Manual Transmission T56 | T5 | MN12 | Clutches | Hydraulics | Shifters

What NOT to do with a T56

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Old 04-19-2008, 03:39 PM
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Default What NOT to do with a T56

I just bought my first 6spd car. Ive had two other fbodys with 4L60e's in them and I knew the "DO's and DONT's"... What are things I should avoid doing to make this thing last...?
Someone told me to try not to cruise with my hand on the shifter(puts stress on it)
Also, Speed shifting is bad for them...
What else do I need to know, thanks!
Old 04-19-2008, 05:12 PM
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Shifting without the clutch, slipping your foot of the clutch pedal and missing gears are the best ways to get new parts.
Old 04-19-2008, 05:26 PM
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do not do 4k rpm clutch dumps or higher with slicks AND expect the 10 bolt to live.

Miss a shift and you get embarrassed, shift into the WRONG gear lower than what you expected and expect a rude awakening.

WOT 5-2 = engine killer. Learn to shift.

WOT 2-1 and 3-2 = pushrod bender, Learn to shift.

Keep the foot of the clutch, the foot rest exists for a reason. It's hydraulic, if your clutch return spring is busted (and they like to break), the pedal may feel a little loose but since it's hydraulic, your foot weight can easily cause the clutch to slip.

Not sure if the LT1 cars have it, but skip shift may exist. Throttle less than 35%, certain slow rpm and a shift from 1-2 becomes 1-4 to save gas. Very dangerous I think if say making a right turn into traffic on a hill and the shift was mistimed causing you to practically bog and almost getting rear ended. That's just my take on the skip shift.

Speed shifting is fine with the t-56, it lives for it as long as the hydraulics and clutch are in working order. Power shifting is what may or may not work well depending on the condition of the clutch and can cause serious damage if it's dragging...
Old 04-19-2008, 09:29 PM
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Originally Posted by SladeX
do not do 4k rpm clutch dumps or higher with slicks AND expect the 10 bolt to live.

Miss a shift and you get embarrassed, shift into the WRONG gear lower than what you expected and expect a rude awakening.

WOT 5-2 = engine killer. Learn to shift.

WOT 2-1 and 3-2 = pushrod bender, Learn to shift.

Keep the foot of the clutch, the foot rest exists for a reason. It's hydraulic, if your clutch return spring is busted (and they like to break), the pedal may feel a little loose but since it's hydraulic, your foot weight can easily cause the clutch to slip.

Not sure if the LT1 cars have it, but skip shift may exist. Throttle less than 35%, certain slow rpm and a shift from 1-2 becomes 1-4 to save gas. Very dangerous I think if say making a right turn into traffic on a hill and the shift was mistimed causing you to practically bog and almost getting rear ended. That's just my take on the skip shift.

Speed shifting is fine with the t-56, it lives for it as long as the hydraulics and clutch are in working order. Power shifting is what may or may not work well depending on the condition of the clutch and can cause serious damage if it's dragging...
Very good explanation I just have to add a little to your equations.

WOT 2-1 and 3-2 = pushrod bender, floated valves, shattering a gear in the trans, and a cause for possible new bearings in the trans as well (ask me how i know) Learn to shift.
Old 04-19-2008, 10:30 PM
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Thanks! Helps out alot!

Anything else?
Old 04-24-2008, 06:44 PM
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A common problem with the M6s is that they pop out of reverse when the synchronizer is worn. If it starts to pop out of reverse on you, don't keep driving it--get it rebuilt. I discovered that I could hold it in reverse and make it work...for awhile. When I rebuilt the transmission after, in addition to replacing the blocker rings, etc, I also needed a new synchronizer hub and reverse gear. At $150-$200 a piece, hubs and gears are expensive. A $500 rebuild became an $1800 rebuild because I kept driving the car.

The real moral of this story is don't buy an M6 car from someone who didn't know how to drive it properly...
Old 04-24-2008, 07:03 PM
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You got ripped off if they forced you to buy a new reverse gear!

The reverse gear can be "reversed" for a whole new gear when being rebuilt. Syncro still needs to be replaced.
Old 04-24-2008, 08:37 PM
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Def got the shaft of that rebuild, also reverse its on its own and doesnt affect the rest of the transmission just ask amber at sixspeeds she will tell you the same thing. I was having the reverse pop out deal but thats because my slave was going shot and I need to install the shim for my spec 3 clutch. You can get you sixspeedsinc 1 or 1+ package cheaper than what you rebuilt yours for.
Old 04-25-2008, 12:04 AM
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I didn't get ripped off. I did the rebuild myself. This is the reverse gear that had the synchro teeth chewed up on it. 3rd and 5th gear were the same and I had to replace them all...so it was more than just the reverse synchro contributing to my $1800. For $1800, I got the D&D rebuild kit, all new bearings, the steel 3-4 shift fork, new 3rd, 5th and reverse gears and new 3-4 and reverse synchro hubs (and I'm including the shipping charges for all the parts). The transmission has been smooth as butter for the last 12K miles. I'm just saying that T56s can get really expensive to fix if you let the problems accumulate.


Last edited by RestoRoc89; 04-25-2008 at 01:01 AM.
Old 04-25-2008, 01:33 AM
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avoid racing from rolls because you'll never get the smile off your face
gotta love 6 speeds
Old 04-25-2008, 06:40 AM
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Two things,
One learn to rebuild them yourself, If your even a little mechanically incline. You will save thousands, tranny shops still consider a t56 a rather exotic transmission( even though its like 15 or 16 years old) I learned out of necessity , I break these things all the time.




Two, Don’t spray these until you know how to rebuild them, second gear isn’t cheap!

Old 04-25-2008, 06:49 AM
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Thousands? thats what we have sponsors for such as sixspeedsinc 700hp trans to void out the warranty and most members on here are not over that limit. Plus warranty is a year from date of install and warranty work they pay for shipping both ways. I'm not saying don't try to tackle the learning experience but I sure couldnt pass up the deal with them.
Old 04-25-2008, 08:53 AM
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Originally Posted by miller456
WOT 2-1 and 3-2
Yeah, I did that once. Luckily, everything was already beefed up in the car and there were no issues. Let's just hope that never happens again.
Old 04-25-2008, 05:00 PM
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Originally Posted by miller456
Thousands? thats what we have sponsors for such as sixspeedsinc 700hp trans to void out the warranty and most members on here are not over that limit. Plus warranty is a year from date of install and warranty work they pay for shipping both ways. I'm not saying don't try to tackle the learning experience but I sure couldnt pass up the deal with them.
I live in Florida and to wait on shipping is not my thing, ( I ussually keep 2 rebuild kits at my house at all times) When I want somthing done I want it quick! imho
Old 04-25-2008, 05:21 PM
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hey man i gotta give u props if you need to keep that many rebuild kits around it sounds like u know how to play.
Old 04-25-2008, 06:01 PM
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Originally Posted by miller456
hey man i gotta give u props if you need to keep that many rebuild kits around it sounds like u know how to play.
I agree. It's always good to stay prepared and be ready for anything.

I wish I knew how to rebuild a transmission myself. I read that it's not as hard as everyone thinks it is. I might take the leap and give it a shot soon. If I mess it up I'll just send it to six speed inc so that they can handle it, lol.

TJ
Old 04-25-2008, 08:20 PM
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thats the way to do it, If you have a real fast car its best to get a second tranny, if one breaks swap it for the other.
Old 04-25-2008, 09:23 PM
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Originally Posted by 1BAD01TA
thats the way to do it, If you have a real fast car its best to get a second tranny, if one breaks swap it for the other.
Better yet spend the money to get one built right and just drive it. It worked for me, I'm running 10.50s doing 6 grand clutch dumps with ET Streets and my last rebuild was 2 years ago. Fix it right and forget about it. Libertys Gears made it bullit proof.

Last edited by Torkman15; 04-25-2008 at 09:25 PM. Reason: Add a line
Old 04-28-2008, 08:07 AM
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Originally Posted by Torkman15
Better yet spend the money to get one built right and just drive it. It worked for me, I'm running 10.50s doing 6 grand clutch dumps with ET Streets and my last rebuild was 2 years ago. Fix it right and forget about it. Libertys Gears made it bullit proof.
Did you have your gears faceplated or different gears altogether? How many street miles do you have so far? Wondering how long my rings will last on a daily driven faceplated t-56.
Old 04-28-2008, 11:14 AM
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Originally Posted by 1BAD01TA
thats the way to do it, If you have a real fast car its best to get a second tranny, if one breaks swap it for the other.
How fast is your car... Why are you constatly rebuilding?


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