The Australian

Hi All,

After quite a wait, my new gearset from PAR Engineering arrived on my doorstep this morning.

The website link for the set is here if you are interested PAR Engineering AISIN 6 Speed

I opted for the 1st to 5th set as my use does not require 6th.

Let me know if there is any part of it you'd like to see a close up of while I have it out/uninstalled.

I will report back once I have had a chance to use it.

Midtenn

iTrader: (15)

I am definitely interested in how it goes.

icantlearn

$6800....

Gee Emm

About 5k greenbacks?

The Australian

It’s a large chunk upfront that’s true.

In favour of this option:

• In Australia, the BMW gearboxes are not that cheap or easy to find.
• Does not require a different clutch, driveshaft or shifter
• PPF is retained (diff pinion solution not needed)
• Doesn’t require changes to your existing custom exhaust to clear new crossmember.

All those items can add up...

I have other reasons for attempting this option that are unique to my car and plans (not just best cost).

Arca_ex

iTrader: (2)

I would maybe consider it if they offered a dog engagement kit for the price they want but without that option I'll carry a spare trans...

icantlearn

The problem with this is that yes, its "less work", but at the end of the day you are almost 7k deep into a miata trans which still has a weak casing. And you are stuck with the stupid PPF and weak diff. Id be shocked if you couldn't do swap in a BMW trans, getrag diff, and custom exhaust for less than 7k. Just doesn't seem reasonable to me.

If im spending 7k on a gearset, im already in the "cost not a factor" mindset, so id be looking at a sequential instead.

The Australian

Bear in mind that there is a currency difference to consider. The $6k that someone has mentioned above is roughly $4400 of your dollars which is essentially the same cost as the Kmiata 6 speed swap kit and getrag diff swap kit, but not accounting for the cost of acquiring the non-Miata parts.

In local (to me) dollars, the BMW swap costs over $10k once you acquire the the kit, get it to Oz and find the other parts required.

A sequential GB that is sufficient for my goals (say, QBE69G), would require a budget at least double the BMW swap cost, and triple what the PAR set will cost me. I'd like a sequential, but it's not realistically affordable for me.

Transmission case strength, limits of Miata diff and the merits of the PPF are another story (which I researched and thought through carefully before choosing this option).

Gee Emm

There is one BMW swap here that cost north of $10kAUD, the American is probably being conservative in his estimate. You blokes are onto a good thing there, it might not be cheap, but it is cheaper than we can do it for. Especially right now, with the little Aussie bleeder heading south in a hurry

msmola2002

Has anyone down there put a samsonas box in an mx5? When I left a decade ago a few people were putting them in BMWs. /threaddrift

The Australian

Not that I’ve come across. The other alternatives I know of here:
Nissan Skyline
Ford T5
Honda S2000
Powerglide
Built Jatco (used by Mazda, but common to another local cult car that can make power
kmiata’s BMW kit

The Australian

After receiving defective parts, 9 months after ordering, and trying unsuccessfully to get them replaced for a further 9 months, I will never deal with PAR Engineering again.

There's no point in airing the details, but I would not want a future searcher finding this thread and ascribing any credence to the vendor as a result.

The Australian

After giving up trying to get replacements from PAR Engineering, I sent the gearset to a transmission builder that specialises in performance transmissions to assess the damage and if possible to fit the set into my NB2 transmission core.

The transmission builder subsequently identified that the parts supplied to me are incompatible with each other without modification, and are a mix of ‘early and later model’ parts that are not completely compatible with the NB 6 speed.

This makes no sense at all to me, as I understood that the NB 6 speed was almost identical internally throughout the years of manufacture, AND the set I bought was marketed as specifically for the NB8B which is the transmission core I supplied.

In any case, they can fix it, but there will be a days machine work involved.

What I think happened: PAR also manufactures this gearset for the Toyota 86 and the parts that I received were stamped or etched with Mx5 part numbers, except for the main shaft which has a ‘TT86’ marking. I think what I have is a mix and match of parts…

I do hope I end up with something useable after all this.

This is been my experience. Do your own research before parting with your hard earned. I have discovered that I am not alone.

Lokiel

Thanks for the update - this is on my "One Day" list of things to do and had hoped it would work out (despite how expensive it is).

I still don't understand why the Aisin 6-speed can be so crap even for OEM cars given how many companies use it, even the AE86 version has issues with about 25% of them.

No wonder Mazda tried to make their own 6-speed for the ND.

The Australian

When I finally rage quit the hobby, perhaps you’d like this one? I can’t promise it won’t be fire affected along with the rest of the car….