• Gm Manual Transmission Identification
• Gm Manual Transmission Identification Codes
• Gm Manual Trans Id
• Chevrolet Manual Transmission Identification

The purpose of this page is to help you find all the info regarding the NV3500 transmission’s specs and identification in one place. Within the confines of General Motors transmissions, the NV3500 is known as the M50 transmission. If you made your way here because you were trying to figure out what this code meant, you can rest assured your truck was equipped from the factory with an NV3500.

NV3500 Quick Facts

TSB Seems To Fix 8-Speed Automatic GM Transmission ProblemsAugust 13, 2019 Multiple GMC Acadia Owners Report ‘Shift To Park’ Issue December 13, 2019 Poll: Should GM Bring Back Pontiac? Automatic transmissions Early models. The GM Hydra-Matic was a success and installed in the majority of GM models by 1950. Through the 1950s, all makers were working on their own automatic transmission, with four more developed inside GM alone. Manual Transmission Dimensions T5, T10, T56, A-833, Toploader Transmission Measurements. GM 4 Speed (Overdrive) Transmission Dimensions. Most transmissions will have a 'source serial number' (chassis vin) usually found close to the transmission code. This number will contain division ID #, model year, assembly plant and production sequence (last 6 digits) of the VIN stamped onto the transmission. Example: 19N500001.

The NV3500 stands for New Venture Gear 3500. It is a 5 speed manual transmission. The transmission was developed through a joint deal by General motors and Chrysler. It entered production in 1993. It can be difficult to ID it for two reasons. The first is that the case is similar to some transmissions that came before it. The second is that it doesn’t come with ID numbers. We’ll get further into that later in the M50/MD5 transmission identification section.

NV3500 Specs

Gear Ratios

There were two possible gearing options, and they were entirely dependent upon what truck that the NV3500 was equipped in. For full-size trucks, GM used the wide ratio MG5 version of the transmission. For the smaller S series trucks, they used the M50 close ratio version of NV3500. Here are the ratios for both,

Dimensions

The catch with the NV3500 in Chevrolet and GMC trucks is that the dimensions were different depending on whether or not it was in the smaller S10 or larger Silverado/Sierra twins.

Transmission Fluid

GM recommends that users use GM Synchromesh manual transmission fluid. It is certified to keep your transmission running smoothly between -40 and 300 degrees Fahrenheit.

NV3500 Identification

There are really going to be two different situation you may find yourself in when needing to identify a NV3500 manual transmission. It’s either, “what transmission is in the truck I have now?” or it’s “Is this an NV3500 I’m looking at?”. Well the good news is that it’s not that difficult to ID it in either situation.

Gm Manual Transmission Identification

If your vehicle is older than 1993, but newer than 1988 and it has a transmission that looks like the NV3500 it’s probably a HM290, which was the NV3500’s predecessor.

RPO Codes

In order to properly identify the transmission that is currently in your truck, use the RPO codes listed below. The main differences in these versions of the NV3500 are the gearing and overall length.

GM RPO Code M50

If you are looking to find out what kind of transmission is currently in your truck, finding the RPO code M50 is proof positive that the factory installed transmission was a NV3500.

MG5- NV3500 Code

If the RP0 code in the glove compartment ends up being MG5, that means that you have the wide ratio version of the NV3500 transmission. It was typically found in the Silverado.

Visual Inspection

All NV transmission are a challenge to identify. This is primarily owed to the fact that they don’t use any sort of identification tag. There are certainly a few easy to use clues that the transmission is the NV3500. We’ll cover them here.

The NV3500 uses an aluminum case. It’s two pieces. The bellhousing and main case are one piece, which means that you can’t replace the bellhousing. So what you’ll see is a detachable tail shaft or transfer case. The rest of it will be one solid piece. This is one of the easiest ways to identify this transmission, or at least verify that you are in the right ballpark. Here are a few other items that will help you lock it down.

• Bellhousing is fused to the rest of the case
• Has a single shift rail vs a different rail for each gear
• It has a fill plug high on the passenger side of the front housing
• Drain plug is on the bottom of the housing
• There are no access plates in the transmission

Rebuild-ability

This transmission is incredibly difficult to rebuild. This owes primarily to the fact that there are no access codes or casting numbers. Since you can’t even be sure which version you are getting into and working in there is tough, transmission builders don’t like messing with it. Also, it requires special tools to complete the rebuild as well.

General Motors is an innovator of automatic transmissions, introducing the Hydra-Matic in 1940.^[1] This list includes some GM transmissions.

Automatic transmissions[edit]

Early models[edit]

The GM Hydra-Matic was a success and installed in the majority of GM models by 1950. Through the 1950s, all makers were working on their own automatic transmission, with four more developed inside GM alone. All of GM's early automatic transmissions were replaced by variants of the Turbo-Hydramatic by the 1970s.

• 1940–1967 Hydra-Matic — Oldsmobile (now the trade name for all GM automatic transmissions)
• 1948–1963 Dynaflow — Buick
• 1950–1973 Powerglide — Chevrolet (also used by Pontiac, Holden, Vauxhall and Opel)
• 1968-1971 Torquedrive- Chevrolet ( Camaro and Chevy II, Nova. Manually shifted on Column. )
• 1957–1961 Turboglide — Chevrolet (V8 models only, except Corvette)
• 1958–1959 Flightpitch — Buick
• 1961–1963 Dual Path Turbine Drive — Buick
• 1961–1964 Roto Hydramatic — Oldsmobile/Pontiac (also used by Holden)
• 1964–1969 Super Turbine 300 — Buick/Oldsmobile/Pontiac (Oldsmobile Jetaway)
• 1968–1969 Torquedrive — Chevrolet (manually column shifted 2 speed automatic, 6 cyl only)
• 1956-1964 4 speed Controlled coupling HydraMatic, also known as Cadillac 315 or P 315 HydraMatic, Oldsmobile Jetaway, Pontiac Super HydraMatic.
• TempestTorque, ( Pontiac) a two speed based on Powerglide, but having the added feature of ' Split Torque ' dividing the engine power between mechanical connection and the torque converter in high gear.

Turbo-Hydramatic[edit]

The Turbo-Hydramatic was used by all GM divisions, and formed the basis for the company's modern Hydramatic line. The basic rear-wheel drive Turbo-Hydramatic spawned two front-wheel drive variants, the transverseTurbo-Hydramatic 125, and the longitudinalTurbo-Hydramatic 425. A third variant was the light-duty rear wheel drive Turbo-Hydramatic 180 used in many European models.

Heavy-duty rear wheel drive

• 1971–1994 3L80HD (heavy duty version of TH400)

Medium-duty rear wheel drive

• 1964–1992 Super Turbine 400/TH400/3L80
• 1969–1986 TH350/TH350C/TH375B/TH250/TH250C
• 1972–1976 TH375 — Light duty version of TH400
• 1976–1987 TH200/TH200C
• 1981–1990 TH200-4R
• 1982–1993 TH700R4/4L60

Light-duty rear wheel drive

• 1969–1998 TH180/TH180C/3L30 — 3-speed European/Asian model. Also manufactured and used by Holden as the Trimatic transmission.

Transverse front wheel drive

• 1980–1999 TH125/TH125C/3T40 — 3-speed light-duty
• 1984–1994 TH440-T4/4T60 — 4-speed medium-duty

Longitudinal front wheel drive

• 1966–1978 TH425 — 3-speed
• 1979–1981 TH325 — 3-speed
• 1982–1985 TH325-4L — 4-speed

Electronic Hydra-Matics[edit]

Backblaze incremental backup. The next-generation transmissions, introduced in the early 1990s, were the electronic Hydra-Matics based on the Turbo-Hydramatic design. Most early electronic transmissions use the '-E' designator to differentiate them from their non-electronic cousins, but this has been dropped on transmissions with no mechanical version like the new GM 6L80 transmission.

Today, GM uses a simple naming scheme for their transmissions, with the 'Hydra-Matic' name used on most automatics across all divisions.

First-generation longitudinal (Rear Wheel drive)

• 1991–2001 4L30-E — 4-speed light-duty (used in BMW, Cadillac, Isuzu, and Opel cars)
• 1992– 4L60-E/4L65-E — 4-speed medium-duty (used in GM trucks and rear-wheel-drive cars)
• 1991– 4L80-E/4L85-E — 4-speed heavy-duty (used in GM trucks)

First-generation transverse (Front Wheel drive)

• 1995–2010 4T40-E/4T45-E — 4-speed light-duty (used in smaller front wheel drive GM vehicles)
• 1991–2010 4T60-E/4T65-E/4T65E-HD — 4-speed medium-duty (used in larger front wheel drive GM vehicles)
• 1993–2010 4T80-E — 4-speed heavy-duty (used in large front wheel drive GM vehicles, only with Cadillac NorthStar V8.

Second-generation longitudinal (Rear Wheel drive)

• 2000–2007 5L40-E/5L50 — 5-speed medium-duty (used in Cadillac's Sigma vehicles)
• 2007–present 6L45/6L50 — 6-speed medium-duty (used in GM Sigma platform cars)
• 2006–present: 6L80/6L90 — 6-speed heavy-duty (used in GM trucks and performance cars)
• 2014–present: 8L90 — 8-speed heavy-duty (used in GM trucks and performance cars)
• 2016–present: 8L45 — 8-speed light-duty (used in GM luxury cars)
• 2017–present: 10L80 - Ford-GM 10-speed automatic transmission (used in GM light trucks including pickups and related SUVs)
• 2017–present: 10L90 - Ford-GM 10-speed automatic transmission (used in GM performance cars)

N64 usb controller driver. *This transmission is part of a joint-venture between General Motors and Ford Motor Company to split development of two transmissions, a longitudinal 10-speed and transverse 9-speed. Ford led the design of the 10-speed transmission, as well as filing the design patents for said transmission. According to an official report by the SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) the design of the 10-speed gearbox is essentially all Ford, while GM was responsible for designing the 9-speed 9T transverse automatic gearbox. As part of their joint-venture, Ford will let GM use the 10-speed transmission with rights to modify and manufacture it for their own applications. In-exchange for Ford's 10-speed transmission, General Motors will let Ford use its 9-speed transmission for front-wheel drive applications; Ford ultimately declined use of the 9T.^[2][3][4]

Second-generation transverse (Front Wheel drive)

Gm Manual Transmission Identification Codes

• 2008–present: 6T30/6T40/6T45 — 6-speed light-duty
• 2006–present: 6T70/6T75 — 6-speed medium-duty
• 2016–present: 9T50/9T65 Hydra-Matic – 9-speed^[5]

Hybrid and PHEV[edit]

• 2ML70 - 2-Mode Hybrid transmission.
• 4ET50 (MKA) - Electric Drive Unit Transaxle (First Generation Chevrolet Volt / Cadillac ELR)
• 5ET50 (MKV) - Electronically controlled, continuously-variable automatic transaxle (Second Generation Chevrolet Volt)^[6]
• 5ET50 (MKE) - Electronically controlled, continuously-variable automatic transaxle Transaxle (Full Hybrid, Ninth Generation Chevrolet Malibu)^[7]
• 4EL70 (MRD) - Electric Drive Unit Transmission (PHEV Cadillac CT6)

Other automatics[edit]

Gm Manual Trans Id

• Aisin AF33 — 5-speed transverse automatic made by Aisin AW Co., Ltd.
• Allison 1000 Series — 6-speed longitudinal automatic made by Allison Transmission
• Saturn MP6/MP7 — 4-speed automatic developed by Saturn for use in the S-series from 1991 to 2002
• VTi transmission — continuously variable transmission
• Tremec M1L transmission — 8-speed Dual-Clutch made by Tremec for the Chevrolet Corvette C8
• GM CVT250 — continuously variable transmission

Future[edit]

Chevrolet Manual Transmission Identification

Manual transmissions[edit]

Longitudinal transmissions[edit]

• Aisin AR5/MA5 — 5-speed longitudinal manual made by Aisin
• Aisin AY6 — 6-speed longitudinal manual made by Aisin
• Getrag 260 — 5-speed longitudinal manual made by Getrag
• Muncie M20 — 4-speed longitudinal wide ratio manual transmission made by GM at their Muncie, Indiana factory
• Muncie M21 — 4-speed longitudinal close ratio manual transmission made by GM at their Muncie, Indiana factory
• Muncie M22 — 4-speed longitudinal heavy duty close ratio manual transmission made by GM at their Muncie, Indiana factory
• Saginaw M26/27 transmission — 3 and 4-speed longitudinal light duty (less than 300 hp wide ratio manual transmission made by GM at their Saginaw, Michigan factory
• Muncie M62/M64 — 3-speed longitudinal transmission made by GM
• Muncie SM420 — 4-speed manual used up to 1967, very similar to sm 465 except small changes to gear ratios and location of reverse.
• New Process Gear NP435 - 4-speed longitudinal transmission used in a select handful of 67-72 GM pickups
• New Process Gear A833 RPO MY6 or MM7 — 4-speed longitudinal A833 overdrive transmission made by New Process Gear for early to mid 1980s General Motors Light Trucks
• Muncie SM465 — 4-speed longitudinal manual used in 68- 91 Chevy 1/2 3/4 and 1 ton trucks
• New Venture Gear NV1500 — 5-speed longitudinal manual made by New Venture Gear
• New Venture Gear 3500/4500 — 5-speed longitudinal manual made by New Venture Gear
• Borg-Warner T-10 transmission — 4-speed longitudinal manual currently made by Richmond Gear; originally made by Borg-Warner
• Tremec T-5 — 5-speed longitudinal manual currently made by Tremec; originally made by Borg-Warner
• Borg-Warner T-50 transmission — 5-speed longitudinal manual - used by GM in its H Body cars and a few other limited light duty applications from 1976 to 1978;
• Tremec T-56 — 6-speed longitudinal manual overdrive made by Tremec; formerly made by Borg-Warner
• Tremec TR-6060 — 6-speed longitudinal manual overdrive made by Tremec
• ZF S6-650 — 6-speed longitudinal manual made by ZF Friedrichshafen
• Tremec TR-6070 — 7-speed longitudinal manual overdrive made by Tremec

Transverse Transmissions[edit]

• F23 — 5-speed transverse manual manufactured by Getrag
• F35 — 5-speed transverse manual manufactured by Saab in Gothenburg, Sweden
• F40 — 6-speed transverse manual manufactured by FGP Germany
• Getrag 282 — 5-speed transverse manual designed by Getrag and manufactured by Muncie Getrag
• Getrag 284 — 5-speed transverse manual designed by Getrag and manufactured by Muncie Getrag
• MP2/MP3 — 5-speed manual developed by Saturn for use in the S-Series from 1991 to 2002

See also[edit]

References[edit]

1. ^'Hydra-Matic History: The First Automatic Transmission'. Ate Up With Motor. 2010-05-29. Retrieved 2014-01-15.
2. ^'Exclusive: An Inside Look At Ford's New 10 Speed Transmission'. http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/. Retrieved 2015-03-16.External link in |publisher= (help)
3. ^Brooke, Lindsay. 'Ford and GM finally consummate 9- and 10-speed joint development'. articles.sae. SAE International. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
4. ^'Ford passes on GM's 9-speed automatic transmission'. Retrieved 2018-11-12.
5. ^Panait, Mircea. 'GM Hydra-Matic 9T50 Transmission Confirmed for Chevrolet Cruze, Malibu, Equinox'. autoevolution. Retrieved 2016-12-07.
6. ^'GM Service Insights, pg 23'(PDF). Archived from the original(PDF) on 2019-01-09. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
7. ^'GM Service Insights, pg 23'(PDF). Archived from the original(PDF) on 2019-01-09. Retrieved 2019-07-16.