Conversion of Automatic to 4 o4 5 Speed

[bubukitty]

Hi. I am looking to buy a nice coupe...hopefully one with a 4 speed that came as standard. I used to own a nice Polaris '73 Coupe a number of years ago and in the market for another Coupe. I have seen a few nice automatic coupes on the market now and then and wondering how difficult and expensive a conversion might be to a manual. I prefer doing the shifting myself. Also, any leads on a nice Coupe for sale would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[bmwmadman]

The conversion from Auto to 4 or 5 spd is not a hard one and is very common. I think moving straight to a 5 spd would make more economic sense. You should be able to find people on the forum that have either documented the conversion or willing to share their experiences.

 

[HB Chris]

Figure around $3K for a shop to do it including the 5 speed trans. Where are you located, how much are you looking to spend, what condition? Adding a location to your profile would be nice, should we call you bubu for short?

 

[G-Man]

You need a good donor car, something like this one (80 528i 5 speed). http://slo.craigslist.org/cto/1915599660.html Having a donor car will drop the price down a lot but then you have to dispose of the car after you remove all the parts. The seller of this 528i never registered this car non-op (last registered in 2005) so the DMV will want a boatload of back fees when the buyer in CA applies for a junk title. If you live out of state, back fees don't apply. Great parts car for an out of state buyer. Keep searching Craigslist for a cheap 80-81 E12, E23, E24 with a 5 speed.

G-Man

 

[bubukitty]

Chris, thanks for your reply. I live in San Ramon, CA in the S.F. Bay Area. Looking for a coupe in good condition already...not a resto candidate. Looking to spend up to $20k, maybe a little more for the right car. Looking for another Polaris coupe, or Fjord Blue and would consider other colors from there dependent on condition. BuBu or BBK would be fine....thanks! I will take a look at my profile. Just joined so need to get up to speed. Thanks you.

 

[Twenty Mike Mike]

I have seen a few nice automatic coupes on the market now and then and wondering how difficult and expensive a conversion might be to a manual. I prefer doing the shifting myself.

http://www.bmwcsregistry.org/Technical/Five_speed_upgrade.html