first festy! question!

[sexwagon1]

hey all, i recently bought a 93 festy GL, the automatic, a/c/ alloy wheel (supposedly its the fancy one, from what im told) any way, i bought it and the motor put a rod through the block so i got a eng out of an aspire and dropped it in. All is well and it runs great and shifts good. Now my question is, are the automatic ones always so slow!??! my buddy has a festy with a manual trans and from what i could tell it seems to get up to speed faster and has a higher top speed, is this normal? im thinking maybe a new set of plugs and wires might help, well will probably most definitely help, but i dont know it just seems real sluggish. any thoughts?

[Flyin4stroke]

What you feel is the torque converter. They are heavy. With lots of fluid. Compared to a clutch and flywheel.

[Movin]

Cam timing ( timing belt ) Ignition timing a little hot ( they give you plus or minus two and one for every thousand feet elevation ) Maybe a few more to make up for worn vacuum advance ect. Just not so much that it pings.

New O2 Denso brand and clean threads and tighten manifold bolts for good MPG feedbac
Make sure vacuum module is allowing proper wide open throttle high RPM upshifts. If not replace and adjust upshift RPM by the tiny screw inside the vacuum module.

And yes, Cap , rotor , wires, plugs, fuel and air filters, Can of seafoam in tank and scrub throttle body with carb cleaner. Double check specs, and in addition the timing needs to reach 45 BTDC or so all in.

[sexwagon1]

thanks! ill get on it ASAP!

[FestYboy]

^ there's no vac avdavce on a '93 Movin... it's all EFI

[Gomez]

Yep the Autos suck. I have had 2. Slow off the line and no power pretty much anywhere compared to the 5 speed. MPG is way off too. The best I got out of my auto was 37mpg. That was babying it everywhere. Swapped in a 5 speed with no other changes and went to 42mpg without babying, more pep, and much more fun to drive. The auto is nice to have but would've been great if it was offered in 4sp w/ od or something instead of the 3sp.

[Movin]

Righto!! I was still thinking 89 from another thread

[Tommychu]

Not only do automatics have the inherent quality of making low-horsepower cars feel slower, but the Festiva auto is a much more heavily built tranny than the manual (It shares its tranny with the 323 and SOHC Protege).
There's an advantage here though- if you ever feel like hot-rodding it you don't need a tranny swap. Just drop in a bigger B-motor (any B-motor will do, but B8MEs love automatics) when you get tired of going slow and you're good to go.

It's just a shame you've already done a B3 swap. It would have been gravy to go straight to a better engine since you were pulling the stocker anyway.

[Bert]

Now my question is, are the automatic ones always so slow!??! my buddy has a festy with a manual trans and from what i could tell it seems to get up to speed faster and has a higher top speed, is this normal? im thinking maybe a new set of plugs and wires might help, well will probably most definitely help, but i dont know it just seems real sluggish. any thoughts?

There is no substitution for 2 more forward gears when you have to work with 60 hp. A tuneup won't hurt and your Cat may be blocked and the O2 sensor may be old and there could be vacuum leaks etc etc. but don't think, even for one minute, that a perfectly tuned auto Festy will ever outperform a manual.
Maybe you want to contemplate a 5 speed swap or maybe a B6 or a B8 (1.6-1.8 litre engine) transplant.