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Blew my 07 trans tonight

43K views 208 replies 11 participants last post by  man show 
#1 ·
Tonight, as I was cruising through an on-ramp in 3rd gear accelerating semi-aggressively, I heard the most horrible grinding noise just before I shifted up to 4th gear (kind of like when any manual transmission grinds a little when you shift sloppily without pushing the clutch all the way in, but way worse). I immediately slowed down and tried to shift back into 3rd gear, but had no luck, so I pulled over right away. I'm pretty sure I fried 3rd and possibly did some other damage because now the car won't go in to any gear and it won't roll - even in neutral. I had the car towed to IAG, so I'm thinking I might need a fresh set of gears and possibly some other goodies. I haven't done nearly enough gear research and my wallet is not going to be happy... definitely not ready for this one yet !Cry!

Initial thought = PPG helical 1-4, not sure what else. Gotta do some reading for sure.
 
#29 ·
Hahahaha I love the rope and lube comments!

Another update: Got a call from IAG last night... turns out I completely wiped out 3rd and 4th gear and there's some wear on 1, 2, and R (5th was ok). If that much damage occurred from the way I drove, I see no sense in simply rebuilding it to stock specs. Therefore, my choices are:

1. LGT trans for ~$1,500
2. Albins helical gears for ~$4,500
3. 6 speed swap for ~$5,500

Those quotes don't include miscellaneous parts or labor, which is estimated at 6-10 hours depending on the job, so I'm expecting to pay a little more than that when it's all said and done.

I've read about a bunch of people who ended up not liking the 6 speed swap due to the close ratio, so I think the Albins gears are the way to go since I don't want to have to do this again, should the LGT trans break... might as well bite the bullet and do it right the first time.

The trans builder at IAG refuses to work with PPG gears because he's seen too many of them break, so those are out of the question.

With the Albins gears, he recommended a break-in period of ~500 miles easy miles and then changing the trans fluid. I asked about the Andrewtech cocktail and he recommended straight Shockproof. I'm sad because I have a fresh batch of the Andrewtech cocktail sitting in my garage that I was going to put in at 90k... I think I'll probably still use it.

The next step is to figure out what ratio I want for the helical gears. I need to do a little reading and figure out what might be best since they have to special-order the gears from Austrailia. The good news is that my car should be back up and running in 1-2 weeks at the most.

Pretty exciting :)
 
#34 ·
The good news is that my car should be back up and running in 1-2 weeks at the most.

Pretty exciting :)
Boo!! ;) I'll probably know my fate by mid to late next week and I hope to have my engine shipped back in 2 weeks. Like I said, I'll be up and running probably a week behind you. Then again, I broke down a week after you too. So, I'm glad you are getting it back before me. :D

P.S. The 6 spd seems like a disadvantage to most of you guys, but it can get you into boost so fast, and the ratio can/will keep you in the sweet spot for boost. You guys are just so used to the 5 spd that you hate to shift a extra gear. :pity:
 
#31 · (Edited)
Have any of you tried the MFactory gear sets yet? I know they are kind of pricey, but I know sooner or later my luck will run out and I will be needing a new gear set...Thak god I know how people to rebuild them or i'd be screwed....

By the way good luck to the both of you and if you need some help I'd be glad to lend a hand...no cash though...lol
 
#32 ·
Broken gears, be it stock or PPGs is due to people not knowing how to drive them. I would have loved to have had Albins, but am just as happy with my PPGs. 4400 RPMs launches are pretty fun. I havent done alot of them, just to show off a time or two in the parking lot after work. I can tell you of my friend who is rather upset with the ratio of the 6spd he put in his bugeye. But he will eventually be converting to a track car only, and then he knows he will be happier with it then.
 
#33 ·
Well I have been raging on my trans for 8 years now and most of that with higher than stock power levels. I know I am close to the 400ft/lbs mark with this motor and turbo.!Thumbs Up So it is a matter of time not ability in my case. You are right though most people will break them due not shifting them correctly. I would not want a 6 speed in my car ever.
 
#36 ·
Well, it keeps you in the 3.5/4k to 6.5k spot perfectly with each shift. You guys with the EJ 2.0 hybrids can wind it out to 8k unlike most of us. :p @ keith. I'm hoping that I can afford head work that way I can stretch my rpms out to 8k. !Thumbs Up
 
#37 ·
It's all a matter of what you really want out of the car I suppose. If I put work into the heads then I could shoot for 9k, but I don't really feel like pulling the motor and doing all that again...:)
 
#38 ·
Also, don't forget the 6 speed adds some weight over the 5 speed - 70 lbs or so? That really shouldn't be the deciding factor between whether to get one or not, but it's something to think about.

Honestly, I think sloppy shifting was the cause of my 3rd and 4th gear breakage. I just gave it a bit too much gas before the clutch was fully engaged/disengaged and the tips of the teeth were shocked off which led to total destruction! The tech said my clutch was perfectly fine (after 84k miles) and he said he would absolutely not replace it. I took that as a compliment so I'd like to think I know how to drive for the most part. Sloppiness simply got the best of me :(

I think if I have a choice, I'll go with a sportier (shorter?) set of gears so I have more low-end power and less top-end. I'd ultimately like to upgrade to a 20g turbo (similar to Joshua's setup). The larger sized turbo will take care of my top-end, while the gears will take care of the low while boost is building. Am I thinking about this correctly?
 
#41 ·
The smart thing to do would be to get the best gears for highway cruising and just deal with the lag since I spend most of my time commuting to and from work. I can't believe I'm talking about a several thousand dollar turbo upgrade when I haven't even taken care of the bill for my trans. Either something is terribly wrong with me or it's good that I'm trying to plan for the future.

I think I remember reading somewhere that Albins offers a "street" ratio and a "sport" ratio 5 speed and they can also do custom ratios for no extra cost... but I'm waiting on IAG to receive an email from the company to see what's still available. I'll probably tell them my story and go with whatever they suggest.
 
#43 ·
About the front diff, I didn't mention anything to them and they didn't mention anything to me, so that will probably get left alone. I read up about differentials a little bit and I'm not too convinced I would benefit from an upgraded front/center/rear unit just yet. If I were to do the front, now would definitely be the time, but I don't think I'm at the power level where it would really benefit me. Also, the fact that so far I've only used my car only for daily driving doesn't help the cause. If I ever get in to any type of serious driving, I'll consider upgrading those parts. At this point, I just want to add a little more power, drive it spiritedly where conditions permit, cruise on the highway, and not have it break again. I don't forsee any serious track use with this car in the near future.

That quote was from Top Gun, btw :)
 
#45 ·
Sounds good John, I was just curious. I'm sure having a helical or something added would help in the winter time. But, thats about it if its not being used for much else than DD. Plus keeping it OEM will save on the costs some. It is in the same transfer case so, the time would be now if you wanted to.

Let us know when IAG tells you what ratios you can get.
 
#50 ·
Let us know when IAG tells you what ratios you can get.
Will do. I'm supposedly waiting for Albins to email the info to IAG.

I did some more reading about the front differential - it seems as though the stock unit is designed to send power to the slipping wheel(s), resulting in a fairly significant power loss in low traction situations. Good summer/winter tires should help minimize slippage, so I think I'll probably be ok with the stock unit for a while. /End rational thought.
 
#46 ·
turmic said:
Really? I've always heard that the EJs need a dry sump conversion to spin that high. What does the shim do?
I suppose you could run a dry sump, but again the need isn't really there unless you are racing at that rpm all the time. The shim increases oil pressure by putting more tension on the spring that works to keep the bypass valve in the pump closed. I probably could have gotten away with running a 10mm pump with a shim, but I didn't want to chance it.
 
#47 ·
I havent driven my car in the snow yet, but I have noticed a difference in the dry with my upgraded front diff. When I personally emailed Albins, they were doing "custom" ratios for no extra charge, but it does take longer to get them of course.

Paul, not to sound like an a$$, but I dont think its biased at all. I drove my 20G with almost 350 AWHP (on 92OCT) for a little over 18K miles, hard shifts occasionally, a few hard launches and had just started to crack 3rd gear. But also look at people who have destroyed "built" transmissions, it was something foolish that most of the time could have been prevented.
 
#48 ·
^^ I auto-x'd for a yr and a half on that tranny and never dumped it. Soft launches, yes.... And never had a problem in 44K +/-. Wish I still had 1st and 2nd to show you all.

I still think that the dry ice added a shload of torque that did mine in.
 
#52 ·
Paul: I must've forgot. You never did fully explain the boulder incident.

John: Think about what you posted though. If your front tires are on ice then the open diff will just keep sending power to the tire that spins the most. Thus not very helpful. Granted if you are on ice enough in a winter season you should be using studded tires (check local and state laws. A lot of places prohibit the use of studded tires). Also, the rear tires won't just sit there and spin either. But, it helps to have both ends working to get the car out of a bad situation and not just one end.
 
#56 ·
Update: a fresh set of stock ratio helical cut Albins gears have finally been ordered and are on their way from Austrailia (I was told the Albins rep was on vacation in Singapore and just returned) and I might have changed my mind about upgrading the front differential - anybody have any experience with or words of wisdom regarding a Cusco front diff?
 
#57 ·
Glad to hear your parts are ordered and on the way. If your progress slows up anymore, then I might actually get my car back about the same time you get yours. :D My parts were ordered last week. The machice work and piston coatings are what is slowing up my progress thus far.
 
#60 ·
I know for a fact the Mfactory gears are worth next to nothing. I knew one other guy in WA running the Mfactory diff and he liked it also. Idk if he is still running it as I havent talked to him in ages. If it goes, guess I will have to upgrade again, lol.
 
#61 ·
Okay so it's the gears that are crap, but the diffs are good...Hmmmm learned something today I guess. I am still running all factory stuff, but I haven't seen the need to upgrade it though.
 
#63 ·
I don't think the diffs on the car are that "bad" until you get crazy stupid with power. But, if the MFactory diff is more than a "open" diff that the OEM is. Then its a upgrade possibly worth it to most people. STIs have a helical front diff...so, it can't be that bad to have more than a open front diff. Just as long as its not a crazy LSD in the front that would make your turning radius poor because it would be locking too much to allow you to turn sharply.
 
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