Whining Gearbox


  • Whining Gearbox

    I think it's the thrust bearing. Its noisy as hell. It quietens down when you get into 4th and it also disappears when you engage the clutch when in neutral.

    Just wondering what peoples thoughts are going forward? I'm aiming for 450bhp. Is the standard box ok for that power? In other words, is it worth having it pulled apart and serviced?









  • #2
    Transmission input bearing. Mine does it as well, waiting till I HAVE to rebuild it to fix. If you are truly wanting that much power, I would at least pull the the trans to check the condition of the clutch. Probably go ahead and upgrade that and resurface flywheel. At that point if the trans is already out, I would go ahead and rebuild with fresh syncros, since the stock ones are typically worn or damaged by using GL5 instead of GL4 gear oil.
    Butter (credit where credit is due): "You have this "gift" where you can make cooking a Hot Pocket seem like you need a certain wavelength microwave and involve brown mustard."

  • #3
    I have a 71C that has been doing exactly the same thing for several years. At first I thought it was the input shaft bearing, then I checked for the sound with a stethoscope and the noise is coming from the rear of the transmission not the front. I have done nothing about it because the transmission is operating as it should, plus I have no idea what to do. Also my car is near bone stock.

  • #4
    Interesting… I guess I'll have to investigate the noise to see where it's coming from. Is the stock 5sp ok for 450bhp?

  • #5
    If I were to go for high horsepower I would use the 30A transmission. Now back to the whine in the gearbox. If were the input bearing why don't our transmissions whine in fourth gear. also you haven't said which five speed you have.

  • #6
    Originally posted by Gem84Znt View Post
    If I were to go for high horsepower I would use the 30A transmission. Now back to the whine in the gearbox. If were the input bearing why don't our transmissions whine in fourth gear. also you haven't said which five speed you have.
    Being honest, I have no idea which 5sp is in my car. All I know is my car is a UK specification 2+2.

  • #7
    Mine is a 30a and whines in all gears. I suspect that there are different failure modes that cause the whining, or that the driveline harmonics in particular cars may mask or mitigate the whine at various speeds or loads. I have not taken mine apart to verify which bearing is failing, just going from other people's experience. Regardless of which bearing is causing the issue, the trans has to come out to figure it out and probably be best to give it a refresh while its out.
    Butter (credit where credit is due): "You have this "gift" where you can make cooking a Hot Pocket seem like you need a certain wavelength microwave and involve brown mustard."

  • #8
    Originally posted by Big Supes View Post

    Being honest, I have no idea which 5sp is in my car. All I know is my car is a UK specification 2+2.
    It has a 30A if it's an 87+ stock turbo.

  • #9
    Originally posted by kaur View Post

    It has a 30A if it's an 87+ stock turbo.
    Thanks for confirming mate. Silly question, but do you know the correct engine code for my car?


  • #10
    Originally posted by Big Supes View Post

    Thanks for confirming mate. Silly question, but do you know the correct engine code for my car?
    Sorry, not really. I would try digging into the FSM for any info on that.

  • #11
    No probs… I'll take a look at the weekend.

  • #12
    Originally posted by Big Supes View Post

    Thanks for confirming mate. Silly question, but do you know the correct engine code for my car?
    vg30et factory turbo
    vg30e - factory na
    which codes are you talking about? O_o
    Z31 JDM my way_google translated

  • #13
    Originally posted by midian View Post

    vg30et factory turbo
    vg30e - factory na
    which codes are you talking about? O_o
    Ah ha, thanks Midian. It's a factory turbo, but didn't know if it was different for the UK. Mine must be the vg30et.

    So, what car is the vg33et in? Is this like a stroker kit or something?
    Last edited by Big Supes; 08-30-2016, 02:10 PM.

  • #14
    Open the hood and look on your strut tower. There's a metal plate about the size of a playing card that has the VIN, engine code, transmission model, and differential info (differential info that was misprinted on some late 87's and 88's) among other info. Not sure about UK models but US models had it on the left fwd strut tower.

    The 3.3's have a larger bore, stroke is exactly the same.

  • #15
    Awesome, thanks 88. I'll have a check. Do you know if there is a lot of difference in terms of tuning potential between the vg30 and the vg33?