what all is needed to put t56 in 3rd gen and is it worth it

 

Is it worth it?? H*ll yeah, its worth it!!!

What you need depends upon your car already being a manual or an auto. If you had an auto, you'd need a diff console for the shifter and you'd obviously need a clutch pedal, clutch master, slave and a different speedo gear. I probably forgot a few things too. Its kind of a pain to do, but worth it.

I plan on putting a T56 in my '87 soon. Currently a T5 car, so it'll be a lot better than doing an automatic car.

 

It's not as bad as I thought it'd be and definitely worth it. We put a 93 T56 in an IROC last year. Took a few hours because we had some problems w/ the clutch, but otherwise, it wasn't too difficult.

Made the car much more fun to drive.

 

I dropped a T-56 in my '91 RS about a year and a half ago....and I absolutely love it. The install was very straightforward, the only non-bolt-ins being the hole I had to cut in the floorpan for the shifter and the holes I had to punch in the firewall for the clutch master cylinder. Those were just 'cuz I was converting from automatic though, with a T-5 car it would have been much easier. Even so, it was a weekend swap.

You'll need a custom crossmember (go to http://www.spohn.net) and a signal converter for your speedo but other than that just get everything associated with the tranny from the donor car: tranny (LT1 version ONLY), bellhousing, flywheel, clutch, shifter, clutch hydros, and the pedal assembly if you're changing from automatic. A 3rd gen pedal assembly will also work if it's from a car with a hydraulic clutch, and of course you'll want a 3rd gen manual shifter plate. All together the swap will probably run you around $2k in parts, and it's WELL worth the cost.

 

Whether it is worth it depends on what you plan to do with it. I don't know about F bodies but a friend of mine went to the T5 on his Mustang but did not go to the T56 because it was much more costly. Not sure how it is in a Fbody. If the T5 is cheaper, I would go that route unless you do a lot of interstate driving. Bottom line is what do you plan to make this car do? What is your max amount to spend and what do you think this will get you?

 

if your car is an 87 then you have a cable driven speedo. The convertor box mentioned earlier will not work for you. I am not sure what needs to be done to get the speedo to work but i think it has something to do with modifing the tailshaft. try going to ww.jagsthatrun.com for more info

 

In an A4, the only speedo adjustment is changing the drive and driven speedo gears. I can't see that there would be much more unless he has something like a 4.10 rear end gear.

 

my buddy with an 87 iroc is doing it and it is gonna be killer, i would say do it if you have the money

 

Wouldn't it be easier to run the wires to convert your cable driven speedo to a electric one? Then you can buy an electric speedo

 

Here ya go
http://www.skulte.com/T56.html

 

The T-56 uses an electronic speedo sender...I thought they used electronic speedo's in '87, hence the signal converter. I guess they didn't go to elec speedo's till later though....

Well you can either get the modified tailshaft from JTR (last I heard it was like $600) or buy a gauge cluster with an electronic speedo and a signal converter and swap over to that. Or you could get an aftermarket electronic speedo (which can be calibrated for various pulse rates and gearings independently). Any way you go it's pretty in-depth stuff.


When did they change from cable to electronic speedo's???