The R35 Nissan GT-R is an incredible machine, capable of mind-boggling acceleration and speed. But with great power comes great responsibility, and if you want to keep your GT-R running at peak performance, you need to take care of its transmission.

The GT-R's GR6 dual-clutch transmission is a marvel of engineering, but it's not indestructible. Here's what you need to know to keep your GT-R's transmission running strong.

Introduction:

If you're serious about drag racing your Nissan GT-R, upgrading your GR6 dual clutch transmission is a must. The GR6 is a fantastic transmission with impressive capabilities, but it does have its limits. To get the most out of your Nissan GT-R on the drag strip, you need to make some modifications to the transmission. In this blog post, we'll discuss the upgrades you need to do to your GR6 Nissan GT-R transmission for drag racing and link to the various GR6 upgrades that we recommend.

Overview of the GR6 Transmission:

The GR6 transmission is a dual-clutch, six-speed automated manual transmission that's capable of handling up to 700 horsepower. The transmission features two independent clutch assemblies that are responsible for engaging and disengaging gears. When one clutch is engaged, the other is disengaged, allowing for lightning-fast gear changes. This means that the GR6 transmission can shift gears without interrupting power delivery, resulting in incredibly quick shifts.

The transmission is controlled by a complex network of sensors and computers that monitor everything from engine speed to throttle position. These sensors send signals to the transmission control module (TCM), which then controls the transmission's shifting and clutch engagement.

One of the main advantages of the GR6 transmission is its durability. The transmission features a robust design and high-quality components that are capable of handling a significant amount of power and torque. However, when you start pushing the limits of the stock transmission, you'll quickly run into issues. That's why it's important to upgrade your transmission if you're serious about drag racing your Nissan GT-R

Recommended Upgrades:

If you want to take your Nissan GT-R to the drag strip, it's essential to upgrade your GR6 transmission to handle the increased power and torque. While the stock transmission is durable, it's not designed to handle the extreme stress of drag racing. Here are some upgrades you'll need to consider:

Gear Sets:

One of the most important upgrades you can make to your GR6 transmission for drag racing is to replace the stock gears with stronger, more durable gears. Dodson Motorsport offers a range of gear sets that are specifically designed to handle the extreme stresses of drag racing.

Dodson gear sets are made from high-quality materials such as aerospace grade billet steel, which provides exceptional strength and durability. The gear teeth are also designed with advanced tooth profiles and surface treatments to reduce the risk of gear failure and ensure consistent, reliable performance.

Dodson offers a variety of gear sets to suit different needs and driving styles, including sets optimized for high horsepower builds, high torque applications, and even specialized sets for road racing. Many of the Dodson gear sets also include other key components such as bearings, shims, and circlips to ensure a complete and easy installation.

One particularly popular Dodson gear set is the Heavy Duty GR6 Gear Set, which can handle up to 1600 horsepower and is ideal for drag racing. Another option is the Extreme Duty GR6 Gear Set, which can handle up to 2500 horsepower and is great for high horsepower drag racing builds. Dodson's newest gear set, the Insane Duty GR6 Gear Set, is designed to handle whatever amount of power you can throw at it.

Overall, upgrading to a Dodson Motorsport gear set is one of the most effective ways to improve the performance and reliability of your GR6 transmission for drag racing. At Colab Garage, we're proud to be a Dodson Pro Dealer and offer a wide range of Dodson gear sets and other performance parts for the GR6 transmission.

Shifting Components:

Although the shift forks in the GR6 transmission are generally robust, they can still be a weak point in high horsepower builds. Typically, this is only a concern for builds over 2000 horsepower.

If you do experience issues with your shift forks, Dodson Motorsport offers high-strength replacement shift forks that are much stronger than the OEM parts. These replacement shift forks are made from high-quality materials and are designed to withstand the extreme stresses of drag racing.

In addition to replacement shift forks, Dodson also offers upgraded shift rods that are more resistant to bending and flexing. This can help to ensure more consistent shifting performance and reduce the risk of failure during high-stress situations.

While upgrading the shift forks and rods may not be necessary for all builds, it is an important consideration for higher horsepower builds. If you're experiencing issues with your shift forks or want to proactively upgrade these parts for added peace of mind, contact Colab Garage for more information on the Dodson Motorsport replacement shift forks and rods.

One other thing to consider is the selector rings. If you have an older CBA (2009-2011) transmission then this is a required upgrade for even stock power levels. Nissan upgraded these in 2012 and newer transmissions and can be used in your upgraded transmission, however Dodson offers a solution as well that will prevent this common failure point from preventing the shifting valve body to select the next gear properly.

When it comes to the selector hubs and synchronizers these are strong enough for most builds, while Dodson offers upgraded solutions for the most extreme builds or in the event of a failure of your parts where OEM replacements are just not an option.

Electronics Upgrades:

As the R35 GT-R platform ages, we find that many of the various sensors and solenoids can fall victim to age and extreme heat. This is especially true in the older CBA (2009-2011) transmissions where the 3 pressure sensors for the over all line pressure and both clutches can fail. This common failure has led Dodson to provide replacement options that are far more robust than the OEM offering. We also find that with age several of the solenoids can become weak or become littered with debris to the point they no longer function properly. Once again, Dodson Motorsport has worked to source these solenoids so we can now replace them with brand new replacements, where previously we would have to source known good used components. When choosing to upgrade your transmission you should consider the age of the gearbox and whether or not refreshing the electronic components is a worthwhile investment. There is nothing worse than loosing a race or missing an event due to a simple electronic component failure. Colab Garage offers full valve body service solutions to keep you on the track!

Front Wheel Drive Components:

The front wheel drive (FWD) system in the GR6 transmission is responsible for transferring power to the front wheels when needed. There are several components that make up the FWD system, and it is important to upgrade them for high-performance applications.

The most common failure point in the FWD system is the electromagnetic ramping clutch (ERC). This component is responsible for transferring power to the front wheels and can fail even in OEM power configurations. We recommend servicing the ETS and adding the Dodson Motorsport ball retainer modification to avoid catastrophic failure of the ramping clutch system.

In addition, the FWD output shaft can also break in applications over 1500 horsepower and is recommended as a preventative measure. Dodson Motorsport offers a stronger replacement part that can handle higher power levels.

When it comes to upgrading the clutches that determine the total amount of torque that can be sent to the front axle, we typically recommend the 9 plate option for even the highest horsepower drag builds. This is because the drag strip is a perfect surface to transfer power, and the 9 plate option is sufficient for this type of racing. However, we offer the 10 and 11 plate options for street and no-prep racing applications. It's important to note that these upgrades require the recommended upgrades to the front differential, FWD shaft, and FWD output shaft as the upgraded clutches will break the OEM components.

Overall, upgrading the FWD components in the GR6 transmission is essential for high-performance applications. We are well-known for our ETS rebuild program and use years of racing experience to set up these units for street and competition use.

Clutches:

The OEM clutch in the GR6 transmission is only capable of handling around 650 lb-ft of torque. For higher horsepower builds, there are two popular clutch upgrade options available.

The first option is the Dodson Motorsport Sportsman clutch, which utilizes a 9 plate design and can handle between 1000-1100 lb-ft of torque with proper TCM tuning. This option is suitable for builds that exceed the capabilities of the OEM clutch but don't require the extreme capacity of the Promax clutch.

If power levels exceed 1000-1100 lb-ft of torque, the Dodson Promax clutch is the recommended option. The Promax clutch comes in various configurations, ranging from 10 to 13 plates depending on the power output of the build. This clutch upgrade is designed to handle the extreme power output of high horsepower builds.

It's also important to note that upgrading the clutch plates alone is not enough. The piston seals, return seals, and baskets in the transmission are also subject to breaking if not upgraded to match the power output of the engine. Upgraded seals and baskets are critical to ensuring the longevity of the clutch system in the GR6 transmission. The OEM seals in early versions of the GR6 are known to fail at even stock power levels and are a mandatory upgrade for a 2009-2011 based CBA GR6 transmission. When upgrading the seals it also allows for elevated pressures that can be controlled in the TCM by your tuner allowing the clutch to provide more clamping force than would otherwise be available with just the added surface area of the additional clutches.

Finally, setting up the clutch is one of the most critical aspects of building a dual-clutch transmission. Our experience in all forms of racing has made us experts in setting up the clutches in the GR6 transmission, ensuring that they operate optimally and can handle the power output of the engine. Colab Garage assembled clutches are race proven and have been used in many competition winning builds, why settle for second best when you can have our experts build you the best clutch with proper specifications that we know will work for your application.

Rear Differential Upgrades:

While the rear differential is very strong in the GR6 transmission, when launching at the drag strip (or on the street for that matter) it is critical to make some upgrades to several components.

The rear differential housing has been a known weak point for years and does not require much more than stock power levels to break the casing wide open with a hard launch. T1 Race Development has the proven solution that we use in all of our builds that adds 2 braces to strengthen the casing to the rear differential structure to avoid this costly failure. In addition, we recommend using a upgraded billet diff cover to further reduce case flex under heavy load. While some would argue that this is not a required upgrade until your change the differential for a better unit, we feel that this is a nice added component to keep the ring and pinion in alignment to avoid a failure due to case flex.

When going for all out grip, while the OEM differential does an admirable job, upgrading to the Wavetrac differential is a worthwhile investment when trying to improve your 60 foot times as well as improving equal power application to each tire. This also provides added confidence to the driver as the car tends to track straighter at higher power with the Wavetrac. Finally, in the most extreme builds you will need to address the ring and pinion. The OEM pieces will take an absolute pounding and likely will survive repeated 2000 horsepower drag launches time and time again as long as you dont hop the wheels on the track. For those making more power than that Dodson has released a billet option that is far stronger and provides a replacement option when previously this would have resulted in have to source a core transmission for these parts. Although the stub axles are typically sold as a separate item, it is worth mentioning that they do plug in to the rear differential and is highly recommended that they are upgraded for anyone that wants to launch their GT-R at elevated power levels.

Fluids:

Before we get to the fluids themselves, we first need to address the fluid capacity and cavitation control. In order to launch the R35 GT-R at the drag strip with any amount of power we need to be able to overfill the transmission with roughly 3.5L of fluid. To do this we recommend the Dodson Motorsport Drag Pan for the GR6. This adds additional fluid capacity that is needed with the added benefit of having the pan filter bolted to the pan with a baffle to prevent cavitation on hard acceleration. In addition to that Dodson produces a anti-surge plate that helps control fluid slosh under high G load which can cause a missed shift most notably on the 1st to 2nd gear change. This surge plate is suitable for any GT-R that will be used at the drag strip, while the drag pan isn’t required until you are achieving consistent 1.3 second or better 60 foot times. Additionally, when launching your GT-R at high G, the over filled transmission if not equipped with a over flow tank will make a big mess on the track. The Colab Carbon over flow tank is a plug and play solution that connects to the vent tube of the GR6 and prevents the fluid from making a mess and allowing the transmission to be properly over filled for drag racing applications.

We have tried several fluid combinations over the years and have landed on Amsoil as our sole fluid of choice for the GR6 transmission. While it may not provide the best protection for the gearset itself, we feel that it is a small compromise because it adds superior torque holding capacity to the clutches. When it comes to the rear differential, we only use Motul 75w140 in our builds as it is the proven solution for both the OEM differential as well as the upgraded Wavetrac solutions for higher power builds.

Conclusion:

Upgrading your GR6 R35 Nissan GT-R dual clutch transmission for drag racing is a smart investment if you're serious about getting the most out of your GT-R on the drag strip. By upgrading to stronger gears, higher clamping force clutches, upgraded FWD components, and addressing the shifting components according to your power levels, you can significantly improve the performance and reliability of your transmission. These upgrades will allow your GT-R to handle more power and torque, improve the consistency of your shifts, and reduce the risk of parts ending up on the racing surface leading to costly repairs.

Remember, if you want to learn more about these upgrades or purchase them for your Nissan GT-R, visit our website at www.colabgarage.com. We offer a wide range of high-quality performance parts and upgrades for the GR6 transmission, and we're here to help you get the most out of your Nissan GT-R on the drag strip.

Nissan R35 GT-R Transmission: The Ultimate Guide