i've dug all over the interwebz and the only GMT800 SUV i can find with a manual trans is a turbo 5.3 avalanche that did the ZF 6-spd forever ago.
there're a number of GMT400 tahoes & a couple 'burbs that did nv4500s (or a T56 in one or two), but that's old news, too.

i know it's procedurally the same as doing one in a truck, but i want some people to grow a pair, get off their auto-hating butts, and make a manual trans GMT820/830 SUV so i can see it!!

as the months go by, this is becoming more of an option for me because i REFUSE to drive an automatic (my wife hates them, too), and within the next few years, my RCSB won't be enough room if we start having kids. that only leaves 99-00 4.3/4.8 ECSB 1/2tons or a 3/4ton... but i don't want a 6.0 as a DD in that heavy of a truck meaning i'd have to find a 2500HD ECSB with a duramax & stick for what i want - which is just as hard to find as an ECSB 1500 with a stick (but at least they were made all the way up through 06).

that gets me thinking... well why not just buy something else to fit our needs & put a manual in it? a tahoe would be fine - i know it's just as heavy as a 2500, but it's got more interior room. a bolt-on 5.3 would be a decent compromise between DDing and pulling my car every few months. slap a nv4500 under there & call it a day - holds more power than the 4L60 could wrap it's head around, can pull all day, and is just crazy-unique. i just don't want to deal with the gauge cluster swap, steering column swap, pulling wires from the harness, putting the jumper wire in the fuse block for the clutch safety (actually, that's pretty easy), installing a pedal/MC, cutting the brake pedal, changing from the auto t-case to stick, swapping t-case input (or it might just be easier to find a 3/4 ton np241 still attached to the trans), and all the other headaches associated with wiping every trace of the stupid crap-o-matic that came stock.

it'd be nice to see one completed just for inspiration

 

so i'm really the only one interested in a stick-shift tahoe or suburban?
what a shame

 

I am interested, make it happen so we can see pics...

 

I'm not building a Suburban, but does a T-56 68 C10 count?

 

sounds fun!

i've actually seen a T56 OBS suburban

 

What makes a manual so much better than an automatic, in your opinion? Sure I could argue that I have more fun driving one, but that's a lousy reason considering my automatic transmission will out-shift a manual 9 times out of 10.

 

There was a member on 4btswaps with an nv4500 in a nbs suburban... not all that hard of a swap... and why would you have to swap clusters?

Sounds like some wiring.... a trans cross member.... possibly a t-case and drive shafts... however the stock t-case will function without the auto trans...

I've got a 4bta cummins swapped into my '03 z71 Tahoe... currently building an 80e to back it.... nothing is impossible.


-Chris

 

you're more involved with the driving - it actually requires skill and attention. nowadays, it's less likely to be stolen. it's a little more controlled when trailering - particularly when slowing/downshifting. the manuals are stronger units - especially compared to the 4L60/65. also, the less a computer tells me how to drive, the happier i am.

and on top of that, you just feel like more of a man when rowing your own gears.

i know it ain't a hard swap - that's why i can't believe more people ain't done it. the cluster swap would be to get rid of the PRNDL & a now-useless trans temp gauge. i'll have to go back & check on the crossmember, but a nv4500 is only 1/8" longer than a 4L60, so the driveshafts can be reused. it'd need a NP241 (manual) t-case if it ain't already got one, and the 1/2 ton version would work with a 32-spline input shaft swap from a 3/4 ton unit (or just find a trans that has a 241 with it).

as for your cummins tahoe - rock on dude!! pics?
or a link to the 4500 'burb?

 

I'll see if I can find the post...

here is my build thread over on 4btswaps
03' Z71 Tahoe 4bta Swap (Looong term project.. well.. sorta))

-Chris

 

I was following your build over on z71tahoe forum.. whats the latest?