Si I need to get my Raider back on the road asap. Should I rebuild my km145 5 speed with a tuf pan or convert it to a 4cyl. Auto tranny for about the same price??
im doing good to get 40k miles out of a km145 but never had a tough pan and never ran Redline MTL 90 weight that is supposed to make brass synchros last way longer........

So, just my 2 cents.... I would switch to the auto transmission. The autos are known to be a lot stronger than the manuals.

I don't see why on a stock 2.6? With a turbo 2.6 pushing LOTS of power the only thing really wrong was the 5th/overdrive gear always blowing up (I went through 2 of them)

Once I did the "AUTO CONVERSION FROM HELL" (search for my thread) you won't believe how much power is sucked away.

Is it nice? Yeah.. it's a slushbox.. and bulletproof

But you'll want the 5sp back. I promise.

P.S. to convert to auto isn't just peaches and cream <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/lol.gif" alt="" />

Thanks so much for the input!

The auto as said is bulletproof. It's basically the same Trans for the V6. Also as said, drains power I guess. Seemed slower getting to speed. Once there, seemed to hold it easier. Inertia I would imagine of the heavier torque converter assembly. Never had an issue with my 5 speed. When I got it, it had 280,000 miles on it, it belonged to a traveling salesman. I put some new GL4 in it, along with a Tuff Pan. Ran 30,000 miles without any issues, using 31's, 32's, and 33's. Still shifted smooth as silk when I gave it to the eldest son, him running 35's.

Jason (87Monty) has been working on a hybrid transmission conversion to ditch the KM-145 and it's observed problems. Read through this: Mixtubishi Trans

I have had bad experiences with the KM-145 manual. I prefer the KM-148 auto myself. And my daily driver is a 6-speed manual Camaro, so I do like to shift...

John B.

I've had 7 MMC 4X4s - all manual. I've had two or three transmission rebuilds - primarily #2 synchro. I've never driven a MMC auto, but I much prefer to decide my gear and RPM rather than have an automatic transmission do it.

Thanks again everyone for the input!
Ended up up I bought the whole monty from the junkyard for $250! Gauges are gone as are the wheels/tires but everything else is there including auto tranny. I won't be able to haul it away until October. So gonna go ahead and build the KM 145 with tuff pan, then have it as a backup tranny when I take possession of the junk yard monty.



Will do. Big thanks.