Passon A-855 5 Spd Trans ?

[Challenger340]

OK, anybody used these, any good ?
Anyone PLANNING on one of these ?
Reviews ?

I mean considering most of the other OD conversions being such a royal P.I.T.A (IMO), this may be the ticket for a no hassle conversion in the Mopars ?

https://www.passonperformance.com/c...son-performance-a-855-five-speed-transmission

 

[dadsbee]

Join the ~8 year waiting list or find something else...

 

[1967coronet440]

@biomedtechguy

 

[Cranky]

Yup....get on the waiting list.....other than than, I've heard no complaints on them.

 

[dadsbee]

I just read the wait list might be down to 6 months for a B body trans, E body still light years..

 

[davek]

big money and wait and waiting

love to get one.

 

[Plumcrazybee]

I have been waiting since the big announcement, and the cover shot on one of the Mopar magazine. I don't even remember what year that was. Used to get phone calls asking if I still want to be on the list, but have not heard from them in MANY years. The 8 year wait list made me laugh. I sure wanted to buy one, but not going thaqt direction any more. What bank would not JUMP at the chance to finance a product that has people waiting over 10 years? I'm no banker, but a quality product with that many customers waiting to pay the ridiculous price he is selling them(maybe) for would be an a pretty easy goldmine to invest in.

 

[66 Sat]

Do a search on here. One member had MAJOR dramas with his, popping out of 4th gear. A long saga, worth a read.

 

[Chargered]

I like the idea of getting the 5th gear with no modifications like the Tremec requires. I think I'll try ordering one and see what happens.

 

[Kern Dog]

The modifications to fit a Tremec TKO are minor unless the installer is a rookie or has no welder. The TKX is supposed to fit B body cars with no cutting, so I've heard.

 

[joe smith]

I just read the wait list might be down to 6 months for a B body trans, E body still light years..

I heard that 8 years ago.. Then the last I read was some other business/or guy was involved???? If you called him you could get it shipped the next day???? WTF........ I would look at the new Tremec TKX personally...

 

[joe smith]

The modifications to fit a Tremec TKO are minor unless the installer is a rookie or has no welder. The TKX is supposed to fit B body cars with no cutting, so I've heard.

My understanding is the shifter comes straight up in the TKX, so you would have to cut the hole (Mopar) for it... If you have a console you will never know.. Again, this is what I have read or been told so do your own research...

The TKX internals are based off the T56 six speed which is supposed to shift far smoother than the " notchy " TKO....
I am going to install a new TKX in my "inherited" mustang. I have been following the TKX for a few months on the Chevy and Ford sites..... Its a bolt in for my Mustang.....

 

[petieg383]

When these 5 speeds were announced, I was getting my 4 speed rebuilt by Passon. I personally went to the Passon shop in PA several times. I asked about the new 5 speeds and I didn't get much of an answer other than it will be a while. He didn't even have one there to look at if I recall.

Passon was (and probably still is) Jaime's 2nd job and he has a heck of an operation but was beyond swamped with customer work and orders. I'm not bad-mouthing him whatsoever just shedding some light to those asking. While reinstalling my rebuilt trans there was an issue with the clutch plate he sold me and he replaced it without a word, even letting me pick it up on a Sunday (they were closed).

I would definitely work with Passon for anything 4 speed related but I understand everyone's frustrations about the lack of 5 speeds. I would have thought they would be readily available at this point given what appears to be a high demand.

 

[lanceh13]

I got a 5 speed from John Huff on FB. It's my understanding he is one of the financers behind that project and does the initial break in's on the new products as they come in. He gets to sell a few of them as part of that endeavor. I paid 6k...installed it on my R/T and honestly I love it. It's my understanding the issue of it popping out of gear has been fixed. I haven't had that issue and I've got about 1.5k miles on my 855. No regrets on this end but I am holding onto the hemi 833 just in case I change my mind but that's doubtful.

 

[HawkRod]

I also have a Passon A-855. It truly is a bolt in transmission. It uses the stock mounts, bellhousing, shifter location (on the side) driveshaft, etc. They provide you a longer speedo cable because the connection is on the passenger side, but I was even able to reuse my original cable. You literally only have to swap in the transmission - it's plug and play. The 5th gear OD is .70 and gears 1-4 are essentially the same as a Hemi 4 speed. It is an 18 spline transmission too like the Hemi 4 speed.

I am very happy with it, although I only have about 500 miles on it so far.

Jamie wanted a 100% American made transmission but has had tremendous issues with parts quality from suppliers. As mentioned above, there have been some issues with the transmissions popping out of gear, but luckily mine seems OK so far.

 

[lanceh13]

The other thing that I'd throw out on this is this website is a great read. http://www.5speedmuscle.com/

Yes they are expensive...but the direct replacement option was exactly what I wanted and honestly I like that there are small businesses out there doing things like this especially for OUR mopars.

 

[65Fury440]

I have one sitting in my shop now.
Hopefully it can take some racing use.

 

[lemondana]

You guys better read the 16 page ordeal over on FABO. I would never buy one in a million years based on this ordeal. I will never deal with Jimmie Passon either. The thread is titled A855-5 Speed by matthon on Aug 26, 2019. For those of you that have one-best of luck and hope you will be able to get replacement parts when you start needing them.

 

[kiwigtx]

You guys better read the 16 page ordeal over on FABO. I would never buy one in a million years based on this ordeal. I will never deal with Jimmie Passon either. The thread is titled A855-5 Speed by matthon on Aug 26, 2019. For those of you that have one-best of luck and hope you will be able to get replacement parts when you start needing them.

For those unable to use the Search function...
A855 - 5 Speed | For A Bodies Only Mopar Forum

 

[HawkRod]

You guys better read the 16 page ordeal over on FABO. I would never buy one in a million years based on this ordeal. I will never deal with Jimmie Passon either. The thread is titled A855-5 Speed by matthon on Aug 26, 2019. For those of you that have one-best of luck and hope you will be able to get replacement parts when you start needing them.

There is no doubt there have been some quality issues with the transmissions - that's a fact. But Jamie Passon has been a great, stand up guy to deal with. When I did my drive across country 6 years ago and started having some transmission issues, there were no "who's fault is it" questions. Instead, he offered to build another and drop ship it wherever needed - no discussion of cost or anything; just whatever help was needed to keep me going on my trip. Ultimately, I decided against that and drove the rest of the way with a bad synchro. By the way, the issue most likely was an alignment issue that caused the transmission issues, so not his fault in building it in the first place.

I am not saying that matthon didn't have significant issues. He did. But remember this is all his side of the story and there are always two sides to every story. Jamie Passon is a small USA business trying to make an all USA made product that truly works for our needs. I love the idea. Has he had production and delivery issues? You bet. But I'm not about to **** all over him because of one story. My personal experiences with him (and the A-855) have been very different.

If you want a Mexican made Tremec, that's fine. I have no doubt they are good transmissions. But I also think we should cut a small American business some slack. Obviously the demand for the A-855 was FAR greater than anyone ever expected. I'd like to see how many small businesses could smoothly handle delivering under conditions like that...