Hey all,

I have a 86’ Iroc Z28 with the 305 V8 5.0

It currently has the Automatic 700R-4, but I would like to possibly switch to the T-5 WC. I understand the automatic could hold more power but I don’t like driving automatics

anyways, I need help in identifying what transmission would actually fit the engine. There’s so many different bits of information to find online but I can’t find a yes or no on this Year and engine

I understand with the T5 WC, the years are different and some don’t bolt to certain engines

i need the guidance in understanding what would fit the 86’ 305, there’s a kit on Hawk but it doesn’t specify what make or model it’s coming from. Would like to figure it out to ask about the stock

 

Any 84-92 camaro or firebird V8 T5 will fit

 

Is that including the World Class T5?

I heard standard T 5’s break easy

 

The WC T5 setup will work with you car, but the WC T5's aren't that much stronger than the regular ones. If you can find a good donor V8 thirdgen with a good T5 in it, then go for it. Hard to find good ones these days though.

A T56 swap from an LT1 4th gen is a better option, but even those are becoming hard to find good ones these days.

You could do the brand new Tremec T56 kit for thirdgens, but that's pretty pricey. Still, the odds of finding a good T5 or T56 that doesn't need a rebuild is pretty slim and once you go down the rebuild road, the cost of the new Tremec isn't too bad.

 

The t5 is not know for strength by any means. But it's not gonna fall apart behind a 305 without some abuse. I had one behind a zz4 for years. It saw plenty of abuse and held up. It was even in the car for a short period w a 450hp engine. If you get a t5 that's in good shape you should be fine if you can be cautiously abusive. Hell, if your in the northeast you can have the one I took out of my car!

 

I’m not looking to rebuild a transmission, I have the budget to get all the things I need but I don’t have the expertise of rebuilding one. I have experience swapping out transmissions and engines in FWD cars but never a rebuild or fabrication.

So I looked up the T-56 TREMEC but it says it needs additional pieces to bolt to a NON LS1.

Although I think it would be the best go, I’ll try looking for a T5 of some sort somewhere since it would bolt right on…

I am north east so any offers I’ll take into consideration

 

An auto to t5 is pretty simple. The parts are available to do the swap for a reasonable price. A t56 swap is more work but not by much. It's much more money but totally worth it in my eyes. You need to decide what your looking for power wise and how your gonna drive. Either way I think you're gonna need some ecm tuning (I think). If you have any questions feel free to ask. I've done both an auto to t5 and then to a magnum t56 in my 82.

 

I’m not a heavy foot but I don’t baby my cars like most gentlemen. So I would need decent structure.

What more work is involved with a T56 than a T5?

 

Putting a t56 will require a new bell housing/clutch/hydros. The parts required depend on what t56 you have. If it's a Ls style like I have you need a conversion bellhousing and the proper release bearing/hydros. You also need a little fab work for the cross member. The lt style t56 will work with off the shelf parts. I needed a custom driveshaft. It sounds like people w LT style swaps don't always need a new drive shaft I hear. Most t56 swaps require more cutting in the floor but you're cutting either way.

the ls t56 require you locating the bellhousing w a dial indicator. I think the LT setups are more forgiving.

your speedo will also be an issue w a t56. It will likely be electronic and require a conversion box or something like that.

the T5 is much more plug and play in general. Other than the pedals, nothing from the t5 conversion will vary over to the t56.

there's more but these are the big items.

 

I'm not suggesting that you rebuild a transmission yourself, but the donors are all 30-40 years old and will likely be pretty worn. Either send the transmission to a transmission shop to go through it before you install it, or install it and take your chances on the used unit. It might be fine, or you might end up pulling it back out to send out for a rebuild.

I got my T56 from a '95 Firebird Formula donor that was crashed. It had 125,000 miles on it. I sent it to Tick Performance before installing it to have them go through it and it wasn't terrible, but it still had a bunch of wear in it and needed a good amount of work. It must have had a hard life, but that's the gamble. By the time I was done with all of the costs associated with the donor, rebuild, clutch/flywheel, hydraulics, it was the same cost as the new Tremec T56 kit.

The Tremec kit is available for NON LS1 applications. Hawks Motorsports has it listed.

 

My new magnum f was $3500. It shifts awesome and has been great. Best part is, it's new! No BS. I hate laying under the car and swapping transmissions! The whole swap was probably 5k. That's w a dual disk clutch that handles 750 hp.

 

https://www.hawksmotorsports.com/82-92-camaro-firebird-new-magnum-t56-6-speed-conversion-kit-small-block-carb-tpi-or-any-sbc-or-bbc/

so this is the NON LS T-56? That seems to be the beef and potatoes of what I would need

 

Yes, that is correct. It's for small block chevy (not an LS), so it will work with your '86 305. The only issue I see is the speedometer. Your '86 Camaro has a mechanical cable driven speedometer and the T56 only has provisions for an electronic speedometer. I believe there are electric to mechanical conversion devices, but I'm not too familiar with them. Perhaps another member here has more info on that.

 

https://speedhut.com/supershops/spee...eed-converter/
I have one of these and it works great with the GPS. It does lag during hard acceleration and doesn't work under 10mph but those issues shouldn't be a problem once I hook it up to the VSS. Over 1000 miles in 2 years my odometer matches the mileage recorded on my Drone x1.

 

That's a really complete setup, it should work great. As far as the speedo, use the posted converter or just do a new gauge cluster w a digital speedo. That's what I did.

 

Because you have nothing manual in your car now, this is your chance to do it all "best" the first time.

The above should be "almost identical to F-body / GTO" fitment other than output splines, and LS1 F bell and spacer.

I would change the following:
Go with a T56 Magnum (non F) This has a rear shifter position near ideal for a T5 car. The "F" / "LS1 T56" has the shifter farther back than ideal in a third gen and it has a spacer moving it further back into the floor brace.

F (with bell and spacer) and non F will both require a shorter driveshaft. But the reg. Magnum is longer and a shorter driveshaft has less potential for vibration issues until a higher rpm.

Go with a crossmember and torque arm that do not attach the TA to the transmission. Stay with a rubber trans. mount for noise / vibration. The potential vibration issues with the torque arm (transmits through the trans. mount and tries to tear apart the trans. mount.) are avoided.

The F-body T56 still has interference issues with the floor brace (minor.)

It sounds like the Magnum F is the best fit, but with all the details, it's not.

Also, go with the 2.97 first gear for the 305. 0.63 sixth.

 

My magnum f fit really well. The shifter was 1 to 1.5 inch's further back than stock t5. I have a 9 in rear so I needed a driveshaft either way. I kind of felt like the magnum f was perfect. Totally not trying to disagree, more just stating my experience. I totally agree w the do it right and loose the stock torque arm mount etc.

 

I've had a non-WC t-5 out of the junkyard behind my 405 hp/tq small block for 2 years now, it does just fine, I don't powershift it.

 

I also have an 86 Z, and I'm also planning a manual swap. I've done the T5 swap before, and I rebuilt the trans myself too. Not too hard. Few tools and an excellent video from Hanlon Motorsports helped get it done! Wouldn't hesitate to do it again. My T5 lasted for years behind a cammed L98 (350) with a 3.27 gear. I'm a fan of not recommending the T5 to people, however in truth, unless you beat on the car, it'll last. Still, if you can afford it, no reason NOT to step up to a 6 speed.

 

How is everything going?