Alright transmission gurus, I've been looking for a good gsr transmission locally for a while. A GSR transmission came up for sale today for $800. The guy says it has OEM LSD, but that is not my concern as I have a quaife waiting for it. The concern is that it has a DC2 Vin plate but the bell housing is stamped S4. Through my research I've found that S4 means "EK" chassis like the EM1. Several posts say the S4 stamp is 99-00 Si transmission. The other red flag is he said it rides at 5000 Rpm in 5th gear at 80mph. Though a GSR should be 4000-4100 ish at 80mph, right? The transmission is very clean but the VIN tag looks like it may have been messed with, scratches ect. Idk how easy it is to do that but I'm skeptical at this point. I'll include a picture of the VIN tag which also clearly shows the S4 stamp.
What do you guys think. I highley doubt someone swapped all GSR gears into a b16 housing and swapped the VIN.... Any advise is helpful, I've read all the transmission guides I came across. Thanks, Ian

 

That VIN plate has been tampered with. Walk away.

 

You can see the pry marks along with the fingerprint of the original rivet.

 

Yeah that's what I was thinking, and with the S4 stamp it's gotta be a b16 transmission. Probly a stolen 99 si transmission that someone rebadged with a DC2 Vin plate to get more money for it. I'm gonna try to pry more info out of him and probably let him know what's up and hopefully he will be honest and either open it and check the gearing or sell it as what it is.

 

The two transmissions are worth the same in my neck of the woods. I do agree it has been tampered with but why? Like you say, possibly stolen but why not just remove the vin and leave it at that. Some people's logic

 

Yeah the only other logical explanations are someone had a donor GSR transmission with a damaged casing or something and swapped everything over including the vin, but that still dosent explain 5000 Rpm at 80mph.

Or they used the b16 housing because the mount was different for the Integra vs civic, and it was in an EM1. If it really does have GSR internals I'd still like to have it but I'm not gonna drive an hour + to count the teeth. He won't open and check cause he dosent know how.

 

I'm assuming the zeal autoworks Honda tranny calculator is accurate. Selecting the ratios for a GSR and for a B16, it looks like the GSR has a 2nd ratio of 1.900 and the B16 has a 2nd ratio of 2.105, with both having a 4.4 FD. If my math is right, the sketch below (I modified the original, which was done to differentiate D-series L3 transmissions) should show you how to tell the difference without opening the case. You can ask the seller to do this and it should tell you if it's actually a B16 or a GSR transmission. Of course, that's assuming you trust him to give the truthful answer. This was free advice, so take it for what it's worth.

 

Thanks, This is good useful information will definitely refer to this in the future if needed. He apparently sold the transmission already so I'll never know. I'm still on the hunt for a good gsr transmission, really trying to avoid buying one from hmotorsonline cause shipped it would cost me around $1150

 

Just an FYI. It's illegal to remove the VIN plate. It's officer discretion to impound a car if they see a VIN that has been tampered with.

 

I hate to pony up more $ for a tranny like you said but the built in premium might be worth it in your situation. HMO has been around for a long time and if there are issues with the parts your getting I've read they are pretty responsive. So if your concern is locally its hard to find a GSR tranny and some of the folks seem sketchy and its priced well below market then who knows what your getting. Lowest price isn't always the best, not saying you can't find a good deal from maybe someone who doesn't follow the market for things but it seems it is more rare then the norm. I got my S4 tranny from a guy in Michigan for about $400 shipped. Had 0 issues with it and was great. But if your coming across more sketchy sellers then it might be wise to pony up and go with a reputable source. Might save $ down the road. If it was me and I had something say worth $1,300 from a reputable business and I was an individual seller (as in a hobby) I might sell it for slightly less then the reputable source knowing its coming from a person who does this as a hobby. But I leave it up to you, but good job posting it for opinions before getting trigger happy as some folks do.

 

Thanks for the input, after doing the math and given that I will have the transmission built regardless of where I get it. Im most likley going to buy a refurbished built transmission from Synchrotech Transmissions. Will run me about $2000 which is about what it would cost to buy an HMO trans and have it built. I will just hold on to my Quaife LSD or sell it. The Synchrotech transmission has carbon synchros, media washed and gone through anything worn replaced and it has a Mfactory LSD. 1 year warranty. It's also nice and shiny and has a build stamp and sticker from Synchrotech. Which will help it hold it's value if the time comes to sell it. Anyone have experience with Synchrotech Transmissions?

 

Yes. I have built my own transmissions, but have purchased parts from them in the past - no issues. They're also very helpful on the phone. I bought a Synchrotech cable Si transmission (still NIB!) from a fellow HT user at the end of last year and pulled pieces from it to build the transmission in my EX coupe. It did have the stamp on the bell housing that you mention, and it was super clean, inside and out.

 

Click the link in my signature. You can get a built trans and use your Quaife LSD in it to save money if you want.

 

I don't see you have a signature?

 

You won’t see his sig on mobile.

 

www.wd-r.com

 

Interesting.