transmission choice woes

[Knanthrup]

Ok, so I\'m getting things planned out for my swap coming up and right now I\'m running over the transmission area. Ok so I want to use a Manual transmission.. because I think it\'s more fun... so anyways my truck came with a B&W T5 which will break sooner or later so I need to find another tranny. I\'ve read here and there about Camaro T5 swaps which involve a lot because of length and shift lever location, etc. The best choice that I could find was the New Venture (4500???) that came in the later model 4.3 S10\'s... I believe 92-95. Now, reading through a few of the swap books I have (JTR & Advance adapters) there seems to be SOOO much involved even to get one of these to hook up properly. So what\'s the deal? Is it harder than it looks? I don\'t mind getting different bell housing or whatever but they were getting into trimming the shaft to certain specs and stuff that seemed to be complicated. Is there a somewhat simple way to mate my engine with a manual transmission and get away with it or are all roads full of complications? Is there a better choice for a transmission for me to use? If anyone could give me any advice or any suggestions as to what transmission setup to use, I would appreciate it.. or if anyone knows of an easier swap... I just want atleast a 5sp manual. Thanks...



P.S. This is a 2wd truck it\'s going into. No power steering, brakes, a/c.



<b>1984 S10 2wd


Just got a 350 short block, going in soon...</b>

[Mike]

Wait for ZZ4Blazer to reply, he knows transmissions.

[mommasboy]

If your not going to be making more than 350 hp i\'d say go for the T5 man. I think it would hold up unless you were making 500hp and racing it all the time. I dont see why it wouldn\'t. And about fitting it in there, anything can be done if you want it bad enough.PERIOD

[Knanthrup]

Ok, if that would work out then it wouldn\'t be such a bad thing for me. Starting out i\'ll probably be making around 300hp just to mess around with, so i suppose the T5 may hold up for a while, but my question still stands about the adaptation to the engine. I figure for the T5 to fit I need a different bell housing... ok maybe not a problem but what about all the shaft trimming and clutch disc work, etc.? Anyone have experience with with? Maybe it\'s hyped up more than it really should be but I\'d like to know before I put myself in a bad spot.

[ZZ4Blazer]

The camaro T5 is a pain in the ass to mod to work. Especially if you are wanting to run headers. No one makes headers for a V8 s-series swap to clear the camaro slave cylinder. The new venture, belive its the 3500, will work fine. It is rated just as stong as the T5 is. Maybe even more. There are 2 kinds, the ones in the s-series, and the one in the full size trucks. The ones from the s-series trucks will bolt in with no mods needed. And both of them are rated to hold the same power. It is the same length as a 700R4 tranny, and should work with a stock crossmember. You will need to get the hydualic clutch linkage for it. I think that all the 90-94 4.3 s-series should have that tranny. My 92 did. I also used a hurst short throw shifter with it. Made a big difference. It has a low 1st gear ratio, and a decent 5th gear ratio too. With all my problems with my 6 speed now, I almost wish I had stuck with my nV 5 speed.

[ZZ4Blazer]

I would not use the stock s-10 T5. You have mod the input spline, bearring retainer, and the clutch disc. You have to use a different bellhousing, and buy an adaptor to mount it. With all that time, and money, it will break quickly. Even under the strain of normal driving.

[SSBLAZER4X4]

I\'m running a basically stock 350 with the T-5. When I got the truck the tranny was gone and I found one in a yard here($700). I had no idea about the mods needed to the input spline, bearing retainer or clutch disc so I had my tranny in and out about 10 time before everything was right. It allready had the Advance Adapter bell housing and Hyd. clutch set up, luckily! So far I haven\'t had any problems with the tranny, but I\'m not driving it like I stole it either. I think if you can do the T-5 cheap enough right now, go for it until you find the tranny you want. Just remember the T-5 won\'t last forever!

[wickeds10]

i have a friend that put a muncie in his blazer and it worked great till the motor blew i used to kill the truck on motor with mine cause he would always just spin he was a die hard stick guy cant have an auto in anything

[Knanthrup]

ZZ4Blazer,

Thanks for the info man, that really helps. I didn\'t realize that the later S10 New Venture tranny would bolt up with no mods, I thought I would still need to mod the front shaft and stuff. I will definately look for one of those, hopefully I can find one cheap enough. Wonder how much one of those run around price wise from a salvage yard? Anyways I\'ll do some looking, it sounds like my best bet.



wickeds10,

Wasn\'t the muncie a 3 speed? http://www.s10v8.com/images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif I heard those things are killer, a lot of die-hard stick people that I know tell me to put a muncie in... sounds like fun to me but id rather go for a 5 sp.



Anyways thanks guys!

[knudsonm]

Muncie\'s were 4 speeds

[ZZ4Blazer]

An easy way to tell they\'re the NV trannies are, they dont\' have a bellhousing. Its all one peice, just like an automatic tranny. Its kinda a pain to install once its in the truck for this reason. But, if the motors out, no problem. If your trying to find one, only the ones from the s-series should be a bolt in. They also came in the full size trucks, but the tailshaft is a little different, and you will need to move the crossmember. The driveshaft also uses the large style yoke, just like a TH400.



How hard is it to hook up the manual linkage in a s-series? Like when using a muncie

[Knanthrup]

Yeah I\'m going to have both engine and tranny out at the same time, hopefully there will be no problem mating them together seperately in the truck (I had my T5 down twice, it wasn\'t very difficult). The hardest part I had was getting the shaft in straight and in all the way through the throw-out bearing. I\'ll opt for the newer S-series NV tranny but if I can\'t find one ill just get one off a larger truck and make the few mods, reading the book it doesn\'t seem too hard to move the crossmember/have driveshaft machined. It will definately be nice to have the stick come up in the same place as the T5, i wouldnt want to go through the cutting and worrying about rigging up some clutch linkage. The T5 sits right below, just the stick plate bolted on top and a ball pushing the gears.

[s10dragtruck]

What about t56 from last gen (sob) camaro do they fit the s10 floorpan. will i have to make a new floorpan or take out the sledge hammer?

[ZZ4Blazer]

I am told that the T56\'s behind the LS1\'s were completely different, and will not bolt up to a LT1, or even a standard small block. One from a 94+ that was behind a LT1/LT4 will work. But, they will require some work. Amount depends on what year motor you have.



You have to use the LT1 flywheel, clutch, starter, etc.

BTW, the LT1 clutch is the most expensive clutch I have seen out there. at least in a factory vehicle

Mod the slave cylinder to work with your s-10 master cylinder.

Cut a hole in the floor about 5-6\" back from stock.

Mod the crossmember to work with it.

If you have a truck, you will need to have bucket seats. Bench won\'t work.

They only came with an electric speedo.