Hello All,

Do any forum members have a Tremec T-56 6 speed manual transmission fitted in a 6.0ltr facelift XJ-S Coupé?

If so and if you did the installation yourself, how much modification/altering of the transmission tunnel was required to get the T-56 to fit?

Thanks

Mike.

 

Jagzilla does, but i dont know if hes got it up and running.


calvindoesntknow has a 5 speed in a 5.3

 

^ what he said!

 

My facebook album of my '87 XJS track day car has some pix of my homebrewed T-56 conversion. Less than $2000.
The only issue with the 6.0 will be there are probably some uh them new-fangled computers involved that probably won't like it. I wouldn't know that for sure but Ive got a '92 XJ6 that'll throw a code if I blow my nose.
Facebook

 

Thank you for posting that link. I have a Facebook account but I've no interest in it & I don't use it - the album related to your xjs track car is by far the most interesting thing I've ever read on Facebook.

Did you have to 'modify' the transmission tunnel to get the T-56 in?

The comments in the threads below some of the pictures about The Driven Man are worrying - I wasn't going to use their full kit (it's expensive to start with, the shipping costs to the UK would be high & the customs fees/vat when it arrived would be even higher!

I had thought that their 6.0 bell housing was the way to go but the comments about product quality are not good.

The pedal box isn't a problem in the UK. The rear mount for which ever gearbox ends up getting used would need to be manufactured as Driven Man appears to be the only place one can be obtained but I bet they wouldn't sell it separately from the complete kit.

Regards

Mike

 

The T56 is a big transmission and it goes in the tunnel with a pretty tight fit. I had to eliminate the reverse light switch to gain a bit of clearance and in finding the source of the driveline vibration, I had to mill the top off of the rear shifter location boss on the top rear of the trans. But any mods to the tunnel that would be required on a street car wouldn't be visible. A modified T-5 would fit easily if the plan is to drive the car normally on the street, a TKO 500/600 if the track is to visited occasionally. Though the T56 makes it possible to cruise at 110@3200 rpms in 6th with 4.10 gears. More trans pictures in the Frankenkar II album on my facebook.

 

I personally haven't dealt with The Driven Man, but I have heard of others who haven't been impressed, parts delivery in particular. You may want to give these guys a look. Transmission Conversions

 

No Gertrag 5 speeds at the breakers yards? That would be the easy way to go if available.

 

Thanks, I'll have a look at 'transmission conversions' - I had a getrag box from a 3.6 XJ-S but I was advised it wasn't strong enough for the 6.0 XJ-S so I sold it. I was also advised that a T5 S or Z (can't remember which) is the only T5 box that's strong enough. I'd really like to go the 6 speed route but don't want to hack up the transmission tunnel, so I guess I'll have to go for the TKO 500 or 600 - these boxes are available new in the UK from dealers but they sell for about £2,040 or roughly $3,200 - they never seem to come up on eBay in the UK where as T-56s do & they are usually 'new' & from abandoned projects - I've seen them sell for £1,000 or $1,600 dollars which seems like a bit of a bargain.

I'll check out your Frankenkar II album.

Regards

Mike.

 

the T-5's wont hold up. theyre built for 6 cylinder cars in the U.S.

everything else got a T-56.


that being said, i dont see why you wouldnt just use a built T-5 instead. with 2.88's 6th gear will lug until about +90 MPH. lol

 

That's right. If you go with the T56, the gears will have to change. The first track events were with the 2.88s and sluggish doesn't quite say it. The 4.10s I now have installed are the perfect compromise for street/track with 1-4 giving brisk performance and 5 & 6 giving good mileage. The World Class T-5 may be an option even if you do intend to do track days. I had a long conversation with Bruce Couture at Modern Driveline who said he ran a modified T-5 in his supercharged Mustang(550hp) at track days with no problems. His only concern was the weight of the XJS and for that reason I went with a T56. In retrospect, I would have gone with a TKO, but I'll do that next year switching the T56 set-up over to my street car. The T-5 would definitely make the tunnel clearance a non-issue. But if you can get a new T56 for $1600, a bit of tunnel trimming might not be a bad thing. The console will hide the carnage.

 

Modern Driveline - TREMEC T5 / TKO Transmission Conversion - 5 speed & 6 speed solutions to swap your Ford Mustang, Falcon, Cobra, Hotrod into Overdrive! Performance Parts

 

i dont see where or how you would ever get a new T56 for $1600 or less.

theyre going on craigslist second hand for about that price. higly sought after transmissions, those.

 

I've seen them sell for their starting bid of £1,000 on Ebay UK which at today's exchange rates is $1,600 - admittedly that only applies to 2 or 3 T-56s over a 6 month period. The T-56s listed at any higher price repeatedly don't seem to sell on Ebay UK.

The TKO feeld expensive at the UK price of the equivalent of $3,200 dollars.

Thanks for the input.

Mike.

 

Why not the Toyota W58? Supposed to take anything you can throw at them?

 

It's a secret

 

I have a ZF 6 speed originally fitted to the ZR1 Corvette, with custom made V12 alloy bell housing and paddle clutch/AP racing semi organic clutch that would fit nicely.
You just need the XJS manual pedal box assembly, alter the prop length and talk money to me
It was originally bought to convert a Lynx Eventer into the ultimate 'station wagon' with 7lt TWR Engine, 200mph was projected...Still got lots of stuff left as it didn't get off the ground...

 

pics or it didnt happen.

 

Can you find a TKO 500 or 600 in a junkyard? What cars/years would they have been in?

 

quick google search make it look like its a foxbody transmission.,