Transgo Shift Kit Questions For Those Of You Who Have One

[180 wanabe]

Hi guys

Finally got a transgo shift kit installed in my car today

Got the local auto gearbox shop to do the install, guy who runs the shop/did the install has been rebuilding boxes for 30 years or so

I decided to get the local shop to supply the kit oil filters etc so if something went wrong I would not be chasing someone on ebay

Anyhow I dropped the car off yesterday but was not able to drive it home in the arvo as the kit the shop supplied was missing a spring so they had to get another kit sent out

Picked up the car this afternoon after a new complete kit was sent out to the shop

have taken the car for a drive and noticed a few things and just wanted to check that this is how the transgo kit is supposed to behave

In full auto D mode with the power button pushed down from a stop with the gas peddle mashed the car will take off as per usual but it shifts at 6000 from 1st to 2nd gear, the shift feels a bit faster but no where near as fast as the change from 2nd to 3rd gear

I haven't have a chance to see if the car will shift at the redline in full auto d mode from 2nd to 3rd gear yet

In manual mode the shift from 1st to 2nd happens at whatever revs i choose as its supposed to but feels no where near as fast as the change from 2nd to 3rd or 3rd to 4th

any ideas?

did the shop stuff up the install?

[scotty nm35]

It could be that your clutches are worn, the box is 10 years old remember.

Does it bang into any gear? No clunks? What fluid did he use?

There are a few tricks to installing the re5 kits, and it is possible he mixed the springs up when he lost the 'missing' one. What did he charge you if you don't mind telling us?

[180 wanabe]

$88 per hour x 4 hours labor = $352

$460 for the kit yes I know I could have got it for $300 but I'd sooner buy it from shop incase issues come up

$160 for the shops synthetic oil

not exactly a cheep job

Thing is I was really expecting the shift from 1st to 2nd to be a lot harsher/quicker like the shift from 2nd t 3rd and 3rd to 4th

Cant remember if my car wold go all the way to redline in D when in 1st gear i might be noticing that its shifting at 6000 now because I'm paying attention to it.

Doesn't seem to bang into any gears but it can clunk a little if you plant the gas pedal and the box drops down a gear or 2 and then you take your foot off the gas at say 5000 and then the box will drop the revs for a couple of seconds and then find a gear and it clunks a bit when it seems to engage it

[scotty nm35]

It's hard to say without driving it but it will never be a race gearbox. I would say it's possibly normal.

What worries me is that they mixed the fluids as the torque converter would have still been full of the old fluid. I would have put matic J personally, just to be sure. I have been warned off the synthetic fluids, they certainly didn't help my gearbox...

[180 wanabe]

I did question the guy about using his oil rather than nulon/matic j

The response went something along the line of that he had worked on a few of the re5 boxes out of pathfinders without any issues using the shops synthetic oil

I apart from the shift from 1st to 2nd not being as quick as I was expecting Im happy with how fast the box changes gears with all the other shifts 2nd to 3rd seems to be the quickest shift of the lot

If I drive the car like I would normally around town without getting up it everything shifts pretty much the same as it did before the kit got intstalled

The next track day I go to on 7th November will be the real test, most of the shifts are from 2nd to 3rd and 3rd to 4th

[PN-Mad]

There are multiples of certain springs in the kit. What you use depends on s1 or s2 box. Confusing maybe for first timers?

Best thing to do is to get a drive in another transgo car, and compare the pair.

[GED59]

Did you reset ECU. Mine was a real pig when i picked it up, even took it straight back and asked

was this normal ( very aggresive and clunky gear changes). The mechanic told me it will settle down. Drove home 40km feeling a bit pissed at the result. When i got home i reset the ECU, bingo fixed and 100% satisfied with the kit.

[Nightcrawler]

The cars I have been in have a fairly brutal change from 1st to 2nd gear when any sort of acceleration is applied .... and a tyre chirp is almost guaranteed if you have the boot in.

[180 wanabe]

No chirp with the change from 1st to 2nd the way it changes from 2d to 3rd you would think it was going to chirp

Will look into doing an ECU reset see if that helps

Anyone got one of these kits in their car on the Gold Coast/Brisbane?

Oh also what rpm is your car shifting from 1st to 2nd when in full auto with the power button pushed?

Edited October 24, 2012 by 180 wanabe

[itsRICHARD]

Was reading around on transgo, make sure you get a transmission cooler if you haven't gotten one already.

Looking to get one installed soon as well

Edited October 24, 2012 by itsRICHARD

[Jetwreck]

The shift changes should be quick and hard in 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th on WOT.

A sloppy gear change with a hot gearbox after the shift kit is installed and under full throttle especially when the car was shifting OK before can mean 1 of 3 things.

The wrong oil has been used when refilling......your gearbox will die pretty quickly so confirm exactly what oil has been used with the shop.

Incorrect oil level in the gearbox (check he put in about 7.3 to 7.5lts).........get the gearbox warm, put it in park and check the dipstick.

The shop stuffed up when installing........your screwed as they will never admit it!

FYI - out of the all the re5 Transgo Kits I have purchased and installed(40+) I have never had a part missing.....which leads me to believe the shop has stuffed up!

Edited October 24, 2012 by Jetwreck

[scotty nm35]

FYI - out of the all the re5 Transgo Kits I have purchased and installed(40+) I have never had a part missing.....which leads me to believe the shop has stuffed up!

Same here. They lost a spring. It isn't hard to do if you don't pay attention.

[180 wanabe]

Ok can someone please tell me what rpm the box is supposed to shift at when in D with the power button pressed at full throttle when takin off from a stop like I keep saying mines shifting from 1st to 2nd at 6000rpm not 6500

If this is normal cool if not please let me know so I can call up the shop and complain that it's short shifting along with a softer shift from 1st to 2nd

[180 wanabe]

And when I say softer shift it feels quicker than the stock shift from 1st to 2nd but its no where near as quick as the shift from 2nd to 3rd or 3rd to 4th

[PN-Mad]

Jump in it, put it in manual, start from 1st WOT, and shift into 2nd at 4500rpm. Should feel nice and firm and fast, if not chirp.

The reason I say this, is that the ECU actually calls for less line pressure at over 6000rpm to save the gearbox from the extra jolt/pressure, and this slows the shift just a little bit.

[180 wanabe]

Ok I'll give that a go a bit later on my lunch break. So just to confirm, the shift from 1st to 2nd should pretty much be the fastest/firmest shift of all the shifts

[PN-Mad]

Nope.

I've always found 3rd is the firm shift, either shifting up or coming down.

As I said - the best thing you can do is get in another transgo V35, and see if its any different.

[180 wanabe]

Just took the car out on the road and did the manual change from 1st to 2nd at around 4500rpm and got a little chirp hurray. I'm guessing a couple reasons why I wasent getting the rather loud chirps that you hear on YouTube vids might be to do with running a LSD in the auto rather than the stock open diff plus I'm running 285 rubber

[PN-Mad]

lol... might have something to do with it. A lot more grip than most cars.

Doesn't matter - you don't shift 1-2 on the track. See how it goes on the track- I hope you have a big cooler.

[180 wanabe]

Yeah running a tranny cooler, shifts from 2nd to 3rd and 3rd to 4th are fantastic and that's all ill be using on the track