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Nv3500

7

77crewcab

1/2 ton status
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Feb 9, 2004
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Lubbock, Texas
Hey guys I need some input here. I was offered a 5 speed manual tranny from a mid 90s half ton with the 4.3 v6, includes flywheel, complete pedal assembly, master/slave cylinder. For $200. I am thinking of trying to put this in my 60 short bed insted of the SM465 I had planned. Just wondering how it would hold up behind a mild 350 or 383, driven lightly with occaisional towing of 5-6K.
 
I think it would be "okay" as long as you don't tow. Defenetly not the best choice. Personally I would pass.
 
I am considering the same transmission, cept infront of a Turboed 6.2L diesel. I am planning on towing similar loads as with mine as well.

All I can say is that I doubt it'll just snap in half when you let the clutch out if you are nice to it. Take it easy, and I bet it'll last. If you want something you can accelerate hard with, go with an NV4500. I'll eventually wind up going that route, but I happen to have the 3500 here, and the gear ratios etc are nice to drive with :)
 
They only came in 4.3L and 5.0L (305) equipped 1/2 tons. The 305 / 5 speed combo is very uncommon around here, the largest majority of 5 speed 1/2 tons I've seen are 4.3L equipped.

The NV3500 is rated for 300 ft lbs of torque. A Vortec 4.3L produces approx 260 ft lbs of torque, and a Vortec 5.0L produces approx 290 ft lbs of torque. Lots of guys claim to wreck NV3500s with Vortec 5.0Ls, but they also are the same guys who run them hard and treat their trucks like race cars.

A Vortec 5.7L (350) puts out about 350 ft lbs of torque, so GM never put them infront of NV3500s, just NV4500s in the 3/4 ton and 1 ton trucks.

My 6.2L is rated for 240 ft lbs of torque in stock form, but I have a J code intake, and will be turning the IP up a touch, so I am guessing I'll be closer to 260 ft lbs, which I feel is well within the NV3500's ability to handle when the truck is empty, but I do worry about towing with it. My truck will be around 5500 - 6000 lbs by itself, forget adding 1000 - 1200 lbs of camper and gear in the box, then a single place trailer with a quad behind it on top of that...

By turbocharging a 6.2L, you gain an honest 100 ft lbs of torque over a stock 6.2L, which puts you at 340 ft lbs, which is definitely putting the NV3500 at risk. An NV4500 can take well over 600 ft lbs of torque, so no worries about breaking it. Just the big price tag a guy has to deal with =/
 
So are there any ways to beef it up a little. I will probably be running a mild 350 hitting 300-350 torque.
 
Not that I am aware of... the cluster shaft and housing are the weak parts, and unless you can find a cast iron case, and a beefier cluster shaft, I don't know how you could beef it up.
 
Well I just bought a '88 3/4 ton truck with a 350 tbi in it. I was under the impression that it has a NV3500 in it, it's a 5 speed, aluminum, fixed bell....:dunno:
 
my buddy has a '88 k1500 that was originally a 4.3/nv3500 and after the nv3500 broke and rebuilt twice he swapped in a 350/th400 and hasnt looked back. id pass on it. if u want auto overdrive, get a built 700r4 (or 4L80E if u can afford), if you want a manual the sm465 or nv4500 if u want overdrive
 
pvfjr said:
Well I just bought a '88 3/4 ton truck with a 350 tbi in it. I was under the impression that it has a NV3500 in it, it's a 5 speed, aluminum, fixed bell....:dunno:
Click to expand...

Certainly sounds like an NV3500 -- Did the truck come stock with the 350, or was it swapped in?
 
Don't have the history on this thing, but there ain't much in the way of custom work on it. Odo says 258K, and the motor looks like it's been in there about that long...:crazy: I just gotta figure out why it sounds like a rock tumbling around in a dryer when it starts. :haha: Also has a "brand new clutch" but it don't work. :dunno:
 
Usually the rock in the tumbler when starting is a bad connecting rod bearing. My 89 made that noise for several months before I retired it. It never spun the bad bearing, but it was worn right down to the brass when I tore it down...

And yes, I understand the Getrag / NV3500 / 5LM60 isn't a super strong transmission, but I have one in my DD, and less loosing my syncros due to having the wrong fluid in the trans when I bought it, it has served me well :)
 
Well I'm talking a big rock sound, and not just while starting, but anytime while it's running. I thought at first that maybe the throwout bearing had come off the input shaft when someone bolted the tranny back in, but I unbolted the tranny and slid it back a ways, and could see the throwout bearing on the shaft where it was supposed to be. The clutch feel wasn't right though, and we bled it out quite a bit and that didn't help. Looked like the slave was moving back and forth just fine, IDK. There was a little shard of metal on the input shaft where the pilot bearing goes though, I still need to tear into it a little further.
 
I bought an '88 C1500 short wide GMC pick-up as a 10 month old demo model back in early 1989. Stock was TBI 350, Getrag 5 speed, 3.42's with gov-lock. I got it with less than 5000 miles on it.

First thing is that they did stick that little 5 speed behind the 350 from the beginning. The second thing is that tranny was always noisy, and every other Getrag/NV3500 pick-up I drove had the same spooky 'gravel' sound from the tranny. I drove mine pretty hard, often hittting third gear at about 5 grand and getting 8-10 feet of rubber on the 2-3 shift. Then it was stolen, and driven even harder for about 2500 miles. The only problem i had with the tranny was the shifter assembly. There was a hardened pin that failed leaving me unable to shift and the tranny stuck in 3rd gear. Once that was fixed it was fine.

One thing to keep in mind...I sold the truck with 64,000 miles on it. I'm sure as the miles get higher there is less and less that tranny would be capable of living with. My buddy had an '89 work truck, 4.3 and same 5 speed. His was stolen last year while it sat with a FUBAR water pump in front of his house. Truck had 295,000 miles on it...same clutch, same tranny, original engine. Yeah, the tranny was a bit noisy, but like I mentioned they were a bit noisy when new.

Would I use one now? Prolly behind a NA 6.2 I guess. Maybe a mild 350...and if you planned on towing I'd say leave it out of 5th and live with the extra revs.

Rene
 
Well, you're only putting 350 ft lbs through it when its working hard like on a quick acceleration, or when starting out pulling a heavy load. For reasonably normal driving, you probably wouldn't put it at any real risk if it was a nice light acceleration most of the time
 
Rene is correct on all counts. Decent little trans. Noisy--yes. I have a couple in S10s with 4.3L motors one of which has never been shown any mercy and they keep doing their thing. If I were to tow with it I would definitely take it easy, but I think it would live. These were the base transmissions in S10s, 1/2T and light 3/4T pickups and the trans has a 7200 GVW rating. I thought that was hard to believe, but I found the spec in some GM literature I have around here somewhere.

One thing about this trans--You MUST use the GM only fluid and service it on a regular basis if you expect it to live. My owners manual states that the lube is permanent and never needs to be changed, so I change it at about 10-12K and it quiets it down somewhat and returns the shifting characteristics back to their less than stellar (but completely normal) levels.
 
I guess the big question is should I try the 3500 or stick with my plans for a 465 with a gearvendors overdrive? Some little voice is telling me to stick with the plans for the 465/GV setup.
 
I think by the time you get a 465/GV set up you could just swap an NV4500 into it and be done.

NV3500 pro's:

Car like shifting, pretty close ratio's.
Cheap
reasonable strength (on par with stock 700R-4 IMO)

I stuck an NV4500 behind my 6.2 in my Jimmy. To be honest I haven't driven it much since...but that has nothing to do with the tranny. All told I'm into the NV4500 for about $1700. That includes rebuilding it from basket case status, new bell, hydro clutch set-up, new clutch and PP and TO bearing. After having the SM465 for about 9 years I can say the NV4500 shifts so much smoother and faster it's ridiculous. It's easily as strong as the SM 465 too...

I got my NV4500 from a guy who let thye tranny get critically low on fluid. The input bearing was the first part to oil starve...it got red hot and the input gear got to glowing red before shearing. This wiped out a bunch of other stuff. I ended up replacing the counter shaft, all the bearings, all the synchro's and all the seals, shims and small parts to get it back to functional. At least I got it for nothing...

Rene
 
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