Drivetrain Tr3650 swap worth it? Or sn95 t5?

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A used trans is a crapshoot. Trust me, i'm all for used parts and deals.
But driving to some guys house you don't know, 2 hours away, then taking your car apart?
Hell no.
It could go right, or it could go horribly wrong and cost you triple.
 
A used trans is a crapshoot. Trust me, i'm all for used parts and deals.
But driving to some guys house you don't know, 2 hours away, then taking your car apart?
Hell no.
It could go right, or it could go horribly wrong and cost you triple.
While i agree its a bit risky, only because theres no telling if im gonna drive around for a week and have it blowup and be stuck with it. But other than that, i do know the man somewhat, he runs a pretty legit shop, builds high dollar engines, has like 20+ parts cars around all the time and sells them. Also have had him put gears in a car and a few other things before, he knows his stuff. Also it will need to be brought there on a car hauler. Only problem i have is needing to wait and go back and forth and thanks to Sleepy Joe, gas is expensive as :fuss:. The only other option is what spending like $2k plus on a new one so seems like a ok idea to me..
 
Thats a good deal. I'm in VA ( fredericksburg ) but I have a farm down near the NC line. That's a damn good price even for down there. It's great not to have to gamble with fitting parts that weren't really meant to go together.
 
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While i agree its a bit risky, only because theres no telling if im gonna drive around for a week and have it blowup and be stuck with it. But other than that, i do know the man somewhat, he runs a pretty legit shop, builds high dollar engines, has like 20+ parts cars around all the time and sells them. Also have had him put gears in a car and a few other things before, he knows his stuff. Also it will need to be brought there on a car hauler. Only problem i have is needing to wait and go back and forth and thanks to Sleepy Joe, gas is expensive as :fuss:. The only other option is what spending like $2k plus on a new one so seems like a ok idea to me..
This makes no sense to me.
Runs a legit shop and builds high end engines, yet he's going to sell and install a t5 trans for $600?
Why would a successful engine builder be selling and installing a trans at a discounted rate? He could probably just get the $600 for the trans and move on or use his time wiser, building engines...
As for gas prices, i think it's $72 a barrel, that is far from it's high. One could even argue at $3 a gallon, 15mpg at 200 total miles should you really own this car at all if you have to take gas prices into consideration for that short of a one time trip?
 
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This makes no sense to me.
Runs a legit shop and builds high end engines, yet he's going to sell and install a t5 trans for $600?
Why would a successful engine builder be selling and installing a trans at a discounted rate? He could probably just get the $600 for the trans and move on or use his time wiser, building engines...
As for gas prices, i think it's $72 a barrel, that is far from it's high. One could even argue at $3 a gallon, 15mpg at 200 total miles should you really own this car at all if you have to take gas prices into consideration for that short of a one time trip?
Actually, after hanging around my friends shop for so many years I think he sounds like a stand up guy, I've witnessed my friend sell a car to a customer for just a few bucks more than what he had in it, he could have and originality intended to 'make a killing' on the car. The customer wrecked their car and the insurance didn't pay crap.
I'm thinking we wait to see if he gets the job done there and the trans falls out on the way home. Then we can send someone over to that shop and set fire to a bag of dog poo at the office door.
I can't see that swap take'n more than a couple hours in even a marginally equipped shop. With smoke breaks.
I'm root'n for him.
And as for the price of fuel? The price of do'n business.
You wanna play? You gotta pay!
 
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Update: its been a while but i finally got the car to him this last weekend and he called me this morning and already installed the trans. He says its a tremec and is sure that its in good working order and will drive it to be sure,so it looks good so far. Also he said that the person who put the 4cyl previous trans in didnt even change the pilot bearing and that the input shaft was basically just flopping around in the bigger 5.0 bearing:rlaugh:so that was what happened. Am also having him weld on some subframe connectors and fix the pinion seal leak for 200$ labor so seems a good deal to me. Happy so far!
 
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Update: its been a while but i finally got the car to him this last weekend and he called me this morning and already installed the trans. He says its a tremec and is sure that its in good working order and will drive it to be sure,so it looks good so far. Also he said that the person who put the 4cyl previous trans in didnt even change the pilot bearing and that the input shaft was basically just flopping around in the bigger 5.0 bearing:rlaugh:so that was what happened. Am also having him weld on some subframe connectors and fix the pinion seal leak for 200$ labor so seems a good deal to me. Happy so far!

Sounds like the guy is taking good car of ya! Glad to hear it's working out.
 
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So far ive driven it about 300miles and its held up very well and shifts buttery smooth compared to the last one which im very happy about. The only thing ive noticed is it can be even more difficult than my last t5 to get in to reverse but i know its a common problem, but more so it sounds like a supercharger pretty loud 1st-3rd gear and ive looked into it on the forums and theres alot of different reasons people give as to why. From between your trans is screwed or no big deal they all do that.. i read that sometimes the case can be worn and that will cause that whine but they mentioned it will leak out the bellhousing but its dry no leaks at all. Or possibly wear on the input shaft due to low fluid at some point.. or maybe it has strait cut gears:nice:. No but seriously there is so many opinions and things it could be but im just kinda hoping its not a big deal, the sound doesnt bother me much since it sounds kind of neat, and my car is super loud with 2.5” axle dumps and its still quite loud, so if my car was quiet id be in for some whiney tunes lol. I also understand why it doesntmake a sound in 4th and that maybe in 5th its too quite to hear. Im hoping to try RP syncromax or whatever and maybe that will make the sound go away some.. also the guy who installed it said i can bring it back so he can figure out the sound but it’s obviously a used trans and i dont want to cause too much of a fuss about it, and dont want to dump more money.. also subframe connectors are amazing and wish more people would listen and actually get them installed. The car handles noticable better doesnt sway all over and actually tracks straight!
 
Im kind of wondering if it might be something as simple as just popping a new input shaft in it or if that could end up being a waste of time and money if something else is causing it/ and also if it doesnt really matter and its just a sound not harming anything..
 
For what it's worth I have personal experience swapping a SN95 T-5 in my 90 Hatch. What I used:
1) 1994 GT T5 transmission & bellhousing
2) new 94+ clutch fork
2) AOD crossmember
3) 1999 Cobra Driveshaft (1" shorter than Fox length) - swapped out yoke and pinion flange

I like that the shifter sits further back compared to the more forward position in my brother's '93. But I did have slightly trim the transmission tunnel for shifter clearance.