firebat45 wrote:
Going the Kennedy adapter route can be very expensive if you plan on having decent horsepower. It lets you use the motor with a longitudinal transaxle, which also ends up being much longer than a standard FWD setup. There's a ton of demand for the trannies that bolt up to those adapters, for kit cars and sand rails, so prices are not friendly.
A standard VW bus tranny is $1000+, and isn't rated to deal with a lot of power. The higher end trannies (Mendeola, G50, etc) can quickly get into the $5000+ range.
That really kills the idea of frugality for sure; better stick with the factory setup. Hmm.. It's really a shame so few options with high stock N/A output are left on the table for a mid-engined application when limited to a poor man's budget, but I guess the fact that this exercise can be done at all on a poor man's budget is something to behold - especially since I've seen it done so well on these forums and elsewhere.
firebat45 wrote:
The VQ35 has the aftermarket because of the 350Z. I'm not sure if the Nissan 3.0 that Kennedy refers to is the VG30 or the VQ30, or if those have the same bellhousing pattern. If I had to wager a guess I'd say that they are referring to the VG30, so you may want to look into that if you go that route.
I've been looking into Nissan Transmissions & apparently they're very fond of recycling a single transmission through several engine lines, which is good news for sure. Evidently not only does the entire VQ line share the same bellhousing pattern but this same pattern is used in the I6 RB engine line as well, though the VQ40 may be an exception to this rule as it appears to me the crankcase design & overall dimensions are quite different from the rest of the VQ series. Also, when looking for a manual Transmission to fit the VQ, the 5-Speed from a 1995-1999 Maxima came in two different forms: the RS5F50V which features an LSD, and the RS5F50A which does not. These codes can be found on the passenger side of the firewall to identify which was installed, as no identifying codes besides the VIN number can be found on the transmission itself - this is yet another reason to try for a donor rather than source the parts independently.
Still, an even better transmission built to handle stronger loads is the 6-Speed from the 2002-Present Maxima, though it seems only the 2003+ models feature a locking diff - though even more tranny options were available for the 2004+ models which is what I would try to locate when sourcing a donor. No word yet as to how to identify between them; I'll look into it & report back here. I'm also not sure if any of the newer HR forms share bellhousings with the rest of the VQ line, as they're only found in newer RWD sports models - though if they do the VQ35HR would be a sweet 311HP option, though most likely very expensive. I also hadn't noticed the VQ30DD version before - 230-260HP, but only featured in vehicles not readily found in the States.
Irrelevant to the VQ35DE but still interesting is that the Nissan SR and KA engine lines share the same transmission but with a different bellhousing, which means the engine can be brought in with matching bellhousing to fit the same transmission.
----------
Off Road SHO wrote:
Like firebat45 says, stay away from Porsche, Mendeola (Spendeola to us off road guys), Albin and Fortin transaxles if you're wanting to keep it low budget. Now if the 8 year old is still reading this, by all means go ahead and dream all you want. You will never find a cheaper route to go than a factory setup from a popular economy car; and in America that means a Korean or Japanese front wheel drive econobox. Steve Graber has the right idea ( along with Kurt and many others on this site), get something cheap yet powerful and put it in something light but strong.
Thanks a lot for the tip. I've since let go of the notion to jump through a series of expensive hoops simply to have a more "original" engine choice; besides it's not like building your own car even if it comes in kit form, right out of a box isn't original enough of a project in and of itself. I don't mind using the same engine choice as the Noble for a similar purpose; the engine was obviously chosen for a reason & has proven itself in one of the greatest sports cars of all time. I'd be proud at this point to be able to say I adopted a similar formula for my own design; a toast to Lee Noble himself if you will.
----------
Laminar wrote:
The
List of Ford Transmissions says the Mazda6 came with an MTX-75 but I remember when the first guy swapped a manual transaxle into his V8 SHO it was from a Mazda6 and it wasn't an MTX-75.
I don't know where on that page you see that the Mazda6 uses an MTX75; the only mention of the Mazda6 I see is that it uses the Aisin 6-speed Automatic. Sourced from Edmunds & Wikipedia it would seem the only transmission options when coupled with the Duratec V6 are a 5-speed automatic and a 5-speed manual, which I would have assumed to be the MTX75 but is instead the A65M-R as you've listed.
Listed on >
this< page is a little more info about the A65M-R:
"This transmission is similar to designs used on the Jaguar X-Type and Ford SVT Contour line. Its a 5 speed manual with with a double cone Syncro on 1st and 2nd gears. The A65M-R calls for SAE 75w-90 (API Service GL-4 or GL5) in all weather conditions. It takes 2.4 qts in a fluid exchange. The 6s MTX gear ratio's do not change for 05."
Here is a list of gear ratios for the A65M-R, MTX75 and MT285 [Getrag] transmissions:Gear:------A65M-R:-----MTX75:-----MT285:
1st--------3.153--------3.420--------4.460
2nd--------1.842--------2.136--------2.710
3rd--------1.258--------1.448--------1.330
4th--------0.947--------1.028--------1.090
5th--------0.733--------0.767--------1.330
6th-------------------------------------1.090
Final-------4.133--------4.060--------4.250
The PDF you've listed is also very informative. From what little I know of gear ratios I'm very much liking the A65M-R; seems it would be better suited for a lighter car. It's also a newer design & built for a faster & lighter line of cars than that of the MTX75. I'm thinking it would be the best option to mate with the Duratec V6 engine choice; the price would probably be a little more however - I'll have to look into it & report back here. I also don't know if any aftermarket support exists for this transmission as well as it does for the MTX75, or if such parts could be interchangeable considering the fundamental similarities between them.
----------
Smus wrote:
Out of the engines listed, mathematically the GM motor should be out, but I do have a soft spot in my heart for those motors.
No, I understand completely; many are fond of them. Brunton Automotive uses strictly GM parts for the Stalker V6, including the 3.8L Supercharged L67 - and it does so very well. I can't ignore the ~450LB weight though when it comes down to the cold hard math of it all.
Smus wrote:
But if you want to find one that may have the best options for you, well, then I guess it would be a toss-up for the nissan or ford.
So it would seem. I very much like the better transmission options for the Duratec V6, though I'm more fond of the extra power and torque of the VQ35DE obviously. I like the idea of a six speed as well for a little more exoticism, as I wouldn't use the 6-speed MT285 with the Duratec V6 but would likely only have a 6-speed option for the VG35DE. I'm much more informed about the durability of the Duratec tranny options though; I don't know how well the VQ35DE transmissions hold up under stress on the track. Overall the VQ35DE is the more expensive option as well, but I'm still leaning towards it for some reason.
Smus wrote:
Another place to check on prices, and my personal favorite is
www.car-part.com, it's all scrapyards, and they usually have fairly reasonable prices.
Yes, I frequent the site very often. Another good one I found just recently is a site called
www.lkqonline.com - They have an amazing inventory, and very good prices across the board. I usually check both sites equally when I'm sourcing for prices -
motors.ebay.com is obviously another one for checking out prices & for finding small bits of things for cheap.
----------
KB58 wrote:
The supercharged GM 3.8 liter V6 can be adapted to a manual GM F40 transaxle (a GM model number, not a Ferrari part!) The complete engine is 445 lbs and the transaxle another 125 lbs, or 570 lbs total.
- Also known as the L67 or the 3800; a great engine indeed. Featured in the Brunton Automotive
Stalker V6, which held the Unlimited Time Trial Homestead-Miami Speedway Lap Record for over a year & was only just very recently broken by a 2006 Radical SR3. I don't know anything about the F40 transaxle though as far as pricing, durability or availability.