Compete KLZE Swap Guide VERY NICE INFO

Asuna

Member
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93 Mazda MX-6 LS
Here it is guys. Complete how to. I did not write this and I would like to give the writer ful credit.
Travis Williams AKA (TravisWilliams_GT) Of probetalk
^^ Author of this information.
2 Gen KLZE SWAP

Welcome to the 2G GT Tech section. Within these hallowed threads you will find many useful and helpful references to many people that came way way way before you, such as Mike P., J. Bradbury, Ross Lapkof, and even Michel Fortier. Many of these people pushed the limits to our knowledge of these cars and opened up many different possibilities that today we take for granted. Julian, specifically, offered technical reference that was unsurpassed, of which I R.C.S.A.d a long time ago. Perhaps what you read here will be something that warrants use of your right mouse button as well.

Now many of you have already read the Change your own clutch thread. I hope it has helped many of you in turning some of your own wrenches on your car. What follows will be a similar thread, but geared towards a complete KL-03 to KL-ZE Swap. I will try to provide you with as many of the idiosyncrasies as I can remember and/or have solutions to. So sit back, relax, and all you pros can see if I missed anything
This list will be separated into three sections: removal, maintenance/performance, and prep for install/installation. I will try to keep it as concise as possible

For starters, make sure you have everything before you start anything. Here is a basic list:
A car with a KL block already in itthat needs the KL-ZE.
A complete replacement KL-ZE Motor.
Drain pan capable of collecting up to 8 qt of oil / gear lube.
A separate container capable of collecting up to 2 gallons of antifreeze / coolant.
A basic set of hand tools including but not limited to:
1. Metric 3/8 drive ratchet set from 8mm to 17mm w/ extension up to 12 (this is about standard)
2. Metric drive ratchets in 17, 19, & 23 mm
3. Small assortment of Philips and Flat head screwdrivers
4. Snub and Long needle nose pliers
5. 5# sledge hammer
6. Perhaps a 10 # as well
7. Center Punch and Chisel Punch
8. Metric open/box end wrenches 8mm to 17mm (I prefer the Gear Wrenches)
9. Metric Allen set
10. Floor jack with 12-15 lift
11. Jack stands
12. Preferably drive torque wrench
Make sure you have someplace to do this, preferably a flat driveway or garage if applicable. Also make sure your neighbors will not take offense to you turning their community into their own little slice of Alabama.
Ample time to accomplish this; my best time on a straight swap (no performance crap at the same time) was right at 6 hr.
You will hurt the day after this so get some Advil or alcohol now.
Full quantities of replacement fluid:
a. 2 oil filters
b. 5 quarts of cheap oil
c. 5 quarts of Mobil 1
d. one gallon of coolant, or 2 gallons of 50/50 pre-mix
e. 3 quarts of gear lube; your choice (Red Line, Royal Purple, GM Synchromesh, just regular 75W90
And finally an Engine Hoist, Cherry Picker, or equivalent
Bear in mind that this is for a manual transmission equipped vehicle; the automatic is slightly different, whereas the transmission will remain in the vehicle




REMOVAL 101

Raise and support the vehicle, placing the jack stands under the lower control arm rear bushings
Remove the wheels and place them under the car below the doors, for safety just in case.
Remove both underside splash shields (if applicable) 10 mm, 8 mm, Phillips plastic retainer
Begin by draining all the fluids:
a. Motor oil via the pan drain plug assorted sizes 14 -19 mm
b. Leave the oil filter on, it will keep it from leaking everywhere
c. Gear lube from the transmission drain plug 23 mm
d. Coolant into your separate container via the radiator petcock (near A/C Compressor) remove the radiator cap to help it drain more quickly
Also drain the coolant in the motors water jacket by removing the coolant line to the oil cooler above the oil filter long needle nose pliers work best here, relieve the clamp and move it up the hose, and if the hose is stubborn, rotate it with the pliers, it should break free.
Do this for both hoses to drain as much coolant as possible, and reconnect them afterwards to stop leakage on removal
The radiator will drain slowly, so in the meantime you can begin by removing any air intake you may have up to the throttle body, PA, HS, eBay, or factory.- 8 mm, 12 mm, or flat head screwdriver
Remove the battery and battery tray 10 mm
Remove the battery tray bracket to the frame 10 mm x 2
Remove the distributor and spark plug wires 12 mm x 2
Remove the wires still in the wire holders, use a small screwdriver to lift the plastic retainer and slide the whole thing up easier to install later
By this time the coolant should be drained. Close the petcock and relieve the spring clamps on the coolant supply hose and return hoses at the motor. If the hose feels stuck, twist it.
Remove the two upper radiator hooks 12 mm x 2
Disconnect the two radiator fan plugs, and remove the chassis wires from the radiator if they are still connected. The radiator must be completely free from the car for the next step
remove the radiator
Now begin on the wire harness
Disconnect the oil pressure sending unit by squeezing the clip
Disconnect the alternator at the plug and flip up the little plastic cover on the cable, remove that nut with a 12 mm socket
Remove the wire harness retainers on the front valve cover 10 mm x 2
Disconnect the front 02 sensor
Feed the wire around the coolant neck to the thermostat
Disconnect the starter by squeezing the exciter clip and pull up the little rubber cover on the cable, remove that nut with a 12 mm socket
Disconnect the fuel rail plugs, knock sensor, throttle body, Idle Air Control, & Fuel Pressure Regulator
Do not be alarmed from all the plastic crunching sounds that the wire harness makes as you are moving it around. That plastic used to be black rubber electrical tape, but with thousands of heat cycles, it gets brittle. HOWEVER, Try not to move it around too much, so when you lay the harness back in after the motor is installed, the wires will retain a memory of where they used to be to help you plug everything back in.
Now concentrate on the transmission There are quite a few wire harness connections on ore near the transmission:
1. Front of the transmission, under the starter reverse switch, white plug
2. Middle of the transmission, near the fuel filter park/neutral position switch, black plug
3. Rear of the transmission, directly under the throttle body speed sensor, grey plug
4. Now get the grounds, large multiple one at the upper motor mount 17 mm
5. 4 wire black one at a central bracket 10 mm ratchet with 12 extension
6. Single wire black at same bracket 10 mm ratchet with 12 extension
7. Heavy gauge black/yellow tracer at transmission/rear motor mount support beam 10 mm ratchet with 12 extension
8. Go ahead and remove the brackets as well your discretion to reinstall after the fact
9. The rear bracket with the wire harness plugs on it has the retainer bolt under the rear harness plug long needle nose will relieve the plastic clip to gain access to it - 10 mm ratchet with 12 extension
10. Remove the support beam from rear motor mount to the transmission 10 mm ratchet with 12 extension
11. Remove the fuel filter upper retaining nuts 10 mm ratchet with 12 extension
12. Remove the fuel supply line from the top of the fuel filter, and then remove the fuel return line from the rigid line at the motor. This way it only goes back in one way



REMOVAL 102
Now go back to wire harness unplugging
Disconnect the EGR 3 wire at the EGR
Move over to the passenger side
Disconnect the crank sensor 3 wire
Disconnect the coolant temp sensor 2 wire
Disconnect the coolant gauge sensor 1 wire
Pull that section free and peek down at the top of the power steering pump
There is one 10 mm nut and one 10 mm bolt that you need to remove to free the upper P/S Pump. Both of them are P/S hose bracket retainers. 10 mm and 12 extension will work here.
Now move around to the back of the Intake Manifold
Disconnect the VRIS 2 wire brown and black
Disconnect the canister purge 2 wire black
Reach down behind and unplug the EGR Solenoids, they are together on a small bracket that supports the Intake Manifold this is the @!#$@ bolt
BE VERY CAREFUL, These are Expensive to Replace
I recommend you remove them now to save on damage to them on removal 12 mm
There are 2 vacuum lines feeding them, find the vacuum line that tees off the VRIS VAC supply, and disconnect it from the tee. Then remove the other line from the EGR Assembly. This is the VENT line. This way it will only go back together one way; one connection up, one connection down.
Remove the throttle body cable and the brake booster hose from the Intake Manifold
Now get up under the car.
Lower cross member 17 mm x 6
Start with the Exhaust. 3 bolts on the collectors - 14 mm
There is a good possibility that these will break off, so pre-spraying them with some PB Blaster or other penetrant may help
Removing the exhaust hooks into the rubber isolators will allow you to lower it and get it out of the way
Next remove the shift linkage 12 mm and pin, note the plastic bushings in the transmission sleeve
Remove the shift linkage stabilizer and bushing 14 mm nut
NOTE: Some transmissions I have seen the stud come out instead of the nut, which isnt a problem, but it could cause a few. No need to elaborate, just remove the nut and thread back in the stud to the hole it came out of.
Now you should be able to see the rear motor mount bracket to the transmission.
START ON THE TOP BOLT! Break it loose and thread it out by hand
Next is the middle one, same thing
Finally break loose the lower one and remove it. Youll thank me because if it does bind up, there is the top one.more room to swing the ratchet on the lower one versus
Once they are removed, see how much movement you can get out of that bracket. Excessive play either way means your motor mount is poop.
Move forward to the lower motor mount and remove it 14 mm x 2
remove the front motor mount 17 mm x 2 & 17 mm thru bolt
Move over to the A/C Compressor, and remove the retaining bolts 12 mm x 4
Now remove the alternator 12 mm x 2 & a lower 14 mm lower bolt
NOTE: Do not attempt to remove the lower 14 mm, just loosen it. Once it is loose you can swing the alternator out away from the motor and work it back and forth. It will slide out of its groove, set it in the good pile
Now loosen the alt-a/c belt tensioner and remove the belt 17 mm nut & 10 mm tension bolt
The A/C Compressor may fall free, but dont worry, itll be fine. . Leave it there, and doing it this way means not having to get the a/c system recharged, because the system has not been breached.
Now remove the tensioner pulley by unthreading the 17 mm all the way
Now remove the tensioner bracket 12 mm upper and lower
Next break the power steering pump center nut loose, normally 17 or 19 mm. Keep the belt tensioned to stop the pulley from moving. If it still moves, a 12 mm socket placed on one of its retaining bolts will stop it from rotating.
Now loosen the p/s wp tensioner and remove the belt - 17 mm nut & 10 mm tension bolt
Remove the p/s pulley and remove the retaining bolts 12 mm x 3
Go back under and remove the rear 14 mm p/s bracket bolt
At this point the PS Pump should pull free, since you already took care of the upper brackets. Leave it there, and doing it this way means no huge Power steering leak or mess, because the system has not been breached.
Remove the ABS Sensors (if Applicable) from the hubs 12 mm x 3
Remove the brake line retainer clip from the strut
Remove the strut bolts from the hub 17 mm x 2
Get your hammer and help the passenger side inner joint off the intermediate shaft, one or 2 good smacks will break it loose, and then slide it off the rest of the way.
The outer hub will lie out freely, and this will be enough clearance to get the motor out when that time comes. This will leave the axle in the hub, but disconnected from the intermediate shaft.
Next do the Driver side, use the hammer and the Chisel between the transmission and input shaft. One or two good smacks will pop it loose, unless there is a problem with the c-clip. Reference the Change your own clutch thread for clarification. Same thing here with the axle still in the hub, but out of the transmission. This will save you 20-30 minutes of labor fighting with the axles and hubs.
The outer hub will lie out freely, and this will be enough clearance to get the motor out when that time comes.
Now get the engine hoist ready and attach it to the motor hooks
Lift up until you have relieved the weight of the motor / transmission from the vehicle
Now remove the passenger side motor mount 17 mm nut x 3 & 17 mm thru bolt
Read the next line thoroughly
Before you remove the driver side motor mount bolts, note the location of the upper nuts/bolts in the driver side motor mount with a silver sharpie, white-out, was pencil or spray paint or something. This is critical on reinstallation for REAR Motor Mount alignment.
Remove the motor mount nuts and bolts 17 mm x 4
The 4th one is down on a leg below the fuel filter, dont forget it
Once free, lower the motor about 4, or till it rests on the sub frame
Remove the Motor Mount thru Bolt 17 mm nut, the bolt is a square head that sits in a keyway, replace it in the same orientation
Now you are ready to remove the Motor
Slowly begin its ascent, note the locations of all peripherals and accessories.
The axles will clear and remain in the bay
The Power Steering Pump will remain in the bay
The A/C Compressor will remain in the bay
As it rises, you will want to angle it so that the transmission pan ascends where the battery once was. This is the easiest way to remove.
push the hub assemblies back toward the car to relieve stress on the brake lines.
Once clear set it down and take a break. You should be 2 hrs into this job.
 
THE REST (Part 2)

MAINTENANCE

It is totally up to you what maintenance you do when replacing your engine. I have done installs from literally everything down to ZERO Maintenance. The latter being a huge gamble, yet necessitated by some budgets. I recommend most of it, just because it is RIGHT FREAKING there. Here is a Price guide, try not to spend more than what you see here:
$50 water pump 16 or 32 mm pulley measure the hole in the center of your pulley. Most ZEs are 16, most domestics are 32
$30 ea. Valve Cover Gaskets no brainer, but cheap $20 online gaskets are hard plastic, O.E. will last longer. Spend the extra money
$20 Spark Plugs BKR-7E11 x 6
$45 Distributor cap / rotor They dont last forever, how old are yours?
$40 timing belt the Timing belt kit is not necessary, all it comes with are the pullies.
$160 Timing Belt Tensioner Judgment Call, kind of salty, but good insurance on not having to do the TBT at a later date.
$30 ea. Front and rear main seals I dont mess with these unless they are obviously leaking, I have yet to replace one.
$5 Oil Pan Gasket Dont Believe FelPro! Use Ultra Grey RTV if you have to remove the pan.
$12 oil cooler o-ring Again, a judgment call, a lot of labor for a simple o-ring, but if it is bad, youll leak oil off the oil filter Orremove the whole assembly in favor of Dual Filtrationferociously.
$12 ea. Axle Seals Do them, Youll kick yourself if you dont and you get it all back in there and start to piss trans fluid out one of them.
$30 set Mazda Shifter Linkage Bushings By far the BEST Investment dollar for Dollar, DO THEM.
$20 Fuel Filter When was the last time you changed your fuel filter?
$15 ea. Accessory drive Belts cmon, this is regular maintenance people
$70 ea. Remanufactured axles If the Boots are ripped, why not? Rumor Has it Napa will be offering NEW Axles shortly, and not Remansstill looking into pricing.

PERFORMANCE

So many times I have gone to do an install, and the question is asked hey, while the motor is out, can you install headers? It wont be that big of a deal, right?

:whatever:

Make the decision based on your finances and time allotted, because installing aftermarket crap is time consuming. Anything aftermarket is Mass-Produced Custom, with no strict tolerances and an accepted Fabrication time for fit and finish modifications. Or bluntly a disclaimer that my poop fits like poop. Rarely do you find something that goes on just like O.E., and PT can be your on-line source for all the horror and success stories. Here is a smattering of a few that are the most popular:
$100 Pheno-Kit I have been a customer of Mr. Morgan from Day one, and this poop works. What he offers now is a complete kit, of which I normally use the hardware IM Phenos only. The TB Pheno doesnt really work with the ZE and the Brake fluid reservoir. Sell it on PT! The most time consuming part is the removal and installation of the replacement studs.
$250-600 headers all Ill list from easiest to hardest my experience on header installs based on companies:
1. SS Autochrome
2. HotShot
3. Pacesetter
4. Bosal / Brospeed
5. OBX
$40-250 Spark Plug Wires NGK, PRD, MBX, Nology, and MSD; Pick your flavor.
$30-250 cold air intakes Fit and finish ranges as much as the price. Use your best Judgment
$150-900 Clutch & Flywheel Self Explanatory, My personal favorites are the UR FW and Paeco HD Kevlar Clutch.
$30 Underdrive Pullies What are they, 30-40 now?


PREP WORK FOR INSTALL

Now you have it out, and you have all your parts, you need to get it on.
Please Please Please use a freaking service manual for proper torque specifications. Really. Now lets do some maintenance on your ZE:
Remove the Alternator
Remove the Power steering Pump
Remove the distributor and wires
Remove the Sparkplugs
Lock a set of Vise grips onto the flex plate so that it does not rotate and break the crank-pulley free 21 mm
Remove the Crank pulley
Remove the flex plate and shims 14 mm x 8
Remove the a/c-alt Tensioner 12 mm x 2
Remove the dipstick tube 10 mm
Remove the water pump pulley 10 mm x 4 (use a screwdriver between the bolt heads to keep it from rotating.
Remove the timing belt covers 10 mm x 12
Remove the motor mount bracket - 14 mm x 3
Remove the timing belt Tensioner 12 mm x 2
Remove the timing belt
Remove the water pump 12 mm x 5
Replace the Water pump, a little Ultrablack RTV will help keep the o-ring seal in place
Set the cams and crank pulley to their respective timing marks. The front cam will settle into its correct position, the rear you will have to rotate way between its settle point because you are actually depressing the intake vales on #1, so there will be tension
Move the crank pulley back ONE TOOTH
Place the timing belt on the upper cams, noting NO SLACK between the two upper cogs. This will allow slack to be on either side of the crank pulley cog. Place a small pair of vise grips on both cogs at 12 noon. This will eliminate the chance of either skipping a tooth.
Now, take a 3/8 drive extension and tap into the area between the cog and the oil pump, thereby eliminating the chance of it skipping a tooth on the next step
Rotate the crank forward one tooth; this will pull all the slack to the side of the timing belt Tensioner.
wasnt that cool
Now Install the Tensioner and release the pin holding the sucker in.
Remove the extension and both Vise Grips and complete a full 720 rotation to confirm timing marks are on point. If not what did you screw up?
Replace all the front trimming and button up the front end
Now for the Top End, Woohoo!
Remove the intake, note the knock sensor attached to the TB, so dont rip it off
Remove the front and rear valve covers
Now would be a good time to break out the gunmetal paint and etch primer.
Replace the valve cover gaskets, and use some fancy PRD Zinc VC Bolts on reinstall, they make it all purdy.
There is no need to replace the grommets, between the two motors, you should be able to make up a good set.
On the Intake, I have found that the best way to do this as a novice is to transfer over all the plumbing from the underside of the 03 IM to the ZE IM. You will need to use a few Vacuum Tees.
If you are redoing the vacuum lines, I recommend you replace them one at a time, and reference Julian Bradburys Vacuum Diagram; I have it Tattooed on the inside of my eyelids.
Replace the IM and verify fitment and function of the actuators.
Next transfer over the entire EGR assembly from one block to the other.
Before you start crying about the EGR, know that the ZE IM has no EGR Passage, so there will be no EGR Function. But its presence on the motor will eliminate the CEL..Foo!
Make a note to transfer over the rear head EGR Passage Allen plug from the 03 motor, located behind the heater core outlet and directly under the engine hook. Do this or EGR Gasses will vent out onto your fuel line, which is poop
Now get your clutch / flywheel either transferred over or replaced with new goodness.
Make a note that FIDANZA Flywheels do not use the same bolts as the original flywheel for the pressure plate. Ask Domino.
Reinstall the transmission to the motor, and get the assembly back onto the engine hoist.

INSTALL !! WOOT!

installation is reverse of removal

Really, OK
Set the engine back into the bay as it came out.
Make sure the axles/hubs are pulled back out, and make sure the passenger and driver side are sitting up on the lowercontrol arms, and not hanging down. You will not be able to get them up if the engine is in; the oil pan and transmissions end up being in the way
Note the power steering pump as well; you dont want it hanging down.
The A/C Can hang down all it wants.
With the motor in its general area, reattach the passenger side motor mount to the chassis and motor mount bracket.
Note the lower little square motor mount, this little mount will help you get everything aligned properly, so do not neglect it
Now the engine should pivot more ore less, get it as centered and straight as possible and then lower it down onto the cross member
Reinstall the driver side motor mount thru bolt and slide the studs through the base
lift the engine assembly to where the base snugs against the transmission. Now remember how you noted the bolt orientation? Nice.
Get them all started, including the little guy under the fuel filter, and then tighten them all down
Replace the bolts in the rear motor mount bracket, starting with the top one first. Because the motor is held in with the upper two mounts only, there should be enough play to rotate the motor more or less to get the bolt holes to line up
Reinstall the front motor mount
Replace the nuts on the lower motor mount
Replace the shifter stabilizer bar
replace the shifter linkage using new shifter linkage bushings on the front (green) and rear (white at the base of the shifter)
Reinstall the power steering pump
Reinstall the axles
Reinstall the strut bolts
Reinstall the abs sensors
Reinstall the brake line clips
Reinstall the a/c compressor
Reinstall the A/C Alternator tensioner
Reinstall the alternator
Replace the accessory belts
Add the gear lube to the transmission, and make sure you put every drop into the casing, or you will smell it for a week after.
Reinstall the battery tray and battery
Reinstall the wire harness left and right and front motor
Reinstall the fuel lines
Reinstall the distributor, spark plugs and wires
Reinstall wheels
Replace the air intake
drain out the old oil and add the cheap oil and one of the oil filters




At this point you have the option to start the car and see if it runs..you will also be afforded the opportunity to hear the car with open exhaust. If your neighborhood frowns upon this activity, move alongit is awesome, though Run it for 5 minutes or so above 1500 RPM if you do.
Reinstall the exhaust & lower crossmember
Reinstall the radiator
Replace the coolant and check for leaks
Start the car
check for leaks.
Check for leaks again
Drive the car around the hood and check for leaks again
after 500 miles change the oil to Mobil one....and check for leaks

There you go.
_________________
"Built ford tough with mazda stuff"
"Built by mazda, Adopted by ford"
 
hey ive got a question about the swap. Some people have told me, when doing the klze swap, i also need to get a tranny from a klze car, others have told me i dont. Which one is it?
 
hey ive got a question about the swap. Some people have told me, when doing the klze swap, i also need to get a tranny from a klze car, others have told me i dont. Which one is it?

i don't think there are any differences between DE/ZE trannies. one of the guys round here used to have a ZE with a DE tranny so i'm pretty sure it'll work
 
There's no difference with the trans. The only possible difference is with the auto trans since the ZE uses a different ECU, but that's only a possibility.
 
The difference between the DE and ZE tranny is that the ZE tranny comes with an LSD installed inside the transmission.
 
Very nice writeup

The step-by-step approach is best suited for the person who has no experience in doing mechanics in his MX3. This is one of the best ways to get ppl into playing around in their car. I completed a KLZE swap myself in my 1994 MX3 GS. I didn't write a step-by-step for the swap but I detailed on my blog, the price tag for each item and where I got it. I also did write-ups on other mods for the MX3. Visit my blog for more up to date info...
http://mazdamx3klze.blogspot.com
 
The difference between the DE and ZE tranny is that the ZE tranny comes with an LSD installed inside the transmission.
not quite. the vast majority of 'ZE' trannies are going to be open diff's exactly like we have on DE's. Only a very specific 2.0 KFZE model had the factory LSD. And its not very common to find. But it is easy to know if you do have one. As you can see right through it, where as on the DE open diff trans you would be staring at a diff pin. ;)
 

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