Alright here it goes. I am going to be converting my '88 LeSabre T-Type to RWD. I am going to be back halfing it, with subframe connectors and modifiying the front cradle to mount the engine and trans. I am going IRS in the rear if i can manage to find a thunderbird in the junkyard. I am looking to run a supra R154 transmission with the Dodge bell housing. I am using the LN3 and building it but thats part 2.

The car is going to be able to spin the correct set of tires. The engine will be facing the proper direction. It will be good.

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~~~Freddy~~~ Wyotech Graduate, Future RCSAMS student
Pandora 1988 Lesabre T-Type 259000 miles
Darlington 1987 Lesabre T-Type 115000 miles
Cream Puff 1988 Lesabre T-Type 194500 miles

Sounds complicated but it just might work... I look forward to reading more

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2000 ssei gone but not forgotten

Current fleet:
2009 G8 v6, 2009 Avalanche LTZ, 2013 Volt

There is no might. Its going to work.

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~~~Freddy~~~ Wyotech Graduate, Future RCSAMS student
Pandora 1988 Lesabre T-Type 259000 miles
Darlington 1987 Lesabre T-Type 115000 miles
Cream Puff 1988 Lesabre T-Type 194500 miles

Aww, why the ln3? I mean, come on, you're putting so much work into it! At least swap an Aussie L67 in there! Can't wait to see pics of this build! When are you starting on it?

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2013 A4 P+ ------------------ Glacier White Metallic
6MT, Sport Pkg, JHM Stage 1 Clutch/LWFW, JHM Short Shifter, JHM HFC, USP SS Clutch Line, CR-15 Strut Bar, Alu Kreuz, BFI Shift Knob, EC Trans Mount Insert, VCDS tweaks.

Why does it have to be an Aussie L67?


(is there something wrong with OUR L67.....Series 2, that is, they never got the Series 1)

I got it. Peter's a CLOSET AUSSIE!

But I agree. Put some power in there with the swap. Considering what the RWD will cost you, the new motor won't be that much more in comparison.

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Click here for mod list for both cars
93 SSEi, 95 SLE (supercharged) 97 Buick LeSabre Limited
PontiacDad at WCBF '04: Cruise control? That's like surrendering!
Comprehensive guide to troubleshooting, rebuilding, and modifying Eaton Superchargers

Look forward to seeing and reading more!!

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1988 SSE-Gone but not forgotten.
2001 SSEI-304,572 miles, 3.5 Pulley, Intense PCM, Intense FWI Spectre filter, 160 tstat, ngk iridiums, belden wires, Silverstars-high and low beam, rebuilt tranny, shift kit, cooler, Dex VI fluid, replace the rear compressor and lines and level sensor, Monroe air shocks in back, FE5 struts and Moog strut mounts, Moog stabilizer bars, AC\Delco control arms.

2004 SLE-Stock, 195,000 miles,oldest son's baby now

2000 Ford Ranger-Stock, 352,000 hard, pizza delivery miles, new control arms (upper and lower), new(used) tranny

well, doesn't the RWD aussie L67 have a curved supercharger housing? I just think it would be more convenient, but on second thought, he'd probably have to custom-fab an intake anyways, so... forget that previous comment!

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2013 A4 P+ ------------------ Glacier White Metallic
6MT, Sport Pkg, JHM Stage 1 Clutch/LWFW, JHM Short Shifter, JHM HFC, USP SS Clutch Line, CR-15 Strut Bar, Alu Kreuz, BFI Shift Knob, EC Trans Mount Insert, VCDS tweaks.

Actually there are a few things wrong with the L67 to me. Everyone swaps to S2 L67. Nobody builds LN3s so thats why I am going to do it. It isnt going to be your normal build either Im looking for 8000+ RPMS and over 600hp. The engine is whats going to end up being the most expensive part.

Willwren- how much do you think its going to cost me to just convert to RWD minus the engine build?

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~~~Freddy~~~ Wyotech Graduate, Future RCSAMS student
Pandora 1988 Lesabre T-Type 259000 miles
Darlington 1987 Lesabre T-Type 115000 miles
Cream Puff 1988 Lesabre T-Type 194500 miles

OK time to update. I am going to be buying the IRS out of a Mercury Cougar. It was hit in the left rear wheel so it bent the hell out of the upper control arm, destroyed the shock and probably some other damage, the diff cover is broken so i dont know if the ring and pinion are any good still. But all of that is replaceable. I am getting the whole rear cradle for $250. Since i am going to be making my own tubular control arms i dont really care about them. The gears were probably going to get swapped out in the future anyways so no big loss if they are bad. I am probably going with coilovers.

I have found a R154 trans thats sitting in a '86 Supra at the same yard. Do you all know what other parts will i need with it? I would assume that the clutch, linkage, pedal, pressure plate, shift forks, shifter. I read on a jeep forum that i would need the Camaro 3.4 Flywheel and that i would need to move the starter to the other side or modify the bellhousing. I think i am going to modify the bellhousing but I wont know til I see how much I have to cut away.

Found the Dodge bellhousing that i need on car-part.com

This is what the R154 trans should look like when I bolt it to the dodge bellhousing


Here is my new welding hood. It a Halo X the lightest available on the market (13.6oz). I also bought the autodarkening lens which lets me choose darkness between 9-12 also lets me adjust the sensitivity and delay. The Lens is pretty amazing.

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~~~Freddy~~~ Wyotech Graduate, Future RCSAMS student
Pandora 1988 Lesabre T-Type 259000 miles
Darlington 1987 Lesabre T-Type 115000 miles
Cream Puff 1988 Lesabre T-Type 194500 miles

The junk yard is letting me have the R154 for $200. I have to pull it of course. The Rear IRS is only going to cost me $250 so far I am at $450 total

My problem is i dont know what clutch to use. If i have to use the 3.4L Flywheel do i have to use the 3.4 pressure plate and friction disk? If so then theres a problem. The splines on the 3.4 friction disk is like 26 and the input shaft on the R154 is 21 spline. The friction disk for the R154 is 9.25" while the friction for the 3.4 is 9.6875". If the Supra Pressure plate bolts up to the 3.4 flywheel this would be the ultimate clutch

http://www.suprastore.com/spsutwdudicl.html

I suppose i could use the Camaro clutch setup with the Toyota friction disk, but my concern would be that the pressure plate would not apply the friction properly.

Costs so far:
Rear IRS setup: $250
R154 Trans: $200
RX15 bellhousing $80

Total : $530

Still need to buy:
All my metal: $300-600?
Driveshaft: free to ?
Diff Cover: Having a very hard time trying to even find one.
Bushings and ball joints: ?

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~~~Freddy~~~ Wyotech Graduate, Future RCSAMS student
Pandora 1988 Lesabre T-Type 259000 miles
Darlington 1987 Lesabre T-Type 115000 miles
Cream Puff 1988 Lesabre T-Type 194500 miles

that's gonna be one mean LeSabre .

I remember you mentioning this! I look forward to seeing and reading more.

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94 SSEi - Project car
99 SLE - Tuned with different parts and such
85 Porsche 944 - Daily driver
68 Chevy C-10 - Free truck! Needs parts.

Yes it will be. I want to build it to handle road courses. Its not getting a cage unless i do something hidden in the future. I would like it to be in the top 3 RWD 3800 in the 1/4 but thats not my goal it would just be nice.

I cant wait to cut the trunk out, fab the rear frame, then cut the floor for the subframe connectors and transmission tunnel if i dont have clearance.

Today, Saturday, I pull the R154 trans, the rear IRS from the Cougar. I am awaiting the response of a salvage yard i sent a parts request to about the dakota bell housing.

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~~~Freddy~~~ Wyotech Graduate, Future RCSAMS student
Pandora 1988 Lesabre T-Type 259000 miles
Darlington 1987 Lesabre T-Type 115000 miles
Cream Puff 1988 Lesabre T-Type 194500 miles

you getting the parts from a yard here locally? if so which one

AAA here in laramie for the R154 and IRS and someplace i found on car-part.com for the Dakota Bellhousing. I am going to hold off on buying clutch stuff til i know for sure what i need. Once I have the IRS, R154 and Bellhousing I should be fine building the backhalf and doing my other frame mods everything else is just making the mechanical connections between it all.

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~~~Freddy~~~ Wyotech Graduate, Future RCSAMS student
Pandora 1988 Lesabre T-Type 259000 miles
Darlington 1987 Lesabre T-Type 115000 miles
Cream Puff 1988 Lesabre T-Type 194500 miles

Suggestion: Go with a hydraulic throwout bearing on the clutch. A Ford Mustang cable clutch is a possibility if you have the room under the dash for the pedal box, but a hydrualic throwout inside the the bell housing will be the easiest to hook up.

As far as swapping clutch parts, I'm thinking that it's not going to be as much of an issue as you might think. The mounting holes on the flywheel can be redrilled for any pressure plate you want...it may even be right to start with (there's nothing special about the pattern, it's probably common to multiple manufacturers.) You will need to make a pilot bushing for the motor to match the input shaft on the transmission.

What I find most concerning is the structure of the body...it wasn't designed to be RWD. Your back half frame should allow the axle to attach with no issues, but where you attach to the uni-body is going to be an issue. Perhaps multiple reinforcement plates added to the body to give the rear stub frame someplace strong enough to attach and not fatigue the body.

Personally...I'd go one step further. Full frame and hang the LeSabre body onto it. Make it look like an FWD Buick, but let it roll on a pickup/sedan frame like so many other RWD cars.

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Bye Bye 1990 Bonneville LE... Now it belongs to my daughter
In the Garage: 2009 Subaru Outback, 1987 Camaro, 2006 SV650S, 1995 Regal 182 "ASANAGI", 1962 Ford Galaxie 500, 1995 Ford F150 XL 4WD, 1953 Farmall Cub

A Ladder frame is big, ugly, and i would have to do some major channeling to get it to fit. The structure of the body will be plenty strong. The subframe connectors are probably going to run from where I attach the Backhalf up along the where the factory inverted hat channel and probably replacing the cradle but ending at the same point the front cradle mounts end.

I am hopefully going to finish pulling the AMC 401 that my friend bought last week. Then i am going to start pulling the IRS out of the Cougar. I should finish that today. When I am done with the IRS I start on the R154 toyota supra trans. I will also be grabbing all the clutch related items including the flywheel. Who knows it might work.

The difference between the AX15 and R154 input shaft is .25'' with the R154 being the shorter of the 2. Advanced adapters makes the longer pilot bearing I can use if there turns out to be a problem. I would like to use a hydraulic throw out bearing. Thats what I am going for. I am going to have the dog clutch gears in the trans (sometime in the future) so I dont think I will be using the clutch much when I am racing.

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~~~Freddy~~~ Wyotech Graduate, Future RCSAMS student
Pandora 1988 Lesabre T-Type 259000 miles
Darlington 1987 Lesabre T-Type 115000 miles
Cream Puff 1988 Lesabre T-Type 194500 miles

Ok well i ran into another problem. I didnt know that there was 2 manual trans options for the MK3 supras and the one in the car i am getting is the W58. It will not work with the AX15 bellhousing. It will work with the AX5 bellhousing from a 2.5L JEEP. JEEP - just everybody elses parts. The input shaft on the W58 is 1 inch shorter than the AX5 but appearently you can swap the input shaft right out of an AX5 into the W58. Nice thing would be that If I swap the input shafts i wont have to worry about pilot bearing length.

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~~~Freddy~~~ Wyotech Graduate, Future RCSAMS student
Pandora 1988 Lesabre T-Type 259000 miles
Darlington 1987 Lesabre T-Type 115000 miles
Cream Puff 1988 Lesabre T-Type 194500 miles

Personally, I would have gone auto and used a 4L60 OR 700R4. Failing that, I believe the 5spd manual from the S-10 is a straight bolt-up for the 3800.

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~Brian -- 98 Park Avenue Ultra-- DEFUNCT. Blew the rings in a front cylinder
Mods: Too *dang* many...Click the siggy...
13.87 @ 101.40mph, Kil-Kare Raceway, 10/15/09

Autos are no fun and not good for racing on a road course. The W58 is stronger than the T5 by alot. The W58 is almost a direct swap anyways and its not something that anybody does. I am going for originality and function not simple.

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~~~Freddy~~~ Wyotech Graduate, Future RCSAMS student
Pandora 1988 Lesabre T-Type 259000 miles
Darlington 1987 Lesabre T-Type 115000 miles
Cream Puff 1988 Lesabre T-Type 194500 miles