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Who has done a full transaxle swap?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Technical Discussion' started by evallded, Dec 1, 2017.

  1. evallded

    evallded Junior Member

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    Show of hands?

    I am not 100% that I will need to yet but I am looking to see if anyone has any advice on strictly a transaxle only swap. I have done a full engine swap before so I know how that will go, but I am not sure on the room to separate the 2 while in the bay, access to bolts etc. Anybody done one?
     
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    isn't there a whole write up pinned in the gen 2 forums?
     
  3. evallded

    evallded Junior Member

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    There is a topic pinned, but all of the pictures are gone, and there is little/no info about the swap. To be honest I am not sure why it is even pinned. The post simply states that problems were had at xxx miles, $xxx dollars were paid for parts and the swap happened. Followed by a lot of back patting and small tid bits of technical info regarding proper operating temps, voltage, etc.

    I am uncertain if I will have the room to separate the tranny from the engine while in the bay. If there will be any possible differences between the different used transaxles available that I should look out for. If the cross member will need to be dropped again, etc.
     
  4. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    sorry, i wonder what has happened to the pics.
     
  5. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    It's happened at least once, that the site is migrated to new software, and images lost in the process.

    Luscious Garage has some videos of just replacing internal components of the transaxle. Bit of a drive, but maybe you could glean some DIY tips from them?
     
  6. evallded

    evallded Junior Member

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    No worries, they were probably just hosted online and the subscription has run out. It happens
    Thank you Mendel. I am doing some more searching as we speak. Usually when I do this sort of thing I have my eyes on the prize and never take photos etc, so write ups are tough for me. But during this (if I end up doing it) I should have a helper monkey so I may just do a write up myself for others to reference.
     
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  7. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    I've had 2 transaxle jobs done on a Gen2. Both times just dropping the transaxle, not the engine together. (I wasn't the actual mechanic that did it)

    But if you look at the service manual, it shows you should drop both the engine and transaxle and then separate them.
     
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  8. evallded

    evallded Junior Member

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    Well I am certainly not hoping to have to drop the engine again. Though I know in some aspects it may be easier
     
  9. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    It is definitely easier dropping them together and separating them, but you just have to disconnect more things to do so.
     
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  10. zsolar

    zsolar New Member

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    I have done this recently- it's doable for the experience DIYer. Yes, the engine stays in place. There is a good thread describing how to do this here. That's the one that should be stickied.
    A few comments on that process based on my experience:

    Don't remove axles from the hub- it's easier to remove the axle and hub together after disconnecting the ball joint (2 small nuts and one bolt), the strut, the abs sensor, the tie-rod end and the brake caliper bracket.

    The axle may be very hard to remove- one side I could pry off, but the other was evil- I ended up tying a thick rope to the inner joint and tying the other end to a big sledgehammer. Swinging the hammer eventually popped it free. See youtube for examples. Rotate both the axle and the position of the rope on the axle if it does not come out and try again. The axles went back in easily (position the gap in the retaining clip on the bottom).

    Supporting the engine from below is easy. Just use a piece of wood (2x4), wedged into the casting of the engine. There is a nice recess that the wood fits right into. Use the car's scissor jack under the 2x4. You will need to set it up to allow a few inches of travel to lower the engine enough for the transmission to slide off the engine.

    I put the rear wheels on ramps and put the front on large jackstands (generic 6-ton model). I used a low-profile floor jack with a homemade adapter (plywood and some shims) to raise and lower the transmission- worked great. Center the jack right on the drain plug, or maybe a little bit towards the driver's side of that, for proper balance.

    You don't need to remove the wiper motor. It comes out with the lower cowl.

    Installing the axle seals to the correct depth is important. I think you could Lam's advice on there. I actually 3D-printed a tool for the purpose, but that's hardly necessary.

    Good luck!
     
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  11. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    welcome, and thank you!(y)