1996 Nissan 5 speed truck trans going into 1986.5

[66buickguy]

Hey guys, I'm new to this site.How is everyone doing?....I have a 1986.5 Nissan hardbody (d21) 2 wheel drive, 4 cylinder 5 speed, extended cab truck and the transmission has been going out for roughly 8,000 miles because I put GL-5 gear oil in it instead of the GL-4 that it required.....(I went to 4 different places trying to find GL-4 only gear grease and no one had it around the Omaha area)......So, i figured what the hey, how much different can it be..........In about 600 miles the transmission was grinding and spitting internals into the drain pan when I finally ordered GL-4 gear oil off of ebay......Transmission now will barely even go into gear and sounds like grinding ice in a blender......I found a fairly low mileage 1996 5 speed transmission at a local salvage yard but noticed that the transmission doesnt have a speedo cable.....It looks to have some electronic speed sensor setup with two wires coming out of it....The housing and even where the sensor goes into the trans looks identical to mine......Is it possible for me to remove the newer electronic setup and install my older cable style into this newer trans?.....If so, does the speedo cable mount just slide out of the trans or do I have to take something loose inside the trans to get it out? I did pull the 10mm bolt loose and attempted to move it with a pair of channel locks but she's in there really tight.....Thank's guys.....Any help will be greatly appreciated..

[frapjap]

Welcome to NICO!

Bummer to hear about your transmission. I wouldn't have thought that the gear oil would've been that different either. Go figure!

I'd wager a guess that your cable might work and its worth checking out. I mean, the worst that can happen is that your speedo doesn't work.

You may want to try to take a peek at the FSM for those year models and see if there is any major difference.
They're free via PDF to members, and you can find a link in my signature below.
I'm sure some others will chime in with some suggestions, too.

Another thought- If it doesnt work, maybe you can see if the cluster is plug and play and swap the cluster along with the new style cable and transmission over to your truck?

[66buickguy]

Thank's for the reply Frapjap.......I was thinking the same thing as well.......The truck is just my unstoppable little beater and I could drive off the tach if I have to....(the speedo was off about 15mph before anyways so ive gotten pretty good at judging speed)....lol.....The crappy thing is.....every other time I make a trip to the salvage yard I find 5 of my exact transmissions.....I did find one of the exact trans last weekend but I checked the trans grease before I pulled it and someone had it filled with what seemed to be 10w-30 motor oil.....TONS of metal shavings on the magnet....

[frapjap]

You're exactly right- they're pretty tough to kill. My father had one that was eventually beat into submission, but not after 150k of serious abuse beyond its capability.
Smart move checking the magnetic plug! Saved yourself a ton of headache that way. Do they pull the engines and transmission at your salvage yard and stick them on a shelf, or do they get bought that quickly?

[66buickguy]

Theyre mostly self pull junk yards....we do have a couple salvage yards in Omaha where they pull the parts for you but charge an arm and a leg for parts.....and still not guaranteed good......It seems like parts for the hard bodies and toyota trucks go pretty quick but I usually get lucky in about a month of going once a week.....I actually put a wanted add on craigslist and had a gentlemen call me today with a trans he's had sitting in his garage for a couple yrs.....he says he purchased a rolled 2x4....93 hardbody, used the motor out of it in his 4x4, and kept the 5 speed trans....has no use for it because the 2x4 trans won't work in his 4x4....I'm going to take a look at it tonight.....keeping my fingers crossed hoping that is has the correct 80-90 GL-4 grease in it...

[Desert Rat]

Different motors...is bell housing bolt pattern the same between the Z24 and KA engines?

[66buickguy]

The KA24 and Z24 have the same bolt pattern but I'm wondering if the newer KA trans/bell housing has threads for the starter bolts to go into.....I think the 240sx transmission's bolt into the starter......I hope the newer trucks still bolt into bell housing....I could use a longer bolt and nut but I'll probably never get the starter shimmed correctly.....

[Dattebayo]

They have a totally different starter, so I'm thinking it won't work if that helps at all.

[66buickguy]

Hey guys, Well, I purchased the 1993 transmission for 125 bucks and installed it last weekend, new clutch, pressure plate, throw out, pilot, etc......the starter bolted up fine to my surprise...(still had the threads in the bellhousing).....But, the transmission is making a clunking/ grinding noise in reverse....reverse still works; ive just been pampering it....All 5 forward gears work and shift like new....(not one bit of whinning/ grinding coming from 1st through 5th)........Just my luck...lol....reverse was the only gear in my old trans that didnt make any noise.....Is it possible for me to crack the case open and swap out reverse gears/bearings without removing trans from the truck?.....If not, how hard is this to do bench top?.....Also, when I pulled the shifter plate off I noticed a spring underneath the 17mm bolt that holds the plate on.......Is this a check ball setup for reverse that could be messed up or something? Thank's guys

[PapaSmurf2k3]

Unfortunately you have to pull the trans to pull the guts. They all come out from the front.
My KA trans has been sporadically clunking in reverse for ~9 years now. It sure doesn't like it when you try to shift into reverse if you have any type of backwards speed at all (you have to be fully stopped to not clunk). In my other 240, you can shift into reverse while rolling 5mph and it doesn't care haha.

[66buickguy]

Thanks Papasmurf..... Yeah, I figured it would have to come back out......I'll probably just leave it be and pamper it......the truck does have 312,000 miles on it so how much longer can it last...lol......Both of my trans dont like going into reverse as well....even with a slight forward or backward roll they will grind....and I usually have to rock it forward in 1st to get the trans to fall into reverse......she's been a damn good little truck though....not bad mileage and indestructible....barely enough power to pull a small pop up camper and not near enough power to pull it through mountains but keep the little Z full on clean oil and it won't disappoint for everyday common driving....