My Duster is under the knife....TKX going in

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ESP47 said:
You get to drive it yet?
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Not yet. It was supposed to ready to go last Friday. The tech took it for a test drive and the differential started making noises that you never want to hear. Turns out the pin was working itself loose. So I had the shop order a new differential. Should be installed this week and hopefully I'll get the car on Friday.

At least now I know what the cause of the "whining noise" I heard before I dropped the car off was from.

Pic of the damage.

uIqUeXW.jpg
 
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jcolman said:
Not yet. It was supposed to ready to go last Friday. The tech took it for a test drive and the differential started making noises that you never want to hear. Turns out the pin was working itself loose. So I had the shop order a new differential. Should be installed this week and hopefully I'll get the car on Friday.

At least now I know what the cause of the "whining noise" I heard before I dropped the car off was from.

Pic of the damage.

View attachment 1715907524
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Yikes. Glad they caught it early before delivering it. Keep us updated once you get it back. Curious to see how this thing feels on the road.
 
DC Dart said:
Any updates on your progress? Hope all is well.
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I got the car back today and drove it about 12 miles. First thing I noticed was that I love how the Tremec TKX shifts. Very precise and smooth. However, I’m having an issue with the rear end. The car wants to “hop” a bit on tight turns. Also, the rear end feels too loose if I get on the gas a bit. I’m not even doing full throttle runs yet until the clutch and rear end are broken in. I had the shop put in 1” lowering blocks during the rear end rebuild as well as welding subframe connectors to stiffen up the car. I’ll pull the lowering blocks first to see if that solves the problem but my feeling is that it’s something else going on.
 
Hmm. Weird. Any vibrations, howling or wines? Wonder if the blocks are loose? Removing them could narrow things down any way.
If something was loose at the diff I would think there would be noise going down the road?
Hopefully it's a simple. Maybe something in the differential is sticking?
The subframe connectors should be nice as Hotchkis makes a nice product. Unrelated to the issue.
How does the the clutch pedal feel? I have the same set up as you but I am several months away from trying it out? What gear ratio?
Excited to see how this goes. I am on the same road just not as far. LOL
 
What kind of sure grip? A clutch or cone unit? Either way, you will benefit from finding a large open parking lot and doing a series of figure 8s. That will break in the clutches or cones. If it's a new unit, it will be very tight until it's broken in. In a light car like an A body, it will drag a tire a little around a turn.
 
DC Dart said:
Hmm. Weird. Any vibrations, howling or wines? Wonder if the blocks are loose? Removing them could narrow things down any way.
If something was loose at the diff I would think there would be noise going down the road?
Hopefully it's a simple. Maybe something in the differential is sticking?
The subframe connectors should be nice as Hotchkis makes a nice product. Unrelated to the issue.
How does the the clutch pedal feel? I have the same set up as you but I am several months away from trying it out? What gear ratio?
Excited to see how this goes. I am on the same road just not as far. LOL
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Hopefully it's just the cone in the differential sticking a bit. I'm going to take it out for a longer ride today and see if frees up a bit. I'll try what Rusty (see above post) recommends. No howling or other noise.

As for the transmission and clutch, I could not be happier. The transmission "guides" the shifter right through the gears with precision. Down shifting is a breeze too. The clutch pedal is nice and firm, but once depressed, I can keep it depressed without undue strain on my leg. The release point is about 1/2 way through the travel. I have 3:23 gears and can now go down the interstate at 75mph at 2000rpm. I chose the "close ratio" gears for the Tremec as I wanted smooth shift transission between gears. So shifting from first to second comes fairly quick from a standing start.
 
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RustyRatRod said:
What kind of sure grip? A clutch or cone unit? Either way, you will benefit from finding a large open parking lot and doing a series of figure 8s. That will break in the clutches or cones. If it's a new unit, it will be very tight until it's broken in. In a light car like an A body, it will drag a tire a little around a turn.
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I'll have to ask the shop what they ordered. My old differential was a cone type (I think because I can see the springs). The new one is a brand new unit. This is the only photo I have of it before it was installed. Maybe someone can tell by the pic?

Thanks for the suggestion about figure 8's. I'll take it out today and try that.
New unit.
RKNb2hE.jpg


Old unit

4ZGf3Tz.jpg
 
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jcolman said:
I'll have to ask the shop what they ordered. My old differential was a cone type (I think because I can see the springs). The new one is a brand new unit. This is the only photo I have of it before it was installed. Maybe someone can tell by the pic?

Thanks for the suggestion about figure 8's. I'll take it out today and try that.
New unit.
View attachment 1715934214

Old unit

View attachment 1715934215
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Your new one is a clutch type (powr-lok). It's a very good unit. It probably just needs more miles on it so gear oil can circulate through it. I hope they used some sort of friction modifier.
 
Power lock. Nice diff. Have one in my dart and an old Ford pickup. The one in the pickup was set up tight and will chirp the tires in a sharp turn with very little gas applied.
The power lock type diff is more aggressive than the cone type I believe. Also the most preferred.
Great news on the clutch and shifting. I went the close ratio too. I am running 3.55 with a power lock.
 
I drove the car today about 40 miles. The rear end feels a lot better. No skipping or jumping. You guys were right about the clutches needing a little break in time. I do notice now a bit of "howling" from the rear end when I give it gas that goes away when I let off the throttle. Hopefully it's just the gears getting broken in.

The more I drive the car, the more I love the transmission! Easily one of the the best manuals I've ever owned!
 
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jcolman said:
I drove the car today about 40 miles. The rear end feels a lot better. No skipping or jumping. You guys were right about the clutches needing a little break in time. I do notice now a bit of "howling" from the rear end when I give it gas that goes away when I let off the throttle. Hopefully it's just the gears getting broken in.

The more I drive the car, the more I love the transmission! Easily of the the best manuals I've ever owned!
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How does the shifting itself feel? I prefer the aggressiveness of say a Muncie 4 speed over the smoothness of a newer Honda. Does it still keep that aggressive feel or does it feel as smooth as a modern transmission?

Also how is the throw on it? Closer to an 833 or shorter?

Appreciate the feedback. I think I'm going to wind up getting one.
 
ESP47 said:
How does the shifting itself feel? I prefer the aggressiveness of say a Muncie 4 speed over the smoothness of a newer Honda. Does it still keep that aggressive feel or does it feel as smooth as a modern transmission?

Also how is the throw on it? Closer to an 833 or shorter?

Appreciate the feedback. I think I'm going to wind up getting one.
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I would say that it's not "Honda" smooth, rather more like a toploader in a Ford smooth. I haven't shifted a Muncie since I was a teenager so I can't really comment on that. It does invite a confident aggressive shift if you want, but if you prefer to granny shift...it will do that with ease. The throw is probably close to an 833. Hard for me to say really. My last car with a manual was a 350Z and this transmission has a longer throw than my Nissan.

You won't be dissapointed with a TKX. Like I mentioned earlier, one of the smoothest transmissions out there.
 
Howling is incorrect pinion gear depth. Tell them about it now. If it goes on like that, you will not be able to get rid of the noise.
 
Thanks for sharing all of the pics and info on your manual transmission journey!

Would you mind sharing what your shop charged for the job? I would totally understand if you didn't.

I'm in a similar situation regarding access to a lift/limits of my skills, fears about botching the job. I have surprised myself and I've done almost everything on this car myself but I just haven't been able to find the time to learn to weld and I sure am not going to practice on the single most important non human/non cat thing in my world.
 
MRGTX said:
Thanks for sharing all of the pics and info on your manual transmission journey!

Would you mind sharing what your shop charged for the job? I would totally understand if you didn't.

I'm in a similar situation regarding access to a lift/limits of my skills, fears about botching the job. I have surprised myself and I've done almost everything on this car myself but I just haven't been able to find the time to learn to weld and I sure am not going to practice on the single most important non human/non cat thing in my world.
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I’m happy to share what it cost me. I’ll post up the information tonight or tomorrow when I get home and can break done the expenses.
 
MRGTX said:
Thanks for sharing all of the pics and info on your manual transmission journey!

Would you mind sharing what your shop charged for the job? I would totally understand if you didn't.

I'm in a similar situation regarding access to a lift/limits of my skills, fears about botching the job. I have surprised myself and I've done almost everything on this car myself but I just haven't been able to find the time to learn to weld and I sure am not going to practice on the single most important non human/non cat thing in my world.
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Here you go. These are the numbers and work done from the shop. This particular shop isn't the cheapest in the area but I trust them.

TKX 5-speed conversion (replaces 727 3 speed auto)
Technician removed old automatic transmission along with various pieces. Cross-member had to be cut. Transmission cooler lines to radiator had to be removed and plugged. Full interior removed. Exhaust system had to be cut to remove driveshaft and transmission (previous exhaust shop made it one piece). Transmission was mocked up multiple times, measurements were taken and notated for warranty purposes with SST. Trans tunnel was cut and modified, new metal was added and riveted. Sheet metal that came with the kit also had to be reformed. All new metal was painted and sealed to prevent rust. Sound deadening material was laid down before installing new carpet. Interior was fully put back together. Transmission sensors and wiring modified/completed. Clutch master cylinder was mounted after modifying driver fender, primed, and painted area. Bled clutch system. Test driven.
$8,589.65 Note: this included cost of transmission, clutch, pedals and other necessary items.

Transmission Tunnel Sheetmetal Rework and Installation
Install sound deadening mat around transmission tunnel
$900.00

Driver Fender Body Work
Technician professionally modified the driver side fender for clutch master clearance, primed, painted.
$164.99

Modify wiring harness and install speedometer and reverse light connections
Technician had to extend neutral safety switch wire, relocate reverse light wiring, extend and re-wire speedometer wiring.
$150.00
 
That’s a good deal on all they had to do, and how nice it turned out.
 
Car Nut said:
That’s a good deal on all they had to do, and how nice it turned out.
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I was happy with the work. I also had a bunch of other, mostly little things, done while the car was in the shop. The other big item was a new rear end. Also, I forgot to include $662 for new carpeting. My total spent was just over $16k
 
jcolman said:
Here you go. These are the numbers and work done from the shop. This particular shop isn't the cheapest in the area but I trust them.

TKX 5-speed conversion (replaces 727 3 speed auto)
Technician removed old automatic transmission along with various pieces. Cross-member had to be cut. Transmission cooler lines to radiator had to be removed and plugged. Full interior removed. Exhaust system had to be cut to remove driveshaft and transmission (previous exhaust shop made it one piece). Transmission was mocked up multiple times, measurements were taken and notated for warranty purposes with SST. Trans tunnel was cut and modified, new metal was added and riveted. Sheet metal that came with the kit also had to be reformed. All new metal was painted and sealed to prevent rust. Sound deadening material was laid down before installing new carpet. Interior was fully put back together. Transmission sensors and wiring modified/completed. Clutch master cylinder was mounted after modifying driver fender, primed, and painted area. Bled clutch system. Test driven.
$8,589.65 Note: this included cost of transmission, clutch, pedals and other necessary items.

Transmission Tunnel Sheetmetal Rework and Installation
Install sound deadening mat around transmission tunnel
$900.00

Driver Fender Body Work
Technician professionally modified the driver side fender for clutch master clearance, primed, painted.
$164.99

Modify wiring harness and install speedometer and reverse light connections
Technician had to extend neutral safety switch wire, relocate reverse light wiring, extend and re-wire speedometer wiring.
$150.00
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Thanks for posting all of this up!
That's a lot of cash but there's no mystery as to where it went.

It cracks me up to think that I spent $700 on my Dart Sport back in the 1990s and it came with a perfectly fine transmission which (after some modifications) is holding up very well to a 460hp/520lb-ft small block...and I'm now seriously thinking about how I'll save up to make this happen.
 
Great reading. Seems you found some trustworthy folks to perform this work. What shop did you use to perform this work and what other work do they offer?
 
A56 said:
Great reading. Seems you found some trustworthy folks to perform this work. What shop did you use to perform this work and what other work do they offer?
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Velocity motor works in Raleigh. They do a lot of custom work and tuning of all cars. I've seen some expensive cars roll through their shop.
 
MRGTX said:
Thanks for posting all of this up!
That's a lot of cash but there's no mystery as to where it went.

It cracks me up to think that I spent $700 on my Dart Sport back in the 1990s and it came with a perfectly fine transmission which (after some modifications) is holding up very well to a 460hp/520lb-ft small block...and I'm now seriously thinking about how I'll save up to make this happen.
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I know right!?? The money I spend on a new transmission and rear end could of purchased an entire car!!
 
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