Thread: Astro stick shift 5 speed

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I am building a 383 SBC Astro.I know the 5 speed's that are becoming more and more rare to find for Astro vans and are not the strongest tranny to use.In fact they are barely strong enough for use behind the stock V6 4.3.

I know of one Astro owner who did a upgrade to use his behind a 383.This link is from a archive that did go threw a number of crashes,but I think you can get the jest of what he did.I have a paper copy of the thread before the crashes.

http://archives.astrosafari.com/ikon...ST;f=6;t=14773
The thread is kind of long,but please to spend time reading it.

The version for Astro's has a rare shifter,bell housing,peddle and master/slave cylinder,stick shift steering column,neutral safety wiring.Now I am working a deal on a parts van that has a tranny in need of a rebuild.The rest of the van isn't worth rebuilding.


In the past,I owned two Arerostar vans the for the most part have the same tranny.I liked them and they did with the V6's get outstanding gas mileage.Might be just me,but I think stick shifted engine last longer because of their one to one drive over a slipping torque converter in a automatic.

So going in,I know these trannies "could" be the weak link and would require some serious investment to work for my mod which is basically a over the road towing van.


Guess I am looking for some input from you guys who's opinion I hold in high regard.Be brutally honest and don't hold anything back.If need be,talk me out of buying the parts van if you feel it's a mistake.I hate making mistakes.


One other thing to consider here is I intend to use a Howards crank/Scat rods/Mahle pistons for the 383 mod.Don't think the 4.3 flywheel would mate up to the crank very well for the balance of the engine.Comments about that are welcome as well.External balance.

The S10 T5, which is basicly what the astro trans is, with a diffrent tailshaft/ shifter. won't hold up behind much more than a mild 350, and any hard shifts, are going to scatter parts on the pavement.. your better off with a 700 R4 automatic, beefed up with a trans cooler, and some upgraded parts... aside from that, you might be able to use a V8 Mustang T5, with the S10 input shaft, and Astro tailshaft. it will have to be modded to work, but I know that has been done

Thanks for that Matt.The stock tranny is only rated for 170 lbs of torque.That is the main reason behind the build thread I listed.Thing is I don't know how it worked out long term because I lost track of that poster.I do have a 1991 truck V8 700 automatic set aside for my swap that has the good V8 clutches.

Here is another link that lists the parts for a stick shift swap on Astro vans:

http://home.earthlink.net/~rhocott/id1.html


The main reason behind me being temped to buy the swap is the link build of the tranny where he used a number of the World Class parts.But still I don't know the long term results.

The Astro T5 also has a unique front shaft spline, and there isn't a bigger clutch that has that spline. You have to swap the input shaft to get a clutch that will hold your V8 down, and that opens up a whole new can of worms with various gear ratios not being interchangeable, etc.
You'd better have a good working relationship with your friendly local GM parts man!

another option, is a Camaro/ Firebird T5, with the astro tailshaft.. S10/ Camaro tailshafts swap with the speedo gear relocated. so the Astro should swap also

Originally Posted by Matt167

another option, is a Camaro/ Firebird T5, with the astro tailshaft.. S10/ Camaro tailshafts swap with the speedo gear relocated. so the Astro should swap also

I'm pretty sure the Astro van T5 uses the Ford bolt pattern, thus would not be compatible the 3rd generation F body T5 in a swap. The 4th generation V6 T5 has the Ford pattern, but uses a 1 1/8" 26 spline input shaft.

Bob

The '85 Astro we parted out had the Chev bolt pattern.

From: http://astrosafarivans.org/bb2/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=146

"The T5 Transmissions that came in the Astro are NWC with the Ford style main case but with a Chevy spec input shaft length. Although the Astro uses a Chevy to Ford bellhousing it is the proper depth to accommodate a normal Chevy input shaft length on the trans."

Bob

gary, i just joined this site today so i'm gonna put my 2 cents to use here. i feel you on wanting a stick in your van,verrrrrry cool. with that said the t-5 in all it's glory is only good to 300 or so ft lbs. of tork.[ford world class v-8]. there are many places to get parts or complete t-5"s that can handle big tork[over 600lbs].you can try tony at [of all places] astro transmission wherehouse, he"s a good guy that i"ve dealt with. good luck,nickyb.