Automatic conversion

[LeroyBoyce]

Hello all,

Newbie question...

My wife has fallen in love with the M100 (I have an Elise, myself).

Trouble is, she can only drive an automatic.

I understand the Elan shares it's engine with the Isuzu Piazza XS and the Geo Storm GSi, both of which were available with an auto box.

So, is a conversion out of the question?

Cheers,


Lee

[cliff]

A friend of mine is in a wheelchair and really likes the Elan. He asked me the same question some time ago, as far as I know, Lotus never made an auto Elan.

I didn't know about the Geo Storm or Piazza came with an auto box. There was a monstrosity in the UK called an Austin Metro, that came with an auto option so I guess anything is possible.

[racerstev]

There are 2 automatic trans that will bolt to this engine, a 3 speed and a 4speed.

I never used the 3 speed but from what I gather it was a basic hyd shift unit with little performance
potential. I DID use the 4 speed in my old race car, with a few tweeks it will hold alot of power and is
clearly the way to go for any performance application. The downside is it needs the TCM computer to make it
shift.

Steve

[nitroman]

There are 2 automatic trans that will bolt to this engine, a 3 speed and a 4speed.

I never used the 3 speed but from what I gather it was a basic hyd shift unit with little performance
potential. I DID use the 4 speed in my old race car, with a few tweeks it will hold alot of power and is
clearly the way to go for any performance application. The downside is it needs the TCM computer to make it
shift.

Steve

I agree RE the 4spd. The JATCO/Mazda 4EAT was used in a number of cars. Subaru is the application responsible for the performance upgrades available for it. Shockingly Mazda still makes it today for the Mazda2.

The ONLY Isuzu application this went into was the 1992 Storm/Impulse/Stylus with the 1.8L engine. Even then not all 1.8L automatics had it, as it was an upgrade/option. When they decontented their cars for 1993 & the DOHC engine went away, so did the 4spd. As stated by Steve it is electronically controlled (not hydraulic) and has a standalone computer.

Although easier to find & install the 3spd sucks and was never meant to handle the power of a DOHC turbocharged engine.

[racerstev]

It's been about 10 years since I played with one of these so things are a little fuzzy! LOL

I think the trans number in the Storm and Impulse was Jatco JF403E, also found in the Mazda
Millenia S with the supercharged engine. The trans is very very close to the trans in the
same era Nisson FWD cars. The trans is found in all the DOHC Storms (1.6 or 1. from 90-93 and
all the Impulse's of the same years.

I used this company for another app (Chysler 41TE) with great success.

http://www.powertraincontrolsolutions.c ... ontrol.php

Besides controlling shift points it allows either full automatic shifting or the use of
a paddle shifter.

As far as it all fitting in the Lotus.. It is larger then a manual trans and will take up a bit more room in there.
But the axles will fit and I'm fairly sure the speedo drive is there as well. The shifter will be something that will
need to be fabricated. The drivers side mount has a slightly differant bolt pattern as well, you just need to add a new
hole is all..

Overall the trans is pretty stout, in Isuzu trim it's a bit light duty for anything but stock boost levels. If you
want to bring it up to the trim of the Mazda it will handle up to about 500hp, plenty for the Elan.. I had to do
a few tweeks in the valvebody to help speed the shifting up a bit, I could walk you though it if needed..

Steve

[LeroyBoyce]

You guys certainly know your stuff...

My wife is more interested in asthetics than performance. So, we'd be in the market for a non-turbo M100. Therefore the gearbox needn't have to cope with much load (they did the same thing in the Esprit, after all!).

So the big question: If I had the non-turbo Elan, how much would you budget for the conversion?

[bobbrown]

Finding a non turbo Elan may be your first problem as there was not many made.
The cost to convert an Elan to auto is a bit of a question as it has not to my knowledge been done, so the first question would be does it fit in the space, if it does then it would be a case of getting one which would probably need to be shipped from the US. You'll need it complete with all the electronics etc and then it would be a case of out with the old and in with the replacement. Changing the shift to auto should be fairly straight forward as it is a cable shift anyway and you probably just need the shifter from the Impulse which could be modified to fit if it doesn't already and a suitable cable.
As for cost how long is a piece of string as it depends on who was doing the work, if it's DIY job then its just a case of parts costs but if you have to pay someone then the costs will be higher.
You will also have a pedal to remove

Been there done this sort of work in the past like converting a Land Rover 110 to a 3.5 ltr 6 cylinder diesel driving a 4 speed auto box from a Range Rover, not easy and costs were in the order of £10,000 but that was a all new parts engine, gearbox complete with hi/low box.
Now does the Rover 800 series (Mazda) share the same box all be it with a different bell housing?

Bob

[LeroyBoyce]

Hello again all,

I hope you don't mind me reviving an old thread.

I am officially in the market for an Elan, which I intend to convert to automatic. They are fetching a fantastic price in Britain at the moment and I predict a future classic.

Just to confirm, the 3spd is pretty rubbish, but will do the job.

The 4spd is much better, but will need the electronics to go with it.

I will need to fabricate the changer (but surely the original host car's one should be easy to get hold of?).

Does anyone know of an Elan enthusiast in the Buckinghamshire area?

Cheers,


Lee

[rip]

Does anyone know of an Elan enthusiast in the Buckinghamshire area?

Not sure what help I can be though.

[LeroyBoyce]

Hello all,

There's no way I can get the correct Auto box in the UK, so my only hope is to get one imported from the USA. I have found these items on Ebay, but there is no information whether it is the 4spd or 3. Is that what I need?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/90-93-91-1991-G ... cd&vxp=mtr

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Geo-Automatic-T ... 50&vxp=mtr

[Rusty Wishbone]

An auto box with paddle gear change would seem to be a solution to the fragile gear selection cables that do often blight the Elan. It might also be seen as the implementation of a modern Elan IPS.

Looks like a lot if work, though.