WRX gear box. how strong? GD VS GC

[lunchie]

Hey guys I have a question

How strong is the GD shape WRX gearbox, I know the 6speeds are awesum and that the GC series box's would go boom with a bit of abuse but the GD V7 and up got a new box I believe, just wondering if anyone here has subjected one to any serious abuse and what was the result?

Also can they deal with a few mods? or do they not like much power increase over stock?

Anyone done any serious kms on one?

[Pappu1]

running 224kw at wheels on my old wrx gda and the box is holding super good. the new owner can verify that as the car has seen a few track days already

[kamineko]

how hard are you on gearboxes? its the same question IMO

[ODB]

its pretty much considered bulletproof for a street car.

AFAIK they are rated up to around 600hp but this could just be a figure pulled out of someones ass. Id figure with the 6 speed your weakest link would then be axles or diffs??

I guess the real beauty is the strength but still very liveable with on a daily basis. dog boxes would be a biartch to drive daily.

[lunchie]

 ODB said:

its pretty much considered bulletproof for a street car.

AFAIK they are rated up to around 600hp but this could just be a figure pulled out of someones ass. Id figure with the 6 speed your weakest link would then be axles or diffs??

I guess the real beauty is the strength but still very liveable with on a daily basis. dog boxes would be a biartch to drive daily.

you mean the 6 speeds are rated to 600hp? or the 5 speeds?

[ODB]

lol

def not the 5 speeds bro.

If you are looking to buy a 6 speed Shale on here has one for sale. PM her.

Hardly been used!

[lunchie]

haha nar I dont want to waste her time, not looking to buy just trying to get a clear picture in my mind of how the GD shape running gear stacks up with the GC

I have finally kicked all the debt to the kerb and now have +$$ instead of -$$ so I am looking for something to aim for.

I dont really want a track car, just something reliable and new with enough power to entertain me from time to time.

Just wanting to know if the likes of 160-170kw atw will stress a GD shape 5 speed transmission really.

[Guest boostin]

Lol, no, it should be fine. It's shock loading like dumping the clutch that kills them.

I've got a 95 GT Legacy non-205kw box in my Legacy, had it in there for about 3 years now, running anywhere from 130kw atw to 186kw and had no issues. The GDA WRX box would be stronger than that so would handle a bit more power and abuse. They're not as glass as they're made out to be.

[Pappu1]

and service it with good oil before putting in car wud be another small step i wud recomend as recently seen someone buy a 2nd hand box that died soon after and the supplier said he needed to haver serviced it b4 putting as no one really knows the tru condition exept kms possibly

[lunchie]

Ok cheers guys thats some good info, what about the engines? anyone put serious kms on a GD series WRX engine? 200+?

[QBALLZ]

I know this is an old post, buuut im going to post on here anyway ;D My bug eye is the first gen GDA and is at 220km. Pretty sure the previous owner either had the internals freshened up or it was lovingly cared for, but judging by the uber clean cam seals and colured sealant in places im assuming it has been cracked open. She is currently running 193kw at the wheels on 1.1bar, tuned, and still purrs like a kitten-no knocking, rattles, ticking(touch-wood) etc. I say treat em mean but keep em clean. Services and good tuning go a long way. Just my thoughts.

[lunchie]

 QBALLZ said:

I know this is an old post, buuut im going to post on here anyway ;D My bug eye is the first gen GDA and is at 220km. Pretty sure the previous owner either had the internals freshened up or it was lovingly cared for, but judging by the uber clean cam seals and colured sealant in places im assuming it has been cracked open. She is currently running 193kw at the wheels on 1.1bar, tuned, and still purrs like a kitten-no knocking, rattles, ticking(touch-wood) etc. I say treat em mean but keep em clean. Services and good tuning go a long way. Just my thoughts.

sti or wrx?

[QBALLZ]

Well its supposed to be a WRX but without cracking the motor open im not sure. I run the 5speed nz new gearbox, I never launch it but not shy on feeding the herb into it. Doubt it will take much more power, as its making a few noises, but shifts fine. Biggest abuse would engine braking with the 6 puck and 5kg fly wheel. ;D

[QBALLZ]

well i suppose i had better update this post ;D the 5-speed has given up the ghost. I hit a RPM cut (safety mechanism set up in the LINK) and the shock has blown the gear box, i got back on the gas a bit quick and cut again and it was enough to finally shock it to death. I knew it was coming as it had been making noises for a little while in 3rd. So the 5-speeds are good but but hard driving and engine braking will slowly kill it. ;D

[lunchie]

impressive how long it lasted. Can you describe your ownership experience with the box, how long you had it and how much power/death you gave it

[QBALLZ]

 lunchie said:

impressive how long it lasted. Can you describe your ownership experience with the box, how long you had it and how much power/death you gave it

I found it ok, but when I bought it I noticed that it was whirring in 4th. It never affected its performance, just abit annoying. Powerwise it handled the 200atwkw sweet az rolling, I have only launched it once but its been given afew redumps in the wet. I started to wear the 4th gear syncro, from changing gear to quickly. Engine braking would have tested it also, coming into corners, I do matchrev but it still felt like it was pushing the limit. For your daily driven wrx they are fine, but start driving them harder with a slight power increase and they will eventually fade. Ive gone back to a gc series RA box and diff, as I cant justify a $2500 for a 6speed plus diff,axles,hubs etc.

[QBALLZ]

If one can afford it or find a wrecked GDB with all the running gear then use it otherwise I would use the older GC sti boxes, especially the RA with widened 1,2,3rd gears for better load spread. This is just my opinion, but if you are brutal on any box you will kill it, alot of power or not

[funkytown]

 QBALLZ said:

If one can afford it or find a wrecked GDB with all the running gear then use it otherwise I would use the older GC sti boxes, especially the RA with widened 1,2,3rd gears for better load spread. This is just my opinion, but if you are brutal on any box you will kill it, alot of power or not

sorry but this makes no sense, when all you\'ve talked about above is no dumping it (so no massive loading on 1st / 2nd), and then you broke 4th, which is \'normalized\' on the gc / gd box...?

[QBALLZ]

 funkytown']

[quote name='QBALLZ said:

If one can afford it or find a wrecked GDB with all the running gear then use it otherwise I would use the older GC sti boxes, especially the RA with widened 1,2,3rd gears for better load spread. This is just my opinion, but if you are brutal on any box you will kill it, alot of power or not

/quote]

sorry but this makes no sense, when all you\'ve talked about above is no dumping it (so no massive loading on 1st / 2nd), and then you broke 4th, which is \'normalized\' on the gc / gd box...?

???I never actually said what i broke, i still dont know yet. I did mention that i was \'wearing out\' 4th syncro-from too many flat shifts from 3rd to 4th :. In my particular case, this box did not like it.As far as launching the box, i did it once, felt a bit brutal so never did it again. I\'m going to see how the GC RA box goes, wont be as strong as the 6speed GDB but will definatley be better than a GDA non STI 5speed.

[Guest]

I had a whine in 4th before the teeth completely shore off it in 5sp gc box. Did you ever strip the box? Wondered if the whine in mine was related to 4th disappearing.

[lunchie]

 QBALLZ']

[quote name='QBALLZ said:

If one can afford it or find a wrecked GDB with all the running gear then use it otherwise I would use the older GC sti boxes, especially the RA with widened 1,2,3rd gears for better load spread. This is just my opinion, but if you are brutal on any box you will kill it, alot of power or not

/quote]

sorry but this makes no sense, when all you\'ve talked about above is no dumping it (so no massive loading on 1st / 2nd), and then you broke 4th, which is \'normalized\' on the gc / gd box...?

???I never actually said what i broke, i still dont know yet. I did mention that i was \'wearing out\' 4th syncro-from too many flat shifts from 3rd to 4th :. In my particular case, this box did not like it.As far as launching the box, i did it once, felt a bit brutal so never did it again. I\'m going to see how the GC RA box goes, wont be as strong as the 6speed GDB but will definatley be better than a GDA non STI 5speed.

I wonder if that is true actually

[QBALLZ]

 evowrx said:

I had a whine in 4th before the teeth completely shore off it in 5sp gc box. Did you ever strip the box? Wondered if the whine in mine was related to 4th disappearing.

nah haven\'t stripped it yet. I\'m thinking about getting it rebuilt with a straight cut gear-set. The casing is sweet. But when I do strip it i\'ll update. As for the RA box, it\'s going great at the moment. Haven\'t launched it yet but it has stood up to some VERY spirited driving up in the hills. ;D