Thread: How hard would it be to build a racing transmission myself?

Like the title says. I'm going to be enrolled in an automatic transmissions class next semester and the instructors are pretty cool and might let me rebuild and upgrade my spare trans that I have. So how hard would it be to build a racing transmission myself if I had access to all the tools through the college? Oh and what would be the necessities to get for a built transmission that needs to eventually handle mid 11 sec power and slicks? I want to go the cheap route since I'm a broke ass, so what is the bare minimum that's recommended? I want to stay with the stock gear ratio and no high stall torque converter because of gas mileage. Any input is appreciated.

Ask Dave...that is all my input...LOL

That aside...I say hardened clutches and bands, Hardened 4th Clutch, Shift Kit, Upgraded Fluid, New Filter, and although you want to keep the 2.93's for MPG, lemme tell ya I have ridden in 3 different cars (One bolt-ons, one with 1.9's and supporting mods, and one with a cam and Gen V) and they are fun as hell and as long as you drive about 65-70, MPG really won't change THAT much...maybe 1-2mpg...but I'll let THEM step in to tell ya

Ya I was thinking of getting a 4340 input shaft, a 15/16th's chain set, a hardened 4th clutch shaft, and a shift kit. What else is recommended? Btw the donor transmission has 140K on it and is in unknown condition.

Thanks for the tip, I didn't know that. The 7/8th's chains are probably easier to come by used anyway, so looks like I'm going with the 7/8th's chain for sure.

I can lend you some info and help if you decide to tackle this when the time comes, but you might want to consider you are going to have at least $1500 in parts alone to build a trans that will live into the 11s. As mentioned above a better input shaft and 7/8" chain conversion is mandatory, and DONT use a used chain for something like this!!! New chains are not that expensive and I sell the set with a new chain and ready to install sprockets for $295. You are also going to need to purchase a good aftermarket torque converter to survive in that time frame. Your college class books should have the 4T65E in them by now, 12 years ago the 4T60E was in them so I would assume they have updated by now lol. There is a lot more than just buying parts to make these transmission survive and it has a lot to do with HOW they are built.

Originally Posted by Trannyman95

I can lend you some info and help if you decide to tackle this when the time comes, but you might want to consider you are going to have at least $1500 in parts alone to build a trans that will live into the 11s. As mentioned above a better input shaft and 7/8" chain conversion is mandatory, and DONT use a used chain for something like this!!! New chains are not that expensive and I sell the set with a new chain and ready to install sprockets for $295. You are also going to need to purchase a good aftermarket torque converter to survive in that time frame. Your college class books should have the 4T65E in them by now, 12 years ago the 4T60E was in them so I would assume they have updated by now lol. There is a lot more than just buying parts to make these transmission survive and it has a lot to do with HOW they are built.

Cool thanks man I'd definitely appreciate some more info and help when the time comes, cause I'm a total noob when it comes to transmissions lol and I'll definitely need all the help I can get if the lifespan of my trans depends on how well it was built.

Well guys thanks for all your advice but it looks like I'm going to be unable to take that trans class after all, so it looks like no built trans for me anytime soon. The class I was enrolled in got dropped because not enough people signed up for it . There is another trans class available though but it just so happens that it conflicts with 2 of my classes required for my major, great just my luck ....

Sorry to hear man, I went to ITT for automotive and enrollment dropped pretty bad and they ended up closing the automotive shop a few years after I graduated and they were phasing them out across the country to open up new doors for other things and because of poor enrollment. It was a straight 2 year course, 4 quarters per year and my class started with around 25 people and only 8 finished! Hopefully you can pick up the class down the road, it was the transmission class that I took almost 12 years ago that made me realize it was what I enjoyed really doing and wanted to do for a living, that and electrical work and drivability. Having good instructors really helps out. A few were tough but that was their way of making you learn as you had to earn the answer and prove it to yourself often so you gained something from it and it really weeded out the ones that didnt need to be there! Good luck with the rest of your schooling and if you get a change to take the trans class again let us know

Ya hopefully I'll get another chance to take a course like that again, maybe whichever school I transfer to will have an automotive program (crosses fingers lol). Well anyway thanks for your help and generosity, I appreciate it.

Originally Posted by Trannyman95

Sorry to hear man, I went to ITT for automotive

Well that certainly explains a lot. That always seemed like a really good school. I very nearly went there to further my electronics training, but kinda veered into another field.

Ive told them here that if they ever lay me off dont expect to call me back at some point down the road, I'll be back in school. Id love to go to UTI or something like that.

hey I want to keep this thread fresh because I am going to be doing this at my school (PTEC). I believe it is in march when i rebuild transmissions because next month is engines.

My brother went to UTI... he loved it

This looks like a handy thread for me too My engines class starts in fall along with either auto trans or manual trans classes
and this summer im stuck with welding in the lovely 110* heat
Im at San Jaoquin delta college I looked at uti and wyotech But couldnt part with the 30-50 grand for all the stuff i wanted
Im still in the hole about 20 grand by the time i get out but thats for a s^^t load of tools
Now my only thought is do i want a donor engine and trans or do i just want to take the gp out of comission for nine weeks and rebuild whats in there now