i wouldent mind a 5 speed but i think my engine likes the 4 speed better. i have a feeling its going to lug with a 5th

__________________
Seth,

2 parts egg, 4 parts flour, 1 part salt and 6 parts 55 Cetane diesel fuel

1965 corvair monza convertable
1984 euro 300D 4 speed (NO LEATHER, ALL MANUAL)100,000 miles
Thank god the ford is gone

Actualy the 5 speed works like a charm with the Om 616/617, not only do you gain fuel economy, but your performance increases due to close spacing of the ratios, your economy gains and best of all, your noise level during highway cruising goes down significantly and as a plus, your engine reliability increases.

the only problem is i have no turbo, so im sure i would have to down shift just to speed up and then up shift agan

__________________
Seth,

2 parts egg, 4 parts flour, 1 part salt and 6 parts 55 Cetane diesel fuel

1965 corvair monza convertable
1984 euro 300D 4 speed (NO LEATHER, ALL MANUAL)100,000 miles
Thank god the ford is gone

Shifting with the 5 speed is a breeze, I can do finger shifting with mine at any speeds. I use M-1 ATF though which probably makes the difference.

What car do you have the 5-speed in?

OM 616 turbo engined Gurkha 4WD.

i'm pretty sure in the w123's at least the ratios are the same between 4 and 5 speeds, the 5 speed just has an additional gear (overdrive) so the box will feel the same from 1-4.