Thread: Woohoo Im first!!!

I guess its fitting for the Trannyman to post first lol. Whoever needs help I will do my best to answer questions.

For those that come in here and see this. If you haven't dealt with Trannyman, you don't know what you are missing. I speak from the deepest depths that he is so knowledgeable, open and willing to help that you will almost wish your transmission to break just so you can have the opportunity to have dealings with him.

He is truly an assest to this community. I for one and super glad he is here and part of this community.

Hi Zach, you have a handful of choices and they are all good parts to use as long as they were inspected before they were shipped out...... I prefer Intense input shafts personally but the others work fine also. As far as single chain conversions they are all about the same aside the GM racing chain which is twice the cost or more and not necessary for what you are doing. I have my own single chain conversion sets for $295, W-body store uses a slightly different chain which they are happy with and costs a bit more than my setup and Intense has their single chain setup around $350. ZZP has their single chain set just under $500 but is identical to most others. I prefer using OE replacement Borg Warner clutches, there is no reason for fancy high dollar clutches because simply they are needed and dont last as long. Raybestos sells a nice 3rd clutch upgrade called a Z-pack but I have never used one nor see the need for it for what market I build for which is aimed for daily drivers and long life. There are right and wrong ways to build these transmissions, just installing better hardparts and new clutches doesnt make it a built up trans.

If it was my car I would cheap out and not use the chain and input shaft lol. If I knew I was planning to run lots of low 12s with slicks I wouldnt think twice about it. Doing everything yourself changes your outlook on how much you want to spend. Sure if you snap an input shaft you would be pissed, but you could fix it cheap and be on your way. Is the "potential" downtime worth the savings? That is up to you, how much do you like working on your car? If you wont want to have to worry about the input shaft or chain problems then its best to upgrade them and not worry about it.

From all the problems you have mentioned it sounds like your trans is shot and in need of a full rebuild. I wouldnt even bother just trying to add new parts to it because most of your clutches are likely burnt and your filter sounds like it is probably clogged. The TCC problem can be from a clogged solenoid because of too much debris in the fluid or from the converter coming apart, its hard to say without having it apart and seeing it. You will need to get a better input shaft and single chain sprocket conversion. If your stall is OK to you then the stock converter may be ok to use, but with those kind of numbers an upgraded converter would be a good idea and that will also allow you to get a higher stall to help with the turbo lag down low if its of concern to you.

I hate to say it but that could be part of your lockup problem and causing the debris and problems. I would drop the pan, pull the filter, and cut it open and take a pic and post it up.

SyntheticSheild you were the man I needed to talk to, so here goes..

I have a 90 Pontiac ASC McLaren Turbo Grand Prix. From the factory, it came with hardened internals, and some other stuff. Now I think my tranny is on its way out. It currently has about 123k miles on it. And since I have owned it, the tranny has whined. I do race it on the track from time to time, and it used to be my daily driver. Now its just a garage/race queen. I was looking at replacing the tranny befor it blew up on the track (those track guys hate cleaning up that type of a mess). I have shopped around my area, and no tranny shop is willing to touch my car because they say its been modified with the turbo and all that. No matter how many times I tell them its factory.

So, althou I am mechanicly inclined, I hate working with auto transmissions, and I am looking for a tough tranny, 4T60HD (non-E) vacume modulated, that can handle the power that this TGP is now putting out (around 300+, soon to be around the 350hp/tq mark). Suggestions please.. I was thinking about going to a 125C 3 speed, but then I run into the issue of a mounting plane for my turbo, and my speedo/HUD calibration being way off. Any help would be greatly apreciated!!

HD diff wont work in your trans if thats what you are referring to. Mid 90s 4T60E and up had a different pitch gearset that all HD diffs have and they wont work with the old 440T4 trans. I have heard rumors of the internals of the 3.1 turbo cars but have never seen anything special to prove this.

That fluid looks really bad and there is a lot of debris in the pan. Im sure the inside of the filter looks bad to match. Are you using a large trans cooler? A stall converter that high with no cooler is asking for problems as it will just cook your fluid. Once the fluid is burnt, and that looks pretty burnt, it doesnt lubricate well and things wear out fast. It doesnt look like any quick fix to me and your probably gonna need a new trans.

And suggestions for me tranny man?

A stock add-on cooler probably isnt big enough. I use 26K GVW rating trans coolers, they are pretty good sized and they work very well. You definately need one no matter what route you go, but that converter is just cooking everything. I am not a fan of using the stock radiator cooler either, why heat up the trans fluid if it can run cooler than the radiator? Its fine for stock every day vehicles but anything high performance oriented needs all the help it can get in the cooling department. Also if the trans cooler inside the radiator ever goes bad or gets a hole in it your trans will fill with coolant and destroy it as the water will steam in the clutch packs and lift then clutch lining off the plates, NOT good!

Today 09:09 AM
Pontiac6ksteawd And suggestions for me tranny man?

Im not exactly sure what you are looking for.... PM me if you have direct questions or just post up what you are looking to do.

Reading my post above, http://www.grandprixforums.net/1159-post13.html , Does it sound like my tranny is toast? Is there a way to make the diferential better so that when I go thru the burnout box (when I get slicks), that I actually do a 2 wheel burn out, and not just a single, open axle, burnout. Are they ways of making the 440T4 capable of handling the power I am going to be putting down, 300est current, 350 soon? And just general info about the whole mess..