ok, so I got a clutch that is going soon and I guess my Input shaft is going. I still think it is the TO bearing but some ppl on here including kevin say it is the input shaft bearing.

Anyway, I been interested in getting a VLSD tranni for a few months now and Kevin said he had a few lying around but he did not give me a clear price. So instead of having him or someone crack open my Tranni to replace the Input bearing and do the clutch, I mine as well get a quote on a VLSD tranni installed with decent miles on it with a decent life on the clutch since there will hopefully be one with it.


So what prices am I looking at around? Is this economically the best thing for me too do? Will I run into any issues? I guess I have to replace both axles too, because of the spline differences and larger diff hole but I am sure I can find used ones someone or kevin goods.

Thanks if anyone can help me with the discussion.

Things I like the most on VLSD is how much nicer it will be with it in the winter. Along with slightly better grip and probably less TQ steer, but I am not sure as I never drove one.

 

Just the driver's side axle, as has been posted everywhere. Most economical? That's up to you, if you're willing to spend however much it is.

You might as well have the new trans you're looking at cracked open to see what kind of condition it's in, rather than have your car down for trans repairs at a later date if any issues surface with the VLSD trans. The way you wrote that, it implied getting a used clutch?

Regardless, if the price is what you're willing to pay for VLSD, then do it. Otherwise, get a junkyard trans, rebuild it or have it rebuilt, then swap it in when you can afford the downtime.

 

My .02

Get the VLSD tranny if thats what you really want. Tare it down, inspect it, replace the bearings and anything else it might need. Get the correct dirveshaft and a new clutch.
Put that into your car, take your old tranny, tare it down, replace the bearings and anything else it might need, then sell it here or on ebay.

That would put some cash back into your pocket.

 

Either way your going to have to crack open a tranny... If you're going with the VLSD trans you might was well rebuild it now while it's out... If you have a shop installing it and doing all the work I'm guessing somewhere in the $1500 range? It's a lot of labor especially for tranny teardown.

If you could, do the work yourself and save a ton of $$$.

 

I will prob have kevin goods do it because he knows more about rebuilding a tranni then me.

 

Maybe a 6spd swap then? The one 6spd that has VLSD?

 

no 6 speed has VLSD.

a 6 speed swap is not a bolt in affair. you have to change a lot of stuff. i'd suggest skipping that idea.

 

I thought the 6sp was hlsd?

 

Correct. Well, there's an HLSD option, just like there's a VLSD option with the 5MT.

 

yah I thought that too. hmm. Which Gen5 Maximas had it?

 

RS5F50V - 5MT VLSD
RS6F51H - 6MT HLSD

The 5 speed ONLY had VLSD.
The 6 speed ONLY had HLSD.

 

ok. So all Gen 5s have some sort of limited slip for standard shift? nice.

 

Available, yes. Not standard.

 

oh ok, thanks pmohr you have always been the tranni king around here. Now I gotta figure out if I wanna do a 6spd swap or not but the guy above said it was more just a swap. Something tells me my ECU won't like a few things. heh. I like 5speed so much better anyway, I think 5speed is 5x better for racing on anything except highways imho. Longer gears that last longer through out the curve and powerband with less shifting. =]

 

Hy man, I'm on the market too, we might see if someone will cut a deal for a group buy.

 

A group buy of what?

 

 

Sorry ya'll. I meant a VLSD 5 speed. I'd like to have one, and could rebuild mine (IPS noise) and resell it to recover some of the cost.

Although I'm not really optimistic, seeing as the only cars that have them are the canadian models and 5 speed I30T (if I'm not mistaken), and I'm not aware that I've ever seen either of these.

And I wouldn't mess with a used clutch. if you're gonna have the tranny off and yours is wearing out, go ahead and spend the extra what $100 (?) on a new clutch. They're enough trouble to replace, and not much fun to try and drive with a bad clutch.

 

Also on the '01 AE model.

The only person that would be able to do a 'group buy' would be Nissan themselves...good luck doing that.

Usually a clutch is more than just $100, unless you're finding some bargain basement crap at an auto parts store.

 

^ Ive seen some Clutches for $160 for Exedy OEMS

 

I got an Exedy OEM clutch for $125 shipped a few years ago. It worked just fine.

To the OP, in case you haven't noticed, re-using a clutch is a waste of time. The clutch wears in to the flywheel, so you'll want to remachine your flywheel and use a new clutch when installing a different tranny. With the VLSD you'll need to find a new driver side axle.

In winter, if you want to make driving better get a set of snow tires before worrying about the diff. Even though my car has an open diff, I can hog around with the snow tires on.

Think of it differently: a diff helps you get going a little bit in slick conditions. Snow tires help you get going, help you turn, help you stop, help you on cold rainy roads, and help you extend the life of your summer tires. Snow tires win.

 

are there any differences btwn the AE VLSD versus a regular VLSD out of a 4th gen or I30? im just trying to justify the price difference since AE VLSD trannies seems to be much more expensive

 

5th gen trannies are supposed to be a little stronger.

 

I have torn down both. I could find no difference in the internals. There might have been a slight difference in the 5th gen housings.

Dave

 

Dave is right as always, there are no differences that would indicate a strength increase. The only way that 5th gen transmissions could be any stronger would be if they used better materials which I think is unlikely, physically they are all identical (except for some different oil passage shapes and minor stuff like that which has no strength benefit, and the fact that 97+ transmissions have a different first gear and first gear synchronizer assembly, again, no strength change).

I've broken more gears in 5th gen transmissions than I've broken in 4th gen transmissions btw. Anecdotal and not proof of anything really, I'm just sayin'.

If anything, I think 3rd gen gears might be stronger (and still, they physically interchange - so stronger materials if anything). maxmaxima91's car makes as much or more power and torque than mine does, it's much heavier, and he's been boosting on that freaking trans for going on 6 years now I think. he had a more aggressive clutch in there for a good portion of that time, AND he drives that car much more than I drive mine, I think he's probably got 100K boosted miles on his car, I've got like 15k on mine lol. I broke 3 gears in a span of like 15 months or something like that.

Dave is right again, there is a difference in 3rd, 4th, and 5th gen housings and the striking rod yoke/collar, the internals are all exactly the same as as far as I've been able to determine (by the same I mean they all can interchange with each other.)

edit: btw, for those interested, I took comparison pics of 5spd vs 6speed internals a while back. I'll post them up sometime soon when I get the urge to make a long post.

 

Is that a euphemism for "taking a dump"? LOL

 

1500 like the one of the other poster said is a good estimation. I've got 5 speed 05 Altima and im upgrading to a jwt clutch and 04 max lsd.

The lsd is where all the labor comes in opening up the case, something like 11.5 hours

incase anyones interested..
http://www.nissanclub.com/forums/200...xperience.html

 

??

If someone handed me a transmission and a an LSD, the total labor to drop that in should be about 2 hours.

11.5 hours sounds like a lot more than a clutch job + 2 hours.

Dave

 

AllData shows a clutch job as 5.6, even putting down 3 extra for a diff R&R (which is too much) it's still nowhere near.

I imagine he's also paying for shop supplies and gear oil on top of the 11.5 hours of rape.

He says he's paying $903 overall, which for 11.5 is $78/hr, doesn't sound right for a Nissan dealership.

 

how much rpms past the stock limiter can these trannies handle on stock internals? well i guess just how much more can they handle past 7200rpms since i know quite a few ppl have extended limiters.

 

Probably higher than you'd want to go with the motor. I'd say ~8500 RPM before bearings are beyond their comfortable speeds. I know that's the case with the ISBs on the RS6F51H, anyway.

 

Well Tax season is coming and I plan on putting that money towards this(I don't get much for taxes so I will have too see if it will be clutch+VLSD or just the clutch. I think Kevin can rebuilt Trannies. I just hope he has a VLSD lying around, hey Kev Chime in if you could. =]

I'm gonna PM him soon.


Also, Do you think the Value will go up for my car a little if I advertise that is had VLSD? I mean I don't plan on selling my baby for another 1-1/2 years or so anyway, or until I can afford something nicer/newer/faster.

 

Only another maxima enthusiast would pay more for VLSD. The average buyer would glaze over if you mention it.

Interestingly, I was given a honda 5 sp and a brand new torsen diff to install. I will work straight thru until I'm done just to know how long it takes, and I'm not a fast mechanic at all.

 

My experience with lsd and jwt clutch combo didnt go well. Its been installed, but I think the dealer did it wrong. I had the maxima lsd installed on my 5 speed 3.5 along with jwt lightweight Flywheel and clutch kit.

When i got it back it didn't shift easily into 1st and reverse, almost as if the gears were slightly misaligned.

Anyway fought the dealership who offered nothing other than telling me to go back to stock and expected me to pay...

Now im faced with the issue of diagnosing and having to find a shop that will actually do the work after somebody else did the install.

ANybody know any transmission shops in mass that might do so? Im desperate..

 

Contact Kevin Goods. I think his name is KRZ350 or something. Tell him them Austen ya.