Manual 5 speed transmisson lifespan

Discuss any problems, warranty, repair, or replacement issues you are having with your Vibe & Matrix
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jbferg
Posts: 1
Joined: Sat Mar 05, 2011 10:09 pm

Manual 5 speed transmisson lifespan

Post by jbferg »

I have read about quite a few people having problems with the front input shaft bearing on their manual 5 speed transmission.A lot of failures before 100,000 miles.I have a 2004 base vibe with a 5 speed manual gearbox with 98,000 miles on the car. I changed the gear lube with Mobile 1 @ 12,000 miles, and have not touched it since.So far no problems at all.I am the original owner.Are there any people out there with well over 100,00 miles on their Vibe with no problems?
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joatmon
Posts: 10177
Joined: Fri Mar 21, 2003 5:19 am
Location: Room 101

Re: Manual 5speed transmisson lifspan (jbferg)

Post by joatmon »

my brother has an 05 w/ 5 speed and no tranny troubles at 110K miles.He drives it respectfully, I think I abuse mine
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sideshowalan
Posts: 425
Joined: Thu Jun 11, 2009 10:27 am

Post by sideshowalan »

2003 5 Speed with 119K miles.Purchased 2 years and 40K miles ago from the original owner.I have changed the gear oil 3 times out of paranoia about the same problem. Using Redline MT-90. The last time it came out looking just like the new fluid so I probably won't change it again for a while.The agreement around here seems to be that if the 5 speed does conk out, to replace it with the 6-speed.
2008 Pontiac Vibe
2008 Toyota Sienna XLE
(Former 2003 5-speed Vibe owner)
03VibeOttawa
Posts: 387
Joined: Tue Jan 20, 2009 10:23 am

Re: Manual 5speed transmisson lifspan (jbferg)

Post by 03VibeOttawa »

I've got 183,xxx kms (113710 mi) on my '03. I have had the transmission oil twice, last time about a year and a half ago, and it looked brand new after 2 years of use. No troubles at all.
03VibeOttawa–’03 Salsa 5spd. Fast Wheels Blade 17”s/Fuzion Zr1s (summer),Blizzak Revo1/’04 WRX rims, (winter),Tokico HP Struts,Tein S-Tech Springs,Progress RSB,K&N Typhoon SRI,SLP ram air hood,Magnaflow CB,DC header. Sold 11/9/2012 w/ 217,633kms.
Bedlam
Posts: 186
Joined: Thu Nov 23, 2006 10:33 am

Post by Bedlam »

had 2x first gen vibes so far. Over 100,000 miles on both 5-spd transmissions. Rule of thumb was to change the gear lube every 30k miles. So far so good. My current 03 had a couple owners before me but i have put about 30k miles on it and so far so good. I run my first 3 gears out regularly so it is not like i baby the car either. Match the revs and don't force in the gear and it should last a while. As long as the syncro's don't have to work overtime with premature shifting into other gears the trans should last a while.My first Vibe i bought brand new so i put all 120k miles on it and they were hard miles. Both cars still have original 5-spd and only ever had the fluid flushed.
07 1ZZ 5spd Stealth - Sold
03 1ZZ 6spd Shadow w/NAV - For Sale
06 AWD Stealth - Current
07 Magnum SRT-8 - Current
stagwag86
Posts: 13
Joined: Sun Feb 25, 2007 5:25 am

Post by stagwag86 »

My '05 5-speed is making the bearing noises at 103,000 miles. Recently, the noise got much worse, so I'm trying to decide which route to take; 5 speed rebuild, 5 speed junkyard trans or 6 speed junkyard trans. I've changed the trans fluid every 30K miles with Redline MT-90 since I bought the car used in '07 with 32K miles on it.
Bedlam
Posts: 186
Joined: Thu Nov 23, 2006 10:33 am

Re: (stagwag86)

Post by Bedlam »

Quote, originally posted by stagwag86 »My '05 5-speed is making the bearing noises at 103,000 miles. Recently, the noise got much worse, so I'm trying to decide which route to take; 5 speed rebuild, 5 speed junkyard trans or 6 speed junkyard trans. I've changed the trans fluid every 30K miles with Redline MT-90 since I bought the car used in '07 with 32K miles on it.rebuild pretty much ain't gonna happen. The cost is prohibitive with doing all the labor and the new gears and seals. Buying a 6-spd is the way to go it seems. They are also much cheaper than the 5-spd and bolts right in from a similar year and matrix or vibe.
07 1ZZ 5spd Stealth - Sold
03 1ZZ 6spd Shadow w/NAV - For Sale
06 AWD Stealth - Current
07 Magnum SRT-8 - Current
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