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2001 Rodeo Manual MUA5 swap thread

8K views 24 replies 6 participants last post by  tjjhdad 
#1 ·
This is the thread for my 2001 Rodeo Manual Swap. I've removed the 4L30E and am replacing it with an MUA5 Transmission I pulled from the junkyard.





Removing Auto Transmission





I had a hard time removing the auto pilot bushing. The slide hammer wasn't cutting it.



I ended up having to make my own tool from a harmonic balancer puller and a slide hammer.



Pilot bearing installed



Flywheel installed using M10 X 30mm x1.25mm bolts strength 10
( I did not use the circular plate as suggested, the bolts were already 1mm short of stock)

I call this threadlocker purple.
(I cleaned the flywheel with brake cleaner after this.)


Lining up clutch and installing flexplate

(I used M8 x 20mm x 1.25mm Bolts strength 10 for the flexplate)


Getting MUA5 transmission ready (and spilling fluid)


Pushing tranny under car


Wiring up reverse and 4WD indicators



Jacking up transmission


Getting clutch and shifter area ready.





So close now. Just need to line up transmission and get the clutch fork in the throwout bearing.
I should be done next weekend.
 
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#3 ·
Some more updates.

I was able to get the transmission installed and lined up the clutch fork in the throwout bearing arms.



Make sure those dowels are moved to the right place. They will be different coming from a 4L30E










Getting the transmission lined up with the splines was a bit hard. I strapped the tranny to a floor jack and then hooked the floor jack on a winch line from the back of the garage (mainly for pulling broken vehicles in).

I used the winch to pull the trans forward lining up the output shaft into the clutch. It took a while to look around the sides and rear of the transmission to make sure it was lined up with the angle of the engine. Once i had the winch pulling forward on the trans I wiggled it and it popped into the crankshaft splines.



I used a ceiling winch to help lift or lower the transmission
(I had the hood removed and the cable against the firewall

 
#4 ·
Great picture by picture details. Did you have to make "straps" to allow the crossmember to bolt to the frame like I did with my 91 Trooper? Dennis
 
#5 ·
DSUZU said:
Great picture by picture details. Did you have to make "straps" to allow the crossmember to bolt to the frame like I did with my 91 Trooper? Dennis
I just had to flip around the crossmember and grind some metal down and it lines up perfectly.

So the front driveshaft from the 94 Rodeo fits on this 01 but the rear does not.

Wondering if I need a driveshaft from a 98+ 5spd 4Dr 4WD rodeo? Or maybe one from a trooper?
 
#7 ·
Some more updates. Here is wear I had to grind off the trans cross member so the front driveshaft would fit.




Also the holes needed to be bored out just a little bit so the crossmember would line up properly.



Getting the slave cylinder mounted and clutch line ran. I used a 5mm brake line with 3/8"-24 fittings. I used a fitting adapter for the slave cylinder. (The wilwood master cylinder was already 3/8 24)






Front driveshaft bolted up and crossmember on. The car is ready to drive except for the rear driveshaft.

 
#9 ·
So the worst thing happened.

The throw out bearing popped out of the clutch.

I had read about needing to weld it so it wouldn't pop out but chose not to :banghead:

Got the Rodeo into gear briefly to spin the front tires while in the air. It was a wonderful moment engaging the clutch in first gear and hearing the rpms slightly drop

pressed the clutch pedal again and tried to shift gears. Horrible noise and I let off the pedal.

I looked in the hole of the trans and found the fork had pulled the throwout bearing all the way out.

What a terrible design!

So now I will re pull the trans and pull the clutch off the flywheel and take the throwout bearing to a friend who can weld it in so it wont pop out of the clutch. :cry:
 
#13 ·
Act 884006p is the part number to look for. There are other guys who have done this because of the same issue

I switched to a Luk. The design is slightly better than the Excedy but not as advanced as the monoloc.
I tried talking to the engineering and trying to get coverage for labor but of course got nowhere. They blamed it on faulty installation. And I told them you cannot install it incorrectly. it will not allow gears to shift if you get it half and half out the ears where it locks.
If I ever have to pull it down again I'm getting a monoloc
 
#15 ·
lorenzo816 said:
Act 884006p is the part number to look for. There are other guys who have done this because of the same issue

I switched to a Luk. The design is slightly better than the Excedy but not as advanced as the monoloc.
I tried talking to the engineering and trying to get coverage for labor but of course got nowhere. They blamed it on faulty installation. And I told them you cannot install it incorrectly. it will not allow gears to shift if you get it half and half out the ears where it locks.
If I ever have to pull it down again I'm getting a monoloc
Thank you I ordered the monoloc with 4 day shipping.

No fun taking this trans back out again so I need to make sure it hold this time.
 
#16 ·
I've pulled the transmission and am waiting on the monoloc.

Those top two bolts are a pain. I don't think I'll put them in again until I verify full functionality of the assembly.

Here is a video of the throwout bearing loose and pulled out of the clutch collar. It was seated well and functioned properly initially.

[BBvideo 560,340:z26li6ci]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5c8s5JjtGYI[/BBvideo]
 
#17 ·
Was that excedy? If so, send it to them and give them **** for a bad design!!
I know it's stock oem too that way. They were the supplier according to Jerry so all the other aftermarket throwouts are design the same or similar.
 
#18 ·
Didn't fully understand until I watched the video. What a chickenc*** design. Now I have to see what my Subaru uses. Dennis

BTW: if you have any around, I always use a couple of longer bolts that fit the engine bell housing holes and make guide pins for tranny installs. I just cut the heads off and cut a slot with a hack saw (or cutoff wheel) to use a screwdriver for removal. On those top bolts, you might try unbolting the tranny mount and raise the back of the tranny. This opens up the area between the engine and firewall. This worked for me on the 2.8 First Gen Troopers.
 
#19 ·
Dennis is right. You can get to the top two bolts from the top of the engine if you tip if forward from the trans support underneath. I've done that and also underneath method too. I'll try to describe.
Also a body lift helps immensely. I have a one inch on mine and forget how helpful that is until I have to work on something else then I remember!
If you don't have a body lift, get some extensions to reach the top two bolts also dropping the trans bracket a bit can work, tipping the trans down exposing the top two bolts but don't tweak it too much risking ripping your engine mounts.
They can flex tho. I will say duct taping a universal joint for sockets helps too keeps it from over flexing during rotations.
Last bit of advice I don't tighten those bell housing bolts too much, the combination of all the bolts is enough if that makes sense instead of tightening them all to 50+ ft lbs I do just past snug and haven't had issues ever. Think about it. The trans is held in by the cross member and it ain't going anywhere
 
#20 ·
Duct tape on the flex joint seems like that will help.

I had failure yet again with the throwout bearing retainer, this time the retaining clip the monoloc sits in broke free from the pressure plate.

I'm looking into getting a different clutch kit. I bought the kit off ebay, some grip force clutch kit.







Worst part is, when I went to take the pressure plate off, I used the gun and broke a bolt off into the flywheel.

Going to have to start over lol.
 
#21 ·
I went to oreillys and bought their most expensive clutch.



The retainer/collar assembly on the pressure plate looks much better made on the Oreilly's Power Torque clutch.

In the image you can see the pressure plate retaining collar assembly has completely come apart. The monoloc is still attached to the throwout bearing.

I may reuse the monoloc on the new pressure plate retaining assembly, though it does look solid as is, much more than the old ring

This is the original pressure plate from the clutch set I bought.



This is the new pressure plate and retaining collar. Hopefully this design proves better.

 
#22 ·
The new clutch and flywheel are installed and the transmission is back in.



I tested the clutch assembly while filming in case anything happened I would be able to see.

[BBvideo 480,640:1qng81e4]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgZ7tCl4SLs[/BBvideo]

So far the new clutch cover appears fully functional and strong.

Tomorrow I will start it up and see how it goes.
 
#23 ·
Success. The Rodeo is driving great with the MUA trans in it.

The hardest part today was cutting the 2001 5SPD driveshaft from an AR5 and transferring the U joint end from the MUA driveshaft.

[BBvideo 560,340:2sy87vul]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAQSgS7_qXw[/BBvideo]

Thanks to everyone who helped.

Lesson learned on buying cheap clutch kits. The Oreillys Power Torque clutch works great.
 
#24 ·
An update to this thread

I drive the Rodeo daily and have put over 10k since the swap.

It was definitely worth the work. Everything held up nice.


ONly issue with MUA trans is that 4 wheel shifter is too close to the dash. I have to remove the plastic center piece to get the Rodeo into 4WD.

I'm going to have to cut the shifter and have my welder fab the angle to the right position.

With the MUA trans I can tow about 5300 LBS (gently) with no problem.

.
Car Wheel Sky Tire Vehicle
 
#25 ·
Know this is an older thread but would you have any pictures of the shifter (trans and t-case) to show the dash interference you referenced? I am on the hunt for a 2001 Rodeo and all I am finding have the 'less than desirable' 4L30E and would fully intend to do the same MUA5 swap (assuming I can find the parts for semi-reasonable $$$). Thanks.
 
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