6 Speed vs 5 Speed with Boost and Stock Internals
02-13-2019, 10:22 AM
#1
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6 Speed vs 5 Speed with Boost and Stock Internals
I have an NB1 with a 5 speed and around 77k on it that I will be turbo-ing soon and I am planning to stick with stock internals. A year or two ago, I pickup up a 6 speed out of a wrecked '01 with about 140k on it with the intention of putting it in and changing my diff to 3.9 or 3.6 rear gearing. Im not feeling too keen on spending the extra time and money on the rear end any more, but with boost incoming, I was wondering if there would be any added value to running the 6 speed instead of the 5 speed.
I know the 6 speeds are stronger, but it seems that most people are just fine running 5 speeds with boost. Also, the ~150 rpm increase with the 6 speed on the highway seems pretty negligible to me. Thoughts?
I know the 6 speeds are stronger, but it seems that most people are just fine running 5 speeds with boost. Also, the ~150 rpm increase with the 6 speed on the highway seems pretty negligible to me. Thoughts?
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02-13-2019, 10:34 AM
#3
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The stock rods are good to somewhere between 200 and 250 rwtq, which is enough to kill the 5-speed. If you've got "mechanical empathy" you can probably make the 5-speed live for a while at those power levels, but it won't be forever and the 6-speed is a worthwhile upgrade. Drag race starts will significantly shorten the 5-speed's life.
On the street I like the 3.636 with the 6-speed. Gears 1-5 are fairly close to what you had with a 5-speed on a 4.3, plus there's an extra tall 6th for the freeway. 6-speed with 3.9s is terrible at autocross, you wind up shifting between 2nd and 3rd multiple times per course.
--Ian
On the street I like the 3.636 with the 6-speed. Gears 1-5 are fairly close to what you had with a 5-speed on a 4.3, plus there's an extra tall 6th for the freeway. 6-speed with 3.9s is terrible at autocross, you wind up shifting between 2nd and 3rd multiple times per course.
--Ian
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02-13-2019, 10:42 AM
#4
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The stock rods are good to somewhere between 200 and 250 rwtq, which is enough to kill the 5-speed. If you've got "mechanical empathy" you can probably make the 5-speed live for a while at those power levels, but it won't be forever and the 6-speed is a worthwhile upgrade. Drag race starts will significantly shorten the 5-speed's life.
On the street I like the 3.636 with the 6-speed. Gears 1-5 are fairly close to what you had with a 5-speed on a 4.3, plus there's an extra tall 6th for the freeway. 6-speed with 3.9s is terrible at autocross, you wind up shifting between 2nd and 3rd multiple times per course.
--Ian
On the street I like the 3.636 with the 6-speed. Gears 1-5 are fairly close to what you had with a 5-speed on a 4.3, plus there's an extra tall 6th for the freeway. 6-speed with 3.9s is terrible at autocross, you wind up shifting between 2nd and 3rd multiple times per course.
--Ian
Thanks for the quick feedback!
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02-13-2019, 11:03 AM
#6
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Im getting ready to change the clutch here pretty soon, thats why I was thinking about swapping them now. The less I have to wrestle with transmissions the better, although I don't know when I would get to the rear gearing. Tough decision....
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