Adam Dorey: The Stick Shift Mafia Wants You — Part Two
So if you made it through part one of this series of this series then I assume you’re intrigued about the swap to a manual transmission. Well, that’s kind of the point, so good for you for sticking with it!
Now you’re wondering what hardware you’re going to need for this swap, so lucky for you there are a ton of companies out there that can help you out. There’s many factors that go into determining what will be strong enough and the right ratios will be for your current ride. Weight and power are the obvious factors — what works in a 3000-pound Fox body with a turbo engine without a ton of torque won’t work with a 4000-pound Oldsmobile on nitrous
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If you’re lucky enough to have a ride that came with a solid manual transmission offering, your swap can start at the junkyard or in the local parting out section of your favorite classified ad. The OEM (original equipment manufacturer) is stacked full of quality manual transmissions, and if your ride was available with a clutch pedal, you can start looking at what the factory offered in your chassis to see if it’ll be useful for your intended use. Many old school transmissions are still available and will be stout enough for your swap, however many WILL NOT have any overdrives. Most of the Muncie offerings are stout and worthy of a look, as are the Ford toploader and the Mopar A833. But they all lack the advantage of an overdrive, so if that’s going to be a reason for a swap (and it should be), you’ll need to look elsewhere. But don’t fret! If your ride is old enough that it didn’t come with an overdrive, you can get pedals, shift handles and even a transmission crossmember to use.
If your ride is a little newer, and came with an overdrive transmission, or you want to swap one of these OEM manuals with an overdrive into your ride, you’re back in luck again! Starting in the mid-80s, Ford and GM started using the T5 Tremec transmission. This transmission is not what we would put in the ‘stout’ category, even with the upgraded ‘world class’ designation, but the aftermarket is ripe with T5 aftermarket parts, including fully upgraded gearsets and cases/external parts. The T56, a six-speed manual from Tremec, is available starting in the LT1 powered Camaro and Firebird in the 1993-ish timeframe, and became available in the Mustang not much later. It is plenty strong for many rides, and being OEM in both GM and Ford, kits exist for both to make the transition.
There are even some wacky OEM transmissions out there that people have figured out how to put into muscle cars. The Aisin six-speed out of the Nissan 350Z is one example of a transmission that is strong, light, and available, making it a popular swap for many chassis out there. Insomnia and Google can help you figure out which mousetrap you want to tackle for your specific ride. All you need is a clutch, pressure plate, flywheel, and bellhousing to make it all jive, and there’s not a ton of combinations for the above, so with a little ingenuity from some smart folks at these conversion companies, you can create all kinds of crazy combinations for your specific ride.
There are a handful of ‘full service’ companies out there than can help with everything, or nearly everything, you’ll end up needing for your manual transmission swap. Modern Driveline, American Powertrain and many others have compiled kits that include everything down to (occasionally) a transmission crossmember, a clutch pedal, and even a driveshaft as well. Many of these kits are available for your specific chassis (or they can make a kit for you, call around!) and most of these utilize an aftermarket transmission, such as the Magnum T56 or the TKX from Tremec, completely aftermarket offerings with upgrades from the OEM boxes throughout.
Stay tuned for part three, how to pick a clutch! Much like your torque converter, there’s many factors that point you in the right direction for your clutch to include weight, transmission, gear ratios, power you’re making, tire you’re using, how much you drive it on the street, and how much you want to tinker with it. A full article will be dedicated just to types of clutches out there! Plenty more to come!
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