manual tranny swap

[denn454]

this is probably just another one of those crazy idea, that happens when i start thinking

i've been looking at a lot of new cars lately and in every car i drive, the manual tranny will make the car feel like it has twice the power of an auto. i can't think of one time an auto has felt even close to a manual, not even a triptonic

I know back in the 80's gm experimented with manual trannys and found they didn't work as well in our cars, mainly because of the lag between gears issue (thats what i've read) but with all the new blow off valves, and the super cool diverter valves that isn't a problem at all anymore.

so has anyone put a manual behind a lc2? i need a new tranny and if i hadn't just bought all the new parts to rebuild mine i think i'd look for one of the vette 6 speeds, i'm sure it would be a small disaster trying to get it to bolt up but in the end it should, at least in theory work great. the only loss would be consistancy. its probably lighter then the 200-4r, more effecient, more durable, i'm really wondering why i haven't seen it done yet.

 

[UNGN]

Originally posted by denn454
so has anyone put a manual behind a lc2? i need a new tranny and if i hadn't just bought all the new parts to rebuild mine i think i'd look for one of the vette 6 speeds, i'm sure it would be a small disaster trying to get it to bolt up but in the end it should, at least in theory work great. the only loss would be consistancy. its probably lighter then the 200-4r, more effecient, more durable, i'm really wondering why i haven't seen it done yet.

Actually, in theory it would work like crap.

Lots more downsides than up sides. And, if you do a search, you will find most of them.

Having broke a "bulleteproof" Richmond 6 speed more than a few times, I say stick with an auto, unless you are building a $20K Stage II motor and using a Jerrico or Liberty 5 speed (or similar road racing transmission)

 

[tracy]

manual trans conversion???

Has anyone ever seen or heard of a GN converted to a manual trans? Just curious.

 

[fast eddie]

Not good for turbo charged cars

 

[Ormand]

This comes up every now and then, do a seach. In general, the engine is not a good match for a manual tranny. Some have done it in "hybrid" cars, 'cause they didn't want to drive a Nissan "Z", or an RX7, with an automatic. It will work, just not as well as with the original transmission.

 

[Vendor Defendor]

I asked this very question once, this is probably one of the more helpful answers:

Originally posted by GNVAIR
Lots of experts here, but no one that has actually done it save for Sleeper (Paul) and myself.
What we both were trying to point out is that you are dealing with a relatively large displacement 6 cylinder of 3.8 liters with a small, low rpm power band. Not a 4 cylinder or 2.2 liters with a wide power band. You have to face the fact that there will be lag.
Sure you can bandaid it with 2 steps and stutter boxes, etc; but you wont be launching from every traffic light like that.
The other harsh reality is that almost every popular gear box will break including the T56. Many of the LT1/LS1 guys are finding this out. If you dont break gears, you will break the output shaft.
One of the other major issues is electronics. You will not be able to get the car to idle unless you can sit and play with the IAC functions in the chip. Many guys run into the dreaded cold start stall after installing high stall convertors in their automatic TR's.
You will have even worse with the stick since you wont have the load of the torque convertor on the engine.
You will also have to deal with the stalling when coming to a stop since putting the clutch in instantly removes the load from the engine and there was no designed circuitry in the computer to sense neutral.
If anyone does it, it will be for pure uniqueness and not for speed or durability. I am just posting this to let you know what we went through. Its not a cheap or easy proposition. If I were to try it again and have it work flawlessly I would build a twin turbo setup and run some sort of DFI. The twins would make it spool up way faster and the DFI would allow easier, on the fly reprogramming to set the idle where ever you want it with none of the ill effects of the stock computer.

http://www.turbobuick.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=76266

HTH

 

[UNGN]

Re: manual trans conversion???

Originally posted by tracy
Has anyone ever seen or heard of a GN converted to a manual trans? Just curious.

Years ago, Hot Rod had an article detailing the swap of a T5 into an '85 GN.

An '86-87 GN would break a T5 in half after a couple launches (actually, just romping on it at 3K RPM in 3rd Gear would probably do one in).

 

[turbofish38]

A Viper spec T-56 should handle the torque of a mildly modified TR.
Check out this link for specifactions: http://www.keislerauto.com/home.html

 

[denn454]

the powerband makes since. i do know of quite a few big turbo automatics i've ridden in and drove and there is very little if any lag between gears, but there also running to 7,000 rpm, shift and start all over at 4,500. somethign we can't do.

it sounded good for a little bit.

 

[TurboCustomz]

I had an 87 Monte SS with a built 400 small block in her. I got on the T5 swap train and hated myself for it afterwards. Its great fun on the street in that car but for the track, you cant beat a nicely setup auto. Besides...turbo cars love automatics.

 

[turbobuickman]

How do you plan on building boost/launching with a stick?? Autos will always perform better in (stright line) turbo applications. In the twisties, however, the benefits of a stick would probably outweigh the problems with turbo spoolup between gears. But I'm guessing you didnt buy a GN so you could autocross it did you? Better off with the auto then....