Is The G56 6 Speed Really Bad?

[DPKetchum]

ONE 2nd generation owner. But he's a nay sayer about all of them unless its a 12 valve p/pump.

 

[nps]

I counted 2.

 

[RJOL]

Got just over 6K on the clock and my G56 3500 has worked flawlessly. I've pulled my 12K 5th wheel several times and it is a quantum leap over my 2001 2500 with the NV4500.



Now my 2001 had 4:10 gears so maybe cruising in overdrive is close to the same rpms. It's not a problem as I don't want to cruise down the freeway at 75MPH whether I'm towing or solo... JMHO...

 

[JayWm]

I have almost 8k on the clock since march of 05 on mine. No problems. I actually received mine before the hold hit the dealers. So I would consider it one of the first ones out. It was ordered on the first day the G56 was available. It was not subject to the recall/TSB or whatever the so called fix was. I had a few thousand miles on it before dodge even issued the hold. This truck was bought to tow and 95% of the miles that are on the truck were while towing. I got the truck, put 500 miles on it and then hooked the trailer to it and went racing. Trailer weighs about 8k.



Jay

 

[South Bend Clutch]

Well folks, spent the day at Blumenthals with the G56 trans all tore down and from the looks of it it is not bad. I will be there all day tomarrrow and half the day friday taking pictures and comparing it to the earlier transmissions for a up and coming artical. From the first look we are giving it the thumbs up. Now I just have to get to work on the dang clutch thing.





Peter

 

[67guzzler]

Well folks, spent the day at Blumenthals with the G56 trans all tore down and from the looks of it it is not bad. I will be there all day tomarrrow and half the day friday taking pictures and comparing it to the earlier transmissions for a up and coming artical. From the first look we are giving it the thumbs up. Now I just have to get to work on the dang clutch thing.





Peter

Peter -- Can you tell by looking at the DMF or any other aspect of the G56 whether it could be the source of extra driveline slack? I'm not that privy to the characteristics and quirks of the DMF or the G56 but had that one question lingering in my mind. Thanks!

 

[Cummins Cowboy]

thanks for the feedback peter!!!! keep us posted, I am a 6 speed fan and hearing you saying that is making me feel much better

 

[Bow66tie]

Same here Peter. With all the negative speculation here on the board, it'll be nice to have concrete evidence, good or bad, as to wether our transmissions are worthy. Personally, I'm quite happy with mine. Pulling a 32' Airstream like a dream! Oh, a lot quieter and smoother than my buddies NV5600 too.



Keep up posted!



Michael Willeford

 

[DPelletier]

I'll find out soon enough, as a new truck is on the horizon and I prefer the 6 spd to the auto. I agree that there haven't been any statistically significant issues with the G56. OTOH, I just finished paying $4,700. 00 for damages caused by my GMC 6. 5TD's Dual mass flywheel self destructing, so I'm not a big fan of the concept. Reduced NVH (noise, vibration and harshness) mean little to me as does a smoother shifting transmission. I'm mainly concerned with strength and longevity. Time will tell.



Cheers,

Dave

 

[ilovetrains]

I had over 13K on my G56 (not bad for 3 months) when I pulled in the lot this morning. Should be about 14. 5 byt end of next week. I really like the G56 from a driving standpoint, shifts smoother than the 5600. The OD ratio is too high for empty running. It will drive you nust at 80MPH - and when you start running est and the speeds climb over 80 just try to stay out of people's way.



The gearing is great for a heavy trailer, but again, over 55mph you are in 6th gear which does nto feel right with 10K on the ball.

 

[Ramtough]

The bearings in my heavy duty NV5600 failed @ 80K miles



My towing is around 35% @ 11K# - not so bad considering what some of you guys tow.



If the G56 is a lighter duty transmission, I'm through with Dodge.



The whole reason I opted for the manual in the first place was to avoid this expenseive repair. The only consolation was that the clutch was also worn within 1/8" of the rivets. At least I only had to pay to pull the transmission once.

 

[Hercules130]

I had the lead service tech at my local dodge dealer install my westach gauge last week. we got to talking and i asked him about the G56. he said it was a really heavy duty transmission, built much better than the 5600. he said the internals were a lot better and stronger. in his expireince the 5600 had a lot more problems than the other transmisions and he definatley preffered a 4500 over the 5600. he also said the G56 only had 2 shift rails, opposed to the 5600's 6, a much simpler design.