5 speed transmissions

[joebarthlow]

Considering one as I need to rebuild my gear shifting linkage. My "H" is a little sloppy. I may consider rebuilding my current transmission or find a five speed and possible rebuild it. What's a common 5-speed unit to look for? What are typical bits that may need attention? Faults? Anything else to consider with making the transmission swap? Driveline? Differential? Budget? Has someone written a blog on them? I know they are pretty common, but have never been on my radar before.

 

thanks

[tech71]

1 hour ago, joebarthlow said:

I know they are pretty common

Not any more they aren't, they have become scarce, expensive and the odds of actually obtaining a non crap Getrag 245 are against you.

Currently you have 2 practical 5 speed options possible:

Getrag 245 from 80-82 E21 320i

Getrag 240 from 84-85 E30

Both have drawbacks and advantages

Both are have become scarce and expensive.

I have a Getrag 240 in survivor,taken from an 85 E30 318i,

paid $375 for it in 2019.  Unless you are fortunate, I doubt you could find one now for under $800.

No complaints about it.

Even higher $$ for a 245 and you roll the dice in most cases, that its not a box of worn out unavailable parts.

Installation of either is similar but the 245 installation is better supported by vendors selling conversion kits.

The 240 is  shorter that the 245, just a smidge longer that your 4 speed.

I would rebuild the linkage while you begin to search for and research about possible 5 speeds.

Edited November 9, 2022 by tech71

[TobyB]

Honestly, the cheapest way to a 5 speed is to keep your nose to the ground for an E21 or E30 donor.

 

They're usually cheaper than a 245, for sure.

 

Or stuff in a T5.  What's a little cutting, welding, and an adaptor kit?*

 

t

*kidding

[tech71]

19 minutes ago, TobyB said:

Honestly, the cheapest way to a 5 speed is to keep your nose to the ground for an E21 or E30 donor.

 

Also decreases the odds of getting a crap transmission somewhat.

[danco_]

I sold my last G245 for $1800 and while it was a known good working unit, there are no guarantees on as-is parts sales. 

What I would focus on is the seller and the rep they maintain in this community. No one is willing to tarnish their name for a few bucks. Spend time trying to find one from someone you know. You may spend more up front, but you won't have surprises down the line. Spend once, cry once. 

 

 

 

I was speaking with @conkitchen earlier and he mentioned to me he is considering selling both his OD G245 Trans and 3.91LSD as a package deal. I'm not sure of his asking price, but I much prefer to buy from someone with a good reputation in our small community of miscreants. Besides, I think his trans and diff are still in his car now so both parties can confirm whether they are good or not-so-good units. 

 

Just a thought. Good luck. 

Edited November 10, 2022 by danco_

[flagoworld]

I have a 240 that shifts to all gears on the bench and doesn't leak, but I still always think about potential alternatives that can be adapted to M10 and are readily available including parts... Wasn't there a mazda adaptor plate topic a while back? I almost went that route but then found my 5 speed. Purity shmurity... it's not worth much to you as the driver if it either doesn't work or doesn't exist, or is irreparable.

 

Same deal with the LSDs... since I don't have an LSD I have been thinking for a long time about alternatives. It's less about the price of them than it is being able to replace or repair if it brakes. One of these days I want to see if I can find one that can bolt on to the 02 subframe with some kind of adaptor plate and no additional changes to the subframe. Maybe franken-CV-joints can be assembled that would work, from readily available parts. I know there are a number of companies who can do custom driveshafts already. I was even considering what it might take to hack a small ABS pump to apply brake pressure to one wheel if there's too much slippage (Tee pump into the line with a checkvalve, add a hall sensors to each wheel).

['76mintgrün'02]

3 hours ago, joebarthlow said:

Considering one as I need to rebuild my gear shifting linkage. My "H" is a little sloppy. I may consider rebuilding my current transmission

 

What's the matter with your transmission, aside from the sloppy shift linkage?

[bergie33]

2 hours ago, tech71 said:

Also decreases the odds of getting a crap transmission somewhat.

Especially since you can test drive the transmission before buying it. 

[SydneyTii]

The first question I would ask myself is why do I want one, yes they are a legitimate upgrade in some sense for our cars, but I rarely use my 5th gear these days as I don’t freeway drive it that often, when I do it’s great but then so is a good 4 speed. When compared to a modern car some feel the 5th is a good idea but that’s a slippery slope. To be honest given the ridiculous prices and hard to come by parts, I’d seriously consider whether it’s worth it.

If mine ever failed I will swap back to a 4 speed without hesitation as I mostly go out for drives around the twisties and down to the beach. In fact given Ryan’s result selling I may do it anyway😜 a nicely rebuilt 4 speed is starting to sound appealing🙄

[flagoworld]

4 minutes ago, SydneyTii said:

The first question I would ask myself is why do I want one, yes they are a legitimate upgrade in some sense for our cars, but I rarely use my 5th gear these days as I don’t freeway drive it that often, when I do it’s great but then so is a good 4 speed. When compared to a modern car some feel the 5th is a good idea but that’s a slippery slope. To be honest given the ridiculous prices and hard to come by parts, I’d seriously consider whether it’s worth it.

If mine ever failed I will swap back to a 4 speed without hesitation as I mostly go out for drives around the twisties and down to the beach. In fact given Ryan’s result selling I may do it anyway😜 a nicely rebuilt 4 speed is starting to sound appealing🙄

 

Disagree. My daily is a 6sp manual and it sure is nice. Especially cruising at such low RPMs on any of the various “highway” speed roads here.

[tech71]

I think the OPs car is a roundie so probably 3.64 : 1  diff. Probably runs down the Hwy at a lower RPM than my 76 with 3.91 : 1

Yeah I love having the OD

[SydneyTii]

1 hour ago, flagoworld said:

Disagree. My daily is a 6sp manual and it sure is nice. Especially cruising at such low RPMs on any of the various “highway” speed roads here.

Yeah I hear you, I’m not disagreeing the virtues of a 5sp OD, but a G245 isn’t a 6 speed, my Golf (rabbit?) is the same a 7 speed I think, but that’s a totally different ball game, it even has aircon and a radio I can hear😜

don’t get me wrong I love my OD but in terms of the parts and prices these days a good 4sp is still a good option.

[joebarthlow]

Good input, everyone.

 

I know these are rare and expensive, so I'm doing some homework before putting time and money into acquiring a 5 speed transmission. I'm fine with my 4 speed and 3.91 LSD. 4th sometimes feel like an extra gear when I go from 75 to 90+mph

 

I drive everywhere, but I want to do some road rallies next year. 

 

 

[Lorin]

A 4 speed with a 3.45 rear end is not a bad “budget” setup. It also (in my opinion) makes first gear much more enjoyable. 

['76mintgrün'02]

"Highway speed roads" are 60 mph here on the Kitsap peninsula.   I'm satisfied with my four speed and 3.9 differential.  To each their own, I suppose. 

 

I took a road trip this summer and spent a bunch of time going 80 mph on I-90 and I got along just fine with four gears.  It's the wind noise that was hard on my ears.  Subtract 10% from the speedometer, but the tachometer is accurate, as far as I know.  I covered 900 miles in 14 hours that day!  (adding 10% to the odometer).  (edit-- tolerable, in part, due to traveling solo)

 

 

 

I'm just wondering why a sloppy shifter needs to lead to a transmission rebuild, or swap, if the one in the car is working fine.

 

 

There are several good threads about tightening up the shifter linkage in the archives. 

 

I added 20 ounces of lead to mine, the last time I had it apart

 

 

 

and added about 3/8" of throw below the ball to shorten-up the shift a little bit.

 

 

That bottom tube was deformed on my car, due to years of sloppy shifting, so I made a new one and used bronze bushings in place of the original plastic ones.  This was one of the most enjoyable repairs I've done on my car.  (Swapping transmissions doesn't sound fun, but maybe I'm just lazy).

 

Tom

Edited November 10, 2022 by '76mintgrün'02
traveling solo