Hey everyone, this is my EA. I'm a red P plater and my dad bought it for me as a second car a few months back with 112,000 K's on it. A while ago it blew a heater hose in the middle of nowhere so we decided to replace the 3.9 CFI with an AU XR6 engine and transmission.

That was a bit complicated trying to figure out the AU BBM/ECU etc since the EA had no smartlock, and the dash wiring won't work with the AU engine loom, so we picked up an EB on tuesday with MPFI and we're gunna use the EB dizzy, eb ECU, eb engine loom and a smartlock bypass unit. Should hook right up. Also just for the time being going to run the 3 belt setup off the EA until I get thermo's and do the serpentine thing...

So far I've put the EB GT kit on from an EA I have in sydney (without the wing), the rims from my ute and the head unit from my ute. Now the XR6 engine and tranny and the, either sub/amp or a lower, then I'll keep it like that for a while lol.

Here's some pics of the car and the build so far....









Here's the XR6 engine






The EA engine
being pulled out:


out:


Here's the EA K frame being cut and welded:







Here's the EB doner car, picked it up for $160













So what do you guys think so far? Also, with the EB ecu, intake manifold etc, how many RWKW can I expect out of the EA? If it's 130 or over I'll be happy

THanks everyone

When the heater hose went, I pulled into this womans property in pitch black to see if I could get some water and her driveway was a bit low and the bar got absolutely ruined. My dad had repaired the bar with fiberglass when I was in Sydney before I drove it to QLD and the bar looked PERFECT, unfortunately I don't have his skill with fiberglassing and he lives down there, here's the best I could do.

Please excuse the tickford badge, I didn't put it there, lol.









I ran out of white paint and I had this crappy silver stuff in a can. So I used that and tons of clear coat, I don't think it will hold up to any highway driving lol. My dad's coming up soon though and will help me respray/repair it properly.

Thanks for looking people...

If you have any suggestions or tips I'd love to hear them as I am learning as I go and need all the help I can get.

use the au bbm manifold with the el ecu.
you get more grunt out of the xr engine

Your dad's car is alright...

Mate that was a nice score with the Reb EB.... In nz The trident mags on it would be worth 3 times what you paid

Considering you don't know my background, have no idea what I've put into the car and anything else I own/have worked for, I think you should reserve your comments to yourself. I'd also like to extend a big F-U to you, sir. That was DEFINITELY not called for because of the above reasons. I work pretty damn hard for a lot of $h1t I get.

So today, I went out and spent $300 of MY cash, got thermo fans, wiring kit, ATF, oil, pod filter until we can get the converter relocated to put in the airbox.

We dropped the engine into the bay and we were doing up the bell housing bolts and snap. Heard a big crack and the sump has a hairline fracture in it. My mate did it up to fast and didn't look, the lugs weren't lined up and it pulled the sump in and cracked it.

So another $100 came out of my very own bank account and is going to get it welded and a fan belt tomorrow.

My GF's puppy chewed my camera phone cord so I can't upload pictures as of yet, I'll get around to it soon. I've taken some pictures though...

Really happy with the way the build is going.

Duvauchellemotors

Thanks man, it was a good buy and it was the cheapest/easiest way to get this project to work. I wish I had of thought of it sooner lol. How much are those mags worth? I do like them for what they are, I am going to polish them up and put them on my grandfathers EL wagon because the tread on them is pretty good and his hubcab's missing lol.

welcome to fordmods kawasakirider and nice ride..
i think krisisdog was just joking around
my estimate would be about 110-115rwkw..

Thanks mate, I appreciate it. Also, if krisisdog was joking around, I apologize and hope he accepts it. I've had a rough few days and wasn't really in the mood for a call out like that.

What would the CFI EA be pushing out at the rear wheels?

Would a decent tune be able to bring the EB ECU up to par with the AU XR6 ECU?

on a bog standard ea, due to age and wear id say about 90+rwkw...
a tune would probably do more then what a au xr6 ecu would do, but honestly mate theirs f@#k all difference between the two.. also you wont be getting much more power with a tune on a standard motor, better off waiting until you do a few more mods, then get a tune..

also the reason why a xr6 is quicker then a base model is more to do with the 3.45 gear ratio.. the extra few killa wasps aren't the major difference,

my mate the EAs looking pretty good... good to see you takling a engine swap... i havnt even had to yet... my 2 cents... swap over the tail lights and rear garnish from the EB to the EA and get some clear indicators up the front... you might also find this build thread interesting...
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Cheers Cam

Haha, wasnt havin a stab at you bro apology accepted, though I should have stuck on the end of it.

Car will go much better with a MPFI setup of either kind (log or BBM) compared to the CFI s**t setup.
The AU ticky is about a 164kw motor, so around 120rwkw+ stock if its healthy and through a manual.
If you put a half decent cam in the AU motor you'll be up over 130rwkw fairly easy (something similar to a Wade 1671AU, I think thats the part number at least). Also cams are fairly cheap, like 150 for a regrind, 250-300 for a billet grind.
If you ever get the BBM working you can also pick up a few ponies there with the EL ECU.
With the J3 chip from TI Performance (site sponsor) you can disable smartlock as well as running an XR tune or even custom tune. Pretty cheaply too, $150ish for a preloaded chip, bit over $200 for a blank chip n burner. Need the EL ECU though.

Oh ok, I could have had the XR6 engine, gearbox, tailshaft and diff for $1,500 but we just went for the engine/box for $1000. Would the XR6 diff fitted if we did buy it? Also, I'm shocking at maths and ratio's, so what sort of diff should I look to upgrade to? I am 50 KM from anywhere, including school, so I want something impressive off the line, but also won't rev its tit's off on the highway?

FourL6:
Thanks mate, as it turns out we have to swap the lights and garnish off the EB. I may as well have found an EL wreck and used the loom/dash out of that because it turns out that EVERY PLUG except two behind the EA and the EB dash are different and we had to swap them anyway, because I couldn't be bothered re-wiring the dash (and IDK anything about electricals, I was trying to save my mate time lol). Due to that we have to change the rear lights and stuff, too. Pretty happy with that though, because the next cosmetic mod will be an EB bonnet, unless filling the EA one is doable? Clear indicators are a definite mod, I hate the amber ones, lol.

Krisis:

Haha, cheers man and again, sorry. Yeah, I'm hoping for better response with the MPFI set up. Unfortunately it's through an auto I want a 5 speed but don't have the cash right now. Unless someone has one for sale and would trade anything for it. I have some cool s**t lol.

With the J3 chip, can it come with an XR6 tune so I only have to plug it in to get it and disable the smartlock? I'm going to buy one off Muzza, as I don't think the EL ECU would work, would it?

Hmmm just thinking, I know the pins are the same shape, as I plugged my EA one into an EL just to see if it would work, if I used an EL computer with the EB loom and the J3 chip, would everything go sweet?

How many KW could I expect with this set up?

XR6 (assuming it's fresh, it's done around 134,000)
EL ECU
J3 preloaded chip
Auto box
Cold air intake with a pod

We are doing a cold air intake with a custom box and going to duct it from the bar on the GT kit. I've decided not to get the gas converter relocated due to cost, we're just going to knock a box up and squeeze it in there.

Thanks for your help guys, this is a great site and I'm having a sick time learning and building this car. Major learning curve, but it's awesome.

Yes, the diff would have fitted, but it is wider, and you would have needed to get AU offset wheels to go with it, and run spacers in the front.



As your car is an EA, it creates a few extra problems. You can install a diff from an EB11 to EL, but you need to use modify the upper and lower control arms, as the brackets on the EA are narrower. You could also use spacers at the diff end with the EA control arms.

With the Auto, I would recommend a 3.45 ratio, found in all XR6s, and EF11 and EL Ghias. I had this combination in my previous sedan, and it provided a good compromise between off the line acceleration and hwy cruising. In fact my hwy economy did not change.



If you can, get a BBM inlet manifold. As you will be using the EL ECU it is an easy mod. There is more involved changing the AU to use the Log manifold, and before you ask, no you can't use the AU log with out a LOT of mods. You need an EF or EL BBM and throttle body.



You can plug in and use the EL ECU, provided you have a smartlock bypass, or the J3 chip with smartlock disabled (recommended option). You can use any GLi auto ECU, and order the J3 Chip with the EL Auto XR fuel and ignition maps. Later if you get a manual, you can have the EL XR Manual maps loaded.



I would expect between 110rwkw and 120rwkw. Any more than that would be a Lucky Bonus.



Where is the LPG convertor now? On the left hand shock tower? I just relocated mine, and with the help of a mate who can weld, a few meters of heater hose $18, moved it all to the right hand side. Click the link to my build thread in my sig and have a read.



Good luck. It is a rewarding process, and there is nothing like driving around in a car that you put together with you own hands.

Cheers
BenJ

Swap the whole boot.... EA's have the reverse lights in the lights and EB-ED have them in the garnish..

you have to cut a lot of boot to get the EB garnish into the EA boot.. I know because I did it not so long ago.



rgds

Frank

The Mags are Cheviot Tridents and they look awsome on XE-ED put some big fat tyres on em and they'll be mint.
I had Some on my EB, I had 265/50/14's on the back and 245/50/14's on the front.....It was a tight fit but they looked awsome.