There went 5th gear...

Devo

New Member
Joined
Oct 10, 2005
Location
Raleigh,NC
I have a '95 YJ w/ the 2.5L and the AX-5. Over the weekendI lost 5th. All it does is grind. 1st-4th is still good. For how long I have no idea. I was thinking of replacing with a nv3550 or nv4500. I can always go back w/ the AX-5, but if I'm replacing it I want to go w/ something stronger. Has any one done either of these swaps? I can loose a couple of days if I need to, but this is my daily driver. Any input would be appriciated. Thanx :beer:
 
as with any swap unless you buying a kit there are always gotchas and minor snags. Those are both great trannys.. A quick google search showed this
http://www.high-impact.net/transmission_and_gear/nv3550_AX5replmt.htm

they charge $2290 but thats with a NEW 3550 and all the crap you need.. Not bad really.. Could be cheeper if you had a tranny to use...

search lots of info out there..
 
My first jeep had the same problem. Before I knew better I bought a junkyard AX-5 and replaced it. I salvaged the old tranny and also picked up another AX-5 with a different problem. I then yanked 5th and the counter off of it and replaced them in my original tranny and sold it. It's not that hard to do since 5th is on the rear half of the case instead of inside the front half with all the other gears. There is a longrunning thread on Pirate about an AX-15 replacement.
 
What usally happens to the ax-5 is the snap ring comes off the output shaft, then 5th gear slides toward the rear. The snap ring groove is not deep enough, and the snap ring not strong enough. Alot of the times it dont hurt the gear. So if the groove is a little tore up and the gear is still good, just jam it back on there far as it will go and put 2 small tack welds straight across from each other. This works great, and you were just going to throw the thing out anyways. Probably out last the rest of the trans.
 
I'm considering a SM465 when my AX-5 poops out. Novak makes a complete adapter kit that is a tad pricey, but you'll never have to worry about the tranny again. Plus the almost 7:1 first gear is a no-brainer. The SM420 swap is also available from Novak.
 
Thanks for all the replies. I think I'll have a little time if I keep from trying to use 5th. I think I'm going to try for the nv4500 that way i'll be ready for a 350 later. :driver:
 
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