KA24DE 5-speed noises & such

[Boaty]

Well, such is life but the bad luck bug keeps following me around.

 

I'm using a 5-speed from an S13/KA24DE in my 510.

Well... after 6K miles some things have changed noise-wise and I am starting to get really concerned, to the point I don't trust driving out of town now.

I will try to get a video tonight once it cools off so you guys can hear this thing, but my phone really doesn't like ambient noise. But I will try!

 

Here's a simplified list of what's going on:

 

1.) Transmission shifts fine, and smooth. Only on a very rare occasion, 1st gear is hard to get into until I get into a dead stop without rev-matching.

2.) It whines in 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 5th gears. 4th gear has no whine. (Counter-shaft bearing?)

3.) It occasionally makes a nasty crunch sound on throttle-blips in-gear (bearing slap?)

4.) On deceleration/off-throttle, it makes a nasty sounding crunchy-growling sound in all gears. (This is a new development, and has me concerned)

5.) The whining gets worse at operating temp than when cold.

6.) The crunchy noises on decel/off-throttle are worse at operating temp than when cold.

7.) Coasting in any gear with the clutch in at speed, it doesn't make any noises.

8.) Doesn't make odd noises in neutral, except for input shaft bearing noise. (Whurrs really bad in neutral at idle, hit clutch it goes away)

9.) At idle, if I let the clutch out really fast in neutral, it occasionally makes a horrible cracking/crunch noise then starts whurring. (Input shaft bearing is toast, me thinks.)

10.) If I come to a stop with the clutch in (tranny in 1st gear), it kind of sounds like I'm driving a 70's full size truck in 4-wheel low, and when I stop the gear whine goes away. Does not do this in neutral, only when in gear/clutch in. This is a new development as well.

 

 

I am going to call around this upcoming week to get a quote on how much it's going to cost to get this transmission rebuilt, but if it's going to be costly I'm going to just end up buying another used tranny. I have next to zero experience with transmissions and I don't want to rebuild it myself. I don't have the tools, or the shop, or the experience even with a FSM to dig into this. But I'm scared to go on any lengthy trip with it in this condition. I've been avoiding the freeways.

 

When I went to California a few weeks back, is when these issues started popping up. Lots of freeway driving with some spirited driving in the mix as well on the fun run. The whine, I can deal with - even if it's annoying. But I find myself cruising along in 4th gear almost all the time now (except on the freeway) just so I don't have to listen to it. All other gears have become annoying, and quite frankly this transmission sounds like shit.

 

So in a nutshell, I'd like somebody with some experience to chime in with some pointers if you have any. And FWIW, I'm using GL-4 Redline MT90 as recommended by everybody, but I think the previous owner either ran this tranny dry and drove on it for days, or the mileage is higher than I thought.

 

So here's some technical questions I have.

 

1.) Are 240sx trannies the same as truck transmissions in the same vintage? 90's Nissan trucks? Are they 240sx specific?

2.) What other vehicles can I harvest this same transmission out of?

3.) In your opinion, what would be an acceptable rebuild cost (including parts and labor)?

4.) What is the tranny ID number for a 91-94 240sx KA 5-speed? Google is giving me conflicting results and is pissing me off.

 

And I suppose it would be fair to ask if anybody in the Oregon area has a known-GOOD KA trans laying around.

 

Blah, all this stuff happens right around this time of year and generally yields me Datsun-less through the winter months, and I was REALLY hoping that wouldn't happen this year (like it has the last 4 years). I did my 5sp swap with the L20B with 8" of snow on the ground with drop lamps at 2AM. Blew a headgasket mid-December and fixed that in the pouring rain/ice. Had to swap in an open 3.90 rear end in mid winter last year. I have shit luck, and no place to enjoy said shit-luck except my dirt and gravel drive way. Haha, really annoying!

[Boaty]

Here's a shitty video I took.

I'm gonna have to wrap my phone in like dynamat or somethin, the mic is wayyy sensitive when I take video.

But, you can hear the input shaft carnage fairly well...

 

[Boaty]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/261077702477?hlp=false#shId

 

Okay so it looks like the trans I have is a FS5W71H so that helps. Headache didn't help my google ability.

Word of advice: Never consult the oracle in a shit mood.

 

So that isn't that bad for the rebuild kit, seems to be the kit most people use after perusing the forums on Zilvia and Nico, etc. So now comes the labor part... maybe I can find a good deal come next week on labor somewhere. Here's to hoping.

[JakeWard]

Truck tranny is not the same. All 240 transmissions work, SR20 KA24de and KA24E so long as you have the correct bellhousing.

 

AND

 

http://portland.craigslist.org/wsc/pts/3270680655.html

[Ranman72]

sounds like bearing whine crunching probably parts of the bearings time for complete go through for rebuild

[Uber Deaf One]

Damn... that sucks!!!

 

It will be cheaper to buy another used transmission and hope it works. I also have some transmission problems I don't like. I'm going to pick up a used transmission whenever I get around to it, and swap it in. I'll leave the better transmission in, and pay to have the other one fully rebuilt.

[datzenmike]

1.) Are 240sx trannies the same as truck transmissions in the same vintage? 90's Nissan trucks? Are they 240sx specific?

They are both FS5W71C transmissions. The S13 tranny is longer than the the truck one.

 

2.) What other vehicles can I harvest this same transmission out of?

S13s.......... S14 would probably work too. You would need a longer driveshaft and move the shifter hole forward slightly to use the Hardbody truck FS5W71C (it's shorter in length)... unless way cheaper and easier to find.

 

3.) In your opinion, what would be an acceptable rebuild cost (including parts and labor)?

$400-$600? but probably better quality parts used. Have no idea of the quality in the rebuild kits on e-bay.... could be from China. Made in Japan ok

 

4.) What is the tranny ID number for a 91-94 240sx KA 5-speed? Google is giving me conflicting results and is pissing me off.

There were 4 distinct part numbers used on the S13 during the '89 - '94 run. They should all interchange. The Nisan part number for '91 to 01 '93 is 32010-51F00 (about $2,200) There is no ID number on it or any lettering that is helpful in IDing them that I can see.

[Creepy Cruiser]

Advanced auto parts has complete kits (with syncros) for $112 shipped right now. (after all the discounts and crap)