Why the H55? (1 Viewer)

[67azcruizr]

That's a hell of a job to accomplish, my congrats. Not sure why someone would opt for all that with todays options. It seems to me that a splitter is the way to go if you are looking for an over/under drive. These 55's seem like a complete brain fart. Why not just make a true 5-speed insteed of adding some sub-par e-xtra gear. I have no personal experience with this tranny but from what I've heard and seen, these units do not meet Toyota standards. Curious to what all the hype is still with these units.

 

[grant5127]

That's a hell of a job to accomplish, my congrats. Not sure why someone would opt for all that with todays options. It seems to me that a splitter is the way to go if you are looking for an over/under drive. These 55's seem like a complete brain fart. Why not just make a true 5-speed insteed of adding some sub-par e-xtra gear. I have no personal experience with this tranny but from what I've heard and seen, these units do not meet Toyota standards. Curious to what all the hype is still with these units.

55 a brain fart ? sub-par e-xtra gear ? do not meet Toyota standards? .........OK Einstein!!... where did you gather this info??

 

['74 UA FJ]

these units do not meet Toyota standards.

I guess thats why Toyota kept them out of the U.S. along with all the other good s***...

 

[67azcruizr]

Perhaps my wording could have been better. My intent wasn't to slam toyota engineering. I just don't understand the hype of the H55 or any other 5 speed application for that matter in a FJ40. Is there any debate to wether or not this 5th gearbox was an after-thought. And again I'm not saying that it's not designed well, but if this set-up(the 5th gearbox) was something ingenius, why aren't all 5 spds just 4spds with an x-tra gearbox? Getting back to the application, it seems as though a large portion of the FJ40's out there are running a larger tire set-up than stock and higher gear ratios. When you start to add these together I cannot help but to wonder why the 5th gear. And from what I've gathered right here on this site, unless your on the salt flats be prepared to be doing alot of shifting from 4th to 5th and back to 4th to maintain power bands to support that x-tra 5th. After sitting quietly and listening to input on this forum, I thought it was relatively safe to form an opinion without worrying about insulting someone. And again that was never my intent. I am extremely open to any facts on what makes this transmission such a great unit to run on a FJ40 other than bragging rights or to go on the highway with your rig. I read a short story on Mark's website titled "life in the slow lane", not to drag Mark in on this, but haven't most of us that bought our FJ40's done so to get away from all the hustle and bustle even if in just small doses. If you say yes then why not just take the scenic back road and be happy doing 40 or 50 and enjoy the time away. Highways are like cell phones they suck until you need one.

 

['74 UA FJ]

My intent wasn't to slam toyota engineering. And again I'm not saying that it's not designed well, but if this set-up(the 5th gearbox) was something ingenius, why aren't all 5 spds just 4spds with an x-tra gearbox? Getting back to the application, it seems as though a large portion of the FJ40's out there are running a larger tire set-up than stock and higher gear ratios. When you start to add these together I cannot help but to wonder why the 5th gear. And from what I've gathered right here on this site, unless your on the salt flats be prepared to be doing alot of shifting from 4th to 5th and back to 4th to maintain power bands to support that x-tra 5th. After sitting quietly and listening to input on this forum, I thought it was relatively safe to form an opinion without worrying about insulting someone.

I am extremely open to any facts on what makes this transmission such a great unit to run on a FJ40 other than bragging rights or to go on the highway with your rig. .

The H55 is a tough 5 speed transmission. What does it matter if someone took a tried and true 4 speed and added an overdrive gear to it? They got it right and it is a great transmission.

You don't have to worry about insulting someone, it's just that we don't agree with all of your statements.

And yes, most people who want this transmission do drive their 40 or 60 series on the highway some or enough to warrant having it. I personally have no need for one since I only feel safe up to about 60 mph and have plenty of motor left.

It seems to me that a splitter is the way to go if you are looking for an over/under drive. These 55's seem like a complete brain fart. Why not just make a true 5-speed insteed of adding some sub-par e-xtra gear. I have no personal experience with this tranny but from what I've heard and seen, these units do not meet Toyota standards. Curious to what all the hype is still with these units.

This previous post does sound like a slam to Toyota engineering. I personally don't care if someone slams Toyota. Opinions are opinions. I don't see why anyone would want some aftermarket splitter sticking up out of the floor rather than a factory Toyota 5 speed transmission.

To each his own.

 

[G-Cat]

I do not trailer to the trail. I live in the United States. Most trails require some highway driving to get to. I do not enjoy driving 20 mph below posted speed limits...it puts myself and family at risk of being in an accident, not to mention other's road-rage.

My H55 allows me to travel at highway speeds in an FJ-40 with 35s. Not huge, anymore, but big enough for my needs.

I like that fact that it is a Toyota. I try to keep most of my Cruiser that way.

 

[wesintl]

First is also lower than the h42.

So, you get a lower 1st and a 5th gear.

It's also nice to use and bolt in vs adaptors to your application of engine and xfer.

 

[lowenbrau]

H55f is only exciting because the US didn't get them. Pretty ho hum for the rest of the world. Fifth gear is weak for sure as is the tailshaft splines. H151 is probably a more durable tranny but first gear isn't quite as low. I've had lots of H55f rigs and my current DD has 550,000km and is only now jumping out of fifth gear regularly so I guess it probably deserves a rebuild. For a couple grand I could get a brand new one that would last another half million. That's probably better value than average, even for Toyota.

 

[Cruiserdrew]

I think of it more like an H41 with an overdrive gear, since it has the granny low of the H41. It's a best of both worlds situation, and a good tough tranny, worthy of a Land Cruiser.

 

[Bret]

The H55 in a 40 is a good option for several reasons. I used it in a conversion to a 350, the shift tower sits farther back on the tranny than the 4spd does. So with the shifter in the stock location it provides pretty good engine placement. It allows for cruising at around 2500 RPM and not being a hazard on the road, and when you have drive 3 very non-scenic hours the shorter the drive the better. It also provides a good way to upgrade to the stronger split case.

With all the advantages it is still a good bit of coin. A lot can be done for the same dollar/time investment to make your cruiser better, but for me the work I was doing at the time it made sense and worked well.