Trans thread part 2

[oleshifty]

I made a post about this I think 6 months ago. Seems there is a whole new crowd around here, so I'm curious of current opinions.


Jumped on it today at about 35, it had rained about 2 hours before, guess roads were still damp. Truck kicked out, I rode it thru, shifted into 2nd at 45ish, and bounced off the limiter for about 3 seconds until I realized it wasn't shifting. Dropped the throttle, let it rev down and babied it back to work. Coming home I got on it a little bit, and it SEEMS ok, but I know it's on its way out.


1 yr ago, had full intentions of going FLT. Have heard a few horror stories lately. Plus side--they are CLOSE. Probably only about an hour away. Down side--my trans is really high off the ground. I DO NOT want to have to change it twice, even if it is under warranty.

about 6 months ago I found performabuilt. I'm really leaning towards them. For their stage 2 (good to 700hp) I can get a 2500 stalled rebuild for 2180, or get a 9.5" verter with a stall from 2800-5000 (I'd probably go with a 2800) for 2360. Comes with 1 year warranty.


QUESTION 1 Am I leaving any 'good' builders out of the comparison? These are really only 2 I have heard of, that offer any sort of warranty

QUESTION 2 What are the advantages/disadvantages of going with the 9.5" verter over stock? I have been telling myself I was going to get a 2800 stall. Not TOO high, not TOO low. I do tow sometimes, but nothing SUPER heavy. If I don't use OD, I don't think I'd have a problem with a 2800 stall. On the other hand, 2500 isn't much lower, and my cam is spec'd to work with a stock verter (though a higher stall would obviously help get this beast moving)

Truck will have fully bolt-on motor. Has 4.56 gears. 35" tires. HEAVY. (Will no longer be a daily driver, so gas mileage isn't AS BIG a concern, but it's def a street truck, not a tow to the track sorta thing)

[beingblueeyes]

QUESTION 1: yourself (if you can afford the down time to pull the trans out and rebuild it or find a used 4l60 for cheap that you can rebuild then put in your truck)

QUESTION 2: tb converter stalls around 2600
my .02

[oleshifty]

The warranty is doubled if I use THEIR converter....it's only 320 more, I'd rather have the piece of mind. Was mainly curious what going to a 9.5" over stock size would affect.

And NO WAY I'm going to rebuild one myself. Way too many specifications that need to be followed, tolerances to be checked, etc for a trans rebuild to LAST. I'm not trying to do it once a month.

[sprayedenali]

i went with a good local builder and cant be happier. its not like FLT or performabuilt gets some super fancy high end parts that any builder couldnt get, and thats all that makes a trans any different from a stock rebuild to something that would suit you well.

so if i were you id just find a reputable local builder, talk to them about what you want and see what they say.

[skeet]

i would talk to chris at circle d about converter sizing and what fits your truck, you havew a bIG truck and a 9.5 might not suit you well.. talk to the experts then make a decission..

FLT & performabuilt build high quality transmissions, they both have had there horror stories, it happens from time to time, it doesnt make one better than the other, plus they do alot more to the trans than a local builder could and would do..

i tried the so called local reputable seen, it didnt work for me, it may work for you BUT i'll never try it again

[oleshifty]

Just talked to the guy who built my rear end. He will give me a 3 yr unlimited mileage warranty and that was with me telling him "im dropping in a 450 hp ls6".

We were talking about shift kits, and he said a must (I agree)

Got onto subject of vette servos and torque converters. He said his warranty is void if I install a different verter, but he will install one from HIS guy at whatever stall I want. He said he uses the SS verter casing, and they can make it stall to whatever I want. He told me he has never seen a chevy servo break, and the truck one is better then the vet one because it is made to handle the weight of the vehicle better (this is making me iffy on having him rebuild the trans)

He also said putting a 6 cyl trailblazer verter in the trans is a TERRIBLE idea because they just aren't built as well as the full size verters. He said the stall will be higher, but he wouldn't be surprised if I shredded it in a year.


I'm happy with the $1700 out the door price, including installation/fluid/verter/etc. He is close and if anything went wrong, I could have truck brought back to him, but I don't want to worry about it leaving me on the side of the road. My old monte carlo went thru 3 local builders and about 9 transmissions in 15 months. DO NOT want that headache again. This guy built one for my last mud truck, and i never had any problems (but I only kept the thing for 6 months, and it didn't have a very powerful engine). My rear end is holding up fine, but i still feel that a KNOWN rebuilder would use stronger parts.