Exchange T56 Gearbox advice
Discussion
Hello all. Been a while since I posted on here. I have been meaning for a while to get a new (or exchange) T56 box for my Monaro as mine has a good few issues. I need some advice and recommendations.
Firstly I am right in thinking that the Monaro is fitted with a T56 not a T56 Magnum right? Secondly can anyone recommend a good company for a T56 on an exchange basis? My first thought was Walkinshaws as they have always been good to me.
I came across a company called Gearboxman but their reviews were comically poor. I have been told that parts for the T56 are really hard to come by in the UK and are pretty rare? Has anyone got any experience of having an exchange T56 unit fitted to their Ro? Any advice would be highly appreciated.
Firstly I am right in thinking that the Monaro is fitted with a T56 not a T56 Magnum right? Secondly can anyone recommend a good company for a T56 on an exchange basis? My first thought was Walkinshaws as they have always been good to me.
I came across a company called Gearboxman but their reviews were comically poor. I have been told that parts for the T56 are really hard to come by in the UK and are pretty rare? Has anyone got any experience of having an exchange T56 unit fitted to their Ro? Any advice would be highly appreciated.
There are many variants of T56, so depends on which one you have, and which one you might wish to own.
Actual T56's are very very old now, and most parts are now reproduction, not OEM, so that can be a consideration for any rebuild, depending of course what is wrong with yours or why it is deemed needing any work.
Although I'm sure a lot of the repro parts are pretty decent anyway
Although not a cheap option, a new Magnum will at least be pretty much foolproof, albeit requiring some additional work to fit
Gearboxman have been around for a very long time, although never used them myself. In general, they're not overly difficult boxes to take apart and refresh though, again, depending on what is deemed wrong.
Not no, an old Monaro would never have had a Magnum. Magnum is an aftermarket piece. However that gearset is from the TR6060, which was fitted to later VXR8 etc, but that has a different rear section than the T56.
As said, there are lots of variations
Actual T56's are very very old now, and most parts are now reproduction, not OEM, so that can be a consideration for any rebuild, depending of course what is wrong with yours or why it is deemed needing any work.
Although I'm sure a lot of the repro parts are pretty decent anyway
Although not a cheap option, a new Magnum will at least be pretty much foolproof, albeit requiring some additional work to fit
Gearboxman have been around for a very long time, although never used them myself. In general, they're not overly difficult boxes to take apart and refresh though, again, depending on what is deemed wrong.
Not no, an old Monaro would never have had a Magnum. Magnum is an aftermarket piece. However that gearset is from the TR6060, which was fitted to later VXR8 etc, but that has a different rear section than the T56.
As said, there are lots of variations
From memory there were two variations to the UK spec Monaro gearboxes, the M12 and the MM6.
The silver metal tag on the slam panel next to the radiator should tell you what was fitted to your car.
I know AAS in Newcastle upon Tyne can work on the T56 but it depends on how far you are prepared to travel, and how busy they are.
I recall there were a couple of after market gearboxes available, the Magnum and the super Magnum, both with a choice of gear ratios.
If that all sounds too expensive, which it is, you could gamble on a used gearbox from the likes of “speed4u “ if he is still breaking Monaro’s.
John
The silver metal tag on the slam panel next to the radiator should tell you what was fitted to your car.
I know AAS in Newcastle upon Tyne can work on the T56 but it depends on how far you are prepared to travel, and how busy they are.
I recall there were a couple of after market gearboxes available, the Magnum and the super Magnum, both with a choice of gear ratios.
If that all sounds too expensive, which it is, you could gamble on a used gearbox from the likes of “speed4u “ if he is still breaking Monaro’s.
John
Edited by mfp4073 on Sunday 9th March 11:52
PBATR99 said:
Cheers for that. If you were me what would you do? T56 Magnum? Any idea cost to get one and fitted and is my box effectively not exchangeable?
Again, without knowing what is wrong with your box....no idea.If it is destroyed, then yes I'd be going Magnum.
If cost is not important, I'd be going Magnum
For your box to be exchangeable, requires someone in the UK to have an already rebuilt box identical to yours to give out. Which given the low volumes of them, is rather unlikely.
So if downtime is important, and a quick job...again, I'd go Magnum
Failing that, someone will need to remove yours, find out what is wrong, order any parts from the US, then rebuild/refit etc. This could take a few days, or a few weeks. Or more.
Example of price of bare box ( plus VAT ), it will require some alterations to fit a Monaro, but these are small.
https://roadcraftuk.co.uk/product/tremec-t56-magnu...
You will require modifications to the propshaft too to suit the larger output shaft/yoke of the Magnum.
For reference too....a regular Magnum will be a less ideal fit than the Magnum F. Again, even with the Magnums, there are various options available.
Lincsls1 said:
I love the US for its idea of "direct fit" / "bolt in" "This is a bolt-in swap for your 2004-2006 Pontiac GTO (REQUIRES THE USE OF A 1 PIECE DRIVESHAFT)"
From my understanding, the box is effectively slightly longer internally, so the driveshaft input needs to be marginally shorter to fit.
If it just fit, I'd 100% be going this route, but furstratingly I have a lovely carbon fibre 1 piece driveshaft and that is thus slightly too long for the "bolt in" option above
SturdyHSV said:
I love the US for its idea of "direct fit" / "bolt in"
"This is a bolt-in swap for your 2004-2006 Pontiac GTO (REQUIRES THE USE OF A 1 PIECE DRIVESHAFT)"
From my understanding, the box is effectively slightly longer internally, so the driveshaft input needs to be marginally shorter to fit.
If it just fit, I'd 100% be going this route, but furstratingly I have a lovely carbon fibre 1 piece driveshaft and that is thus slightly too long for the "bolt in" option above
Hi James, it's Andre here, good to hear from you mate. I think is the route I need to go down. Any ideas on who you'd recommend to fit the box once I get it and any clue on cost of fitting?"This is a bolt-in swap for your 2004-2006 Pontiac GTO (REQUIRES THE USE OF A 1 PIECE DRIVESHAFT)"
From my understanding, the box is effectively slightly longer internally, so the driveshaft input needs to be marginally shorter to fit.
If it just fit, I'd 100% be going this route, but furstratingly I have a lovely carbon fibre 1 piece driveshaft and that is thus slightly too long for the "bolt in" option above
SturdyHSV said:
I love the US for its idea of "direct fit" / "bolt in"
"This is a bolt-in swap for your 2004-2006 Pontiac GTO (REQUIRES THE USE OF A 1 PIECE DRIVESHAFT)"
From my understanding, the box is effectively slightly longer internally, so the driveshaft input needs to be marginally shorter to fit.
If it just fit, I'd 100% be going this route, but furstratingly I have a lovely carbon fibre 1 piece driveshaft and that is thus slightly too long for the "bolt in" option above
It will not be a direct fit. The Magnum uses a 31T output shaft, so it needs a new yoke."This is a bolt-in swap for your 2004-2006 Pontiac GTO (REQUIRES THE USE OF A 1 PIECE DRIVESHAFT)"
From my understanding, the box is effectively slightly longer internally, so the driveshaft input needs to be marginally shorter to fit.
If it just fit, I'd 100% be going this route, but furstratingly I have a lovely carbon fibre 1 piece driveshaft and that is thus slightly too long for the "bolt in" option above
This new yoke would then need to be able to marry up to your propshaft. I would rarely be a fan of one piece propshafts, unless you're sure you'll never use the car above moderate speeds ( illegal, but moderate )
They just have too much critical speed issues to be able to rotate fast in almost all cases.
And as for them claiming they use a GTO rear housing, AFAIK it's no different than an F-body anyway ? The only part that needs changed F to GTO is the shift cup and the shifter itself.
I don't think any other parts are significantly different ?
Shameless copy and paste 
"the rear output shaft is the stronger 31 spline versus the 27-28 spline your factory transmission has. Because of this difference you will need a new Tremec 1330 series 31 spline slip yoke and a 1330 x3R crossover u-joint to fasten it to your driveshaft."
I'm sure with these parts, and some careful measurement, a decent prop-shaft company would be able to re-work the existing one to become direct fit.
AAS were going to attempt it for me back in 2020, but were able to fix my box instead.
"the rear output shaft is the stronger 31 spline versus the 27-28 spline your factory transmission has. Because of this difference you will need a new Tremec 1330 series 31 spline slip yoke and a 1330 x3R crossover u-joint to fasten it to your driveshaft."
I'm sure with these parts, and some careful measurement, a decent prop-shaft company would be able to re-work the existing one to become direct fit.
AAS were going to attempt it for me back in 2020, but were able to fix my box instead.
Edited by Lincsls1 on Monday 10th March 17:06
https://malwoodauto.com.au/holden-vt-vf/
Don't know if this helps but these guys normally know their stuff.
Don't know if this helps but these guys normally know their stuff.
I used these guys for a repair/rebuild. I think the turnaround was just over a week and cost 2-2.5k.
http://www.astonmartingearboxes.com/
http://www.astonmartingearboxes.com/
Reltub said:
I used these guys for a repair/rebuild. I think the turnaround was just over a week and cost 2-2.5k.
http://www.astonmartingearboxes.com/
Sounds pricey unless a hell of a lot was replaced.http://www.astonmartingearboxes.com/
Or was that remove and refit too ?
I got a quote from these guys for a full rebuild www.asrgearboxrepairs.co.uk
They seemed to know their stuff when I spoke to them but i've not had a chance to look into it since the call.
"Thank you for the opportunity to speak with you today. I appreciate the time you spent discussing your vehicle's issues.
As mentioned during our conversation, we can provide free vehicle recovery and specialist diagnostics to accurately determine the exact faults with your MONARO V8 VXR.
The cost to repair the faults as mentioned do vary but generally are around £5,000.00 + VAT for a gearbox rebuild with uprated components.
Please note that both types of repair come with a 12-month / 12,000-mile warranty.
These figures are only estimates, and the actual costs will be determined once your vehicle has arrived at our centre and undergone testing. Rest assured, we will not commence any work without your full authorisation.
If you decide not to move forward with the repairs after the diagnostic process, we will charge you only for the cost price of recovery and diagnostics.
We are currently scheduling appointments 2-3 days in advance. If you wish to proceed, please let us know, and we will arrange for your vehicle's collection."
They seemed to know their stuff when I spoke to them but i've not had a chance to look into it since the call.
"Thank you for the opportunity to speak with you today. I appreciate the time you spent discussing your vehicle's issues.
As mentioned during our conversation, we can provide free vehicle recovery and specialist diagnostics to accurately determine the exact faults with your MONARO V8 VXR.
The cost to repair the faults as mentioned do vary but generally are around £5,000.00 + VAT for a gearbox rebuild with uprated components.
Please note that both types of repair come with a 12-month / 12,000-mile warranty.
These figures are only estimates, and the actual costs will be determined once your vehicle has arrived at our centre and undergone testing. Rest assured, we will not commence any work without your full authorisation.
If you decide not to move forward with the repairs after the diagnostic process, we will charge you only for the cost price of recovery and diagnostics.
We are currently scheduling appointments 2-3 days in advance. If you wish to proceed, please let us know, and we will arrange for your vehicle's collection."
maxmc2 said:
I got a quote from these guys for a full rebuild www.asrgearboxrepairs.co.uk
They seemed to know their stuff when I spoke to them but i've not had a chance to look into it since the call.
"Thank you for the opportunity to speak with you today. I appreciate the time you spent discussing your vehicle's issues.
As mentioned during our conversation, we can provide free vehicle recovery and specialist diagnostics to accurately determine the exact faults with your MONARO V8 VXR.
The cost to repair the faults as mentioned do vary but generally are around £5,000.00 + VAT for a gearbox rebuild with uprated components.
Please note that both types of repair come with a 12-month / 12,000-mile warranty.
These figures are only estimates, and the actual costs will be determined once your vehicle has arrived at our centre and undergone testing. Rest assured, we will not commence any work without your full authorisation.
If you decide not to move forward with the repairs after the diagnostic process, we will charge you only for the cost price of recovery and diagnostics.
We are currently scheduling appointments 2-3 days in advance. If you wish to proceed, please let us know, and we will arrange for your vehicle's collection."
The wording of that sounds like one of those generic scam pages that pops up and offers services for whatever vehicle you've searched for.They seemed to know their stuff when I spoke to them but i've not had a chance to look into it since the call.
"Thank you for the opportunity to speak with you today. I appreciate the time you spent discussing your vehicle's issues.
As mentioned during our conversation, we can provide free vehicle recovery and specialist diagnostics to accurately determine the exact faults with your MONARO V8 VXR.
The cost to repair the faults as mentioned do vary but generally are around £5,000.00 + VAT for a gearbox rebuild with uprated components.
Please note that both types of repair come with a 12-month / 12,000-mile warranty.
These figures are only estimates, and the actual costs will be determined once your vehicle has arrived at our centre and undergone testing. Rest assured, we will not commence any work without your full authorisation.
If you decide not to move forward with the repairs after the diagnostic process, we will charge you only for the cost price of recovery and diagnostics.
We are currently scheduling appointments 2-3 days in advance. If you wish to proceed, please let us know, and we will arrange for your vehicle's collection."
A brand new Magnum is less than £5k, that is a completely mental price for the repair of any T56.
even more so when it hasn't even been stated what the problem is.
I do agree on the above , sounds very generic , use a place that others have used on here for our cars , or go with a recommend from someone , you could contact Teg sport , I don't know if they do Monaro's too , my scooby mechanic said they are his go to and do a very good job , I would be more inclined to get mine repaired than buy new , Based on it being repairable , but still like the idea of a stronger box , but as I don't know enough about monaro boxes the idea of a parts needing to be charged on a stronger box cause me concern due to me lacking knowledge on what's needed , even with the help you get on here
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