ok, my wife was helping me colorsand the car today, and we had a little conversation that went something like this...


Her: So when do I get mine?

Me: your what?

My sporty car that I drive for fun

what kind do you want?

I love this one, how about one like this?

What about a firebird?

either that or a camaro

5 speed?

of course

v8?

no, I like the v6.. i want it just like this one, but MINE

ok, sounds good, we can do that


so there is it, after searching and lucking into a local v6 with a 5 speed, and month later I have to find ANOTHER ONE...I may actually get her a 4th gen, but a 3rd gen would be cool too, since I'm learning how to do all these tricks and fixes on them

How many of you have a 6 bangers with the manual tranny? I know it's a base model, it seems like for every 1 manny I see, I see 20 automatics

 

My 91 is a v6/5 speed. Found out the original color was Silver with a silver interior. Not sure how rare that combo is but its not going to keep me from painting it white.

My build thread for it is in my sig.

 

I have 2 89 V-6 Firebirds, I'd say they are rather common...

 

are they both 5 speeds?

 

Id think they're pretty common they had one for sale here locally for 600 not too long ago and I see them in junk yards whenever I go. You could always just get an auto and swap the tranny out for a 5 speed I might do that with mine once its all painted and finished up.

 

Sorry, yes, they are both 5-speeds. Knew I left something out of that post.

Both my 90 V-6s are Autos, along with the 86 IROC and the 91 GTA. The rest are manuals. I vastly prefer the manual over AT.

 

that's cool that you have two of them. they seem rare to me. For example, there are NONE on ebay right now, none for sale here, none 88-92 on autotrader, and I can't find any on craigslist in the entrire state of texas

I can find enough automatics to fill the dallas cowboy stadium parking lot though

 

my 92 is a v6 and a 5 speed i dont see alot of camaro here in tallahassee i see alot of 305 and ive seen 2 v6 in pick in pull put there go and come every week . iam going around j yards tomorrow in hope to find a v6 !

 

my 86 is a 2.8 liter 5 speed. haha.

 

There was an 84 in the yard a couple years ago that was a V6/T5. Had a junk trans, though (I would know as I bought it... the trans was in good shape until the guy who owned the yard pulled it and broke the housing ). However, there was also 2-3 more that were automatic, and the 91 I pull parts from is automatic. Sheesh. I hated that thing, so it's currently sitting on the floor of my garage under my work bench (where it belongs as far as I'm concerned), and I'm slamming gears now. It's not that hard to do the swap if you can find a car to take measurements from for the shifter hole. Took me about 19 hours after I had all of the parts. Of course, most of that was putting the T5 in for the first time and trying to line up the input shaft with almost NO clearance .

:edit: BTW, if you find you need to swap a trans to get her a 5-speed, and you're looking for a particular gear ratio, the alternate years had the same ratio, starting with 1984 having the taller 5th gear (but shorter 1st), and this switches to a taller 1st gear with a shorter 5th for 85, alternating back and forth until 1992. The 85+ had the more desireable speedo cable adaptor with the removable gear (that you will need for an electronic speedo if you have one).

 

Just to have some fun

I have:

'94 3.4 L/5-speed Firebird (wife's car)
1989 heavily modified 2.8L/5-speed Firebird (DD)
and two '88 5L/5-speed GTAs

So, rare? Not at present..............


Although the wreckers only seem to have automatics.

I love the 5-speed and with the V6 it doesn't require an appointment with an orthopedic surgeon to discuss knee surgery/replacement from the V8/5-speed combo from driving in rush-hour traffic!!!

 

I used to have one

Still do... sorta-ish lol. They seemed reasonably common when I was in the market for my first third gen

 

They are common, but don't expect to find them everywhere on a whim because they're usually the ones people don't want to sell.

It's easier to swap a V8 in than it is to go from auto to stick, so most car guys will keep a stick car if they're partial to the car at all. I know that's why I bought a V6 actually. I couldn't find any V8's with a stick so I had to make a choice... Stick now with a V6, or auto now with a V8. Since I never liked 305's much anyways I went with a stick.

 

Your first sentence is debateable

Your story is what happened to me too though, I wanted a V8 with a manual but couldn't find any around me, so I bought a V6 with a manual and swapped the 350 in.

 

Mine was originally a V6/T5 combo. Same as above, it was easier to find a V6 with a stick and swap to a V8 than it was for me to find a V8/auto and swap to a stick. Friend of mine's first Camaro was an 89 V6/T5, but that was back in 97. Last summer I saw about 30-35 Camaros and Firebirds in the various junkyards I visited. Only 1 had a T5, although it was a V6. I was gonna grab the T5 out of it, but they were closing. Next time I went back like a week later it was gone

 

thats awesome. your a lucky man. I still want a V6 5spd car but with a possible job loss again its not gonna happen anytime soon

 

that actually makes a lot of sense. it explains why I can't find one

 

Like Primetime said, this is debatable. I don't see how swapping a V8 is easier than swapping stick for auto. For a V8, you have to not only swap the engine and transmission, but also the wiring harness, front springs (and possibly the rears), and other parts. For a manual, you need the bellhousing, pedal set, clutch assembly, torque arm insulator, and the trans. Drop the old trans out, cut the holes for the clutch cylinder and the shifter, swap pedal sets (remove the brake booster for this), install the clutch parts, install the trans. Done. Almost no rewiring involved (except the reverse light switch), don't have to replace half the front end wiring and the ECM, or the front springs, and more...

 

The V6 and T5 were the base engine and transmission in our cars. For people who ordered their F-bodies with few to no options (like my '89 RS) it is not rare at all. Strangely, alot of people can't drive a stick and thus sprang for the auto tranny option which is why they are so common.

 

It just seems that only about 10% (or less) of third gens are 5 speeds, and 10% of those are v6's. At least on the cars I've seen for sale

 

On many f-bodies auto tranny was the only option ordered.

 

Don't get too carried away... 5spd thirdgens in general are in the minority. About 20% of total production were 5spds. But 6cyl 5spd thirdgens are a thousand times more common then V8 5spds. It's hard to consider the V6 more rare then the V8 since the V6 was produced in much higher numbers. For years the only 5spd thirdgens I saw were sixers. Occasionally I'd come across a carcass that had been a V8 5spd, but they were always missing the transmission and most of the related hardware.

Just keep looking. Use www.searchtempest.com and set the range to as far as you feel like driving, and start watching.

 

For that link. I hate searching Craigslist city by city. I was about to go to bed, now I think I'm gonna be up a bit longer.

 

maybe there's not that mamy surviving ones left, they all have been converted to a V8, or parted out

i'm serious, I had to search a month for the one that I bought, and that was the last one I found