SmallTires

iTrader: (4)

After several hours of reading different schools of thought through the glorious search function I will plead my case and see what y'all think. Well I am knocking at the door of a new motor within the next few weeks. And expected horsepower and torque are going to be well out of stock compared to what my old l69 was dropping on the pavement. In fact the thing will likely make mid to upper 300ft/lbs and horse power will be similar. My simple question is there anyway to make a NWC tranny better? If not, then I guess I shall go get a blown WC and rework it. Though even then I am not sure the work that is entailed in that process. I know astro performance and g force make kits, but which is better? I am not a drag racer by any means, however I just want a car I can punch it with on street tires every now and then and not be worried about being left on the side of the road getting left behind by my buddies. When taken apart the trans shifted PERFECTLY so I figure if I baby it I can keep it going for awhile. The car has been down a year and the last thing I want to deal with is getting it back on the road and then it being out of commission again. Any help/advice would cool. As a side note, I DO NOT want to do a T56 or TKO trans because I want to keep the car as stock as possible. Which in retro spect would have meant keeping the 305 and not modding it.

Sonix

iTrader: (1)

Well, you lost the stock part when you ditched the 305, so why not embrace the aftermarket, and grab yourself a TKO?
Might as well run the NWC T5 for now. You don't have slicks or anything, it should last a while. Try not to bag on it too badly, like giant clutch drops, or speed shifting.
Meanwhile, find yourself a donor tranny. WC T5, T56, whatever floats your boat.

Pat Hall

iTrader: (31)

If you decide to redo a WC unit with better gears down the road, definitely go with Astro Performance. If you do a search on G-Force here on the message boards, you won't like what other people have had to say about their "customer service", or lack thereof. I agree with Sonix. If you don't bag too hard on your existing NWC T-5, it should live until you get around to doing up a nice WC unit.

CrazyHawaiian

Well from what I understand the weak link of the T5 is the case. So if you do decide to do a rebuilt, thats the first upgraded part I would do. Stronger case that will not flex. Really wish I had know that before dropping the $$ on a good gearset.

JamesC

iTrader: (5)

My non-WC does fine behind my 350/330--but I never launch hard or power shift. After better than a year, there are no signs of problems, and, frankly, I don't expect any.

JamesC

89_ho_rs

i just lost 5th gear in my nwc t-5. going 50mph in 5th gear. just does not work. all other gears work fine just no 5th.

Pat Hall

iTrader: (31)

There's a snap ring that holds 5th gear on the end of the shaft. It's quite common for the snap ring to pop off. You could check and see if that's what happened to yours. Unfortunately, you have to pull the trans out to remove the tailshaft housing and gain access to 5th.

89_ho_rs

thanks for the info. the guy i got the trans from told me that he had it rebuilt like 200 miles ago.

84Maroonta

I am on my third WC t-5. I drive it like I stole it though. If you like to drive hard I would go t56. thats my next step

SmallTires

iTrader: (4)

Well the local wreckers got in an 89 RS with a 305 and a t-5 will this likely be a WC t-5? I am going to try and pull it tomorrow and use it as a buildable core. Is there anyway to tell a NWC for a WC?

JamesC

iTrader: (5)

If it's an 89, it's a WC. I recall photos of the two a while back (or at least a description). You might consider a search.

JamesC

Pat Hall

iTrader: (31)

Yeah like James said, if you do a search, there's several message threads on here with photos on how to tell the two apart. The best way to tell is by looking at the countershaft bearing cup on the front of the trans. There's a marked difference between the two types. You can also go to 5speeds.com and go to their T5 page. They have a chart that identifies each T5 according to the number on the trans tag. If you can get the numbers off the one in the junkyard, you can type them in on that site and identify exactly which trans it is.

SmallTires

iTrader: (4)

Went this morning and pulled the trans, and took the numbers off of it. I stashed it for now. It ended up being a WC by tag identification from 5speeds.com. Well I guess I got my builder core now. Now I only need to figure out how to build it...

89_ho_rs

are all of the t-5's mostly the same. i know a v6 camaro t-5 is different than a v8. but what about s-10 t-5's? just wondering.

Pat Hall

iTrader: (31)

The S10 T5's are even more different than the V6 ones. Different shifter location, gear ratios, splines, etc.

89_ho_rs

ok thanks .... sorry to steal a thread.