So I figured I'd start a thread dedicated to the work that i'm doing on my 2008 Element LX 4WD 5-Speed. I had been posting updates in another thread but thought it'd be best to house all the info and updates here.
Not sure what I should call it, but Jelement sounds kind of catchy although a little weird. Lol
So here is a little history.
I became obsessed when I heard that Minitec was going to release a kit to put a J-series engine into the Element. So I followed them, sent emails, called, kept asking for follow ups a long time ago when they were first prototyping the kit. The K24A3 my Element came with has 179k miles and still rips. However, I was wanting more power and something to do, so I decided to take the plunge. Let's face it, the Element is an awesome car and deserves this!
So then one day I saw this video on their page one day along with the fact that the kit was now available for order.
So I called them up and talked to BJ, told him that I'd like to order the kit. He took my info, and sent me an invoice via PayPal and I was off to the races!
Minitec is small shop with EXTREMELY dedicated people. I've talked to BJ and Norman who designed the kit. Both friendly, and very willing to help. If you're interested in the kit, calling them is the best way to reach them. Email takes a little time to get a response, but again, small shop, and only so much time in the day.
A couple weeks later the kit showed up at my doorstep!
The kit consists of the following parts:
Pics:
attached since I can't in-line them for some reason.
Since I've been working on this for a while (mostly waiting for parts to come in, refreshing some things on the Element while having the engine out, getting the wrong engine....twice...my dumb fault) I've learned a lot about which Element's and kits this setup works with.
You'll notice that I have a 2008 Element which has drive-by-wire. To my knowledge, there isn't anyone who has attempted, nor completed a swap like this. I knew this going into the project, but have a ton of experience getting engines to work in other cars both mechanically and electronically from doing B, D, and H-series swaps in Hondas and Integras since 2001. I love Hondas and a good challenge!
The kit is made for the 03-06 Element AWD 5-speed with cable throttle. The only physical difference I've found is with the passenger side engine mount which Honda slightly re-designed by moving one of the bolt holes about half an inch towards the engine bay. The geometry, placement, and two other bolt holes are identical. So a quick measurement and a slow drill bit and it mounts up perfectly!
Something to note: Minitec recently acquired a donor car to begin work on the automatic transmission version of this kit.
The engines that work with this swap that I'm aware of (and not really aware of) are the following:
J35 Engines
According to Minitec, there are various years of this engine that will work. I'm not sure as I never intended on putting a J35 in the Element. So if you're interested - ask them!
00-03 J32a2 Acura CL Type-S (not sure if the J32a1 will work)
Automatic: With this engine, it was successfully used by doing a special setup using a modified Honda Odyssey ECU used in conjunction with the Honda Element ECU. The automatic engines were much different than the manual versions. Why Honda, WHY?!
Manual: Can be used with the Manual ECU and requires re-pinning some wires for the interior harness (big gray plug behind the glovebox.
04-06 J32a3 Acura TL Base 3.2
Both automatic and manual variants of this engine are identical, and share the same bell housing and oil pan as the 00-03 engines. The kit will work without modification. However, this generation engine is drive-by-wire which hasn't been done before. My Element is an 08 and has drive-by-wire which is why I have to use this engine. I searched around but couldn't find any information on converting a drive-by-wire engine to a throttle cable, plus I didn't want to lose VSC or TCS.
07-08 J32a3 Acura TL Base 3.2
This engine would require significant modifications to the adapter plate and intermediate shaft adapter to mount the transmission. I originally went with this engine mistakenly. However the heads, intake manifold and throttle body can be used as somewhat of an upgrade to the 04-06 J32a3 which flow better and the intake manifold is MUCH, MUCH lighter due to it being made out of magnesium instead of aluminum.
So far my costs have been the following:
Minitec JV6 Element Kit: $1787 (Minitec)
2005 Acura TL 3.2 Base J32a3 Engine: $300 (local junk yard)
2004 Acura TL Manual Transmission Engine Harness: $140 (ebay)
2007-2008 Acura TL Manual Transmission Sub-Harness: $120 (ebay)
2007-2008 Acura TL 3.2 Base ECU, Key and Immobilizer Set: $125 (ebay)
Oil Pump, Water pump, head gaskets, main engine gaskets, timing belt, tensioner, idler, etc: $500 (sourced between amazon and ebay)
Element Exedy OEM clutch and XTD 10lbs flywheel: $300 (ebay)
2008 Acura TL Power Steering Pump: $65 (LQK)
2008 Acura TL Alternator: $45 (LQK)
2008 Acura TL AC Compressor: $80 (ebay)
Anticipated further costs and invovlement:
Hondata Flash-Pro to convert the Auto ECU to Manual
ECU re-vin to match the element's vin (to pass CT state inspection)
Various harness work to mate to the Element interior/dash harness
I've also been consulting with Don over at RPMSystems who is the absolute master with j-series everything. He's a great guy and makes amazing products for all sorts of honda/acuras. I'm lucky to only be an hour from them so once the engine is mounted and fired, i'll be taking it over there for the harness/ecu work.
The cost to do this in an 03-06 Element would be much lower, so don't get discouraged by the costs listed here. I plan to keep notes and post updates for everything I do to encourage more people to do the swap! More to come!
Not sure what I should call it, but Jelement sounds kind of catchy although a little weird. Lol
So here is a little history.
I became obsessed when I heard that Minitec was going to release a kit to put a J-series engine into the Element. So I followed them, sent emails, called, kept asking for follow ups a long time ago when they were first prototyping the kit. The K24A3 my Element came with has 179k miles and still rips. However, I was wanting more power and something to do, so I decided to take the plunge. Let's face it, the Element is an awesome car and deserves this!
So then one day I saw this video on their page one day along with the fact that the kit was now available for order.
So I called them up and talked to BJ, told him that I'd like to order the kit. He took my info, and sent me an invoice via PayPal and I was off to the races!
Minitec is small shop with EXTREMELY dedicated people. I've talked to BJ and Norman who designed the kit. Both friendly, and very willing to help. If you're interested in the kit, calling them is the best way to reach them. Email takes a little time to get a response, but again, small shop, and only so much time in the day.
A couple weeks later the kit showed up at my doorstep!
The kit consists of the following parts:
- Engine to Transmission Adapter plate
- starter adapter plate
- flywheel adapter plate w/ extended flywheel bolts
- Passenger side engine mount
- Driver side transmission mount
- Subframe rear transmission mount
- Intermediate shaft adapter/relocator
- Pre-cat exhaust spacers (so the j-pipe can mount and clear the subframe
- modified oil pan (trimmed so the starter can fit)
Pics:
attached since I can't in-line them for some reason.
Since I've been working on this for a while (mostly waiting for parts to come in, refreshing some things on the Element while having the engine out, getting the wrong engine....twice...my dumb fault) I've learned a lot about which Element's and kits this setup works with.
You'll notice that I have a 2008 Element which has drive-by-wire. To my knowledge, there isn't anyone who has attempted, nor completed a swap like this. I knew this going into the project, but have a ton of experience getting engines to work in other cars both mechanically and electronically from doing B, D, and H-series swaps in Hondas and Integras since 2001. I love Hondas and a good challenge!
The kit is made for the 03-06 Element AWD 5-speed with cable throttle. The only physical difference I've found is with the passenger side engine mount which Honda slightly re-designed by moving one of the bolt holes about half an inch towards the engine bay. The geometry, placement, and two other bolt holes are identical. So a quick measurement and a slow drill bit and it mounts up perfectly!
Something to note: Minitec recently acquired a donor car to begin work on the automatic transmission version of this kit.
The engines that work with this swap that I'm aware of (and not really aware of) are the following:
J35 Engines
According to Minitec, there are various years of this engine that will work. I'm not sure as I never intended on putting a J35 in the Element. So if you're interested - ask them!
00-03 J32a2 Acura CL Type-S (not sure if the J32a1 will work)
Automatic: With this engine, it was successfully used by doing a special setup using a modified Honda Odyssey ECU used in conjunction with the Honda Element ECU. The automatic engines were much different than the manual versions. Why Honda, WHY?!
Manual: Can be used with the Manual ECU and requires re-pinning some wires for the interior harness (big gray plug behind the glovebox.
04-06 J32a3 Acura TL Base 3.2
Both automatic and manual variants of this engine are identical, and share the same bell housing and oil pan as the 00-03 engines. The kit will work without modification. However, this generation engine is drive-by-wire which hasn't been done before. My Element is an 08 and has drive-by-wire which is why I have to use this engine. I searched around but couldn't find any information on converting a drive-by-wire engine to a throttle cable, plus I didn't want to lose VSC or TCS.
07-08 J32a3 Acura TL Base 3.2
This engine would require significant modifications to the adapter plate and intermediate shaft adapter to mount the transmission. I originally went with this engine mistakenly. However the heads, intake manifold and throttle body can be used as somewhat of an upgrade to the 04-06 J32a3 which flow better and the intake manifold is MUCH, MUCH lighter due to it being made out of magnesium instead of aluminum.
So far my costs have been the following:
Minitec JV6 Element Kit: $1787 (Minitec)
2005 Acura TL 3.2 Base J32a3 Engine: $300 (local junk yard)
2004 Acura TL Manual Transmission Engine Harness: $140 (ebay)
2007-2008 Acura TL Manual Transmission Sub-Harness: $120 (ebay)
2007-2008 Acura TL 3.2 Base ECU, Key and Immobilizer Set: $125 (ebay)
Oil Pump, Water pump, head gaskets, main engine gaskets, timing belt, tensioner, idler, etc: $500 (sourced between amazon and ebay)
Element Exedy OEM clutch and XTD 10lbs flywheel: $300 (ebay)
2008 Acura TL Power Steering Pump: $65 (LQK)
2008 Acura TL Alternator: $45 (LQK)
2008 Acura TL AC Compressor: $80 (ebay)
Anticipated further costs and invovlement:
Hondata Flash-Pro to convert the Auto ECU to Manual
ECU re-vin to match the element's vin (to pass CT state inspection)
Various harness work to mate to the Element interior/dash harness
I've also been consulting with Don over at RPMSystems who is the absolute master with j-series everything. He's a great guy and makes amazing products for all sorts of honda/acuras. I'm lucky to only be an hour from them so once the engine is mounted and fired, i'll be taking it over there for the harness/ecu work.
The cost to do this in an 03-06 Element would be much lower, so don't get discouraged by the costs listed here. I plan to keep notes and post updates for everything I do to encourage more people to do the swap! More to come!
