06YarisRS's 2ZR-FE Swap 5-Door Hatchback (Automatic Transmission)

[06YarisRS]

My helper, Josh. He's a student at our school and he's planning to pursue a career in the automotive industry. I asked him because he is careful and a good troubleshooter. He liked the idea of having his pic on yarisworld.



Torque converter bolts coming off



The old faithful 1NZ ready to make its departure.



Big hole welcoming the 2ZR.



2ZR moving in.



Big brother and little brother.



Brain transplant.

[06YarisRS]

Originally Posted by ArmstrongRacing

The alignment is a bit tricky for sure. But you definitely shouldn’t remove the alignment pins. I remember having to fight with it for a while and I had a second hand to help.

Take a step back and see where the flanges are not exactly flush, try to correct that and line up the bolt holes

Thanks Tom. Ultimately, I got everything lined up and the bolts back in. The mating surfaces are in full contact around the whole perimeter. We had tried a dozen different things but we could not get the flex plate past those pins no matter what we did - tilting, wiggling, leaning, lifting and lowering the trans a bit. It was hitting the frame on the passenger side. Once the pins were gone, it slid down and in but still very tight. I really didn't want to take them out as I knew it would cause alignment issues. But, everything seems ok now. I hope! Thankfully, there's enough room on the passenger side to change the belt out when needed.

The above said, I would never say that it is not possible to drop the engine in beside the transmission with the alignment pins in. We just couldn't make it happen ourselves.

I would also remove that pesky exhaust manifold as it was a royal pain in the butt.

[ArmstrongRacing]

Awesome!

The hardest part is over now, it should be smooth sailing to the finish line

[06YarisRS]

Originally Posted by ArmstrongRacing

Awesome!

The hardest part is over now, it should be smooth sailing to the finish line

Thanks Tom! Probably the hardest 'physical' part is over. Now, haha, all those hoses and wires! Mental anguish, LOL!

I have to remove the passenger side mount as I had removed the AC line. it really looked like it was going to get damaged. Of course, I forgot to re-install that before bolting the mount down. I think it should be fairly easy. Support the engine underneath with a jack, remove the mount, re-install the a/C line and then put the mount back.

[06YarisRS]

Originally Posted by ArmstrongRacing

The alignment is a bit tricky for sure. But you definitely shouldn’t remove the alignment pins. I remember having to fight with it for a while and I had a second hand to help.

Take a step back and see where the flanges are not exactly flush, try to correct that and line up the bolt holes

Hey Tom. I've been thinking about the pins and I bet they offer some support to the structure too. They are very tight in their holes. With all the bolts (9), I believe, should I be ok? I mean, it should be strong enough, shouldn't it?

As you alluded to before, the pegs were actually in the same positions on both the engine and trans. So, the pair on the engine was removed. We actually couldn't get the pegs out of the trans, even with heat, so (and I hope not to get flamed for this though I probably deserve it), I cut them off flush with a hacksaw. I'm not proud of this somewhat botched job, it's just I was under a little pressure with the engine hanging there and wanted it in quick.

[atomic_hoji]

Great progress man!

Sorry you've had a struggle with the transmission - was worth a try to do it in place, lesson learned I guess?

Just a quick note - be careful using tie-down straps as rigging, if those clamps let go you could lose the load; no fun when it's an engine, even if it's a little one. I try to use chains and rated shackles for rigging. Please dear god never use rope! Regardless how you do it, let it hang for a couple minutes and give it a shake to test it - stay safe!

Keep us posted how you make out tonight / tomorrow!
-- Adam

[tmontague]

Reconnecting the a/c lines shouldn't be too bad with the steps you mentioned.

I also dont think the lack of alignment pins will be that big of a deal. The trans and engine fine have much shear force as the engine mount placement leads to the top part compressing and the bottom experiencing tensile force.

I've been in your shoes before and sometime you have to do what you have to do

[06YarisRS]

Originally Posted by atomic_hoji

Great progress man!

Sorry you've had a struggle with the transmission - was worth a try to do it in place, lesson learned I guess?

Just a quick note - be careful using tie-down straps as rigging, if those clamps let go you could lose the load; no fun when it's an engine, even if it's a little one. I try to use chains and rated shackles for rigging. Please dear god never use rope! Regardless how you do it, let it hang for a couple minutes and give it a shake to test it - stay safe!

Keep us posted how you make out tonight / tomorrow!
-- Adam

Thanks Adam! Lesson learned for sure! Yes, I confess I didn't do a great job preparing the lifting apparatus. I had lofty plans to buy chains, lifting hooks and an engine leveler, but I just slacked off at the end. I have to say, I was pretty impressed with my $14.00 Crappy Tire tie down straps, but, indeed, they are not the correct gear to use. I had lifted the engine with two straps and it seemed to hold, so I felt confident with 4. But, even with four, I know I could have played a tune on them...they were tight!

I did a bit more tonight - fixed the A/C line issue which was deadly trying to get the motor mount bracket bolt in my myself. It was a bit of a contortionist act with prying, jacking, leaning into it all while trying to start the threads in the bolt. I put the torque converter bolts in and in the process lost the little plastic cover. Will scour the garage tomorrow and find that. Also mounted the starter. Finally, I looked at the Yaris harness for the speed sensor wires. I'm seriously considering calling Toyota on Monday and sourcing some pins for the fuse box connector (CA2?). Rather than butcher my Yaris harness, I may just make a new leg for the Scion harness. For now I'd just take the plug from the Yaris speed sensor and use it - or try to order one. That way if I ever want to use the old Yaris harness again - or sell it - I would just need to put a connector on it.

Anyway, thanks again for all your help and I'll update tomorrow on what I get done. Hoping to have most of the wiring done and hopefully some hoses. I have no idea how I'm going to make the heater hoses work with this engine as one of the connections is on the back of the engine as opposed to both on the side in the Yaris.

[06YarisRS]

Originally Posted by tmontague

Reconnecting the a/c lines shouldn't be too bad with the steps you mentioned.

I also dont think the lack of alignment pins will be that big of a deal. The trans and engine fine have much shear force as the engine mount placement leads to the top part compressing and the bottom experiencing tensile force.

I've been in your shoes before and sometime you have to do what you have to do

I did get the A/C line back on Trevor, but it was tough doing it by myself.

Glad the pins won't make a difference.

Well, I consider having to remove the pins a compromise and I would definitely have preferred not to. It detracts - if even in a small way - from my overall feeling of a job really well done. That said, if that's the only hitch I run into, I'll be pretty darn happy.

I'll approach the wiring/hoses and tubing with trepidation.

Thanks for the help. More updates to come tomorrow.

[ArmstrongRacing]

Originally Posted by tmontague

I also dont think the lack of alignment pins will be that big of a deal. The trans and engine fine have much shear force as the engine mount placement leads to the top part compressing and the bottom experiencing tensile force.

It's not about strength, the pins facilitate proper alignment of the crankshaft and transmission input.

With an automatic its not really a big deal, since the torque converter and flexplate have a tight interference fit. With a manual transmission its a more serious affair, since the Toyota input shafts are floating.

[06YarisRS]

Originally Posted by ArmstrongRacing

It's not about strength, the pins facilitate proper alignment of the crankshaft and transmission input.

With an automatic its not really a big deal, since the torque converter and flexplate have a tight interference fit. With a manual transmission its a more serious affair, since the Toyota input shafts are floating.

Thanks Tom. Now that you mention it, that little nub of the shaft that protrudes throught the torque converter goes into that little cup on the crankshaft and by looking at them, there doesn't seem like there would be much clearance. I'm pretty sure there won't be any rubbing there as the last couple of bellhousing bolts threaded in almost fully by hand tightening.

[atomic_hoji]

If you need wiring terminals you'll find that Toyota sells them as "pigtails" - pre-crimped terminal on a length of ~6" of wire. More than likely they will have to special order them, unless it's a large dealership and they happen to have someone who does a bunch of wiring; I only have pretty small dealerships "local" to me, so nearly everything is ordered.
If you can take the connector in to show them there's a better chance they'll get the correct terminals for you too; they'll of course ask the make/model/year as well.

Keep at it!
-- Adam

[06YarisRS]

Originally Posted by atomic_hoji

If you need wiring terminals you'll find that Toyota sells them as "pigtails" - pre-crimped terminal on a length of ~6" of wire. More than likely they will have to special order them, unless it's a large dealership and they happen to have someone who does a bunch of wiring; I only have pretty small dealerships "local" to me, so nearly everything is ordered.
If you can take the connector in to show them there's a better chance they'll get the correct terminals for you too; they'll of course ask the make/model/year as well.

Keep at it!
-- Adam

Thanks Adam! Now that I'm back in the garage and rolling, I'm reconsidering waiting for additional parts. So, I may go ahead and scavenge the parts from the Yaris harness. One thing I'm struggling with is getting some of the harness retaining clips lined up with the mounts on the engine. I think the plastic clips can be moved, but I'm worrying that I may not have the harness installed perfectly. So far, all connectors are reaching their plugs. Here is a pic to illustrate what I mean. I don't like yanking and twisting the harness for obvious reasons. Many of the clips do align with the mounts but several don't. I think I can move the connectors along the harness but it leads me to believe I've not properly installed it. Is it acceptable to use heavy wire ties for those areas that I cannot attach a proper retaining clip? I wonder if this is just the difference between the Corolla engine I have and the xD harness. Anyway, here is the pic...




On a positive note, I've got the ground for the transmission done, I hope correctly. It's also in the pic above. I heat shrinked and retaped that whole junction of the harness. Now... on to the speed sensor wiring!

REMINDER TO SELF...put oil, ATF and coolant in before starting the car!!!

[atomic_hoji]

Might just be a difference between Corolla harness and xD harness? A bit of a lug to pull slack or maybe route differently around something will give you some slack? If not, a zip tie to pull the cable snug with the bracket should do the trick just fine. Because of the differences (i.e. ECM mounts on the complete opposite side of the car) between the iM and the Yaris I have a number of plastic cable connectors that I've had to do that with.. As long as all of the electrical connectors go to their partner engine sensor, I'd say you're all good.

And yes, I hear engines and transmissions get cranky without oil.. If nothing else, put a stick-note on the steering wheel! lol

-- Adam

[tmontague]

Dont worry about all of the harness mounts. They won't all line up as you experienced. Enough will line up so the harness is still supported.

What I always do when my engine is empty if any fluids is to keep the oil cap unscrewed but covering the fill hole fto keep debris out. This reminds me that there is something missing in the engine

[06YarisRS]

Help!!!

No matter what I try, I cannot get the pins out of the speed sensor connector. I tried using a sewing pin, safety pin with light pushing, picking etc. I can't get these wires out and I'm afraid I'm going to ruin them in the process. I'm basing this on brushforhire's thread in which he says it tricky. I'll say, haha. Is there some kind of release mechanism I'm missing?
Any advice would be really, really appreciated!

[atomic_hoji]

Looking at the picture it's hard to tell, but do you have the safety latch on the connector popped up? If not, the terminal will be latched into the connector body and be (virtually - you can yank and shred the plastic) impossible to remove. A tiny screwdriver can pop the latch up, then just keep it up and loose while you work your magic on the specific wire/terminal you want to pop out..

As for popping the terminals, try to visualize the terminal as square tube (female terminal usually, so I assume here..) and inside where the tube sits inside the connector there is a small, plastic wedge that is retaining the terminal. What you want to do is slide the sewing / safety pin along the top of the terminal to push it between the terminal and the plastic wedge. Then gently lever the plastic wedge up and away from the terminal; it sometimes helps to push inward on the connector while you feel this out. Then gently pull rearward on the wire backside of the connector and wiggle it out.

Dunno if that makes sense to visualize..? Once you have the hang of it, it becomes easier to know what to fell for... the first few times I tried I went at it for like half an hour and felt daft as a post; and my back hurt from hunching over.. lol.

-- Adam

[06YarisRS]

Originally Posted by atomic_hoji

Looking at the picture it's hard to tell, but do you have the safety latch on the connector popped up? If not, the terminal will be latched into the connector body and be (virtually - you can yank and shred the plastic) impossible to remove. A tiny screwdriver can pop the latch up, then just keep it up and loose while you work your magic on the specific wire/terminal you want to pop out..

As for popping the terminals, try to visualize the terminal as square tube (female terminal usually, so I assume here..) and inside where the tube sits inside the connector there is a small, plastic wedge that is retaining the terminal. What you want to do is slide the sewing / safety pin along the top of the terminal to push it between the terminal and the plastic wedge. Then gently lever the plastic wedge up and away from the terminal; it sometimes helps to push inward on the connector while you feel this out. Then gently pull rearward on the wire backside of the connector and wiggle it out.

Dunno if that makes sense to visualize..? Once you have the hang of it, it becomes easier to know what to fell for... the first few times I tried I went at it for like half an hour and felt daft as a post; and my back hurt from hunching over.. lol.

-- Adam

Thanks very much, Adam! I got the terminals out, basically at the expense of the connector. I've also decided rather than tear the harness apart, I'm creating my own leg (for lack of a better term). I'll ziptie that to the main harness.

Even after I had the retaining clip lifted on the connector, the wires did not want to come out. Basically I hacked away at the connector with my utility knife until enough material was removed and the pins came out intact. This is a hamfisted way to do it and I'm not proud, but I am confident enough to install a new connector (assuming one is available) should I ever decide to repair the Yaris harness.

Please avert your eyes from the connector carnage.


Parts for new speed sensor harness. I will solder each and heat shrink each connection, run it through conduit, then tape the whole thing. Then run it along side the engine harness.