Auto to manual... What transmission?

Well, the 01 escort that my cousin bought a while ago has been a good car so far, but, now the trans started to slip...

If the wants me to, I'll either put in another auto (the ghey), or a stick (she enjoys manual tranmission cars)

I searched, but didnt find anything about the transmission differences for a 2nd gen escort, and a 3rd gen escort.... Except that for a 3rd gen, you need a ZX2 one ($400 from the yards, WTF), and a 2nd gen 1.9 one costs $150, and a 2nd gen 1.8 one costs $250...

Different gear ratios or..? Help?

Also, is there a write up specific to the 3rd gen swaps, or is the 2nd gen one good enough for the 3rd gen swap?

Thanks alot
~Nate

If you are going to swap in a 5spd transmission you can use one from a 4door sedan or a ZX2. As far as i know if you use the ZX2 tranny you will also have to use a ZX2 flywheel. Somebody else will probably chime in here but heres a link to a write up. It is for a ZX2 but i think its basically the same as it would be for a 3rd gen. http://www.teamzx2.com/showthread.php?t=119

From my understanding, the reason for using the ZX2 5sp is that it's got a shorter final so the acceleration is a little quicker. But one from the sedans will also fit.
The 2nd gen 1.8 trans is for the 1.8 motor, which is a mazda family and doesn't match up to a 1.9/2.0 engine