HELP! Mounting RT4WD Halfshaft in Z6 block

AintGotNoSol

I read that Z6's with the holes drilled and tapped for the intermediate shaft can be swapped into the RT4WD civic wagon. Checked my Z6 block in the del sol (actually is a JDM replacement D16A, basically identical to Z6) and saw 3 holes in the right area. Since I couldn't actually see into the holes, i assumed they were tapped, and had no reason to believe otherwise. Got my Z6 out, and I realized that the holes aren't complete. One hole is drilled and tapped to the correct size, but the other two are just drilled about a half an inch in, and not tapped at all.

Looks like I need to drill them and tap them.

I've never done this before. I know I will need to drill the hole slightly smaller than the tap size before I tap it, correct? What size do i need to drill it first? I don't know the pitch of the threads, but I know that the bolts for the intermediate shaft housing will thread into the holes for the transmission-to-engine bolts, so they must be the same size threads. The diameter of the threaded section is 10mm I believe. I checked this by comparing the bolt to different size open-end wrenches until I found one that fit flush.

I will try to get to the parts store tomorrow and find out the size of the threads if no one here can tell me.


Also, there are supposed to be 3 bolts mounting the intermediate shaft to the block, and my wagon only had 2. It's a very unique looking bolt, the first 3/4" or so next to the head is an oversized 12mm smooth sleeve section, not threaded. this section fits inside the holes of the intermediate shaft housing. If anyone has an extra from a parts car, OR if you know what other hondas may have the same style bolt on the intermediate shaft (integra?) please let me know.


Please help! I'm in the middle of this swap and BOTH of my cars are now out of commission until I'm done!

turbo_teg

I dont know the thread pitch off the top of my head but if i were u find a bolt that works on the 1 out of the 3 holes thats already tapped then go down to your auto parts store with the bolt and tell them u need a tap and a drill bit for the bolt.

AintGotNoSol

Yeah That's my plan, well Sears actually, was planning to get some craftsman stuff. I would really like to find out for sure What drill size to use before I tap it, because you never know if the guy at the parts store has ANY clue WTF he is talking about.

I have The bolt in my pocket right now, gonna try to stop by the parts store tonight or tomorrow and check the thread pitch. Prob check the junkyard tomorrow to see if I can find the one bolt I'm missing too.

AintGotNoSol

UPDATE: the bolt size is M10 - 1.25 thread size

If anyone knows what size hole i should drill before tapping this thread, please let me know.

I'm gonna see if the accord intermediate shaft uses the same bolts at the junk yard tomorrow, to replace the one that's missing.

turbo_teg

the package that the tap comes in should tell u which drill bit to use.....

AintGotNoSol

turbo_teg wrote:

the package that the tap comes in should tell u which drill bit to use.....

Oh, that's really convenient.

Thanks! Hopefully it will.

Jaker

Or you could do a Google search for "what drill bit size for an M10x1.25 tap"!

AintGotNoSol

I did a search with Yahoo, but I've actually been at work all week, and that's where I've been posting from most of the time. Don't really have the time to sift through a bunch of search results. And it seems like most of the links I found either didn't really say what size to use, or they said "check your bit size chart."

Anyway, I got it figured out. Got some taps from sears, and it came with a size chart, so I bought the right size bits. My dad came over to help and we drilled the remaining 2 holes. It was really an adventure, because you have to drill the hole, then re-drill the first quarter inch or so because the bolt has a 12mm shoulder on it.

I'll try to make a mini-write up when I'm done with this swap. Not a how-to on the swap, but basically some info on what needs to be changed or added to swap the Z6 into the RT4WD. Things like the intermediate shaft, the fan switch, the motor mount, and which accessories to use. Maybe I can get it put in the engine quicklink sticky.

AintGotNoSol

PS THANK YOU TO EVERYONE!

I'll probably post again when the next unexpected answer pops up and I can't seem to find it by searching. haha.

AintGotNoSol

FYI:

11/32" drill bit for the bolt,
M10 x 1.25 tap,
1/2" drill bit for the shoulder.

The swap is done now and the info is almost completely consolidated. Keep an eye on the Engine & Trans Forum, it will be up shortly.

88jdmcivic

I already add to the other post but ill add here, I have a 89 rt4wd with a Z6 swap and that Im only using 1 bolt for the half shaft axle and its been like that for almost a year now and its my d.d.