G56 input shaft bearing replacement

[Thestig]

I have a 2007 5.9 with the G56. The truck just hit 111000 and the dmf finally gave up. started to give a slight vibration at idle otherwise it was fine. I'm replacing it with a solid flywheel and standard clutch. My question is, how do you remove and replace the input shaft bearing? My reasoning to replace is based on not wanting to destroy the trans. It doesn't have any end play, side to side play is minimal, pressing up there is minimal play, but when I press down on the shaft there is noticeable play. You can even see what appears to be a small gap in the seal. The seal itself didn't appear to be leaking at all. I see a lot of people on here suggesting you do it but no one with a clear answer as to how. I have the stamped steel retainer off, do you pull the seal out and the shaft pulls out the front? Any input is greatly appreciated. Supposed to make a long trip next week and the trans is on the floor...Thanks in advance

 

[Joseph Donnelly]

I'd call Std. Trans., either Fort Worth or Tucson for more info. I would suggest having them check out the trans and see if the mainshaft needs more shimming.

 

[RVTRKN]

You would probably have better luck contacting Richard in Tucson. But if you do a search, I believe there is a link that gives the instructions. I don't remember where I saw it though.

 

[Thestig]

Thanks for the quick replies. I got to speak to someone at Standard. Gave me a side play reference of 0.005, and in order to replace that bearing the transmission case needs to be split. Not totally disassembled, but split. I wasn't able to find any definitive info on it with a search. I'm going to check it out with a dial indicator when I get home tonight and see whats up. I might tear it down in the near future to see just whats going on in there. I wont be using ATF anymore thats for sure. Thanks again for the help.

 

[seafish]

It is important to realize that with the G56 transmission out of the truck, the front of the input shaft is no longer supported by the bronze bushing in the bell housing and that means that the bearing that you are talking about is the ONLY thing supporting the entire input shaft and gear...when you press down on the front end input shaft...that bearing is a fulcrum point for the entire input shaft and the movement at the front of the shaft does SEEM excessive!!!

When I had the G56 out of my truck to install an SBC con-OFE, I too was very concerned about the amount of movement (not in/out but side to side and mostly up/down) in the input shaft, even though on careful inspection I could see NO problems with the seal or case. Still the movement at the end of the input shaft was OVER 1/8". I actually loaded the transmission onto a friend's truck and took it up to both a dealership AND a top notch rebuilder for inspection, and both of them concluded that the movement that I was experiencing was a result of the design of the G56 being what I described above, and that there were no bearing, seal or case issues. I installed the new flywheel and clutch, reinstalled the G56, and have been driving happily for over 40k and several years with no issues.

All that being said, you MAY have a problem, but if the seal, case and bearing look good, then likely you are only experienceing an effect of the design of the input shaft on the G56 and there is no need to replace thoise parts unless you REALLY want to.

 

[Thestig]

Thanks seafish. I saw that info from the other threads. My main concern was how you go about removing the bearing. Like I said, I thought I saw a gap in the seal, but that could have been my over active imagination. There was no sign of it ever leaking, unlike the orange rubber boot. Just a lot of dry clutch dust in there. With the amount of miles I have on my truck and the fact that it was the original clutch and flywheel, and that I always serviced it with ATF and never overfilled, I got the heebrewjeebies on the amount of money it'll cost if it decides to launch. I'm more at ease with it now, I got better fluid and I think I'm going to assemble it and hope for the best. The truck only gets maybe 10,000 miles a year on it now with minimal heavy towing. I'd like to stay proactive with the trans since parts are pricey but I'll save the teardown for a snowy day over the winter.

 

[sag2]

View attachment G56 input shaft removal.pdf

This should help.

 

[Thestig]

I searched for G56 service manual on google and found a website called scribd.com. On there I found the dodge service manual for the G56. It would be worth looking into for other things as well. All I had to do was register with a user name and it allowed me to download the whole pdf. It looks like it might be where sag2 found that pdf. Hope that helps someone.