what am i looking at doing to replace my differential in my 96 cavalier z24 f23 getrag transmission. i was told the differential went to @!#$ and i would like to know if its worth rebuilding or replacing the tranny.

I don't trust shops, that's why I do my own work.


- Your not-so-local, untrained, uncertified, backyard mechanic. But my @!#$ runs

i dont either. ok i know its not my tranny because it goes into each gear, it just clunks and thunks in gear. when it did move it use to clunk into gear then drove straight fine but when attempted to turn it would clunk. now i got a getrag 282 with about 20 miles on the rebuild i just dont want to use it. im positive its my differential. how much work would it be to replace the differential or should i just swap the trannys i guess is the question. just wanted to know the labor involved.

Unless you had one installed... the 96 Cavalier didn't come with the Getrag F23 (that's from the 00-05 years only). You would have the Isuzu trans in that.

But it sounds like it's gone in any case...

no, my tranny came stock on this car and the code is getrag f23. i know on wiki it says otherwisw but i assure you it did. car has been in my family since 96 and its the same tranny, as i said before, i got a getrag 282 that was just rebuilt out of 92 beretta gtz quad 4. loved the car but some bitch locked her brakes up infront of me. once again, tranny is fine, just differential went out. so is it worth getting a high performance differential or just slap in the 282

christian keim wrote:no, my tranny came stock on this car and the code is getrag f23. i know on wiki it says otherwisw but i assure you it did. car has been in my family since 96 and its the same tranny, as i said before, i got a getrag 282 that was just rebuilt out of 92 beretta gtz quad 4. loved the car but some bitch locked her brakes up infront of me. once again, tranny is fine, just differential went out. so is it worth getting a high performance differential or just slap in the 282

Again the F23 was not even made in 96.

I would swap out the tranny.



FU Tuning

John Lenko wrote:Unless you had one installed... the 96 Cavalier didn't come with the Getrag F23 (that's from the 00-05 years only). You would have the Isuzu trans in that.

But it sounds like it's gone in any case...

^^^ knows more about this platform than probably any other 10 members combined. also, you have an isuzu transmission.



JBO Stickers! Get yours today!

Rich Grayo Jr. wrote:

John Lenko wrote:Unless you had one installed... the 96 Cavalier didn't come with the Getrag F23 (that's from the 00-05 years only). You would have the Isuzu trans in that.

But it sounds like it's gone in any case...

^^^ knows more about this platform than probably any other 10 members combined. also, you have an isuzu transmission.

except me...i taught lenko everything he knows

lenko does happen to be a god in these parts

christian keim wrote:no, my tranny came stock on this car and the code is getrag f23. i know on wiki it says otherwisw but i assure you it did.

No, I assure you.. Wiki is right, and you are wrong. It's ok to be wrong.. just don't let it get you down. Here's how I know..

The RPO code for the F23 Getrag trans is either M86 or M94.. and wasn't even a valid code for a J-body vehicle until the 2000 model year... so unless your Cavalier came from four years in the future when it was built... you have an Isuzu-designed but GM-built (aka cheap POS) 5 speed transmission, with an RPO code of either MK7 or MJ1 depending on your engine. If you're so inclined... you can look on the bottom of the spare tire cover, there's a sticker there with all the RPO codes your car was built with. And if you don't have the sticker anymore (or can't make it out), you can go here: http://www.compnine.com/ and look up all the RPO codes your car was built with using your VIN number.

Trust me.. you don't have a Getrag F23 in your car, unless someone had it installed.


Now... back to the original problem. Yes, your diff sounds like it's hooped. Very common problem on those Isuzu transmissions (not so much on the older Getrag 282's... nor the newer Getrag F23's... which, if you had, you probably wouldn't be having this issue now would you?). A good idea to swap the 282 in if you have one, because it should bolt right up assuming you have the same engine bellhousing as the donor car... otherwise, you have to find a 2000-02 Getrag F23 from a 2.4L engine and swap all the mounts, brackets, shifter assembly, blah blah blah...

the @!#$ up thing is, i just got my tranny dropped and its a 4dff code muncie. i had no idea. i didnt even know they put these in cavaliers. i thought they only came in the quad 4. confused, this car has been in my family its whole life and everything but the transmission has went out.

ok actually i was told the differential went out before in like 99 so im guessing instead of doing the differential they just put a different tranny in it.