A friend of mine in New Zealand was wondering if there is a way to distinguish a std shift pattern box vs a dogleg shift box by looking at it from the outside.

Does anyone know if this is possible?

I don't think so, but move the lever to the left. If it meets spring pressure before fully reaching the left side, it is dogleg. Next, push fully left & foward & rotate input shaft. If the output shaft rotates the other way, it's still a dogleg.

In a standard shift 5 speed the spring will resist movement to the right & reverse is to the right & back.

If the box is a 56 series five speed, with ribs & the number 56A on the outside, it will be a dogleg.

63 series boxes are all standard shift I believe, so it's only the smooth case 60 series box that is in doubt, & 'most' of them seem to be standard shift types.

Does it have a hydraulic clutch, or cable? Hydraulic clutch systems were used on left drive models, & the most common source of these looks like being the US[?]. As far as I can tell, all of the US ones were conventional shift [overdrive] models.

isn't the 63a a dog leg overdrive 5 speed?

Thanks Dodgeman.

The info is for a very good mate of mine in New Zealand. I don't know what box he is looking at, but I *assume* that the Oz/NZ models were mostly cable operated instead of hydraulically. (I've been wrong before, of course)

The shifter on my 63 series 5-spd box has a dogleg pattern on the gear shift knob, so now you have me wondering about that. I don't have it installed into anything, but I have always assumed it was a dogleg type. I have a 60A into my Morris Minor van, and it's definitely a dogleg.

All of the Aussie & NZ models had a cable clutch operation, but the five speed was not offered in Australian models. I can't speak for NZ, but I think that they were the same,... no five speeds. All of the five speeds that exist here are imports, although I believe that some very late b310/ Sunny coupes that were sold here had them. This seems to be an aberration as the five speed is not in the Aussie parts book or workshop manual, so maybe a batch turned up in error like the A10 Stanza coupes.

I don't know about the dogleg 60 series box in your van, but it would seem obvious then that at least a few made it to the US, either in new cars, or as imports, you lucky SOB.

Anyway, if your unused box turns out to be a regular shift model, could you drop me a line as my brother allowed his dog in my car when he had it & the dog chewed my original B210 GX5 knob to death.
If the 63 box really IS a dogleg, then we both learned something.

Edit
210sleeper may have something there, but a dogleg overdrive seems a bit of a strange one as the rearward motion of the lear lever usually slides a synchro collar/ coupling sleve foward & the overdrive is in the extention housing, usually requiring a foward motion of the lever to engage. The 180B SSS [P610] had a five speed [dogleg?] 63 series box & I have a workshop manual, so I suppose I had better read it.

More Edit
The FS5W63A gearbox in the P610 SSS has first gear in the extention housing & it is an overdrive gearbox with direct in fourth. It also uses a dogleg pattern, so it would seem that your 63 series box could well be the same.

i don't have a detail shot of a gx-5 knob, but here's an l-series dog leg shift knob:

Yes, that would probably serve very nicely, but I doubt that this is part of your private stash of parts, so now I need to see if I can buy one new somewhere.

o ye of little faith? ask and ye shall receive

Here's another way to tell:

Is '63' cast into the side? It's a dogleg
Is it a ribbed casing 56a? It's a dogleg non-overdrive
Is '60' cast into the side, but the drain plug points straight back? it's a dogleg

I think Dman's method is the most foolproof, put it in gear and see how it rotates.

It will be harder to tell if it is a 4-speed and not a 5-speed.



63a B210 dogleg shift knob



60-L vs. 60A Comparo



63a gearbox



Doglegs: 56a vs 60L comparo



NZ 5-speed Utes

Well here is that 'mate from New Zealand' turned up bright eyed and bushy tailed.

Thanks for the thread Mark and thanks for the info so far.

I'm after a std pattern with 5th as overdrive. I'm going to put it behind a A12 but am hoping to upgrade the engine to a A14/15.

A friend contacted and said he has a datto 5 sp so I went down there and figured if I turn it over by hand I should get some idea if its a dog leg or not by what way the output turns when I turn the input spline but...

If I put it in the forward left position I can't turn the spline, the same in the rear left and the rear right. In the forward and rear middle and the forward right I can turn it over but seems straight through so I guessed my figuring didn't stack up.

Its a smooth box and on the right side it has the nissan logo and '60'. On the top front of the bellhousing it has 'E B 0623764' that's the only codeing except #10 on the left side and #4 right rear.

here is a picture Datto box photo