I have done this several times now using only jack stands, a creeper, and hand tools. I didnt take pics, but if you are considering doing this job yourself then most of this description should be self explanatory. I quoted the time as about 2.5 hours for this job, not including a flywheel resurface (mostly unnecessary). I have done it in under 2 hours however the average person might take a bit longer.

-car in neutral
-unscrew shift knob
-remove console trim around shifter (pull straight up)
-remove 2 screws, remove ashtray
-remove 4 nuts holding shifter assembly down to chassis
-pull up on the rubber boot and the metal plate, there are 2 layers of rubber to pull out of the way. This will expose 3 10mm bolts holding the shifter to the trans. Remove those 3 and remove the shifter assembly.

-if you are picky, remove battery terminals. There is honestly no real reason to do it for this procedure, however.

(TIME FOR THAT PART, 5 MIN)

-put car on jackstands, with at least 14" from floor to underside of chassis, e-brake off.
-remove catalytic converter/midpipe (use plenty of lubricant prior to attempting this). There are 3) 14mm nuts on the front flange and 2) 14mm nuts on the rear (remove the large washer and spring as well). Pry off the rubber hanger and unplug the O2 sensor plug, and drop it down and out.
-remove the small bracket joining the exhaust manifold to the trans, 3) 14mm bolts
-remove the large crossmember under the back of the engine (4) 17mm bolts and 2) 19mm bolts
-remove exhaust shield from PPF 4) 12mm bolts
-pry off the front-most rubber hanger from the catback extension pipe (by the differential) and use a piece of wood or pipe, wedged above the pipe and below the differential/suspension) to hold the front of the catback pipe down away from the driveshaft/PPF area. This will provide clearance to drop the driveshaft without removing the catback.

(TIME FOR THAT PART, ABOUT 15 MIN)

-drain transmission
-unbolt rear of driveshaft ( 4) 14mm nuts, washer, bolt), lower it past the catback pipe, then slide the front of it out of the trans and lay it aside
-remove starter. there is 1) 14mm bolt on the bottom and 1) 14mm nut on top, with a LONG 14mm bolt going through the trans from the other side (engine). Hold the engine side bolt head with a wrench, while loosening the nut on the starter side with a ratchet. It is okay to let the starter hang by the wires and use a bungee cord to tie it out if the way...I tie it to a spoke on the front driver wheel. The main battery power wire is insulated with a plastic cover on the starter, so there is no real danger of a short circuit which is why it is okay to leave the battery plugged in (to keep from losing your trip odo reading and radio settings).

(TIME FOR THAT PART, ABOUT 5 MIN)

-support the trans with a jack and blocks of wood, or a jackstand. This will allow us to remove the PPF, then the trans can be lowered. Remove the 4 nuts holding the PPF to trans (22mm, impact gun recommended, cheater pipe otherwise) while holding the PPF with your other hand, and slowly let it drop down. Repeat for the rear of the PPF, there are 4 more nuts and one bolt in the side of the diff. The PPF is quite heavy, so be prepared for it's bulk when you remove it.
-remove the jack or stand holding the trans, and let it drop about 6 inches. This will give access to the top area, making bellhousing bolt and wiring removal easy.

(TIME FOR THAT PART, 10 MIN)

-Unplug the 4 small plugs for sensors on top of the rear of the trans and cut or release the ziptie holding them, use pliers or a flat screwdriver to release the clips holding the harness to the trans at the o2 sensor plug and at the top front of the bellhousing. Lay the harness aside, to the right of the bellhousing and between the exhaust manifold and frame rail.
-using a 12mm gear wrench, remove the 2 bolts holding the slave cyl to the top of the bellhousing behind the oil filter, and the 1 bolt holding the clutch line bracket to the side of the trans. Push the slave back between the oil filter pedestal and firewall, out of the way.
-remove the bellhousing bolts...2 on bottom, 3 on top, all 14mm. Now the trans is ready to drop.

(TIME FOR THAT PART, 10 MIN)

Now for this part, I am old school and I just bear hug the trans and use my body to drop it down...it only weighs about 95lb so it is no big deal to me. You small guys out there might choose to use a trans jack or some other contraption. I slide underneath, placing my knees under the bellhousing and grabbing the tailshaft with my hands. I wiggle the tailshaft side to side and up/down while grasping the trans body with my knees and pulling back at the same time. It will slide off the clutch disc about 6 inches and then drop...I use my knees to keep it from dropping. then lower it down slowly until the bellhousing is on the floor. Then while still holding the tailshaft up in the air with my hands, I move my leg out from under it and lower the tailshaft to the floor. Then I get out from under the car and slide the trans out. The whole thing takes about 2 minutes, and while it is a bit uncomfortable, it is a lot easier than setting up a trans jack especially when space is limited. Plus my method works in a gravel or grass area that some people may have to use, while a trans jack will not.

TOTAL TIME TO GET THE TRANS ON THE FLOOR: under 1 hour

It takes maybe 10 minutes to swap the clutch disc/PP/TOB, and then it is just a matter of putting it all back.

Few special notes...clean the input splineshaft on the trans with a wire brush and lubricant, then wipe fairly dry with a towel. Use a light amount of grease to lube the shaft and test the new disc for proper sliding on the splineshaft.

Be damn sure you line up the clutch disc with the pilot bearing hole properly. I use the alignment tool to hold the disc in while I put the PP on and start the screws for the PP. THen I grab the tool again and spin the clutch disc with it, wiggling it back and forth to find the exact center. While holding the tool in center, I tighten 2 of the PP bolts on opposite sides to grab the clutch disc and hold it. Now tighten all the PP bolts to torque and remove the tool. Now reinsert it...it should slide in and out with almost no force, such as with your pinky finger.

Replace or check/lubricate the pilot bearing in the eshaft. If yours spins and no needles are missing, it is better to reuse it than try to replace it, as it is a pain to remove without the OEM puller.

Lubricate lightly with grease, the shaft that the throwout bearing rides on.

Lubricate with grease, the contact point between the slave cylinder rod and clutch fork.

Here's a tip for realigning the trans to engine. Use a screwdriver, or the shifter, to put the trans into a gear. Doesnt matter which one...4th is easiest. Get underneath the trans and lift it up. Sight through the trans bellhousing holes and try to line up with the engine holes. You'll feel the input shaft go into the hole in the PP, and then with more wiggling, into the clutch. Now, is the only hard part.

Wiggle/push the trans and try to get the input shaft splines to go into the clutch splines. IF it will mesh and slide forward 4 or 5 inches, then great. If it won't mesh for a minute or 2, then grab the driveshaft and slide the yoke into the trans, and turn it while wiggling/pushing the trans...this will turn the input shaft and let the splines mesh. This can save you a LOT of time and energy!

Once it slides foward, then rotate the trans until the dowel holes line up and then give it one more push to get it on the dowels (1:30 and 6:30 positions) and then start those 2 bolts to hold it from spinning/falling. Now tighten all bellhousing bolts and reinstall everything.

Once the trans is back in, refill it from the top before you install the shifter.

good write up, i'll be referencing this post later this year. move to DIY section?

you move about 10x faster than i would though.

eh...actually removing the fasteners does not take much time...figuring out the order of doing things is what usually takes the time, so I have removed that burden, which should greatly reduce the time involved.

Great write up Kevin... but do you really re-use a pilot bearing??? I have never done that... heard too many bad stories. What is your success rate on that?

And the driveshaft for turning the tranny for line up into the clutch splines. I use a FC drive shaft that just has the front U joint on it and a small bar to turn the tranny (sort of a home made SST). Would any other RX-7 drive shaft ends mate up with the tranny in the RX-8?

is it really that oimportant to wiggle the clutch about before tightening the last couple of bolts about

Good write up, im getting my clutch soon and was wondering how hard this would be without a lift.

Wow I never imagined it could be done so simply and with so few tools. Right on!

Do you bother with torque values? Might be nice to have those handy.

p.s. Are you skinny? Not sure 14 inches is going to get me under there to "bear hug" anything! :D

Great write up Kevin... but do you really re-use a pilot bearing??? I have never done that... heard too many bad stories. What is your success rate on that?

And the driveshaft for turning the tranny for line up into the clutch splines. I use a FC drive shaft that just has the front U joint on it and a small bar to turn the tranny (sort of a home made SST). Would any other RX-7 drive shaft ends mate up with the tranny in the RX-8?

Fancy seeing you here (and speaking in a civil manner). At least I can post freely here, in a helpful manner, without fear of thread edit or deletion.

I have only ever had one pilot bearing go bad in any rotary. It was one I had installed in my turbo convertible as part of a new ACT kit. That engine did see a lot of time around 8-9 grand so I figure that is what killed it after a couple years. Otherwise, yes, if a PB feels good and turns normally, I simply work some grease into it and pack a little extra behind it, and leave it be.

Even though I can easily change them, for purposes of this writeup I did not feel it would be a good idea to advise the DIY'er to try and change it. For one, the rx8s are still fairly low mileage in many circumstances, thus the bearing should still have a lot of life left in it (most rx8s are still on the original clutch). And since most people here will not have an OEM puller tool, it could create more problems for them than it might solve if they tried to remove it on their own.

As for the driveshaft, the rx8 MT and AT both use the same splines/yoke as the FC turbo and FD MT. I have a front yoke (only) from a t2 driveshaft that I use as an SST for purposes of keeping the fluid in the trans (I do not drain it) and to turn the input shaft during realignment.

Another tidbit, the 87-91 rx7 turbo clutch kit is identical to the rx8, although the part numbers are different. Also the FD clutch DISC is also interchangeable with both the turbo II and the rx8 (the pressureplate and TOB are not). I am actually running a turbo II pressureplate and an FD clutch disc in my rx8 right now.

is it really that oimportant to wiggle the clutch about before tightening the last couple of bolts about

Not always, BUT the better the clutch is centered, the easier the trans input shaft will slide into place while you are bench pressing it. A little extra consideration now, will help the trans slide in place like butter later on, which is definitely a good thing. As long as the alignment tool moves in and out of the tightened clutch assembly freely with little effort and doesnt catch on anything, you are good to go.

Wow I never imagined it could be done so simply and with so few tools. Right on!

Do you bother with torque values? Might be nice to have those handy.

p.s. Are you skinny? Not sure 14 inches is going to get me under there to "bear hug" anything! :D

The only thing I have ever torqued to spec on any car are rod/main bolts, head bolts, and the tension bolts on rotary engines. Everything else gets "snug plus 1/8 or 1/4 turn" depending on size of fastener and importance. For the PP bolts I usually use the impact and go about 1/3 gun on them until they stop turning, but not enough torque to break them.

I am about 6' and 210lb, so no I am not skinny. It can be a slightly tight fit when I am manhandling the trans, but it is still much faster than trying to fool with a jack.

good write up but for ur average "Joe" will prob not b able to get things done in quite the rush and speed u acheived them at! but all in all a great write up

As for the driveshaft, the rx8 MT and AT both use the same splines/yoke as the FC turbo and FD MT. I have a front yoke (only) from a t2 driveshaft that I use as an SST for purposes of keeping the fluid in the trans (I do not drain it) and to turn the input shaft during realignment. very cool, Same thing I do and good to know that the FE is the same as the FD/FC one.

Another tidbit, the 87-91 rx7 turbo clutch kit is identical to the rx8, although the part numbers are different. Also the FD clutch DISC is also interchangeable with both the turbo II and the rx8 (the pressureplate and TOB are not). I am actually running a turbo II pressureplate and an FD clutch disc in my rx8 right now.

Flywheel (not including counterweights) is the same too, although I suspect that the clutch is the 235mm like the S5 and later Turbo RX-7, rather than the 240mm like the S4 turbo. Have you compared?

Flywheel (not including counterweights) is the same too, although I suspect that the clutch is the 235mm like the S5 and later Turbo RX-7, rather than the 240mm like the S4 turbo. Have you compared?

Flywheel from an rx8 is the same dimensionally as the 87-95 turbo, however the balancing is probably slightly different. The rx8 rotors are technically lighter than the 89-95 rotors. The s5/s6 rotors always weigh in at 9.5-9.6lb while the renesis rotors are weighing in at 9.2-9.3lb (based on comparison of 20+ of each).

Thus, while the counterweighting of the rx8 flywheel is probably pretty similar to the previous ones, it is probably not identical. Would it make a difference if you tried to use it on an 89-95 engine without rebalancing? It probably would not hurt anything. I do know that the rx8 flywheel is about 1.5-2lb lighter than the Fd flywheel.