Moustache

Hey all,

I've been searching for misc. parts for my 90 4runner on craigslist and came across a 5spd trans from a 95 runner.

My question is, what should i look at when buying this trans?

The seller is un sure of the miles since it came as an extra with his truck. He's asking $300 for the trans and transfer case. Does that sound fair?

Also i know i will need to install a clutch, and all of the various parts for the manual trans to work but will i need a new crossmember too?

I hate this friggin Auto trans!!!

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

jessed59

my opinion when looking at 5 spds is check fluid in both tranny an transfer case (gonna need a wrench), rotate the flange (that your driveline bolts to) and listen for any clunking or weird noises like scraping. also check to see if any gaskets are leakin or have a residue. try the different gears also same thing with transfer case put it in low an shift it around just try an get a good look at the fluid if you can also look at input shaft that would go into your clutch. check the splines for imperfections. thats about all i can think of as for the crossmember im not sure

bryan89

first off,
i would see if it has fluid in it. if it does, and it looks new. BEWARE. common "quick fix" for a new transmission is to put new lube in it to see if noises go away. so if a non-rebuilt trans that came out of some truck for some reason has brand spanking new fluid in it. I would walk away. probably means he was trying to trouble shoot a noise and decided it needed to come out.

If it has no fluid in it. I would also be cautious. if they sit too long, especially outside, without fluid in them, the gears inside and other components would develop rust. which is no good. no fluid is not necessarily a deal breaker, but you will definitely want to split the cases open for an inspection before purchase.

Ideally, as far as fluids, i would look for used, but not burnt or sludge like fluids.


On to the next items,
definitely look for leaks around the cases. that will give some clue as far as what condition its in.

put the trans in neutral. you should be able to spin the input shaft by hand. If you can hear excessive grinding, odds are the input and or midplate bearing are toast.

Then cycle it through all gears, spinning the input shaft. make sure the tail shaft is spinning as well. Listen for grinding here too. if you can hear grinding on a transmission that is sitting on a bench with no load. its going to be at least twice as bad in the truck under a load. Just for comparison, a lot of people say that the "w56 is a noisy transmission". that is a pile of elephant crap if you ask me. Mine sounded like a meat grinder. after i rebuilt it myself, sitting on the bench, you could only hear the sticky oil noise in the gear mesh when spinning. other than that, completely silent.

With the transmission in gear (assuming the shifter is still on) see if you can rattle the shifter side to side with it in gear. if the throw at the top of the shifter knob is more than about 2 inches, the shifter bushing is probably worn out.


In the off chance the man will split the two cases open for you, you are in luck. you can easily check for wear on the aluminum shift forks, chunks of garbage from broken gears / torn up bearing material etc..


these are just a few things i would look for personally having just rebuilt my w56. but, hey i am a perfectionist.

Moustache

Thanks for the advice!

Guess i need to do a search on how to check the fluid in a manual trans and T-case.