. Also, don't like the condition of the flywheel. So, more parts to order.

 

Is an AASCO on the agenda to avoid any potential clutchmasters shenanigans?

 

Not at this time, trying to keep mostly stock for daily driving. Planning to order a LUK replacement to pair with stage 1 clutch that's on order. After swapping final drive, adding LSD and fixing second gear, plan is to get some coilovers. Might flash with ktuner, then that'll probably be it for a while.

 

Quick pic of the two sets side by side.

8GA 3.55 w/ open diff vs 2G CLS 3.285 w/ LSD

Also, to no surprise the 2nd gear synchro on the 8G has damaged teeth. Luckily, it shares the same part# as CLS (23432-PYZ-305).

 

^
All of that gear goodness looks like a 'work of art'.

 

lol... word.

Had to get a little creative with my harbor freight press. But, managed to get the countershafts disassembled. The 8GA base gear is just slightly taller than the 2G CLS

Next on the agenda is cleaning and oiling.
​

 

619rcr, just curious, when you assess the carrier bearings, as part of your teardown process for the set of two below, are you finding any visible galling or bearing wear from the miles travelled on each set?

 

Surprisingly no. The bearings seem intact and smooth. Although, the gear oil and magnet in the 8G trans was pretty dirty. Likely from the beat up 2nd gear synchro set (top center).

Countershaft swap 1 is now temp installed in the 8GA housing; along with 3.285 final drive and LSD.


The removed 8GA countershaft and gear oil pump drive are bagged, since it will be a while for the P2R gear.

 

Nearly a month later, still waiting on the p2r 3.55 ring gear. Supposedly a week ago the batch was being heat treated.

In the interim, finally had time to get both transmissions side by side for some pics.

CLS-6 (top) vs 8GA (bottom).

gear oil pump drives

3.285 final drive (top) 3.55 final drive (bottom)

Trying to wrap up the 8G first, since I should have all the parts now: Stage 1 clutch, LUK fw, new slave cyl, p2r clutch line, front motor mount & p2r egr block off plates.

On a side note, finally installed the fic 650cc injectors and did some street tuning on the J35 6GA.

Anyways, time to get back to work on these cars...

 

Slight update, final drive swap 1 of 2 is complete:
A spare CLS LSD diff and final drive is now installed into 8GA trans. Stage 1 clutch and new Luk flywheel also installed. Drove the car about 12 miles last night. Surprisingly with the 17" TLS wheel/tire combo the speedometer was in synch with gps up to about 55mph. This meets my goal for this swap.




Still no eta on the p2r custom ring gear for swap 2. Need to call again this week

 

So, didn't want to say anything yet. But, after some back and forth with P2R was finally given a eta of next week for the backordered ring gear.

Also, expecting some carbon synchros and synchro springs tomorrow. New differential carrier (side) bearings are on hand. But, saving those for the 8GA given it's DD status.

Couple more unrelated plans brewing as well.

 

Wonder if I can finish my transmission swap before you finish fixing yours.

 

Maybe... while waiting on parts ​​​​been cleaning and painting a bit:


Trans case is primed, but not painted yet:



Also working on swapping all the synchros and springs with Synchrotech parts:

 

Interestingly, it appears the 5th and 6th gear synchros were replaced at some time. Stock synchros have brass teeth. However this (left) set appears to be aftermarket. Color is similar to Synchrotech (right).
​​​​

Being that the top bearing practically slides off with no effort, presuming it was the ebay seller who sold an alleged 'low mileage' CLS gearset.

In any case main & counter shafts are back together. In addition to synchros the countershaft was swapped for the 8GA.

 

Finally some good news

 

About 10-11weeks later, P2R care package has arrived:




All bolts loosely installed


Big slots facilitate 12/14 bolt differentials

Kind of anxious to feel what difference gear ratio and new synchros will make. But, unfortunately will have to wait for few days due to work schedule.

 

Finally had a day off. Transmission is reassembled. Will have to wait until the weekend to reinstall.


Don't look to close at paint. Had to redo a section. Anyways it's what's inside that counts.

 

Wanted to post one last update. After wrapping up some recent engine mods, finally got to test drive the car yesterday.

I do notice a quicker ramp up from takeoff. But, with all the recent changes to the car, it's hard to distinguish gearing ratio changes from the other recent mods (bc cams, 12:1 CR pistons, J37 intake, aem fuel pump).

Besides that, the biggest welcome change is that the speedometer is actually accurate up to fwy speeds (75mph around here).

Previously the gauge was around 5-6mph off at that speed and would get worse with higher speeds.

To be clear this was with 3G TLS replica wheels and 255/40/17s. Oddly the same wheels on the 8GA yielded nearly accurate speedo readings paired with the 3.285 final drive.

Anyways, for now I'm done with transmission mods.

 

Great job man!

 

Why didn't you reach out to be when you were doing this?

P2Rs knowledge on these transmissions is unusually limited. Every time I hear about how he's got something for these transmissions made, this is what I think to myself

 

lol, good clip ^

Think I might've messaged you on 6GA, but that site is so old I'm not even sure the message went through.