This guide covers installing the ASE CD009 to JZ adapter plate on a bare transmission — seal, plate, hardware, slave cylinder, and bell housing, in the order that actually works.
It also settles two pieces of misinformation that have been circulating for years and still cost people time and parts.
Watch the installation
Two things you have probably read that are wrong
“You have to cut the spud”
You do not. The recess on the ASE plate is machined deep enough to clear it. This was addressed by a design change years ago, but the old advice keeps getting repeated across forums and videos as though it still applies. Leave the spud alone.
“You have to cut down the tip of the input shaft”
Also unnecessary in most cases, and it depends on your crankshaft rather than on the transmission.
Look inside the crankshaft. If the outer corner is cylindrical and square at 90 degrees, you will not have an issue — do nothing. If the corner looks rounded, which is common on VVTi cranks, you have two easy options: tip it back about 3/16 to 1/4 inch, or put an aggressive bevel all the way around the tip. Either accomplishes the same thing. Neither requires cutting the shaft down.
Do not use thread locker on the adapter plate bolts
The factory bolts come with a little Loctite on them from the assembly line, and the lower ones will fight you on the way out because of it. That is normal.
Do not put it back. The plate uses countersunk bolts that are small to begin with, and they only torque to 30 ft-lb. Get aggressive with thread locker and the next time you need to pull the plate for service you will strip the heads out — and then you have a real problem on your hands instead of a ten-minute job.
Use the gasket
Some installers skip the gasket and run silicone alone. That is not the method here.
Reuse the gasket and apply a thin layer of Permatex all the way around. Thin is the operative word — more does not seal better. Apply it to the side that mates to the adapter plate. The transmission side does not need it.
A layer of silicone on the back of the plate also helps hold the gasket in position while you get the plate started.
Installing the input shaft seal
A brand new seal ships with the kit, so there is no need to fight the old one out and reuse it.
The easiest way to install it is to use the pilot bushing as a press. The bushing is a close enough fit to drive the seal square without a proper seal driver. Push until the seal comes up against the machined surface — that shoulder is what stops it at the correct depth, so you cannot over-insert it.
Hardware
All plate bolts are 8 × 1.25 thread pitch. Lengths differ by plate:
- J3 plate — 50 mm long bolts
- J1 / J2 plates — 70 mm long bolts
- Both — two short 30 mm bolts
Bell housing bolt holes are 10 × 1.5, worth knowing if you ever cross-thread one and need to chase it with a tap.
Torque specifications
- Adapter plate countersunk bolts — 30 ft-lb
- Bell housing — 40 ft-lb
Both are engraved on the bottom of the plate. Note that the bell housing covers the engraving once installed, which is a good reason to read them before you get that far.
Install the slave cylinder before the bell housing
This trips people up. The T56 slave cylinder has to go on before the bell housing is bolted to the plate. Once the bell housing is on you cannot get the slave into position or route the lines properly, and you will be taking it back off.
The slave mounts with two bolts. There are usually a couple of extra hole sets, partly for custom line routing and partly so that if you snap a 6 mm bolt you have somewhere else to go rather than being stuck.
The J3 bell housing needs notching
This applies to the J3 only. The J3 plate is thinner because the J3 transmission is significantly deeper, which leaves less vertical height around the bell housing — so the clutch lines interfere.
The method is simple: hold the bell housing up to the plate, see where the lines and fittings want to pass through, mark both spots with a sharpie, and grind the notches out.
J1 and J2 plates do not need this. They are thicker and leave enough vertical clearance that nothing interferes.
Order of operations
- Remove the factory bolts — expect resistance on the lower four
- Gasket with a thin layer of Permatex on the adapter plate side
- Press the new seal in using the pilot bushing
- Start all plate bolts by hand before tightening any of them
- Torque the countersunk bolts to 30 ft-lb, no thread locker
- Install the T56 slave cylinder
- Notch the bell housing if you are running a J3
- Install the bell housing — six bolts, the two longer ones in the lower holes — and torque to 40 ft-lb
Keep the plate centered as you drop it on so you do not wipe the lubrication off the new seal.
Which plate do you need?
The JZ to CD009 adapter plate is available in J1/J2 and J3. Complete swap packages with flywheel, crossmember, pilot bearing and hardware are available for 350Z, SC300, IS300, GS300, 240SX S13/S14, 300ZX, Supra MKIV and Supra MK3.
Questions about your specific combination — contact us before you buy rather than after.