5spd swap from automatic.

[Satanklawz]

I have always wanted a standard trans and I want to do the swap sometime soon, I ruled otu a 6spd just because of the sheer cost of it I have ruled it out. I need info on the 5spd swap, I figure it should be easy since this was an option for these trucks to start with. I have seen several types of t5\'s, the s10 version looks like the shifter is in a diffrent place than the other ones. I am pretty sure I can find the stuff like the petal and linkage from the scrap yard. what else do I need to look out for and what are some things to stay away from.

[riotpolice75]

theres alot of variables man. first off depends on what motor you got in your truck and how much power your pushin out. im guessin its a v8. if you have less than 300-350 hp. your ok with a t5, they wont handle more than that. if this works for you than get the t5 out of a camaro/firebird the s 10 t5 wont handle v8 power and its only a 14 spline input so there out of the question. the mustang and jeep t5\'s have totally different input shafts, versus the chevy t5. a chevy t5 has a 26 spline input. the mustang has a 10 spline, and i believe theres something different about the 5th gear between the rustang and the camaro.



your other choice is the nv3500 from later model s 10s and full size pickups. there a little more expensive but worth it. there damn near indestructible. to do the conversion youll need a transmission(most important part), bellhousing, inspection plate, flywheel (flex plate wont work), clutch, slave and master cylinder, hydraulic lines, clutch/brake pedal assy. and depending on if your particular application has a computer or not youll either need a different computer chip for a stick setup or a different computer. you MIGHT need a different tranny crossmember, im not totally sure. look at yours and look at one from a stick.



all of these parts are readily available at a yard. i suggest buying the hydraulics all new as well as the clutch. decent clutches can be had from ebay cheap. as for the tranny and bellhousing id suggest either ebay or www.car-part.com (http://www.car-part.com)



also the vacuum lines running to the transmission will need to be blocked off. and youll have to remove any sensors and wiring related to the auto trans. DO NOT remove the reverse light connector and wires. there on the drivers side, i believe its a green wire and a black wire. good luck man.







smith

[Satanklawz]

hey, thanks for all the info this is a definate start for me. I have haard of people having problems with the linkage and stuff with a sbc. you know anything about this? also what is an inspection plate? im totally new to manual trans stuff.....

[Satanklawz]

also are their provisions on my truck to mount this stuff like for the petal and stuff? or do I have to fab it all?

[ZZ4Blazer]

Im told that the automatic trucks have markings for the slave cylinder, and shifter hole stamped in the metal. Can\'t tell you thought, all s-sereis Iv\'e had have been 5 speeds.



The s-10 T5 is out of the question. You\'ll end up breaking it.



Not trying to flame you, but your 1/4 says 12\'s. Everyone I know who thinks they have a fast car, says it will run 12\'s. Soon after a track run, they are more than humbled.



Have you run your truck, or just estimating? Your avatar looks like a TPI or LT1. Stock,its not gonna put you in the 12\'s.



Again, not knocking you, but you need to realisticly estimate your power. I dont\' wanna tell you a NV3500 is gonna hold, when your pushing 450 hp and running 12.02@117. Know what I mean?



Really, no stock 5 speed is gonna last very long drag racing with some good power.



The NV3500\'s are decent tranny\'s, but I know at least a dozen guys on the s-series forum who have broken them drag racing their mild 4.3\'s.



Basically, if you want/are pushing some good power, you gonna have to look into a built 4 speed, aftermarket 5 speed, or the 6 speed.

[riotpolice75]

On 2003-10-19 18:18, ZZ4Blazer wrote:

Im told that the automatic trucks have markings for the slave cylinder, and shifter hole stamped in the metal. Can\'t tell you thought, all s-sereis Iv\'e had have been 5 speeds.



same here, all i ever had were 5 speeds. yes, there is a hole for the stick on all of them but the problem you will run into is the stick on a camaro t5 is on the end of the tailshaft. youll have to cut a new hole anyway. my buddy is in the process of v8\'ing his s 10 i just called him and told him to look and see if the provisions are there for the master cylinder, there are not. you gotta do some drilling.

hit me up with a private message and ill go into some detail, its too much for one post in here.



however, the best advice i can give you for this install OF A T5 ill give you now. FIRST. theres 2 kinds of slave cylinders for a t5 camaro. one is made of cheap ass plastic. its real brittle. stay away from these, i blew up 2 of em already. the first one when i was installing it and trying to bleed the system and the second one not long after i got the truck running. if it was up to me these would be sold in 6 packs. the slave cyl. for the IROC camaro is the exact same slave cylinder except its made of steel. GET THE STEEL ONE.



SECOND. the slave cylinders between an s 10 and a camaro are totally different. you need the camaro slave cylinder. problem with this is the s 10 hydraulic line between the master and slave uses screw in fittings. the camaro uses press in fittings. youll need to take the s 10 hydraulic line and cut it near the slave cylinder, it needs to be shorter regardless. now i cant emphasize enough how much of a royal pain in the ass it is pressing that damned fitting into the hydraulic line and getting it not to leak. it screwed me for a week straight. take it to a shop and get them to press it in for you. trust me.







smith

[Knanthrup]

On 2003-10-19 16:25, riotpolice75 wrote:



your other choice is the nv3500 from later model s 10s and full size pickups. there a little more expensive but worth it. there damn near indestructible. to do the conversion youll need a transmission(most important part), bellhousing, inspection plate, flywheel (flex plate wont work), clutch, slave and master cylinder, hydraulic lines, clutch/brake pedal assy. and depending on if your particular application has a computer or not youll either need a different computer chip for a stick setup or a different computer. you MIGHT need a different tranny crossmember, im not totally sure. look at yours and look at one from a stick.







You got most of this right, however the NV3500 is one piece including the bellhousing which means you won\'t have to worry about finding both tranny and bellhousing. It almost looks like an auto tranny because it\'s all attached. The NV3500 is kind of hard to find. The nice thing is that the slave cylinder is on the passenger side out of the way of either header. You can use either the 4.3 or standard sbc flywheel, then go with an 11\" clutch. The crossmember doesn\'t require much modification, infact it can stay in the same place, you just have to make a mount spacer to fit between the x-member and the tranny itself.



On the other hand, ZZ4 is right about them holding up. It\'s hard to find a stout 5 speed tranny to just bolt in, so if you\'re doing a lot of track work then you\'re better off with a strong auto or an older 4 speed muncie or something out of a bigger truck like that. It will all just depend.. I\'m putting down well over 400lb.ft. torque on my NV3500 but my tires never hook so it doesn\'t take much abuse.



Oh and forget the T5\'s out of the S10\'s... not even an option. A WC T5 out of a Camaro is a better option but requires more modification for use, and possibly no stronger than the NV.



Oh and hey, check out my NV3500 installation guide in the articles section. It may be of some help to you. It basically goes over everything I encountered when I installed mine.



<font size=1>[ This message was edited by: Knanthrup on 2003-10-19 21:14 ]</font>

[Satanklawz]

sweet stuff man, this has already helped me3 so much. I see that mounting the slave cylinder can be a problem.. where is the clearance issue at? just fyi..... yes my truck will put down a 12 second pass. I know lots of people just say stuff they dont really know because it sounds good. im not like that other site you post at sportruck.com or whatever. my motor is the GM RamJet 350 crate engine and I have a NX kit on it pilled at 100. it goes 13.6@106 on street tires off the spray with a 2.2, 60\" I have never sucessfully used the spray on a full pass but im sure when I get it ironed out 12\'s will be at my becon call. so yess I do say it runs 12\'s

[ZZ4Blazer]

Cool good deal. Like I said, I wasn\'t trying ot flame you, but I wanted you to take a step back and look at what your doing. No sense in wasting your money on a tranny, then end up replacing it a few times till you wise up and replace it with something that will hold.



Been there, done that. After looking at your 2nd avatar pic, I realized its a Ram Jet.



106 mph Trap will put you into the mid-high 12\'s alone. But, your gonna have to hook to get there. Which, is where your going to have problems breaking parts.



Basically, I would either be looking into an old 4 speed, a Richmond 5 speed, or most any 6 speed.



N/A, your already at 400+ ft lbs of tq. The NV3500 and WC T5 are both rated at 300 ft lbs.



At any rate, you are gonna have to spend money on making this stick shift. Either a little more after you end up breaking a stock tranny, or a little more now and not mess with it.

[Satanklawz]

well I dont race hardly at all and when I do its from a roll so the trans will hardly ever have a hard launch on it, what do you use for a trans? I just want somthing fun to drive again and not the slush-o-matic that I have. im going to look into the nv3500 and some aftermarket parts for it to strengthen it up a bit in weak areas. I just want a stick and I can afford a 6spd and a 4 spd isnt economical enough for me.

[ZZ4Blazer]

I dropped the cash for a 6 speed. I believe its rated to around 500 ft lbs. Doing it again, I would have bought a stock LT1 T56 6 speed. Mines aftermarket.

[Satanklawz]

will a stock LT1 T56 bolt up to my regular sbc and not have that alignment issues? I was told that you cant use a T65 on a regular sbc because it would have it turned to an odd angle unless you used some special kit or somthing else expensive. I CAN afford a lt1 t56 and that is what I would ultimately like to have.

[ZZ4Blazer]

Yes, it should work no problem. You\'ll have to fabb up a line so connect the s-10 master cylinder to the camaro slave cylinder.



A LT1 will bolt up no problems. They use a regular SBC bolt pattern.



You\'ll have to move your crossmember back around 3\" for it.



That motors a 1 peice RMS right?



You will need the bellhousing from the LT1, the flywheel, clutch, and the starter. All should bolt up no problems. All have to be from the LT1 T56 6 speed. All are unique to that tranny.



Your looking at $1500-2K for the tranny and assorted peices. A word of warning, the LT1 T56 clutch isnt\' cheap. I\'d recommend an short throw shifter too. http://www.s10v8.com/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif

[Satanklawz]

cool, I thought it would bolt up. yes my motor is a 1 piece rms.