Oh the earaches though of a loud engine at cruising range.
I suppose 1000 dollars buys enough insulating material also!

Quote:Why, we can simply use 4-speeds. They are just as fast. The fuel economy is not as good as a five-speed, but $1000 buys a lot of fuel.

there are 2 types of t5 the early ones pre 85 used in some early
80s Nissans when the C series box was not ready yet and now the
Worldclass or Mustang t5 which is mostly anything 85 and forward.
The t5 is compact, light, cheap, smooth and strong.
When i weighed it with some oil in one it was on 36kg but they
are 35kg standard so about 10kg lighter than the expensive to
rebuild 71B or C series. Borg Warner got this box right on and
is used in almost every caterham or lotus 7 replica today.
Best way to get a 5 speed is definitely engine conversion!
However its hard to give up the A series simplicity and reliability

Aren't the T5's a huge monster of a gearbox?
Surely a W50 would be lighter? Unless I'm quite mistaken as to which box the T5 is.

Nissan FS5R90A in the turbo ZX is a Borg Warner T5. Don't know if FSW571C is stronger or not.

I hear some T5s are weak, specifically that the Mustang ones are strong, and most Camaro T5s are weak.

agree with datodude, engine conversion is usually the cheaper way of getting a good 5 speed

most rwd boxes suitable for the A series require a rebuild these days as
they are long in the tooth when behind long mileage vehicles and then
swapped into rebuilt cars (eg. early celicas) and then run for another
long time before ending up in wreckers.
The t50 is rare
The A series 5 speed are low in part so hard to impossible to rebuild
unless you have money to tool up new parts or use custom parts
71 a series can be cut and shut but are huge

Choices are few.

The T5 is as big but lighter than the 71 series yet has heaps more
strength and close ratio gear sets are the cheapest at 1200usd.

$850 for FS5W60L 5 speed dogleg

or someone has a recon 56 5 speed non overdrive on ebay for a mere $2500

and how much is it? in a ball park

no, a few mods to the crosmember is all...