Maybe the Craziest T56 Application Yet
02-15-2008, 05:33 PM
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Maybe the Craziest T56 Application Yet Greetings, all; hoping you can help with some INTEL for a 6-speed swap I'm considering.
I have a 1992 Astro van with a L98 Tune Port 350. The engine swap was done several years ago and has worked out great, and now an LT1 is now in the works. At that same time, I'd also like to put a T56 in the van.
In the Astro, the engine/transmission is offset far toward the passenger side to give foot room for the driver. As a result, for the rare factory 5-speed manual transmission setup, the shifter has some banjo work allowing the shifter to rise through the van floor 8 INCHES left of the tranmission.
I attach a picture showing the shifter offset hardware. Does anybody have "hands-on" experience with this type of linkage? Any ideas whether there would be a way to [optimistically] bolt it directly to the T56?
BTW.......it probably will be necessary to move the shifter farther forward on the T56 to one of the optional locations. I think the F-body shift location will be too rearward. What is the best way to do that? Which vendor?
Thanks in advance............Jim
I have a 1992 Astro van with a L98 Tune Port 350. The engine swap was done several years ago and has worked out great, and now an LT1 is now in the works. At that same time, I'd also like to put a T56 in the van.
In the Astro, the engine/transmission is offset far toward the passenger side to give foot room for the driver. As a result, for the rare factory 5-speed manual transmission setup, the shifter has some banjo work allowing the shifter to rise through the van floor 8 INCHES left of the tranmission.
I attach a picture showing the shifter offset hardware. Does anybody have "hands-on" experience with this type of linkage? Any ideas whether there would be a way to [optimistically] bolt it directly to the T56?
BTW.......it probably will be necessary to move the shifter farther forward on the T56 to one of the optional locations. I think the F-body shift location will be too rearward. What is the best way to do that? Which vendor?
Thanks in advance............Jim
as to how to help you.
02-15-2008, 06:43 PM
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Thats a GM small van only T5 . Its basically an S10 T5 with a modified shifter setup on it . In my humble opinion , you'd be better off installing an after market gear set in that box instead of trying to make a T56 work . That unit has the shifter in the middle part of the trans where a T56 has it at the rear of the unit . It could be done with enough engineering but I cannot see why one would go to such a pain to do so .
02-16-2008, 12:18 AM
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Maybe the Craziest T56 Application Yet TheSource, I thought changing the T56 shifter location was easily done. I've found a couple of different sources for shifter modifications; here's one:
http://www.keislerauto.com/gm/articl...Per_040528.pdf
It shows the stock locations and two others farther forward. I think one adapts directly through an inspection plate at the top of the transmission.
My Astro is an adaptation of what the factory would have been likely to build, had they been inclined to put the V8 in the van in the first place. The L98 was still in the F-body that year. The Impala SS wheels...I stretched that one, since they came out in 1994...but the last year of the old-style Astro was 1994, too.
The T56 is only the start of the fun. There's the planned LT1 396, and a 9-inch Ford disc brake rear end, and 2 inches' additional lowering.
This isn't my first off-the-wall project. My 280SL 6.3 is about to go on the road. Progress photos attached.
Jim
http://www.keislerauto.com/gm/articl...Per_040528.pdf
It shows the stock locations and two others farther forward. I think one adapts directly through an inspection plate at the top of the transmission.
My Astro is an adaptation of what the factory would have been likely to build, had they been inclined to put the V8 in the van in the first place. The L98 was still in the F-body that year. The Impala SS wheels...I stretched that one, since they came out in 1994...but the last year of the old-style Astro was 1994, too.
The T56 is only the start of the fun. There's the planned LT1 396, and a 9-inch Ford disc brake rear end, and 2 inches' additional lowering.
This isn't my first off-the-wall project. My 280SL 6.3 is about to go on the road. Progress photos attached.
Jim
02-16-2008, 07:32 AM
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You can make the T56 a midshift by changing the shift selector under the 4 bolt plate like they show in the pics but if I remember right , they do not offer the parts seperately . You would have to buy their complete unit or atleast thats the way they did it on a T5 conversion we were trying to do on a Sunbeam Tiger for a customer . Another company that did midshifts was Dark Horse Performance but I think they only offered it in the Tremecs .
As said above , it can be done with enough engineering and money . Good luck on the swap , it should get interesting .
As said above , it can be done with enough engineering and money . Good luck on the swap , it should get interesting .
02-16-2008, 07:34 AM
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Thats a GM small van only T5 . Its basically an S10 T5 with a modified shifter setup on it . In my humble opinion , you'd be better off installing an after market gear set in that box instead of trying to make a T56 work . That unit has the shifter in the middle part of the trans where a T56 has it at the rear of the unit . It could be done with enough engineering but I cannot see why one would go to such a pain to do so .
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02-16-2008, 08:20 AM
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What does wear on the syncro teeth have to do with gear failure ? They are going to show some wear on them . Anytime you have metal to metal rubbing and meshing with each other , wear or signs of it are going to happen . As for the G force kit , I personally do not like their kit and prefer the Astro Performance A5 kit . I have customer running low 10's with A5 geared T5's in Mustangs weighing right at 3000 lbs and giving them hell .
This car has an A5 T5 in it and had well over 50 passes on it before going to a different setup :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9ccEQnxGoE
On a side note , what fluid were you running in the T5 with the G Force gears ? Was it the WC 3rd GEN V8 gear set ?
This car has an A5 T5 in it and had well over 50 passes on it before going to a different setup :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9ccEQnxGoE
On a side note , what fluid were you running in the T5 with the G Force gears ? Was it the WC 3rd GEN V8 gear set ?
Last edited by thesource; 02-16-2008 at 08:27 AM.
02-16-2008, 08:32 AM
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This wasn't normal wear. His trans had about 300 miles on it when we pulled and it looked like a 100K miles used gear. His clutch worked just fine and so did the hydraulics. We sent the stuff to G-Force and they didn't understand why it looked so bad after 300 miles.
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02-16-2008, 08:49 AM
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What does wear on the syncro teeth have to do with gear failure ? They are going to show some wear on them . Anytime you have metal to metal rubbing and meshing with each other , wear or signs of it are going to happen . As for the G force kit , I personally do not like their kit and prefer the Astro Performance A5 kit . I have customer running low 10's with A5 geared T5's in Mustangs weighing right at 3000 lbs and giving them hell .
This car has an A5 T5 in it and had well over 50 passes on it before going to a different setup :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9ccEQnxGoE
On a side note , what fluid were you running in the T5 with the G Force gears ? Was it the WC 3rd GEN V8 gear set ?
This car has an A5 T5 in it and had well over 50 passes on it before going to a different setup :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9ccEQnxGoE
On a side note , what fluid were you running in the T5 with the G Force gears ? Was it the WC 3rd GEN V8 gear set ?
That's was a great pass!
02-16-2008, 12:34 PM
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This wasn't normal wear. His trans had about 300 miles on it when we pulled and it looked like a 100K miles used gear. His clutch worked just fine and so did the hydraulics. We sent the stuff to G-Force and they didn't understand why it looked so bad after 300 miles.
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