What tranny to use?
 

So, I have had it with the rotary. It is finally time to swap in the V8.

I know that alot of people have a love for manuals but, what would the pros and cons be of having a manual or an automatic?

Please let me know what you guys think.
Thanks

If your using a chevy engine use either a t56 6 speed, or a 200r4. I'd go with the t56 though.

Thanks. I think the t56 is a better choice as well because frankly, who would want an automatic instead of a 6-speed.

But everyone has their own opinion so lets here some more.:D

c4 for ford

I have a 200R4 sitting in the garage waiting for the 327 to go together..

MY Problem is.. the 327 is going to either have a Tunnel Ram on it... or a stealth Ram with a Wolf3D...
That being said.. I am planning on going with a little more NON-Streetable (For the masses) camshaft.
THAT being said... Idle?? If you have a more radical camshaft...you loose idle quality.
Lose Idle quality.. and a automatic becomes a issue with a lower stall converter.
Manual you can run whatever you want.. cause it idles easily.. no drag on the engine by the converter.

Automatic.. run a Big stall converter.. like 5-600 for a 3000 stall off the top of my head from summit for a 200R4.

Ok add the stall... RPM in 4th gear (OD) around 1500?? But the converter hooks up at 3000.... AND.. the engine doesnt like idling.. which you do in 4th at 45?? SO what does the tranny do in OD at 55.. when the engine wants to turn 1500 for the speed.. but the converter doesnt hook up till 3K.... Cruise around surging? or just get a manual lockup for the converter and flip it.. and surge from the rough idle.. he he
This I dont know.

Soo.. Stockish motor.... get whatever is easier for you to get/install/afford/use.
GOing silly with the engine.. Go manual.

Drag racing? Auto is fine.
Autocrossing.. Road racing/Track Events? Go manual.

200R4... better plan on spending a K on upgrades to handle more than 300hp for any length of time.
700R4.. get a good shift Kit etc.
T-56 Get a clutch and flywheel and GO.

:D

Use the tranny that comes with the engine you buy (assuming you get one from a wreck). For an LS1 it'll be a t56 or a 4L60E. Other options are Tremec TKO (II?) 5 speed, or a 200r4/700r4 for autos. If it were me (and I've been there obviously) I'd leave well enough alone and just go with the T56.

tranny caution and advice
 

the t56 has a track record of causing injury to the driver due to the shifter wacking against ones leg.
look into fb performance they have a tranny rated at about 900hp 4speed and an airshift kit could be added because at 8-900 hp you will lose time shifting yourself.
they made a rotary app. and i saw it in the shop also made an app. for a dsm motor. simply bring your own bell housing. 350 chevy turbo one on there website has been upgraded to handle 900hp.(listed at 700hp there)
the t56 aka the tremec? that is the one that has cause issues also if you talk to viper guys they will tell you that 6th is known to break upon minor torque abuse.
I'm not trying to come across as some sort of expert but a 75 shot Nitrous spray caused the fly to catch the tranny and twist the internals thus smacking a driver in NJ in the leg.

Umm DUde No offense..:D
I know about 150 people in the tampabay area in a local club, and the vast majority have the T-56.
No-one I have ever talked to has ever had the tranny hit thier leg. :wtf:
One of my best friends has a 2002 SLP Camaro he special ordered with a host of mods.. and I have abused it for 2 years at the track etc.. 11.8 in the 1/4. Never had a problem with the tranny. Nor have any of his friends.
Sooo I dunno what condition the cars are with the T-56 you have "seen" but none of them I have seen or driven have had these problems.

Thanks again. I think I will just go with a T56. It seems to be the best option for waht I am looking into.

Would anybody do a 1st gear lock-out, on a 1st Gen 5.0 HO,T56?

T56 or th400 if you go with an auto

I used 700r4 and no complaints. You can run a radical cam with a 700 because it has a tv cable and don't operate off vacuum. Secondly it has overdrive so you don't need to worry too much on gearing. I'm running a 2500 stahl. Only downside is a shifter. You need a four speed shifter so you can't use the 7s stock shifter well you can but you can't hit low.

Manual - pros,
1. It's manual
2. You shift the gears and push the clutch (no tq converter or shift kit needed to change it up or cause issues)
3. gas milage, maybe
4. lighter weight
5. good for autoX
6. Far more difficult to overheat

Auto pros,
1. Big $$$ for a "built" manual unit compared to auto
2. Way easier on the rear end if you go drag racing or plan on launching at all, this is big if you have a stock rear.
3. Auto trans with a shift kit is really fun too
4. Just because a manual is simpler doesn't mean it wont give you problems.
5. Not as likely to break on launch.
6. Launches like an ICBM!

It's a toss up, go with your preference unless you plan on being a regular at the drag strip in which case go auto.

A mild built engine with a stick is alright but if your going to put big numbers down I would do an automatic. Easy to enjoy when you just want to cruise. Stiff clutch and traffic don't mix well

Oh and another thing. If your doing a big nasty motor with an auto. Do a reverse vavle body :)

LOL at the T56 will whack you in the leg comments above. I've put some together that live behind 500-1000 RWHP cars, and I am NOT a pro by any means.

On an N/A car, or something that's a street toy, I'd go wit ha T56 all day. With a turbo car, I'd consider the automatic.

FWIW, I've had the following transmissions in my car:

700r4
4L60e
T56
2004r
Powerglide

In that order. I killed the 700r4, 4L60e and 2004r. All were moderately built, all were fried with between 350 (700r4/4L60e, technically 2 of those) and 550 (2004r) RWHP. T56 was fine with ~450-500 RWHP, I sold it in working condition. Have a very built powerglide now. Car is a turbo V8 setup for straight line stuff.

<3 thread necro.....The shifter whacking leg was classic.

Could also go with a Camaro TR6060 with the stock Camaro shifter linkage. Or the T56 Magnum which is the aftermarket version of the TR6060. Same internals I believe.

T56

it also depends on which version of the t 6060 you use. some are geared differently where you can use 6th as top end gear and not a gas saving over drive. the t6060 in the zl1 camaro is geared toward top speed with a .63 ratio.

Just check out ls1tech.com by far the best place to find LS motor and Tremec transmission advice.

but what about this 6 speed auto from TCI that comes with a computer and bolts to any ls engine. oh yeah and rated at 850 ft lbs of torque.

6x Six-Speed GM 4L80E Automatic Transmission (850hp) - TCI® Auto

I heard t56 is the way to go!

for a manual trans yeah I would go with the t6060, but for an automatic with your choice of 6 forward gears and a higher torque rating the tci 6 speed auto seems like a good choice. not to mention automatics shit so much faster than a human could ever shift, what could consistency hurt. oh yeah and paddle shifters are a nice perk as well.

No Drag Car here guys, just a nice and stong GT.

The TR6060 is nice for the street but you miss a gear driving hard it will NOT forgive you. The finer teeth on the gear/syncro assemblies makes for a smoother shift than the t-56 but are MUCH more prone to rounding off and grinding.

What rear end holds up??

To what?

The stock rear with an aftermarket diff and half shafts is very strong.

A cobra rear is stronger if built right and has more gear options.

And the TCI 6 speed auto can be used for road racing... its stronger and better geared than the zl1 camaro's 6 speed auto. And the Zl1 automatic was 2 seconds quicker on the nurburgring than the 6 speed manual.

Now were gitting some place, GT land.

Im wanting to do a ls3 swap didnt know if the stock rx7 rear end could handle the power are not

t56 for the win

Anybody suggest a 1st gear lock-out on a T5, T56, stock rear?

I currently use a manually shifted 4l80e with a 3500 stall Hughes lock up converter. I've used it for drag racing, autocross, and as a daily driver. It has worked well in all of these applications.


Torque converter selection is key to a great performing automatic transmission. My car is faster in the 1/4 mile with the 4l80e than with the T5 that was previously installed.


Steve

If you don't run slicks or go to the track much it will. I'm at 410rwtq and mine holds up fine. I'm just looking to upgrade to be able to go to the strip once and a while without having to worry about it.

emod19

with that 4l80e did it fit ok in the trans tunnel? I know that is a beefy trans, and I know tci's 6speed is basically the 4l80e with new internals to make it a 6 speed.

did you have to do any cutting, or did it fit right in?

I had to cut out the bumps that the OE crossmember mounted to and fabricate a new crossmember.

Steve

Go with a t56 dude

that's good to know. And the t56 is ok. but i'd rather have a 6 speed auto. much more consistent, quicker shifts, quicker times, and tci's 6 speed auto can hold more power. for the extra cash it's worth it.

T-56 all day. For rear options, call Ronin speedworks. They make a kit to bolt in a 8.8 out of a 02-05 for explorer, mountaineer,navigator ect. Broke way to may stub shafts with my LT1/T5 combo, and that was just doing some minor burnouts. Been waiting to kill my T5 to go to a T-56. T-56 + Ronin 8.8 kit = Good to go.

How much do those ronin 8.8 kits run? and I dont mean just the cradle? I'm looking for the complete rear diff and axles, etc... I'm wondering what i"m in for price wise.

To your door about 1200, which includes cradle, front mounting bracket, custom axel bars to use with ford inner cvs and t2 outer cvs, also can use 929 if im not mistaken, all boots for cvs. You need to source the diff from a 02-05 explorer, mountaineer ect. The diff will come with the inner cvs, so you also need to source outer cvs and then a driveshaft. I found my diff from a 02 explorer with 3.55 and open. The otions available stock are 3.55 and 3.73. Some come with traction locks also. For everything 100% done i am looking at about 1700. When compared to putting in a aftermarket 2-way lsd is only about 500-600 more and you have a stronger, better setup with more gearing options. For me it was a no brainer. Especially with the stock torque numbers the rx7 had with the rotary and then going and throwing in a LT1, the rear never stood a chance lol. Also the stuff you are going to get from Ronin is top notch A+ stuff. Check out their website and bookmark that shit.

Thanks for the info. And yeah I checked out that site last week and I have to source a few of those items you mentioned. But instead of picking up something used from an explorer, do you know of any reputable places I can get a custom rear diff from so I can choose my own ratio. And where I can get a set of axle shafts from that wont break with 700+ hp and slicks?

I'm a GM guy and and I don't know where to begin with these ford parts.

Toulsey ford should be able to get you everything you want, new gear ratios, rebuild kits. I dont know about a places that do custom 8.8s But you can order all the peices you want and then have it assembled by the professional of your choice. With new ratio and a fresh rebuild the only thing "used is the housing". When you say axel shafts, do you mean the actual axel bar? If so, the axel bars/shafts that come with the ronin kit are under a lifetime guarantee. If you break your first set, replaced no questions, break them again they will work you depending on you power. With HP like that, DSS also makes some kits that will intergrate with the ronin kit. Also check american muscle for for ford 8.8 parts

thanks for the recommendations. And I thought the ronin kit didn't come with the axle shafts bars. basically the axles that go from the diff to the wheels. I was under the impression those are pretty costly.

Nope kit comes with them, all you will need to source is T2 outer CV joints to build the complete axel assembly

Im wondering if a four speed munsi would be better than a five speed .. i wanna put a 350 or 327 in it and not sure how to go about it

T56 is killer unless you are building an all out drag car and every last tenth counts.

I sell new T56 Magnums which are basically a 2008+ Z06/ZR1 style internals with Fbody gear ratios (2.66 1st and .80 5th/.63 6th) in a case like the Fbody designed to be installed behind the engine... not like a transaxle in the Vette. The shifting quality is like a new car. The older '93-02 T56's shift nowhere near as nicely.... and the '04-06 GTO units have funky gear ratios and don't shift as nice either.

A stock FC (T2) and FD rear should hold the power unless you are drag racing a lot. Then run bias ply tires which are softer on driveline parts with less shock upon launch. The S4 '86-88 clutch pack style LSD is super strong and can be installed into the FD diff case as well. The stock FD Torsen over time won't handle drag race launches on slicks. I run the Cobra IRS rear, DSS 300M axles with 3.73 FMS gears. Gear ratios feel awesome on my setup. Close ratio 5th gear on the road courses helps a ton to stay in the powerband.

GNX7

where did you get the ford IRS setup from. I found the company that makes the cradle, but as for the rear diff, internals and axles I'm not sure of a good place to source those from?

Do you have any recommendations? I'm looking for a bullet proof rear end as I will be putting down about 650 to the wheels with sticky tires. So I don't want to replace parts often.

thanks.

Load of info to digest, so I will be simple and short. I have a 200-4R in my car (V-8)- running about 420-440rwhp: the trans is nice and hold well, but probably upgrading to the 460 after I burn this one. Auto with prostick kinda give bet of both worlds. Base your trans decision on HP you running- the guy earlier had pointed out. Good luck & have fun!!

Its hard to argue the clear choice most people use is the T56 lol

t56 for sure :nod: