I have been looking around at 95-97 Trans Am/Formula's I really want a 6speed but all the ones i find are Way high mile'age AND/or it seems beat to ****. I have Search'd aroud abit... What Parts and What kind of Cost would i be lookin at if i was to buy an Auto and Swap a 6speed into her? Also how long would this take in a Trany Shop with a lift, with like 2-3 guys workin on it?
Is there any years of 6speeds to look for or stay away from, when lookin for a trany to swap in?

 

i did the swap myself.....so of the work is easy....some of it will make you have second thought about doing it....I bought my t56 from a guy in IN who strenth rebuilds them for 1800 plus shipping. You want to get a decent clutch so add another 3-500 slp make a nice kit that includes the flywheel too.. plus youll need some other accessories you can get from a salvage yard like billy graham..plus you can goto salvo or autozone and get the slave and master cylinder new for about 200....Honestly if you think you are up for the challenge plan on not having the car working for a few days and a buddy to help you lift the sucker cuz the jack doesnt exactly help since there is no flat trans pan...

 

If you're serious about the swap I can sell you everything. Either a stock t56 and a slightly used centerforce clutch from my car (stock '97 z28 with 36,000 miles). Or a rebuilt t56 with carbon fiber synchros etc. with only 13 miles on it out of a friend's '93 TA. This also includes a centerforce clutch with only 13 miles on it. He's switching to an auto so you guys can probably work something out on a trade+cash deal and you can get everything including two shifters....stock(for break in) and a short throw.
Let me know. We have both cars apart right now and are discussing what's going back into each car.

 

I have done it, and boy would a lift have made it easier. Its not impossible without it though. I would expect from beginning to end, never doing it before, with a lift and 2 guys, you could have it done in 4 - 6 hours with no goofing off. I only say that long because you have to punch the hole in the firewall and cut the hole in the trans tunnel. I think I could do it in about 2 hours with another guy working fast. Its basically like doing a TC swap, but then doing a clutch install. Does that make sense? Let me know if you have any questions, I'll be glad to help.

Also, dont spend 200 on the hydraulics. I got them from DAL for like 120 with overnight shipping. Make sure you get a good flywheel or you might need to shim it if its been turned too many times. Try and get all the bolts for the swap with the trans, cause they can be pricey if you get them from the dealer.

 

Man I wish you posted in the for sale section, I just ordered a conversion kit yesterday. I will have a complete kit to swap to a 4l60e for sale once I do the conversion, but it probably wont be for a few weeks and my tranny is starting to slip on me. (hit the limiter at the top of first 4 times)

 

Kool thanks for the fast replys, i am puting together a rough list of parts and Prices. befor i talk it over again with My Trany Guy, friend of the family for 35+years once i get a list of parts i'll post them to see if any one knows of better parts or better prices. Whats a fair price on a used Trany? thanks for da Replys.

2nd_chances: that sounds like a killer idea but i dont even have a car yet i am just lookin into it to see if i should hold out for a 6speed car with options i want or buy an Auto etc... the old Money vs. Time issues

 

http://www.afrashteh.com/tranny_pics/T56.htm

 

I did the swap with some buddies. The toughest part was the pedal assembly IMO. Luckily we had a template so we'd know where to drill for the hydraulics.

As for everyone suggesting a new clutch, its not necessary. I got my T56 out of a wrecked 95 Formula with ~90k miles on it and it still had the original clutch. Ive put around 10k miles on the trans and the stock clutch is still holding up just fine. Purchasing all the nexessary parts and getting everything in there should be your main concern. If the clutch still has some beef on it, use it and save some money until you find more to drop.

 

I've done 2 of them and Unless you have every single part its a 2 day job by yourself. The key is to have every single little piece because trips to the parts store kills a lot of time

The pedals are the easiest part to me. Once you have the steering column out you put the new pedals in and it shows you exactly where to cut with your hole saw.
I also used I believe a 1 5/8 hole saw which is just a hair larger than what that write up says to use and and the cylinder goes right in. You can also clean out the holes that the U bolt go thru in your master clyinder to make putting that U bolt thru the fire wall 10x easier.

 

2nd chances, where are you located at? I may be interested in a swap, and I have a FLP stage 4 to trade.....

 

I am in the Detroit area

 

You took out the steering coumn? I guess that will make the pedals a bit easier, but its not necessary. It took me about an hour to do the pedals squirming them around the column, but then there's only about 6 bolts to worry about. Its not too bad.