Considering an auto swap

cashwheel

cashwheel

bolt on warrior
Joined
Jan 4, 2008
Messages
571
Alright here's the deal. I bought the truck in my sig after owning an 05 2wd g56. I bought this truck because it was a hell of a deal and I really got tired of getting stuck. I loved the way my g56 shifted, I figured the nv would be even better due to the taller 6th and better reputation. After driving it, I told myself I would get used to it and it wouldn't bother me, wrong, Im still not loving it. 3rd gear us useless unless under 1/2 throttle and I like to downshift while towing and it does not.

Here's what I'm thinking. My dad is getting ready to sell his single wheel auto 4x4 and I've been driving it the past few days, it's kinda nice not having to shift. I'm thinking about swaping the two. I'm going to be putting the s475 for twins on soon and was thinking about doing it all at once, I'm just not up on what's out there as far a convertors. I would prob do a garmin convertor and valve body, opie shafts and red clutches. Is it possible to set up a good all around convertors, tows heavy well, and goes good empty? I'm not looking for 10's, just a little faster. I keep bouncing back and forth on what I want to do, figured I would get you guys to help me decide. What are yalls thoughts?
 
How many miles are on your 5600? Maybe the synchros are getting worn out? A few of my buddies haul heavy regularly with them and would not use any other trans (after trying the other ones and consequently breaking them LOL).
 
127k, that's always what I thought, but I hate to put money in it and still hate it.
 
Damn, I know EXACTLY how you feel! I drove my truck with the NV4500 for about 5 years, hating to shift everyday. I upgraded to a built NV4500 with a SBC3600 so I could tow better, yeah right!

So anyways, I just finished up with my NV4500 to 47rhh conversion. The trans is a Goerend FULL billet with his 15 blade left cut converter.

I LOVE THE TRUCK AGAIN!!

I just got back yesterday from Kentucky. We took the kids camping for a week, before they start school. Granted It was only 500 miles each way, it was 100x easier to tow with the auto than the manual! The camper weight around 10k empty.

What year truck does your dad have? The 47rh out of a 94-95 is the easiest to do the swap, NO electronics to worry about. All you need is 2 switches, 1 for O/D, and the other for lockup.
Otherwise, the swap is simple. Youll need:

Auto trans mount (not the rubber piece)

Tcase input shaft for an auto.

Tcase linkage from the auto. The adjuster rod is longer and the mount is different.

shorten rear drive shaft (I went with a one piece 4"-.095 wall) so far no vibration up to 110 on the highway. Makes removing driveshaft SIMPLE!! 4 bolts on the pinion.

Lengthen front drive shaft

TV/kickdown cable

Some kind of shifter (I have a B&M floor shifter)

Trans coolers. I did a B&M supercooler in front of the radiator and a Derale atomic cooler with fan and thermostat under the bed.

Lockup toggle switch, Brad Ponci has me doing a Hobbs switch, so lockup comes on by itself at around 40-42mph. But I will still have manual override toggle for drag racing.

O/D toggle switch. Also going to do the same as the lockup switch with the Hobbs switch.

Thats it!

I'm doing the Hobbs switches so if someone need to use the truck the can get in and drive it without having to flip switches.
 
Have you tried Amsoil in the 5600? I put it in my old 01' and it made a BIG difference.
 
The donor is an 03, but both trucks will be running when done so I can swap everything from one to the other and vice versa. So one to do it marked down.
 
Kent, I am in the same boat right now as well. I have a wrecked 07 auto 4x4 truck coming in and I am going to pull off everything I can and get ready for a auto swap. I am going to build my own auto trans with Suncoast tq conv, vb, and the extreme rebuild kit that comes with a couple billet odds and ends, and a billet input. I can buy all the parts for 2-2500 with input shaft. So I will have about 3 grand in the whole deal. Then after I get everything swapped I will sell the parts as a G56 conversion kit for someone looking to swap to a G56.

My deal is, if I rebuild my G56 it will cost $2400 in parts with me doing the labor, then you throw in a $1200 clutch and you have $3600 in something that is going to break again... for sure... there is no question of if, its when. I just cant stand replacing something that broke because it was the weak link in the first place. At least with the auto I will have a better chance of not breaking parts, and my wife can drive it, it will be a faster truck, and I dont have to shift gears anymore.
 
Texas Cowboy said:
Have you tried Amsoil in the 5600? I put it in my old 01' and it made a BIG difference.
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I've tried redline, Amsoil, and Amsoil with the sliplock additive. Amsoil helped but still not near as smooth as I would like.
 
SPEEDSHIFT said:
Kent, I am in the same boat right now as well. I have a wrecked 07 auto 4x4 truck coming in and I am going to pull off everything I can and get ready for a auto swap. I am going to build my own auto trans with Suncoast tq conv, vb, and the extreme rebuild kit that comes with a couple billet odds and ends, and a billet input. I can buy all the parts for 2-2500 with input shaft. So I will have about 3 grand in the whole deal. Then after I get everything swapped I will sell the parts as a G56 conversion kit for someone looking to swap to a G56.

My deal is, if I rebuild my G56 it will cost $2400 in parts with me doing the labor, then you throw in a $1200 clutch and you have $3600 in something that is going to break again... for sure... there is no question of if, its when. I just cant stand replacing something that broke because it was the weak link in the first place. At least with the auto I will have a better chance of not breaking parts, and my wife can drive it, it will be a faster truck, and I dont have to shift gears anymore.
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you summed it up pretty well, that's about where I am. Kinda scary since our trucks are almost identical. I'll be building the trans myself as well. Been around building enough slush boxs, I think I can handle it. Just a little worried, I've always been a manual guy, 8 out of 10 trucks have been standard. This is the first truck a have not enjoyed driving, so I don't think I have anything to loose.
 
If I decide to do this am I going to need to switch the ecm's? What will it take to get the gear indicator in the cluster to work? I really would like it to look as factory as possible, I wouldn't think that would be to difficult to do since I'm swaping two complete trucks. Anybody got sugestions on how to set the convertor up?
 
SPEEDSHIFT said:
you have $3600 in something that is going to break again... for sure... there is no question of if, its when.
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To tell you the truth, thats the exact way I feel with my fully built automatic. That sob has left me sitting on the side of the road more times than I care to think of. I havent been at all happy with it; wish I woulda gotten a manual and not had to worry about it.

Just an FYI for you guys; dont think an auto wont break cause it will. I know everyone knows that, just sayin is all...

The auto is a BLAST when shes running good though :rockwoot:
 
'strokeThis_'07 said:
To tell you the truth, thats the exact way I feel with my fully built automatic. That sob has left me sitting on the side of the road more times than I care to think of. I havent been at all happy with it; wish I woulda gotten a manual and not had to worry about it.

Just an FYI for you guys; dont think an auto wont break cause it will. I know everyone knows that, just sayin is all...

The auto is a BLAST when shes running good though :rockwoot:
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I went through 3 full built NV4500s in 4 years, at $1800 a pop.

I'm willing to bet I will have better luck with the Goerend auto. At least the warranty is 3 years and te converter is lifetime. The manual warranty from Blumenthal was only 6 months. The warranty from Standard Trans was 1 year.
 
Once you've driven a solid built auto you'll wonder why you ever drove a stick. It's so much easier/nicer. My girlfriend has driven stick all of her life. Said she'd never drive an auto. Then I let her drive my truck. Now she's selling her truck to buy one with an auto and wants me to build it. LOL

And if you buy a good auto you'll never have to worry about being stranded again. There is a difference in builders and they all have their own beliefs and ideas on which way is better and not all are built equally. But that's a whole nother thread.
 
do it... for years, my vehicle searches were manual only, and every truck I owned was manual

now it's the opposite

if the converter is spec'd to perform decent without a lockup switch and you drive it as such, it's going to hold up to anything it's built for

anything can happen, but I contend the autos are more reliable at higher power levels, they're certainly quicker, and they're cheaper to refresh and need it far less often
 
Ive got the same plan when I find the money, only I plan on using the PCS stand alone controller. If you could please take some notes.
 
cashwheel said:
If I decide to do this am I going to need to switch the ecm's? What will it take to get the gear indicator in the cluster to work? I really would like it to look as factory as possible, I wouldn't think that would be to difficult to do since I'm swaping two complete trucks. Anybody got sugestions on how to set the convertor up?
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Bob says he can reflash my Smarty for an auto truck, and I wont need to swap ECMs.:rockwoot:
 
SPEEDSHIFT said:
Bob says he can reflash my Smarty for an auto truck, and I wont need to swap ECMs.:rockwoot:
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Interesting, I might have to get with the guys at CT and see what they say. Its not like it that big of a deal since I will need to have both trucks running when completed, just trying to get my ducks in a row. My main thing is, if I do this right now its not gonna cost me anything except price to build the auto, and my time. If I don't do it I'm gonna have to spend almost as much on a good DD to hold the added power from the twins.

Anybody need an '03 QC LB NV5600 4x4? Manual trucks tend to be more popular around here, so it should help him get a little more money for it. What I may do to help me decide is put it up for sale with the option of either and just end up with whatever the buyer doesn't want.
 
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