Does anyone here regret their auto to manual swap?

[Bonnewagon]

3:73's are for street fun and racing- nothing else. I had a stock Monte SS 3:73 rear and I hated it. 5000 rpm just to keep up with traffic. It took an entire tank of gas to get from Queens to Englishtown. Another tank to get back. YIKES!! I soon swapped in a set of 3:23's I got from GEVO's Gears and Rears. WAAAAY better. I also had a RAM B&B style clutch, like 2400lbs or something. My leg hurt in traffic. I switched to a Diaphragm style and never looked back. Today's Diaphragm clutches are as strong as the B&B but as the Belleville spring gets depressed the pedal effort goes down, not up. A buddy with a '55 Chevy just broke his TKO. I didn't get the whole story, but it proves anything can be abused and broken.

 

[UnlocatedStig]

The only regret you'll soon find is having a stick in stop and go traffic.... and when getting much older, your left knee will most likely not put up with the pressing of the clutch with the hard return spring, although a hydraulic driven one might be somewhat more forgiving.

I would love to have a stick shift over my 700R4, with the 3.73 gear im currently using, 2400rpm@70mph, im content, but a T56 would be the most likely candidate... but only in a corvette, but thats just me.

Luckily i dont do much stop and go traffic at all. Most city driving i do with my motorcycle phew. Im still only 27 years old so i hope Theres still some time until my knee go out on me

 

[Alerch]

Not one bit, one of the best things I did to the car.

 

[ssn696]

Small things to be grateful for: A manual A/G body means never having to adjust the gear indicator cable clip when you fix the steering column...

 

[GP403]

3:73's are for street fun and racing- nothing else. I had a stock Monte SS 3:73 rear and I hated it. 5000 rpm just to keep up with traffic. It took an entire tank of gas to get from Queens to Englishtown. Another tank to get back. YIKES!! I soon swapped in a set of 3:23's I got from GEVO's Gears and Rears. WAAAAY better. I also had a RAM B&B style clutch, like 2400lbs or something. My leg hurt in traffic. I switched to a Diaphragm style and never looked back. Today's Diaphragm clutches are as strong as the B&B but as the Belleville spring gets depressed the pedal effort goes down, not up. A buddy with a '55 Chevy just broke his TKO. I didn't get the whole story, but it proves anything can be abused and broken.

This right here. (When its running lol) I hate getting out on the highway for any length of time.

And the way the Sag is geared, 😅 in town its like I didn't forget leg day, just one of them gets a workout.

Don't get me wrong, Its fun getting to about 50 but yeah.

 

[81cutlass]

I put a t56 out of an F body behind my LS in my GP and have about 20,000 miles on the setup.

The swap was a bit of a pain, mostly with the hydraulic pedal because I built it all myself out of other GM vehicles (S10 clutch pedal, 3rd gen F body master cyl). I also run a pretty aggressive clutch which means high pedal effort, that caused some reoccurring master cylinder wear issues and bending of push rod linkages. I finally figured it out by swapping to an aftermarket Tilton master cylinder and a larger spherical ball end that connects to the clutch pedal. Getting the shifter to align in the existing GP center console shifter hole was also a bit of a pain.

Cost wise it adds up, driveshaft, crossmember, bellhousing and clutch, the hydraulic parts. I also bought a used t56 and got about 12,000 miles out of it before it needed a rebuilt which was about $2000 for me to do it at home.

I wasn't able to run the factory speedometer as a T56 doesn't have mechanical speed drive so you need a conversion box or swap to an electric speedometer

It has also been really tough on my drivetrain but I also drag race the car extensively. Twisted slip yokes, multiple broken differentials or broken/bent axles and bent studs. I also had to weld some bracing in the control arm points on the frame as I could see the rear end oscillating forward and back on hard launches.


Despite how expensive a 4l80 swap seems, a t56 will be more expensive. The trans itself might not be but there is many more auxiliary parts you need to purchase that really add up.

I enjoy the driving experience but it would be faster and more reliable with an auto. Not a regret, but an observation.

 

[bracketchev1221]

I'm of the old crowd. I had one until my leg didn't like it anymore. I am past the stick idea. I had my fun, went low 10's with a powershifted Jerico. Automatics for me going forward.

 

[Rt Jam]

It's more to it than auto to manual. It depends on what auto vs what manual.

I would never give up an 8 or 10 spd auto. They are awesome for drag racing and cars with these rarely stay up at night wondering what rear gear ratio to chose from.
An old manual with external shift linkage and no overdrive. Not for me but some like if it's correct for their car.

A Dodge NV4500 does not shift the same as a T56. If this is something you can appreciate, that's a plus in that department. I prefer manual in traffic. As long as the speed is not going slower than idle in 1st gear, I find it easier to modulate a constant speed. You can go in and out of the throttle to control the speed. Auto requires brake application to rub off a bit of speed. Is this a fun car or fast car? Just want to add, a fast manual is rough on a car.

This is a T56 that replaced a T5. Much easier to shift than the old 5 speed.

 

[UnlocatedStig]

I have not owned a high stall type torque converter, how streetable is it? I'm not taking my car to any drag strip as thats nowhere to be find here so this is a strictly supposed to be a fast car on the street not stand still launching. So far to my rough calculations a 4l80e is about 2 or 3 grand cheaper than a t56 magnum.
I can get a th350c with converter for about 2-3 grand cheaper than the 4l80e would cost to swap in.

Edit: By fast car i mean as long as it would technically go 14s in the 1/4 mile i would call it fast. Better said it would be a normal street car with reliable 450hp would be plenty for now

Small things to be grateful for: A manual A/G body means never having to adjust the gear indicator cable clip when you fix the steering column...
View attachment 254868

So true. I have already had to solder that once

 

[Rt Jam]

I have not owned a high stall type torque converter, how streetable is it? I'm not taking my car to any drag strip as thats nowhere to be find here so this is a strictly supposed to be a fast car on the street not stand still launching. So far to my rough calculations a 4l80e is about 2 or 3 grand cheaper than a t56 magnum.
I can get a th350c with converter for about 2-3 grand cheaper than the 4l80e would cost to swap in.

Edit: By fast car i mean as long as it would technically go 14s in the 1/4 mile i would call it fast. Better said it would be a normal street car with reliable 450hp would be plenty for now


So true. I have already had to solder that once

Not every car needs a high stall converter. They basically allow rpm to flare up to get into the high powerband of engines with big camshafts. 450hp is easily attainable without a camshaft with big overlap. Just to add to the variables. A 3000 rpm converter from a cheapie company is not as streetable as a 3000rpm high quality converter. Also a 60 or an 80 will have lock up.
T56's are expensive because they are brand new. Can not compare that to rebuilt auto.

I feel a 4L60E is more appropriate for 450 hp or 14's. It's smaller, lighter, more efficient and has a lower 1st and 2nd gear.