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R150 Swap: An affordable, competitive alternative to the R154
After purchasing my SC300 back in February, I immediately began exploring viable options for a manual swap other than the standard ones (W58, R154, CD009). I knew there were other R-series Toyota transmissions, but I couldn’t seem to find any information or evidence of a successful swap. After confirming that the R150 from the 1996+ 2WD Tacoma has the same dimensions and internals as the R154, I decided to pursue this option despite the lack of documentation anywhere on the forums. Six months of research and collecting parts later, I finally got to put my plans into action: I successfully swapped out the stock A340E on my 1995 SC300 for an R150 this past weekend. By sharing the specifics of my build, I’m hoping to provide the community with an inexpensive, easy-to-find alternative to the R154. Since plenty of documentation already exists elsewhere on the forums + YouTube for a standard R154 swap, I’m not going to list out every single step in the process as most of it is the same for the R150. Instead, I will focus on the different parts required and any notable differences in the swap process. If you need help or have extra-detailed or specific questions, feel free to ask. A YouTube account by the name of 2jway recently posted a video documenting the entire R154 swap process from start to finish, I highly recommend familiarizing yourself with that video if this is your first time attempting a manual swap.
R150 vs R154: What’s the difference?
As mentioned above, the R150 gearbox itself has a lot in common with the R154. The main difference is the gearing; the R150 has deeper gears as it was built to move a heavy truck. The difference is really only noticeable in the low gears—particularly first. You have to shift out of first quicker than you would with the R154. If it bothers you, this can be mitigated by swapping out your rear differential for one with a lower ratio.
Getting the right parts
Incomplete lists are extremely frustrating, especially for people who are less experienced. I’ve made a point to record the price and part number (where applicable) of every part I used in this swap, as well as where to buy them.
Before actually completing the swap, you will need to make several changes to the R150 transmission itself. First, you need to remove the stock 5VZ bellhousing (save the bolts), clutch fork, and throwout bearing assembly. Next, you will need to remove the tailshaft of the transmission so you can remove the stock shift lever and replace it with the Verossa one (part #3325222030):
Once that has been swapped out, you can reassemble the transmission and bolt the new 1JZ bellhousing to the gearbox:
While the transmission is out and is easy to work with, it is also a good idea to install the VSS adapter.
Part II - R150 Installation
The build starts to deviate when it comes to the crossmember and the hole for the shifter. In addition to expanding the existing automatic shift hole to fit the manual shifter, a small hole must be drilled so the breather valve can fit through:
The Xcessive manufacturing crossmember must also be altered in order to fit the stock R150 transmission mount. The 4 bolt holes in the center of the crossmember do not line up with the 4 bolt holes on the underside of the mount (they are a little too wide). I opted to widen the holes in the mount with a drill, then use stainless steel fender washers to ensure there was no compromise in strength:
In order to bolt the ends of the crossmember to the underside of the car, I used the 4 ⅜” pipe nipples as bushings. I made sure to include a stainless steel ⅜” washer on both sides of the crossmember. The final result was pretty clean:
*Note that Driftmotion sells a kit that does basically the same thing, but they charge $130 for hardware that can be picked up at home depot for under $15.
Part III - Reassembly
Once the holes have been cut in the center console and the transmission has been secured with the crossmember, the final steps and reassembly process essentially mirror that of the R154. It’s worth mentioning that getting the Verossa shifter to seat in the retainer housing properly can be a bit tricky, you have to come in at the correct angle. If it isn’t seating, don’t force it. Pull it out, re-adjust the nylon bushing, and try again.
Conclusion
After putting about 100 miles on the R150, I can say with confidence that this swap is absolutely worth doing. For under $2,600, start to finish, you can go from a stock automatic to a strong, smooth 5-speed manual. Nowadays it’s hard to find an R154 for under $2,600! There are hundreds if not thousands of R150s sitting around in junk yards that no one cares about because no one knows their potential. Like I mentioned in the beginning of the post, the tall gears of the R150 are noticeable when you’re shifting through first and second. You can always do what I did and pick up a diff from an SC400 or SC430 for like $50 if you’re unsatisfied with the gearing.
Thank you for making this writeup, Crevasse!!! Your hard work and research has paid off! I know this is going to be viewed and considered by many as a good alternative to R154's. The input shaft and splines are the same as an R154, then? So we can safely assume that any R154 clutch kit/system will work with the R150?
This is a case where I wonder if a 3.76 or custom rebuilt 3.615:1 ratio (taken from a 90-95 LS400's rear diff casing) might be a good fit for the 1st and 2nd gears which would then provide slightly more relaxed 3rd-5th gears for cruising/highway use.
That is correct, the input shaft is the same. When picking a clutch kit, I went to the MK3 Supra section on RockAuto and found one in my price range. It installed with no issues.
this is good info!!! thank you so much for doing this swap and posting everything in an organized manner. I appreciate it.
Question(s)
1- Now, since SCs, Soarers and the MKIV are mostly identical underneath, I would assume the verossa shifter set will fit the MKIV as well? if not, what do you think would be a viable option for MKIV?
2- I have an SC430 / GS430 rear diff to be installed I think the gearing is like 3.72 or 3.76 or something like that... and I was wondering if you made the rear diff swap over already? and how does the 1st to 2nd shift after that? I know there's a way to calculate it or something but I don't know how to.
3- will a R155 work similarly too? Just wondering.
Again, thanks for the info and knowledge that you imparted on us.
As a disclaimer, I've never actually gotten my hands on a MKIV to verify, but from what I understand about the dimensions of the car, the Verossa shift retainer should work just fine. Obviously if the Supra was an automatic, cuts would need to be made in the center console just like the SC300 as the automatic shift hole is not big enough, but If the MKIV was already a manual and you were swapping out the W58 for an R150, I'd imagine if any cutting/filing was needed at all, it would be minimal. I'm basing this off of diagrams I've studied, and the fact that Driftmotion lumps the SC300 and MKIV Supra together when selling their custom shift housing extension.
The SC430 diff I have is 3.26, I believe there were a couple different ratios depending on the production year. I have not made the rear swap yet, I'm having trouble removing the giant 35mm nut to get the companion flange off. As soon as I can break that loose, I'll put my LSD into the SC430 pumpkin, install the whole assembly into the SC300, test the ratios and report back here. There's a website called "Engineers Edge" that has a final drive ratio calculator, you enter in the ratios for your diff, each gear and your tire size and it will fill in a chart of your road speed at each RPM. I compared the calculations for both diffs and the predicted speeds with a 3.26 diff look pretty promising.
An R155 will work, but it's significantly more work in my opinion. This thread (https://www.clublexus.com/forums/per...to-r154-6.html) outlines what must be done to get an R155 to work, most notably you have to take the whole transmission apart and replace the input shaft as it's too short. Also it's worth nothing that the R155 gears are even deeper than the R150.
As a disclaimer, I've never actually gotten my hands on a MKIV to verify, but from what I understand about the dimensions of the car, the Verossa shift retainer should work just fine. Obviously if the Supra was an automatic, cuts would need to be made in the center console just like the SC300 as the automatic shift hole is not big enough, but If the MKIV was already a manual and you were swapping out the W58 for an R150, I'd imagine if any cutting/filing was needed at all, it would be minimal. I'm basing this off of diagrams I've studied, and the fact that Driftmotion lumps the SC300 and MKIV Supra together when selling their custom shift housing extension.
The SC430 diff I have is 3.26, I believe there were a couple different ratios depending on the production year. I have not made the rear swap yet, I'm having trouble removing the giant 35mm nut to get the companion flange off. As soon as I can break that loose, I'll put my LSD into the SC430 pumpkin, install the whole assembly into the SC300, test the ratios and report back here. There's a website called "Engineers Edge" that has a final drive ratio calculator, you enter in the ratios for your diff, each gear and your tire size and it will fill in a chart of your road speed at each RPM. I compared the calculations for both diffs and the predicted speeds with a 3.26 diff look pretty promising.
An R155 will work, but it's significantly more work in my opinion. This thread (https://www.clublexus.com/forums/per...to-r154-6.html) outlines what must be done to get an R155 to work, most notably you have to take the whole transmission apart and replace the input shaft as it's too short. Also it's worth nothing that the R155 gears are even deeper than the R150.
Glad I could help!
Hey man,
Thanks for replying. I appreciate it. Now I'm definitely going with this route. As the r154 and other trans all adds up to $4/5k and upwards, this is a viable option for people on a budget.
I will attempt to do the calculations on the ratios as you mentioned. Thanks for that as well.
Hello peeps, just plugged in the numbers for a few ratios that pertain to this. It is not half bad at all on paper, of course, lower the gearing the better and quite promising.
Hello peeps, just plugged in the numbers for a few ratios that pertain to this. It is not half bad at all on paper, of course, lower the gearing the better and quite promising.
You wouldn't have happened to install this transmission on a 98+, would you? I recently picked up my SC300 and the first thing i'm researching is a manual swap. Some details on the wiring and what's required to keep the check engine light off would be amazing.
(EDIT) I just realized you installed this on a 95. I'll have to continue my search on how to get a 98-00 to not have a CEL with a manual.
Unfortunately I've never done the swap on an OBDII vehicle, as you noticed I have a '95 (I wanted an early model because I don't like working with OBDII haha). You're going to get CEL because the ECU is looking for shift solenoids, OBDI doesn't seem to care if it can't find them. If you haven't already found it, this thread here (https://www.clublexus.com/forums/per...peed-swap.html) discusses the CEL issues when swapping on '98+ models, including various possible solutions. I would still highly recommend considering going the R150 route, getting the CEL cleared is a small task compared to the thousands you'll save!
Unfortunately I've never done the swap on an OBDII vehicle, as you noticed I have a '95 (I wanted an early model because I don't like working with OBDII haha). You're going to get CEL because the ECU is looking for shift solenoids, OBDI doesn't seem to care if it can't find them. If you haven't already found it, this thread here (https://www.clublexus.com/forums/per...peed-swap.html) discusses the CEL issues when swapping on '98+ models, including various possible solutions. I would still highly recommend considering going the R150 route, getting the CEL cleared is a small task compared to the thousands you'll save!
Definitely considering the R150 transmission. It's basically identical minus the gear ratio for a 1/4 of the price.
Hey Tallyhoe, that depends. The R150 will physically fit in an SC400, but you will need a different bellhousing/clutch setup as a J series bellhousing won't mate with a UZ engine, you need expensive adapters to make it work. However, certain 100 series Land Cruisers came with 2UZs and manual H-series transmissions. I've never actually gotten my hands on one of those transmissions but the bellhousings might be interchangeable between the R and H series, I'll need to confirm that though.
09-09-20, 09:28 AM
R150 Swap: An affordable, competitive alternative to the R154
