NV3500 shift characteristics

[chino1969]

I have a 2004 TJ 5 speed manual with the NV3500 gear box. I bought it in March, 2019 and have only put 3,400 miles on it but driven it enough to get a feel for it's unique characteristics. Changed all the fluids when I first bought it and used Amsoil Synchromesh fluid for the trans.. Drove around for approx. 2,000 miles and always had a grind if I shifted too fast from 1st to 2nd. Switched to Redline MTL, same issue. I have just learned to live with it by giving about a second or two pause before shifting from 1st to 2nd. From reading other posts this is not out of the norm for that trans. and it is something I can live with. There is no need to replace this trans. at this time as it works fine. If the time ever comes I would look at an AX15 or The Terminator from Rockland Std. Gear. Interested to hear from others with the NV3500 trans. to compare notes.

 

[CodaMan]

I never found a reason to shift quickly from gear to gear in my Jeep, now when I had my '68 GTO that was a different story

 

[bromel]

Same issue here. In cold weather, my NV3550 grinds slightly going into 2nd unless I pause first. Often I'll shift halfway until I feel the synchro engage, then I complete the shift. When fully warmed up, the issue is mainly gone. When I changed from the Mopar fluid to Redline MTL, the issue was about 50% better. Got the Jeep at 75k with that issue; now I have 100k and it hasn't gotten any worse. I live with it. If the transmission ever goes out, I'll replace with a new AX-15 from Advance Adapters.