The truck in my signature was an automatic used for towing a 38’ 5th wheel.
I was disappointed with the performance of the E40D while towing the 5th wheel and convinced myself the truck would perform better with a manual transmission.
In 2008 I bought a wrecked 97CC 4x4 that had a ZF5 and decided to swap out the E40D in my truck. Though it was missing the motor, the donor truck had everything else (wiring harness, PCM, pedal cluster, steering column, etc) to do the conversion the right way.
Because I hate leaving anything to chance, the ZF5 was rebuilt and everything else that was considered a wear item was replaced.
The transmission was rebuilt in Spring of 2009 and sat in my garage (filled with oil) until I installed it in my truck during Summer of 2011.
I really like driving with the manual transmission when the truck is unloaded or just slightly loaded. With the 5th wheel attached it’s a whole different picture. I feel there is to wide a ratio between 1st & 2nd gears making it hard to get the trailer rolling (especially on hills) without a lot of jerking between shifts.
Some could say the problem is that I don’t know how to drive a stick shift……fair enough
. Having owned nothing but manual transmission cars & pickups in the past, I feel I’ve given this setup a fair trial and have decided to convert back to the E40D. I’ve made an appointment in mid-January to have a BTS transmission built for the truck.
If you are interested in converting your OBS truck from an auto to a manual, I have all the parts necessary to do the job. Look at my posting in the “Classifieds” section under "Engine and Drivetrain Items", titled
The ZF5 transmission is still in my truck. I’m hoping to find someone within driving distance who will be interested in the parts and can come out to drive the truck so they know exactly what they are getting. This truck is not my daily driver, therefore it’s only accumulated 6200 miles since the conversion.
If you live near the Portland, OR area and are interested in this setup, I would be happy to let you test drive and go over all the details of the conversion.
I was disappointed with the performance of the E40D while towing the 5th wheel and convinced myself the truck would perform better with a manual transmission.
In 2008 I bought a wrecked 97CC 4x4 that had a ZF5 and decided to swap out the E40D in my truck. Though it was missing the motor, the donor truck had everything else (wiring harness, PCM, pedal cluster, steering column, etc) to do the conversion the right way.
Because I hate leaving anything to chance, the ZF5 was rebuilt and everything else that was considered a wear item was replaced.
The transmission was rebuilt in Spring of 2009 and sat in my garage (filled with oil) until I installed it in my truck during Summer of 2011.
I really like driving with the manual transmission when the truck is unloaded or just slightly loaded. With the 5th wheel attached it’s a whole different picture. I feel there is to wide a ratio between 1st & 2nd gears making it hard to get the trailer rolling (especially on hills) without a lot of jerking between shifts.
Some could say the problem is that I don’t know how to drive a stick shift……fair enough
. Having owned nothing but manual transmission cars & pickups in the past, I feel I’ve given this setup a fair trial and have decided to convert back to the E40D. I’ve made an appointment in mid-January to have a BTS transmission built for the truck.If you are interested in converting your OBS truck from an auto to a manual, I have all the parts necessary to do the job. Look at my posting in the “Classifieds” section under "Engine and Drivetrain Items", titled
“All Parts Needed for E40D to ZF5 Conversion”.
The ZF5 transmission is still in my truck. I’m hoping to find someone within driving distance who will be interested in the parts and can come out to drive the truck so they know exactly what they are getting. This truck is not my daily driver, therefore it’s only accumulated 6200 miles since the conversion.
If you live near the Portland, OR area and are interested in this setup, I would be happy to let you test drive and go over all the details of the conversion.
