Which is better choice? Aftermarket 5 speed or 6 speed?

I currently have 350/auto combo. Plan to make 350-400hp. Its just a cruiser with some "occasional" spirited driving in the city. I want to switch to a manual trans just because I like it more.

I used to own a 2000TA with 6 speed. I rarely got into sixth gear and it was only cruising on the highway at 70+mph.

Any thoughts on aftermarket 5 or 6 speeds with great grear ratio's (I really dont know what the optimum gear ratios would be for a cruiser/speedy city driver).


Any thoughts on going with 5 speed vs 6 speed?

Thanks

 

Im going to just tell you right off that if i had to do it all over again i would have just thrown a t56 (6 speed) in my car instead of the tremec tko 5 speed thats in it. Its been nothing but headaches. There is more to leak on the tko and ive had leaks, its a harder swap in these cars with more to modify or expensive parts to buy. With all that said however, its a very strong trans that can handle a ton of punishment. Its notchy shift takes some getting used to but its not terrible. If your planning on making the power you say then the stock t5 will not do and the only real manual options are the tko or the t56. Just go t56 and dont look back.

 

i will agree with all of this. The I have a tko600 as well, its a great trans, strong as hell and has a good gear selection. It need some more indepth fabrication to fit it properly in the car, but it will at that point fit with the stock crossmember, which allows a lot more ground clearance and strength than the typical t56 crossmembers will offer.

The t56 is a bit larger and heavier, but it still fits better and can be swapped for less money since you can get used ones from a lt1 year 4th gen for reasonable money where-as you will be hard pressed to find a used tko for anything resembling cheap.

 

Thats the one thing i didnt even get into was the price difference. I bought mine used but in the end it needed to be rebuilt and the amount of parts i bought to make it fit ended up adding up to what a new one would have cost. Basically if someone is selling it used for reasonable money then there might be something wrong with it since it was such an expensive investment for them when new, where as with a t56....people part those cars out all the time so you are more likely to get a good one there.

 

Swapping to a steeper rear gear (3.73, 3.90, 4.10, 4.56) will make 6th much more usable. I'm about to throw a set of 4.10's in my DD 97 Formula with a T56. I've heard the swap makes it a lot more fun to drive as well.