Looks like they are pretty damn sturdy, much more common 6-speed than the T-56 or others. Is there any reason they don't get as much love as some of the other transmissions?
Looks like they are pretty damn sturdy, much more common 6-speed than the T-56 or others. Is there any reason they don't get as much love as some of the other transmissions?
They are very long.
They are well known in the drift scene and therefore you have to pay the drift tax.
In reply to buzzboy :
Even with the drift tax they seem to be much much more affordable than other 6 speeds.
Hell, i can actually find these in junkyard listings.
Like buzzboy said, they are long and have a hefty drift tax. They are very strong and shift like butter if you get a later one that doesn't have synchro issues. It's very difficult to tell a CD001 from a CD009/A without the VIN tag that is missing from the trans half the time. 2005 and up is a pretty safe bet to be CD008 or better, this is where the 3rd gear synchro got some big improvements. The JK40/ 370Z HR had a different bellhousing and are generally not as ideal in the VQ world because they don't fit your average 350Z.
Shifter location and clutch support are the big draw backs to the CD00X boxes. The stock shifter fits well in the Z33/34 chassis it came in and about nothing else. You can shorten the stock shifter bracket with a little bit of welding otherwise you are spending $400 for an aftermarket shifter relocation. The 350Z clutch is ~10" in diameter if I remember right so in the V8 world you are absolutely using a custom clutch to get back to an 11" clutch disk. This is another added complication and expense for most non-VQ applications.
Another thing to note is it's not a double overdrive 6 speed like the T56/TR6060, 5th gear is 1:1 and 6th is 0.79:1. So depending on your rear gear you can be shifting a lot.
Big positive you can still buy a brand new trans from Nissan for ~$1700. Add in an adapter plate, clutch, shifter and lack of aftermarket support it might make more sense to just get a T56, sometimes I wish I had gone this route with my truck. Presuming this would go with your Ford 300 and you are making your own adapter plate I'd say it's worth a go on the CD box.
In reply to RacetruckRon :
Ok, a lot of that tracks with why it doesn't get as much love. I thought I had seen different gear ratios available at some point in my reading about them though.
In reply to Mr_Asa :
There is also the "CD truck box" which is the Frontier/Xterra 6 speed. Similar strong CD internals, top loader shifter and available in 4wd or 2wd. The 2wd flavor is unobtainium up here in the land of snow and rust but I'd really like to get my hands on one of those for another truck build. LOJ Conversions has been leaning into offering products on that gearbox and has sparked a bit of a price jump on those in the last couple years.
I have one in my Volvo 740 Lemons car for over 5 years. It probably has over 11,000 race miles. It is a later version out of a 370z and it is mated to a B230FT redblock. It has performed flawlessly. To fit it to a redblock you cut off the bellhousing, attach an adapter plate, connect a Volvo belhousing, and use the stock Volvo throwout bearing, clutch arm, pressure plate, flywheel, and a 240 SX clutch disk. A custom crossmember and driveshaft was also made.
Drawbacks: it is huge and the stock shifter position would be in the back seat. Depending on where you need the shifter you need a tail mount or a top mount shifter. I spent more on the tail mount shifter $700 than I did the transmission $550.
Gear ratios are okay for me with a 3.73 rear end:
1. 3.794
2. 2.324
3. 1.624
4. 1.271
5. 1.000
6. 0.79
I am not tuned for a lot of horsepower, about 200 rwhp.
IMO every manual trans that won't explode behind an LS has at least 1 of 2 problems. Either it costs an arm and a leg (T-56, TKX) or it takes a ton of custom fab or a bunch of expensive parts (CD, W154)
Is there a lot of differences between the version in the 370Z and the Frontier? A few years ago I was researching 6 speed Frontiers and was curious if any of the aftermarket shifters would fit the truck transmissions.
Ooph. Those gear ratios look stupid low.
I am still looking at putting some other gearbox in my rx8 after the T5 gives up the ghost. I was thinking about 1 of these, but that gearing wouldn't work for me at all!
In reply to stanger_mussle (Supported by GRM undergarments) :
350/370zs have a "remote" shifter, the trucks have the shifter on the transmission housing. AFAIK they are not compatible with each other.
I think for truck shifters, your options would be much more limited
Frontier
CD00X
The tail shaft housing is different between the two transmissions. The front case and internals are very, very similar aside from gear ratios.
Very popular for high HP, non-LS builds in the BRZ/FR-S/GR86 world.
Stock rear gear is either 4.1 or 4.3 depending on the year. I think the autos are 4.44.
In reply to z31maniac :
Is first gear just completely useless on those swaps then? I have a 3.54 gear with 25" tires in a 2700lb vehicle with a stock 4.8L LS. I accidentally started in third the other day and didn't notice it until I realized I was doing 30 and hadn't shifted twice already. It's a fun gearbox to shift but I've been thinking about going to a 3.07 gear if I put a bigger engine in the truck
RacetruckRon said:In reply to z31maniac :
Is first gear just completely useless on those swaps then?
With numerically high final drive gears, probably. However it feels like you could use one thats numerically low and be golden.
The sort of transmission ratios that are built for stock final drive ratios. Could end up being cheaper
I'm pretty used to my BMW with a 4.2 first gear, but with a 2.93 rear end. It all evens out in the wash if you get the rear gear and tire size right
As stated earlier in regards to the CD00X, avoid the early versions. I changed at least 4 out as a tech at a relatively small Nissan dealership in the first 2 years of 350Z production. All were synchro problems.
RacetruckRon said:In reply to z31maniac :
Is first gear just completely useless on those swaps then? I have a 3.54 gear with 25" tires in a 2700lb vehicle with a stock 4.8L LS. I accidentally started in third the other day and didn't notice it until I realized I was doing 30 and hadn't shifted twice already. It's a fun gearbox to shift but I've been thinking about going to a 3.07 gear if I put a bigger engine in the truck
I have no idea, I've never driven one.
I know in my 2013 Mustang GT Track Pack, they changed the rear end ratio........1st and 2nd were basically useless on the stock tires. The thing would still scratch 4th gear going up an onramp. It probably would have been amazing on the size of tires it would have fit under the stock fenders.
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