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Is there a simple but good 5-spd solution?
I have been reading here and on other forums for the past three days and I'm getting a headache trying to sort through it all. My difficulty is I see something that sounds good to me, then I find out there's a glitch in my thinking, or some custom work needs to be done, or a builder doesn't really want to be bothered with it and the price gets jacked accordingly, or ...
As a reference, my wife's Golf TDI is very torque-y and I love the way it shifts first through fourth with a fifth that allows highway speeds such that I could wallpaper my den in speeding tickets whilst going in low RPMs. My proposed car has been a 1975 Super Beetle (although out of frustration I have expanded my search to other candidates). The proposed engine would be a Type IV. My guesstimate based on varied sources and stories is the engine would have 130-160 HP and maybe the same figure for lb-ft of torque.
I've been told I don't need a five-speed. Well, I don't need another car; in fact, I don't need a couple of the cars I already have. So far, the only argument of substance presented to me is the power band negates the need to go with five forward gears.
But, this sends me back to the TDI. I can drive 65-70 MPH at something like 22-2500 RPMs* and if I need to get around a truck or ten, she'll get to 90 as quick as li'l ol' me ever has to. That's because the TDI makes its torque at 1900 RPMs. (* - These are estimates; I don't drive the car enough to know exactly. But the point I'm making is still pertinent.)
So unless I'm talked out of it, I want a dependable, durable five-speed which will bolt-in. I don't care if it's built or something swapped in from a Porsche or whatever. I don't think it should cost more than triple the cost of a four-speed -- especially when a limited slip differential hasn't been discussed. My budget is US$2500 but I thought that might include the LSD. The budget could be tweaked and I'm not sure if I need the LSD. After all, it's just li'l ol' me.
Any thoughts to what my options are (including likely costs as well as pros/cons)?
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