ece_tim

Well, you're going to be removing the transmission crossmember...just place the jack forward or aft of it to hold the tranny while you remove the crossmember. The tranny is pretty easy to hold in place with just muscle power too. Also a regular floor jack comes in handy. I have that exact one and it worked just fine without 4x4's.

The TSK3 includes a grease packet for just that purpose.

You don't *need* the TSK3. I believe the concern for wear/damage on the snout is as the TOB ages and stops performing to specs. And I imagine you would have to do quite a lot of driving with a failing TOB for that to happen. For about the past month or so, I would get a shuddering in the tranny when slipping the clutch from a stop with a certain amount of throttle. A little more/less slip or more/less throttle would prevent the shuddering, so most of the time I was able to avoid it. I noticed no damage to my snout. That said, I installed it. I don't plan on going in there again and given the PITA nature of pulling the tranny, I didn't want to have to. But, I am someone who tends to be more conservative with such things. Just my nature. You can use the 06-07 Flywheel with a stock clutch just fine. As I mentioned, order the standard hex flywheel bolts with it. That said, this guy is selling a NIB dual mass FW for really cheap. You can't resurface the dual mass when it comes time to change the clutch again, where you will probably be able to resurface the single mass, but you get to keep any of the NVH-reducing properties of the dual mass FW. Also consider your long term plans for the car. If you're keeping it stock, the stock setup will do fine. If you might go to stage 2 (exhaust + tune), but you drive conservatively, then the stock setup will also do fine. But if you drive aggressively, track the car, or plan on swapping turbo's, you probably don't want to invest in a stock clutch. A few hundred more bucks buys you setup that will stand up to abuse and hold higher power levels. I likely won't end up going past stage 2, but what cinched it for me was this: with a stock clutch on stage 2, even a brand new one, I would still have to be careful even trying to take off quickly (much less "launching") that I didn't smoke the clutch. As we all know, it's a bit of an act trying to slip the clutch just enough to avoid bogging the engine without revving/slipping too much. The stock clutch gives up really easily in that situation and I didn't want to have to deal with that.

I'm doing this tonight. I saw your thread last night when I was searching for info on the pedal level. Mine engages pretty high up, which I know is supposed to improve with break in, but in the meantime I want to lower it. I may also bleed my clutch when I do my brake fluid soon.

I changed my clutch with the help of a friend last weekend. Here are my suggestions: Re:Turbo clearance I don't know how much work there is in removing the turbo. I imagine the coolant and oil lines would make it difficult to even un-bolt the turbo to move it slightly out of the way. If you're doing it just by yourself, I would consider removing the turbo. We had a fair amount of trouble getting the transmission around it, going both in and out. My buddy was the one who wiggled the trans past the turbo on the way out, but on the way back in here's how we did it. At the bottom of the bellhousing there are two LONG studs that stick out of the engine. We got these partially inserted into the trans first. We then positioned the trans jack towards the front of the trans and lowered it a bit. This allowed us to then use a regular jack to pump up the rear. While we were raising the rear, which was effectively tilting the top of the trans forward (where the turbo hits), I used my 2nd longest prybar between the turbo housing & trans (with a rag over the tip for a bit of cushion) to shift the engine forward enough to allow the trans to slip by. There is quite a bit of play in the engine mounts, so we felt it was a safe maneuver. If you can buy or rent an engine crane (cherry picker) for cheap, that plus some ratcheting straps would help pull the engine out of the way slightly and make a one-man job much easier. I don't think you would need to disconnect the engine mounts, but you could for a little more movement. If you do though, don't pull the engine very far as everything else is still attached. A few other points: *We did not have to pull the CV axles, just like in the video. But, we encountered issues later (see below) that necessitated removing the trans entirely and I had to replace my pass side CV anyway. Since I needed to pull the pass side, we dropped that control arm (four bolts, easy) and pulled that axle out. This then allowed us to move the trans towards the pass side, giving enough room to pull the driver's CV out without dropping that control arm. This only worked since we had completely disconnected the trans of course. If your trans is still held on my the last 2 plugs, you can either drop the driver's control arm or just disconnect those plugs. *Don't buy a simple bit insert for the Torx Plus 50, like the one here. The bit works fine, I have it, but of course it doesn't sit in the 5/16" socket perfectly. Also I didn't have a 1/2" drive 5/16" (or 8mm) socket, so I had to use a 1/2" to 3/8" adapter plus my cheap breaker bar. This added a good quarter turn of free play while trying to remove the Torx Plus bolts and complicated things further. Buy a socket like this. I don't know if this socket is 3/8" drive or 1/2" drive, but if possible get a 1/2" drive. Edit: It is a 3/8" drive socket. I don't know if they make a TP50 1/2" drive, but if you have a quality adapter & breaker bar, you shouldn't have the loose play issues I had. *The Torx Plus 50 bolts on my flywheel were REALLY on there (car has 70K on it). I mean as in two big guys were putting all their strength into a ~18-inch breaker bar to bust these loose. And then it happened: one of the bolts started to strip. We realized this quickly and proceeded very carefully. Despite hammering the bit into the bolt and trying to get the ideal angles for removal, we couldn't do it with the trans in the car. We were too concerned about stripping the bit and being effed. We actually broke two Craftsman 3/8 drive sockets trying to turn these bolts; hence, get the Torx Plus bit integrated into a socket. So we removed the two remaining plugs off the top of the tranny and slide it as far back as possible, with the axles removed. (Unfortunately the car couldn't be jacked high enough to remove it altogether) We bought an impact 5/16" socket (part of a set only) and even got a 250 ft-lb electric impact gun just in case. The electric impact gun didn't touch *any* of the bolts, much less the stuck one that was starting to strip. This was with us trying to get it from directly behind the engine. We hit the stuck bolt with PB Blaster and tightened it a bit. Only after all this, with very careful application of force & angles did it come out - THANKFULLY. Moral of the story: be very careful removing the bolts, keep in mind you might need to drop the trans, get the bit+socket & a long breaker bar, and damn sure replace these with the newer hex bolts. DO NOT REUSE! *If you haven't changed your trans fluid yet, do it now. Drain before you move the tranny to make things a bit easier. Also, consider pulling the drain plug twice. Before you move, and after. Since we moved the trans around a bunch and I forgot to replace the plug crush ring, I pulled the plug again once it was bolted up and was greeted by a good half a quart of fluid that must have shifted forward. So if you pull the plug after you reinstall the trans, have a pan in place! Also, refill the the trans before you reinstall the IC. You have a straight shot at the tube. *I have a Cobb DP and custom 3" CBE. 70K miles (with 40K in Michigan) rusted the mid-pipe bolts and they broke upon removal. Also, the donut gasket fell apart a bit. If you're placing an order from a dealer place like FredBeans, consider getting a new donut gasket and prepare for a Lowes/HD trip for new grade 8 bolts. *This is just a general working on cars tip, but you're removing a lot of bolts in this process. Get a box of plastic baggies, or a bunch of cheap plastic takeout containers or whatever, and place different bolts in individual containers. Label with a marker. I bought the bulk box of sandwich bags and it came in handy for this. *If you've never done a clutch before, plan for 2 days of work. If you can run from early morning to late evening, then you could probably do it in 1 day even with hangups. We could only work till ~7pm the first day, otherwise we would've at least gotten real close to finishing. *I think it's been mentioned elsewhere, but apply antiseize on every bolt that gives you any trouble. The DP to turbo bolts were in good shape, but the exhaust bolts, flywheel bolts, pressure plate bolts and every stud/bolt/dowel on the trans/engine mating surface damn sure need it. That's all I can think of now. I'll update this post if I think of anything else. Also if I get the time soon I'll post all the relevant torque specs. Here are a bunch that help with exhaust & IC stuff.

Yeah, a clear adhesive would be ideal. I'm just not familiar with adhesives, so I'll have to do my research.

Thanks, I'll consider that whenever I dive into these. I'm concerned over there not being enough surface area for tape, but thanks for the tip.

Yeah if the solenoid is busted, I'm just going to disconnect the xenon hibeams. It could be wiring though - this guy didn't do the cleanest job. Black high temp RTV it is. Clean all the surfaces real well, maybe rough it up a bit, final alcohol swab? Thanks for the tips guys. Welcome any others for ensuring a one-time fix with this BTW - am I alone in thinking the bi-xenon high beams are unimpressive?

Thought I'd bring this one back. I bought my LGT with an RX330 retrofit and angel eyes done by the previous owner. Three problems: 1) Pass side headlight gets moisture in it. 2) Pass side headlight high (xenon) high beam doesn't work. 3) One of the CFL rings on the pass side headlight has come loose. Clearly I'm going to have to disassemble that light to get into this. Any tips on resealing to ensure it's moisture proof? Also I saw some mention of a cap that shouldn't be tightened too much, as it allows air to enter & leave the headlight? What is this? I understand there is a solenoid in the light that moves the cutoff shield for high beam activation. This solenoid could be bad, or there could be a wiring issue to blame. I can diagnose the wiring, but is there anyway to test or replace the solenoid? I'm not too worried about this, as I am unimpressed with the xenon high beams and will be upgrading the stock high beams & re-wiring those. I know the angel eyes/CFL rings are unrelated to the retrofit, but I also welcome any tips for properly securing these. I believe the previous owner used some type of adhesive - the kind that is yellow when it dries. The driver's side is fine, so I'm hoping if I can clean & prep all the surfaces really well, that a re-application will work. Any idea what adhesive to use?

subarugenuineparts.com is awesome, Jamie is a great help.