The shop called and said it would cost 2-2.5k to rebuild/new one. I cant do that. I drive my car fairly esy, and this auto transmission lasted only 60k miles this time around (143k on my car). I love my Maxima but I cant see getting a new transmission in it for that price.

I'm trying to think of ways to save it. If I found a manual transmission (by itself, not car), I was thinking I could bring it to a shop and they could maybe swap it (I'm not techincally savvy enough or have the tools) but I'm not sure if it is possible and the search seems to be disabled.

Suggestions? Go for a new max? I'd really like a manual this time around (I've wanted one for years now), but how do their transmissions hold up in comparison to the auto's? Thank you for any help.

 

do you have a tranny cooler?

5spds dont really have any troubles with the tranny, some trannys are starting to show their age (not as smooth with shifting, maybe hard to get in gear sometimes/worn syncros).

Dont really seem to have to many problems being driven hard.

 

The auto to manual swap is definitely possible and has been done by at least a couple members here. They did it themselves, though, so not sure how feasable it is cost wise to have someone else do it. Also, that rebuild price is pretty high. You should be able to get a good job done for $1200-$1500, but that is still a lot of money.

 

I would get some more estimates for a transmission rebuild.

The MT swap is definitely possible, but the pain in doing the swap is all the litle details. This is where it takes time and where the shop would charge you $$$.

When I say little things, I mean things like clutch pedal assy, clutch master cyl, hydraulic lines, shift linkage, shift lever, cruise control cancel switch for the clutch, etc....

The best way to do this kind of swap is if you have the donor car or the front clip of the donor car. That way, all the little pieces are there.

Generally speaking, you're always better off with a manual transmission in terms of longevity.

 

yea that price is a bit high - i had my tranny in my trans am tricked out for full blown street strip for 1900 and that included a new torque converter (higher stall)

 

http://www.importperformancetrans.com
Call (973) 827 9946 and speak to Brad. Tell him Sola sent you.


On a related note, does anyone in NJ by any chance have a core for a 5spd ve tranny with lsd?

Let me know

 

VE.. and 5spd swap...

dropping a VE doesnt seem hard at all..? as long as the harness matches up.. and u have the ECu's

.. does the harness match?

 

you dont need the damn ECU.

The only reason why you would need the ecu is if you swapped out the intake manifold aswell and wanted to have the VI work. You could also use an RPM switch, but the VI does activate based on load aswell so you might not see 100% of the gains.

You do need the ECU if you go 5spd to auto.

I wish the durangos tranny was weak (stupid tough 46re), I really want to put in larger sun gears. Maybe I'll put a full manual reverse valve body in the mustang

 

don't *** with the trans on the durango.
do the axles not the trans

 

Thanks for the replies everyone. As I said I'm not very technically inclined but I do love my Maxima and hope to save it.

I called the shop and they said if I found a donor car, they could do it for me, but that it would still be almost as expensive as a new transmission anyway because of the hours they would put in swapping it. =/ A friend works at a junkyard though, maybe he'd be willing to help me out and I could do it - I know I've seen walkthroughs on this site somewhere.

If all else fails, I will attempt to get a 92-94 manual Maxima, it just wont be the same as mine though Spent so much time with her.

 

as an alternative, you could have them rebuild your auto to be really tough...thats what they do best....and you get to keep your auto as well as save yourself the hassle of finding a donor or forking out all that dough.

 

I'd check out how cheap a 5 speed car is used. I previously posted how there was a nice 120K 92 SE gold, cloth, airbag that went for ~2500 on Ebay. If you could get the car you really want for that price, I'd go for that. The resale for a Maxima with a dead tranny probably sucks, but maybe you could get $500. Or at least part it, and sell to ORG members? Still, a used VE 5 speed, might need a clutch, so budget that in. Personally, I think 2500 is too much for a rebuild, especially if it is 60K rebuild.

 

i plan to do i VE and 5spd swap some time before summer.. and i plan to spend 1800 for everything

 

ve motor swap? or a ve tranny swap? if it's the former, good luck. 1800 should be more than adequate.

 

swaping.. both, but i still cant find out if the VE mounts and the VG mounts will bolt up in the same places

Mrgone- about the ECu post.. u werent taking about my VE engine and tranny swap right?

 

hmm...correct me if i'm wrong but i think you will find the vg to ve swap a teeny weeny bit difficult...but anything's possible with enough loot.

 

http://www.maximumtuning.net/

they do auto to manual tranny swap for the later gen maximas. you may give them a call and see if they'd like to try it on a third gen and give you a price estimate.

 

Losing hope here. I have to go to work and college after Christmas break is over, in about a week and a half. So I'm on a pretty tight time limit here. I cant do a swap myself, all shops I've tried have made it pretty clear that I would at least need a donor car and it would still be costly - but again, I dont have time to look for a donor car.

Today I bought a Trading Post and am going to a car auction next week (you can sometimes get great deals there). I may be leaving the maxima family soon, and I am really sad.

 

well I am quite sad to say that I am no longer a proud owner of a maxima, and even sadder that I never had the chance to get to know so many friendly people in this fine community.

I ended up going to a car auction and got a 97 Hyundai Tiburon FX for only 2000 bucks (no one was bidding at the auction, got lucky), in great condition. Funny that this car cost the same as it would have to get a new transmission, huh?

Spent so much time making my Maxima perfect, ah well.

/waves goodbye

 

they make turbo kits for those i believe. some company also did a dual engine, awd setup in one of those. that sucker was insanely fast, 10.96 seconds in the 1/4 with street tires.

http://shop.hyundaiperformance.com/index.php

 

please tell me the tiboran is a stick

 

yeah i saw that tiburon in the Supercar Street Challenge. It won!! Insane car.

 

very insane.

i'm basing my next maxima project off of it...

 

Gotta go with the replace the car mentality.

I got my 92 SE 5spd w/VLSD on ebay for under $1500 and drove it home from MA to TN. In the first 3 months I had to replace the RR caliper for $120, the power steering pump $57 and the windsheild wiper arm and socket for $27. Those were the mandatory things. I also replaced 3 window regulators (9 months later the 4th was replaced).

I've done alot of other things, but those were optional (and FUN).

Whatever you do, instead of having someone else do the work buy the FSM and spend the money on tools rather then labor.

 

thats the way to do it

if i ever wreck my max im doing the same and i recomend it to all my mechanicaly savy friends but if you are to busy, scared, stupid or lazy to pickup a wrench drive a new car