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Carlisle was great.  However I barely made it back.  Its funny, I was telling everyone all weekend that my transmission was a piece of crap and I almost wished it would blow up so I could get another.  Well be careful what you wish for.  At Carlisle I was getting gear oil sniffs every once in a while.  Nothing on my garage floor.  Don't know about the parking lot at the Marriott.  In addition I was having more and more trouble finding 2nd.  On the way home all gears became more difficult to engage.  Got off the interstate near my home and could not get into 1st, 3rd or 4th.  Didn't try reverse.  Limped home a couple of miles in 2nd.

Got a feeling the tranny is toast.  I have watercooled vw/audi with 135hp/120lb-ft.  Have 3.88:1 final drive.  Assuming standard ratios...3.78 1st, 2.06 2nd, 1.26 3rd, 0.89 4th.  I do not think I have highway flyer.  At 60mph I'm at 3000rpm.  At 70mph I'm at 3500rpm in 4th.  I do not have the bank right now for a 901 5-speed.  I NEED HIGHER GEARING across the range.  Would like to be at 3000-3200 rpms at 70 mph.  Would a 3.44:1 final drive give me what I need?  Should I go for the highway flyer 4th?  Who builds the best T1 trannys???  Rancho???

Thanks

BTW does anyone know where IM gets their trannys?  I really think the transaxle is the weakest link in the IM.

Phil Luebbert

Last edited by 550 Phil
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Phil:  IM questions, ask Henry.  He'll be more than willing to help, I'm sure.

 

A five speed would be real nice, and I think you could carry that easily.  Where you get one, and what they cost is another matter.

 

The original cars turned 3 grand at 60, and everybody though nothing of that.  70 for 3,000 RPM would be better, for sure.

 

Sorry to hear of the trouble, and glad you made it home OK.  Or if not OK, exactly, at least at home.

 

Kelly

Assuming you have 24 1/2- 24 3/4" tires (185/65-15's or 205/60-15's), if 70mph is 3500rpm in 4th then your transaxle may have a 4.125 ring & pinion. A 3.88 r&p would bring it down to about 3200 at 70mph and the 3.44 brings it down to about 2900.

This is a neat gear calculator to play with, and you'll note the ratios in #2 are common 901 gears. 

http://www.teammfactory.com/gearcalculator.php?kmh=0&tirewidth=185&tireprofile=65&wheelsize=15&tirediameter1=24.47&maxrpm1=8400&finaldrive1=3.44&gearratio1=3.78&gearratio2=2.06&gearratio3=1.31&gearratio4=.89&gearratio5=0&gearratio6=0&trannytype=&tranny=Calculate+Transmission+1&tirewidth2=205&tireprofile2=60&wheelsize2=15&tirediameter2=24.69&maxrpm2=8400&finaldrive2=4.429&gearratioa=3.091&gearratiob=1.889&gearratioc=1.261&gearratiod=.9259&gearratioe=0.7097&gearratiof=0&trannytype=

 

Rancho does have a good reputation and can build anything you ask for, but if you ask around, there may be a good transaxle specialist in your area. Track down and ask someone from the local VW club; they should know. I mention this because you'll save on shipping, spend your money locally and if something is wrong it's a lot easier (and cheaper) to get it back to the builder.

And btw, the transaxle is the weakest link in any VW based vehicle. I've destroyed one with a stock 1600 (I was much younger, there was a lot of clutch side-stepping and yes, there was beer involved. I said I was younger....). Al

Last edited by ALB

I have had a very troubling thought.  I was at Carlisle this week end w/out my car (see other posts about all of the BS), and managed to bum a few rides in different right seats.  One was Phil's and another was Tom B's.  Both of these cars have since up-chucked their trannies.  I also hitched a ride w/ Howard B. in his exquisite 911 IM Speedster, and now can only pray that he made it home safely and his trans is OK.

Thanks guys.  I was actually able to pull into my garage under power.  2nd is it.  No reverse either.  I know my my final drive is a 3.88.  I have emailed Henry to see if he has a record of my ratios.  Tires are 185/65/15.  If anyone knows of a good east coast tranny builder I would be grateful.

Tom B's 3-speed auto bit the dust?  Great opportunity for him to get a manual.  

I'm really not upset.  Was going to do some cosmetic mods.  Put the money away for mods.  I'll just get a tranny instead.  Mods can wait.  A good tranny is better than pretty wheels any day.

As Ron mentioned, most of the time it's best to stick with the stock 1st through 4th gears and change the ring & pinion if you want to mess with rpm's at running speed. Unless you have a larger engine with a ton of torque, using a .82 4th (instead of the .89) with the stock 3rd creates a larger rpm drop than a smaller engine can handle comfortably. Shifting at 3500rpm from 3rd to .89 4th drops engine speed to just below 2500rpm; with the .82 it drops 200rpm more. Now there's a few mph area where it's too high to rev constantly in 3rd and 4th gear doesn't turn the fan fast enough to cool properly in anything other than light throttle cruising. Even with a 2276(?) Ron found the new 3-4 spacing too big. A bigger water cooled engine might be ok with it though... Yoda out.

As Al mentioned, over the years I've had a number of tranny combos:

 

1.  4.12/0.89  wow, this sucker really revs on the highway...no fun!

2.  4.12/0.82  rev to 3500 in 3rd and shift to 4th....where did the revs go!

3.  3.88/0.89  getting better, but still revs a bit higher than I'd like at 70 mph.

4.  3.44/0.89  much lower highway revs and great gear spacing.

 

Never good at leaving well enough alone, I've now gone with a 901 gearbox.  We've calculated that at 70 mph the engine will be humming along at 2800 rpm in 5th.  This might be a bit too low for proper head cooling.....we'll have to wait and see.

 

p.s.  Phil, I have a sneaking suspicion that your tranny isn't 'gone'.  Just wondering if it's the shifter or something else.

Last edited by Ron O

Ron- For a number of years (5? 6?) the transaxle in my Cal Look bug (my main transportation for 2 or 3 of those years) had a 4.375 r&p and close 3rd and 4th gears (1.48, 1.12). With 185/70's on the back, 3500 in 4th was about 52mph, and if it was cool enough cruise at 4,000rpm we were moving at a whole 60! I had friends in Kelowna, went to Seattle and Portland several times and LA/San Diego a twice. You get to see a lot of the countryside at those speeds...

I feel like an idiot but a happy idiot.  Shifter linkage was spaghetti.  Empi shifter and tranny just fine.  Car really needs a 3.44 but I'm happy to keep the tranny and save the cash.  I did enjoy going through the mental process of matching the gearing to mph and tire size and I appreciate everyone's advice and Al's great calculator.  I also feel that anyone pushing 120hp or more needs to go with a 3.44 final drive. "Standard" gearing with the 3.44 is probably fine.  Lesser hp cars probably need the 3.88 to get going but probably should go with the highway flyer 4th.  My 2 cents. My 2 cents is also listen to guys like Al and Ron before jumping to conclusions.

I have one more transmission related question.  If for some reason in the future I have to pull my tranny (clutch replacement etc.), how difficult is it to change the R & P from a 3.88 to a 3.44?  Does this require a complete tranny rebuild?

 

BTW I have also learned from Carey and Henry that they both use Rancho trannys.  Guess that's the place to get a new one if you want quality.

Phil, if your tranny is in good shape Rancho can open it up and swap out the 3.88 for a 3.44.  I would think that's the cheapest way to go.  I guess you could also buy a new tranny with a 3.44 and sell your old tranny locally.

Be warned that 3.44 R&Ps are not cheap.  I paid close to $400 for mine, and if possible get one made in the USA over one made in China.  The quality of the US 3.44 is better (big surprise).

Last edited by Ron O

Talk to Dale (Schu) up in Stafford, he has a trans fetish.  Has 2 VW 4 spds with issues (1st gone in one and 4th in other or a core or to rebuild), a strong cased bus trans and my old 914 tail shift 5 speed. Dale was going to drop one off to guy in WV. WV would be close by drive. 

 

The CSP Black Mamba is a shifting delight - you'll think you have a new transmission. Well worth the ~$300 investment.

 

THXs for numerous rides in your car.  Glad it wasn't trans toast like poor(er) Tom's.  

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