Originally Posted by bossmancb

I have had some bad luck with my 60e and my truck has been down for a few months. I have decided to go nv4500 and ditch the 60e completely. My truck is an 05 silverado 1500 4x4 ecsb with a 5.3. I read the thread about Lord Aries' zf6 swap in his avalanche, but I need nv4500 details. All the nv4500 swaps I see are on older trucks, but mine is an 05. I found a nice nv4500 local out of a 2004 silverado 2500. I am compiling a list of what I need. Please let me know if there's anything I am forgetting or if there's any tips/tricks/anything I should know before getting into this. I want to keep 4x4 btw

-Nv4500
-clutch, pressure plate, throw out bearing and flywheel
-pedal assembly
-shifter
-slave cylinder
-input shaft? (I think 4l60e uses 27 spline and nv4500 uses 29/32?)
-stock driveshaft supposedly is fine
-stock crossmember is supposed to be fine as well

Originally Posted by JamesTheGreat

I have a 2000 silverado 1500 z71 extcab 8ft bed, that I just swapped an LS2 into. I've been doing a lot of 800+ mile trips from MD to GA pulling a car trailer while I'm moving. I have a feeling the 4l60e (although rebuilt by local shop 20k miles ago) is going to crap out. I don't want to pay for another rebuild, but would rather swap in something I'd much rather have.
was yours a 4x4?
Did the transfer case bolt up if so?
Any other details would be great help.

Originally Posted by _zebra

granted, i swapped an nv3500 to an nv4500, but a lot still applies:

• with a non-HD GMT800, you'll want to get a 1995+ MW3 GM variant of the transmission to get all synchronized gears & the internal slave. configure it with the 95-00 GM trans case lid (even if using an 01+ trans) so that it'll fit easily into the trans tunnel & shifter hole. the 01+ HD trucks had a 2" body lift that the matching lid was taller to account for (because the Allison & ZFs needed the extra height). ensure your shifter matches the transmission lid (two different depths).
• a Core shifter (Hurst-licensed remake) is WELL worth it
• your LS2 will have the shorter crank, so you'll want an 01+ flywheel (with matching clutch kit)
• the 03+ clutch hydraulics (quick-connect at the master cylinder end of the line) are able to do the f-body drill mod and allow better fluid flow (versus the 99-00 and 01-02 lines that are more restrictive with no remedy)
• a manual trans 1500's crossmember will bolt right up if you turn it 180° around left to right
• your fuse block for the engine harness will need a jumper wire (i forget what pins... but it's in my write-up) to work like factory with a clutch safety switch... otherwise, you won't get power to the starter when you try to crank.
• the 4x4 output is a 32spline... but your t-case options ain't limited to HD trucks. the 1/2ton nv3500s had LD 32spline np261 transfer cases. another option is to buy a conversion input shaft (like what AWD 4L80-swaps use). stock driveshaft lengths should be alright, if i remember correctly (was fine on mine).
• this won't bang gears like a hot rod... or even an nv3500
• it'll effectively operate like an overdriven 4spd... either you maintain enough diff gear to drive sensibly in 2-5 or you put a high rear end in it & lug everywhere in 4th/5th (unless you're doing 85-90mph)
• use a good GL-4 fluid or your mother will die in her sleep tonight... not GL-5, not GL-3, not ATF. and don't overfill it like the 3500s & 5600s (that can cause leaks).