4l60e to nv4500 1995 rcsb 2wd

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Nw2000

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Hey everyone. For a while now I have been interested in the idea of a manual swap in my 1995 c1500 rcsb 2wd. After some reading on these forums it makes sense to go with the nv4500 instead of the nv3500 due to the fact I may want to upgrade the engine down the line. I have a few questions. Firstly What all would I have to get to make everything mount up? Will I have to get a different length driveshaft or a different crossmember? Does the transmission have to be year specific? Also will replacing the electronic 4l60e with a manual make it easier to eliminate tbi and replace it with a carb or after market efi if tbi gets in the way of more performance? I know it’s a lot of questions but thank y’all for any help y’all can provide.
 

packer0440

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Unless you're going absolutely nuts with power don't completely throw the NV3500 out the window. It's usually much cheaper to obtain, takes cheaper oil, shifts faster, and is much lighter than the NV4500. If you get the 93-up version, they're not bad transmissions. They just start to fail with severe heavy-duty use or with tons of power running through it. Just think about what you will actually do with the truck before deciding.

For a 1995 truck, you'll need to get a 92-95 version of the NV4500. The 96-up version uses an internal slave setup, and the master cylinder mounting is incompatible with the firewall of the 1995 and it's kind of troublesome to find a solution. They also changed the transmission to bellhousing bolt pattern after 1995 so you can't just get a 96-up trans and put an earlier bellhousing on it. FWIW, you'll find it extremely difficult to get a 1995 version. It has closer ratio gearing than the earlier ones, gets the updated shift tower, but still retains the external slave bellhousing, and it is 1 year only and sought after.

For driveshafts, try your best to find a transmission that has a slip yoke output. You'll probably need a different driveshaft regardless but it's much easier than trying to make a 2-piece driveshaft work with a fixed yoke trans, especially on a short truck. You'll need a new transmission mount but the crossmember should be the same.

As far as electronics, the engine controls are different for manual vs automatic transmissions in 1995. While this doesn't make the swap impossible, there may be a few things out of sync with how the engine runs with the stock computer. If you switch things up, it's one less thing to worry about though.
 

Nw2000

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Unless you're going absolutely nuts with power don't completely throw the NV3500 out the window. It's usually much cheaper to obtain, takes cheaper oil, shifts faster, and is much lighter than the NV4500. If you get the 93-up version, they're not bad transmissions. They just start to fail with severe heavy-duty use or with tons of power running through it. Just think about what you will actually do with the truck before deciding.

For a 1995 truck, you'll need to get a 92-95 version of the NV4500. The 96-up version uses an internal slave setup, and the master cylinder mounting is incompatible with the firewall of the 1995 and it's kind of troublesome to find a solution. They also changed the transmission to bellhousing bolt pattern after 1995 so you can't just get a 96-up trans and put an earlier bellhousing on it. FWIW, you'll find it extremely difficult to get a 1995 version. It has closer ratio gearing than the earlier ones, gets the updated shift tower, but still retains the external slave bellhousing, and it is 1 year only and sought after.

For driveshafts, try your best to find a transmission that has a slip yoke output. You'll probably need a different driveshaft regardless but it's much easier than trying to make a 2-piece driveshaft work with a fixed yoke trans, especially on a short truck. You'll need a new transmission mount but the crossmember should be the same.

As far as electronics, the engine controls are different for manual vs automatic transmissions in 1995. While this doesn't make the swap impossible, there may be a few things out of sync with how the engine runs with the stock computer. If you switch things up, it's one less thing to worry about though.
Thanks for the wealth of information. The engine in the truck right now is a stock 350 tbi that came out of an 89’ all it has is shorty headers and upgraded exhaust so power wise it’s pretty much stock. I’m happy with the power but I go back and forth about whether or not I’d want to spend the money upgrading power later on. Hypothetically speaking what all would I need if I went the nv3500 route? Is it pretty much the same idea as what I would need for the nv4500?
 

Dropped88

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The nv3500 is not a bad trans. You can't clutch dump and abuse like that but they can handle some power

I have one in a suburban behind a tuned 5.3 and a stock 5.3 makes more power then what the "suppose" rating is of the 5.3
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Nw2000

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The nv3500 is not a bad trans. You can't clutch dump and abuse like that but they can handle some power

I have one in a suburban behind a tuned 5.3 and a stock 5.3 makes more power then what the "suppose" rating is of the 5.3
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Yeah I’m not very rough on my vehicles. It’s a nearly 30 year old truck so I don’t drive it like a race car lol.
 

Dropped88

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Same I don't beat on that one. But I have got "spirited" with the skinny pedal after the shift transition lol
 

packer0440

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Thanks for the wealth of information. The engine in the truck right now is a stock 350 tbi that came out of an 89’ all it has is shorty headers and upgraded exhaust so power wise it’s pretty much stock. I’m happy with the power but I go back and forth about whether or not I’d want to spend the money upgrading power later on. Hypothetically speaking what all would I need if I went the nv3500 route? Is it pretty much the same idea as what I would need for the nv4500?
I'd say that it's pretty much the same as the NV4500, less the bellhousing since it is integral to the case (can be annoying to get a bellhousing for an early model NV4500). I'd stay away from the 92 and earlier units since they are more prone to failure and much more complex to rebuild when they do fail. Also, more likely for an NV3500 to have a slip yoke output since it was used in the 1/2 tons which tend to be shorter and have a 1 piece driveshaft
 

Nw2000

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I'd say that it's pretty much the same as the NV4500, less the bellhousing since it is integral to the case (can be annoying to get a bellhousing for an early model NV4500). I'd stay away from the 92 and earlier units since they are more prone to failure and much more complex to rebuild when they do fail. Also, more likely for an NV3500 to have a slip yoke output since it was used in the 1/2 tons which tend to be shorter and have a 1 piece driveshaft
So if I were to go the nv3500 route it would probably be easiest to find it out of a rcsb of a 1993 and above that way I can get the right driveshaft while I’m at it? At that point could I just bolt it right in and drill the hole for the master cylinder then install the clutch pedal and cut the hole in the floor for the shifter? Am I missing anything? You mentioned the computer may act up since it’s designed for an auto so what would I need to do to alleviate that? Also would swapping to manual make it easier to outfit aftermarket efi since I don’t have to fool with a transmission controller? Sorry for the ignorance I’ve never done anything like this.
 

packer0440

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Should be right on as far as the driveshaft goes, in some cases if there is a different rear end you may need a conversion u joint but odds are it would be good to go.

You'd also need to wire up the reverse lights, and, if you are thorough, install a manual steering column and gage cluster, although the truck will still drive without doing so.

As far as the engine controls, the only way to fix it would be to swap the computer for a manual trans unit. I'd personally just send it and not worry about it. If you plan to upgrade later it would be less of a hassle since you wouldn't need to worry about the transmission controller.
 

Nw2000

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Should be right on as far as the driveshaft goes, in some cases if there is a different rear end you may need a conversion u joint but odds are it would be good to go.

You'd also need to wire up the reverse lights, and, if you are thorough, install a manual steering column and gage cluster, although the truck will still drive without doing so.

As far as the engine controls, the only way to fix it would be to swap the computer for a manual trans unit. I'd personally just send it and not worry about it. If you plan to upgrade later it would be less of a hassle since you wouldn't need to worry about the transmission controller.
All of this sounds really doable for someone with my skill level of wrenching. The rear end on it currently is a 3.42 gear ratio and I’m assuming is just a standard half ton rear end. I’ll probably gather parts for it here and there and fool with it as time allows. Honestly the 2 options in my mind for upgrading the engine would either be to put vortec heads and an aftermarket cam to get around 300hp on my existing 350 which in that case I’d probably want after market efi or just do an ls swap and leave the engine stock since it doesn’t take a whole lot of power to have fun in these little trucks.
 
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