T56 transmission??

[Rick D]

I wanted to get some of your thoughts on putting a 94-97 T56 behind a 396 big block Chevy? I know their rated at 400 ft lbs? My BB has around 450 crank HP and I won't be racing the car just a nice street car and spirited driving? Or would it be better to get the LS T56?? But that adds more cost to the project :bang:

[camcojb]

I wanted to get some of your thoughts on putting a 94-97 T56 behind a 396 big block Chevy? I know their rated at 400 ft lbs? My BB has around 450 crank HP and I won't be racing the car just a nice street car and spirited driving? Or would it be better to get the LS T56?? But that adds more cost to the project :bang:
We had an LT1 T56 behind much more power than that, and it worked fine. We weren't running slicks or doing 4500 rpm launches. He did eventually send it in for upgrades, but that was during a freshening of the car and for peace of mind, the trans was still working perfectly.

[Rick D]

We had an LT1 T56 behind much more power than that, and it worked fine. We weren't running slicks or doing 4500 rpm launches. He did eventually send it in for upgrades, but that was during a freshening of the car and for peace of mind, the trans was still working perfectly.

Ok Jody, anything special that needs to be done?? Or will it work with the right clutch setup? Trying to see if I can switch over to a stick easily??

[WSSix]

Check with Quicktime and McLeod. I believe they both offer bell housings that will allow you to adapt an LT1 T56 to a BBC. Heck, you may not even need to swap bell housings. I have very little experience with a BBC.

Usually, people find mounting the hydraulic clutch to be the most difficult part of the swap. Obviously, you may have tunnel clearance issues as well but that's dependent on the car itself.

As for can the transmission handle the torque, yes. Obviously it depends on how you drive the car. If you start beating on it and launching hard, it may not hold up over the long run. As Jody mentioned, there are plenty of upgrades to make them even stronger. Check with Rockland and Liberty on upgrades. I'm sure there are others too. I'd have no problems putting the T56 behind a BBC. For reference, I intend to be putting down well over 400ft lbs to the wheels on my TA when "done" and I'll have my T56 behind it the whole time.

[DETON8R]

Check out these links, they give a pretty good comparison of T56 transmissions and power applications. Most guidance I've heard says to stay away from the 93, the 94-97 is way better.
http://www.5speedtransmissions.com/6_speed.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borg-Warner_T-56_transmission
http://www.ttcautomotive.com/English/products/t-56.asp

Looks like you started with a good choice, do you know for sure it will work with your existing bell housing/clutch set up? Or will you be replacing that also? Gonna stick with mechanical or go hydraulic for the clutch?

You might need to figure out what type of clutch and bell housing you will be using before you get it repaired, as that might impact your input shaft choice if it needs to be replaced.

I'd suggest taking it to a good shop that specializes in T56 rebuilds and having it torn down and checked. There are a few parts that need to be beefed up, and that transmission will take more abuse than the 450 ft/lb of torque from your Big Block with just a few parts swapped out.

I had some of the same questions about reliability and strength behind a modified engine. When I bought my donor 1999 Camaro with an LS1 and T56, I asked around at several places that did 6-speed swaps and LS engine swaps into muscle cars and was told that I needed to go to one shop in the area if I was going to get that T56 transmission rebuilt. I got the same recommendation for one shop from 5 different sources. I was told that there were lots of transmission shops that could work on any type of transmission, but if I was going to subject that T56 to any abuse I needed to go to one particular shop for internal repairs or upgrades.

I did take it to that shop and I'm glad I did take it to that shop and had it torn down and rebuilt. The owner of the donor vehicle had told me that the transmission and clutch had been rebuilt/replaced 20,000 miles before the car was totaled. When I separated teh engine and transmission I noticed the input shaft had some pitting and heat color, so I took it in to have it checked out. One set of synchros had been replaced the others were original, and gone. The other shop did replace some of the parts, but not with the parts I would have needed for a modified engine. And the input shaft and bearings needed to be replaced because the pilot shaft bearing has went out and chewed up the input shaft, and instead of replacing it, the other shop dressed it up and reused when it should have been replaced.

I don't have any experience with any of the sponsors to this site, I'm pretty sure one or more vendors here can do the same, you just might need to do some shipping if you go that route.

[Sieg]

I know money is always an issue.......with that said, a new T56 Magnum with a the close gear ratio set will make you forget about the money and it's rated to 700 ft. lbs.

By the time you find a used trans and have it freshened and upgraded you're probably money ahead without any internal "surprises." :rules:

[FETorino]

Rick. Since your parts shopping. The guy I bought my T56 from had a new RXT clutch set up for a good price.

[Rick D]

Check out these links, they give a pretty good comparison of T56 transmissions and power applications. Most guidance I've heard says to stay away from the 93, the 94-97 is way better.
http://www.5speedtransmissions.com/6_speed.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borg-Warner_T-56_transmission
http://www.ttcautomotive.com/English/products/t-56.asp

Looks like you started with a good choice, do you know for sure it will work with your existing bell housing/clutch set up? Or will you be replacing that also? Gonna stick with mechanical or go hydraulic for the clutch?

You might need to figure out what type of clutch and bell housing you will be using before you get it repaired, as that might impact your input shaft choice if it needs to be replaced.

I'd suggest taking it to a good shop that specializes in T56 rebuilds and having it torn down and checked. There are a few parts that need to be beefed up, and that transmission will take more abuse than the 450 ft/lb of torque from your Big Block with just a few parts swapped out.

I had some of the same questions about reliability and strength behind a modified engine. When I bought my donor 1999 Camaro with an LS1 and T56, I asked around at several places that did 6-speed swaps and LS engine swaps into muscle cars and was told that I needed to go to one shop in the area if I was going to get that T56 transmission rebuilt. I got the same recommendation for one shop from 5 different sources. I was told that there were lots of transmission shops that could work on any type of transmission, but if I was going to subject that T56 to any abuse I needed to go to one particular shop for internal repairs or upgrades.

I did take it to that shop and I'm glad I did take it to that shop and had it torn down and rebuilt. The owner of the donor vehicle had told me that the transmission and clutch had been rebuilt/replaced 20,000 miles before the car was totaled. When I separated teh engine and transmission I noticed the input shaft had some pitting and heat color, so I took it in to have it checked out. One set of synchros had been replaced the others were original, and gone. The other shop did replace some of the parts, but not with the parts I would have needed for a modified engine. And the input shaft and bearings needed to be replaced because the pilot shaft bearing has went out and chewed up the input shaft, and instead of replacing it, the other shop dressed it up and reused when it should have been replaced.

I don't have any experience with any of the sponsors to this site, I'm pretty sure one or more vendors here can do the same, you just might need to do some shipping if you go that route.

Thanks for the links :welcome3: good info also!

I know money is always an issue.......with that said, a new T56 Magnum with a the close gear ratio set will make you forget about the money and it's rated to 700 ft. lbs.

By the time you find a used trans and have it freshened and upgraded you're probably money ahead without any internal "surprises." :rules:

Yeah Sieg I hear you loud and clear! I'm trying to see where my plans for the car go. I've got a schedule to keep on this one! The wifey even had me put it in writing (seriously I had to Sign on the line) :lmao:

She doesn't want to see another car completely striped down the garage and then I lose interest in it. :bitchslap: She knows me very well 22 years together 15 married as of last Thursday!
Rick. Since your parts shopping. The guy I bought my T56 from had a new RXT clutch set up for a good price.

More like parts planning, I still need to get it home and then base my plan on what I feel I need to do first. Rob what is a good price for that RXT clutch??