R154 1st Gear thrust washer + other upgrades.

[Halle Terry]

Yo,

With my gearbox currently out, I figured it would be a worth while time to get some little bits and pieces done to it to ensure it never fails. My car isn't destined in the foreseeable future to make massive power but that said I can be a little nasty to my car on occasions.

I've been trying to find an after market solution to the R154 1st gear thrust washer problem. Sighted as one of the few problems with the box there's plenty of chit chat on various forums of after market ones but very little information as to a retail solution I can get hold of.

So the question is, does anyone know where I can get an after market/strengthened 1st gear thrust washer?

Also, while the box is out, is there any other bits and pieces I ought to attend to, I'm getting new fly wheel bolts, Ovaxitd suggested a new main seal and spigot bearing as well. Can anyone verify chasing these parts/anything else worth pursuing?

Regards,

Terry

[Skitzo]

Matt (dude doing 2JZ onevia) did a few thing to his box to strengthen it. Maybe check out his build thread, if you can find it.

[matt_2jzs13]

marlin crawler is the brand your after

i looked up soooooo much shit tryna find out, went through so many threads and write-ups of guys making their own designs, trying out different metals or things like molybdenum coatings, but in the end marlin crawler have their own design and i havent heard anything bad about them. they are a 4wd/rockhopper company but lots of their toyota's use R154's, and have heaps of experience building them

go to drivetrain page on www.driftmotion.com to order one
in regards to other parts, i got the MC chromoly bearing retainer plate, MC billet shifter fork and few stiffer urethane bits, and i'm also going to get a new shift collar before i get my box done. but choice is up to you and how much power you want to run and how hard you think you will be on the box/dropping the clutch. the other parts aren't really a necessity, although they are fairly inexpensive and its good piece of mind

[Halle Terry]

Thanks for the info guys, much appreciated.

Ok, so far going to replace

1st gear thrust washer
Rear main seal
Flywheel bolts

Anything else I NEED? From what I understand the chances of my car making more then 210ish rwkw from Full exhaust, EBC, PFC, FMIC is unlikely.

[Kappo]

terry, i didnt get any of that done (my box came out of a 90 with give or take 100k on it) and ive got 320 atwhp and have not had any trouble so far plus it still feels really good.

[Orange_33]

running 1jz? get dumps(the ones that are seperate) for the turbos makes huge difference in my opinion and should see u towards that 200RWKW mark

[Kappo]

Its a 100, Single turbo mate, and hes just really talking bout his GB

[Sciflyer]

I would do one order from Driftmotion, get the nylon shifter bushes (theres two), thrust washer, bearing retainer and a tube of the red Threebond type Toyota sealant so you can seal the box back up again :). As matt said work out how much you want to spend vs. how much power and abuse youre going to give it - even with just the thrust washer and bushes the box is going to be pretty tough

Just bear in mind if you plan to fit all the parts yourself you will need to completely disassemble the box, not a job to be taken lightly!

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/542878/R154gearset.jpg

[poombah]

i had my box in my supra freshened up with hd bearings and seals etc.. they didnt do the thrust washer.. less than 5,000kms later the thrust washer disintegrated and sent metal through the box.. had to have it stripped again and cleaned out then they fitted a chromoly thrust washer and it was good again.. but then had to have the cluster replaced less than 5,000kms again because it had chipped a tooth off 4th gear... ~ 320rwhp std 1jz std turbo std ecu + safc.


Moral of the Story - Dont goto GSA to get your gearbox work done.

[ovaxitd]

ok who would you suggest to send your r154 boxs?? mate has 154 that wont change into 2nd after going to drags and some other interesting shit. he is going to do the washer mod and might need new selector in box i think from his description.... cheers peoples

[Sciflyer]

Perth Gearbox & Diff centre in Belmont

Theres a Seth Efrikan guy there who knows R154s well

[ELUSIV]

I havent heard of it being an issue on our boxes Terry, JZX100's had R154a i believe, may be marginally different than the earlier model R154's that were mated to A70 supra's and what not.

Could be totally wrong but i rarely here of guys with manual JZX's lunching 2nd?

[poombah]

Perth Gearbox & Diff centre in Belmont

Theres a Seth Efrikan guy there who knows R154s well

I'll second that, these guys built my locker for the R31 - they charge quite reasonably too.

[poombah]

I'll second that, these guys built my locker for the R31 - they charge quite reasonably too.


Also - Avoid Westside Automatics (i think) in Osbourne Park... charges like a wounded bull, and your gearbox may come back to you worse then when you dropped it off.. and if you take it back to ask about the noises youre advised to "Drive it more.. itll go away".. not great customer service.

[Halle Terry]

I havent heard of it being an issue on our boxes Terry, JZX100's had R154a i believe, may be marginally different than the earlier model R154's that were mated to A70 supra's and what not.

Could be totally wrong but i rarely here of guys with manual JZX's lunching 2nd?

You do have a point, I can't actually recall a single incident of the JZX guys ever breaking a gearbox, or even breaking anything in general. I guess being one of the later/last cars to have the box maybe the issue was addressed.

[Sciflyer]

wasnt aware that it was an issue with any R154?

[ovaxitd]

yer they smash the thrust washer in heavy hp cars or smashing 1-2 gear changes...

mate was at drags and now doesnt have 2nd and gears are angry to get into... will be stripping it down to see the damage and thats a s2 jzx100 manual with std turbo

[Miami]

Perth Gearbox & Diff centre in Belmont

Theres a Seth Efrikan guy there who knows R154s well

Thirded. He did mine a few years ago, had full confidence he knew what he was doing (able to recite the spigot bearing part no. off top of his head, small things like that give me confidence) and reasonable charges.

I could be wrong, but I seem to recall something about a Landcruiser/Hilux standard Toyota thrust washer being the upgraded chromoly? My old laptop with all my saved Toyo info got pinched, so I cant double-check, but its ringing bells.

also, highly recommend going with a C's short-shifter...made a world of difference!

[Sciflyer]

yeh thats the Marlin Crawler one from Driftmotion we're talking about, the stock one is what can fail not the 2nd gear itself

I think you recommended that guy to me in the first place, he fitted the thrust washer for me as it required a press, no probs :)

Did you get the C's shifter 2ndhand or new? Might have to find out where i can get one from

[Endless]

Some really good info in this Toymods thread and also a guy offering upgraded parts towards the end of the thread - worth a look.

http://www.toymods.org.au/forums/showthread.php?t=4864&page=8

I know my box was recond and just another stock washer put in. Unsure if i will bother pulling it out again to upgrade... might just wait till something breaks.

[coFF33]

my soarer weighs 1300kg and has 332hp
my 1JZ+R154 has seen close to 180,000kms (maybe a tad more)
it gets the soul beaten out of it twice a month at barbs and or collie
its still stock
it runs mint
Terry, your talkin about an R154, not some shitass nissan garbage. It'll be fine

[poombah]

john you have no idea if your gearbox is original and has never been opened.

I can promise you that if your r154 had done 180,000kms it would have to have been opened at some point in time.. otherwise it would sound like marbles in a milo tin.

[supra_jza70]

Guys I'm in the process of getting my r154 done now aswell

all I'm doing is getting a bearing kit, my 2nd gear syncros done, a heavy duty bearing plate cover, and a new OEM 1st gear thrust washer

the thrust washer that was made by marking crawler was no better then standard. The original washer just goes through some thrashing and snap into 4 pieces just like anything would after going through thousands of kms of abuse. While some people just don't like the OEM parts and nobody really making aftermaket solutions for them. Alot of people just get new ones machined up. So it's all just to a decision. OEM washers are $26.50 by memory but can't remember exactly.

Good luck with your box

[Mofo]

Ive been lucky with my box too, athough despite the abuse, i practice mechanical sympathy. My clutch was quite soft too and im sure that has helped it live. Cant comment on whether its been opened or not, regardless im going the whole hog on it now that its apart, including a OS giken gearset to get rid of the shitty stock ratios.

[77gze]

awesome questions and good answers right there, might be doing it to my box when i get my licence back