I'm looking to buy a 350z but want to do my homework on it first. If anyone can give me some information on the transmission i'd greatly appreciate it. Pages, old threads, articles, I'd appreciate any help.

 

Information like the model number? Production stats between 6MT and 5AT? Problems with either? How much power they can hold? Question is pretty vague, please elaborate on what you would like to know about them.

 

Yeah, id like some information on the 6 speed manual transmission, its strengths its weaknesses, how much power it can hold, frequently ran into problems, any information that would affect me as a tuner. Thanx again for the help

 

I'll tell you a couple . . While I'm impressed with it overall having been driving manuals for decades domestic and foreign, it a) has a slightly annoying but tolerable if you're into total performance "whine" in the final drive gear as I have witnessed from two different ones myself now at over 30k miles (after eliminating the possibility of the rear end), and b) just recently the shifter started jamming every now and then if I quick-shift (with a quick pop of the clutch) from 4th to 5th whereby the shifter moves into 5th but the gear stays in 4th, so you're confused as hell like I was tonight for the second time in a row when it happened to me, well, now you know. I think . . . and if you don't then welcome to the club

(When it jams, it sticks into position so you can't move it, unless you wrangle the hell out of it.)

 

The 5AT units have been great and apparently pretty trouble free. With a grounding kit, they shift great and the manumatic mode provides awesome control. With an upgraded valve body, they shift even better and can manage higher hp. The problem with them has always been building them up for big power (500+). However, GTM has got an upgrade path (total rebuild) almost ready for release that will handle 500-600 whp. They should be issuing a press release on it soon.

EDIT: Skip this option if you're looking for more than 600 whp+. Only MTs have a proven track record above those power levels. SGP might have a build available that they claim is good to 1000 whp, but only time will tell.

 

I should add that GTM also I believe has replacement gears for the 6MT, so you could potentially fix "issues" rather than replacing the entire tranny if something breaks there. The track record with the 6MT has been spotty to say the least. Nissan is on revision 9 of their 6MT tranny and hopefully it will do the trick.

 

While they have done several revisions over the years, I wouldn't call the general transmission "spotty" at all - in fact, its overall been an enviable tranny with no true "weakness" to it at all, able to cope with gobs of hp and torque. I'm one of those glass is half full type guys, having seen people own various performance oriented cars over the year only to have the literally fall apart. I've also owned my share, where the warranty wasn't worth the paper it's written on. On my Z, I must say it's been literally the best new car I have ever purchased. I have been to the dealership all of 1 time since purchasing it new in 2004 (about 55k on it now), for a problem that ultimately I caused

Nissan also has been, from everything I've ever seen with my own customers, excellent about honoring warranty claims on the transmission. Rather than spot check issues and do cheaper fixes (ala Subaru, and other manufacturers in this price point), their general concensus is to just replace the trans with the latest version. On my own car (very early 04 model year, 03 build date), the transmission has never given me a single issue. On our other car, the transmission was replaced 1 time under warranty and has been trouble free ever since. My impression overall is that for the $, the car is absolutely fantastic and really is free of major issues that can plague so many other cars at the price level/category.

 

^+1 No question, I love the response from Nissan to upgrade to a newer design revision. But there have also been reports of owners with multiple replacements, "notchiness", rough shifts, etc. These are rare events magnified by being the only reported events - admittedly.

When I was shopping and decided on the G coupe, I was really only considering the 6MT as I have only owned manual cars. When I was looking for "issues" with the 6MT, they were easy to find. For the auto, you really had to look hard to find reported problems. When I test drove the auto in this car I was sold. My left knee has never felt better!

Now all that said, if I had known I was going to go for high hp, I would not have selected the 5AT. We'll see how well my 5AT turns out after leaving Sam's skilled hands...

 

To add to the mix, I would luv to see some specific specs/info on the dimension of the tranny, bellhousing, input shaft length, diameter, number of spline, position of the shifter from tailshaft, etc.

I'm looking into getting a 6mt tranny for a project of mine, and would need all the measurements, to make sure it will fit.

Thanks.