Who produces high performance automatic transmissions?

 

Go to Google and type in "high performance automatic transmissions". I got 1,780,000 results.

 

Just find a local (independent) transmission shop that knows what they are doing. I had a TH350 rebuilt in a '79 Z-28. I told my trans guy the engine would be over 400hp. He said "no problem, I know the weak areas and you'll be fine". He was right. No issues.


He said he could do the same for 700r4's and most GM auto's.


I pulled the TH350 and he did the bench rebuild for right at $1000 (I believe, this was 4-5 yrs ago).

 

you need to say which model. there are lots of options depending on whether it is a 4l60, a 4l60e etc.

there are some articles from the major performance mags out on the web detailing how to convert a 4l60e to a 4l65e, how to make it live behind 1000 hp, etc, which you could take to a reputable builder in your area

I would imagine that there is the same (performance build tips) for the 700r4, I just never took the time to look as I have a 4l60e trans

the hotrodders in your area will know who has a good reputation to redo a trans, if you can wait until cruise-in season then go do some asking

as stated above by others, Google is your friend

 

http://www.rosslertrans.com/

They were recommended to me by Lingenfelter and I have had a few rebuilds with them. So far, so good.

 

I used ProBuilt

I would recommend strongly that you find someone local though, ask at a local corvette club and find someone who has had personal experience with a local shop.

 

The 4l60 has been around long enough that there are no longer any "trade secrets" out there. All areas of weakness have been identified and the hardparts to correct these weaknesses are readily available to anyone. A good local technician is your best bet. Tell him your goals and pick his brain a bit to get a feel for his knowledge. If he nods his head at your questions and has a blank look on his face, try a different one. Do some research of your own and as suggested, check for recommendations locally.

 

x3
Any good local guy can do these
IF theres a problem at least you can get your car there
Buy off ebay or out of state its too easy for them to blow you off

Guy I use wants close to 2k for a built 700r 4l60e inc any converter you want;totally worth it.
Fortunately hes a racer and not so much salesguy. Very busy so no time for redos.
Did a great job on my T56 even could have upsold me on stuff that wasnt needed but didnt.
Hard to find a good honest trans guy just like a painter
I have never broken one and been behind some stout big blocks 700rs usually die quickly behind them.
Every 700r Ive had or 4l60e behind a stock DD thats babied croaked, all of them. Going on #5 on my truck, it gets old and expensive
Get yourself a good quality trans cooler (skip the radiator) that makes a difference in helping them live.

 

I agree to that part. That said, why do I want to talk to someone who has to google stuff out there as opposed to someone who does it as their "bread and butter" livelihood? Sure, you can google all the trade secrets, good build recopies, etc, etc but why? I'd rather see someone who does that only just as I'd prefer an Ob-gyn to deliver a baby rather than a regular MD who can google the procedure unless there is no choice.

 

Not sure I follow what you mean. What does Google have to do with this? Is not a local transmission technician, as suggested, someone who does it "as their bread and butter"????

 

Most of the shops I see do stock rebuilds as their "bread and butter". They can search what others have done for their performance builds but that is not what they do on a daily basis. Their main job is to rebuild a transmission to stock specs so if I have a minivan or say a Toyata Camry that I need to return to the street, I have no issues seeing them. OTOH, when I want to build a 700HP car and have a transmission that lasts built, I see someone that does building transmissions that are mated to high performance cars on a daily basis as opposed to a stock rebuild guy.

 

Well, you are certainly entitled to your opinion, but lumping every trans guy into the same bag and saying they are only able to repair minivans and Camray's is, I think, a bit overboard. If you read my post, I said to move on to a different guy if it appeared he was a bit "confused".

I have a friend in my city that I coffee with regularly. He has had a transmission shop for close to thirty years. This is how I became interested in dicking with these 4l60's. He routinely beefs up high performance auto's for many in the community - of EVERY brand. I can tell you for sure that he is more than capable of installs other than minivans.

After all these years, as I said, there is no secrets to these 4l60's. I do this as a hobby, for ***** and giggles and know that to make these last, you have to put in a good quality 5 pinion planet, strengthened sunshell, best quality sprag and roller, wide band and upgraded frictions and steels, to name only a few items. I am sure that a trans guy that does this for a living knows more than me.

 

3+ years and 500 runs and still going strong.

 

A dick reply but funny none the less

 

I was answering his question! If he wanted a different answer, he should have gone to Google, done his OWN research first, then came here and said something like, "Out of these high performance trans builders, who has an opinion of the best one?" Don't you think???

 

Some of the tricks for a 4l60e are putting in The Beast sunshell, a 5 gear carrier, instead of the 4 gear, cherry picking parts from 2 different kits, taking the best of both using other special parts the aftermarket has developed. I have found all this through using Google and reading the HotRod/Corvette and other related sites.

As far as a respected well known builder knowing everything, isn't going to happen. I deal with a guy here local to me that has the reputation, The Reputation for making stock Buick Grand National transmissions live behind those motors when they are kicked up a lot. He is well known all across the country.

I used him to put a preventative maintenance part in my electronic transfer case. GM used a .25 cent clip that broke and would scrap a transfer case.

Did he know about the parts I brought to him .... no. Did he have the expertise and skill set to understand what I brought and how to go about fixing the case ? Absolutely.

It is their skill and experience you are paying for. Not that they know every part number of every part ever made to fix all transmissions.

 

100%

As I said, these 4l60's have been out too long for there to be any secrets to longevity. Just because a "bread and butter" builder spreads videos all over YouTube, it doesn't guarantee total success. In fact, search this site for "angry mutt" threads. Interesting reads some of them.

 

Your friend aside, I was trying to get a friend a transmission for his F350. 4R100 is a standard build for a bazillion trucks. The minute we said the word "modified" to the rebuild shop, we get the usual answers of "We don't build transmissions for modified vehicles.", "We can build it but to stock specs ONLY.", "We can build to your specs but no warranty.", etc. There were a few cowboys that said "No problem. We have done this before." but when asked for references, well, suffice to say, I haven't heard back from them. This was the same story with my own 4R100 and I sent him to Brian's Truck Shop in AR and that was all they did. Same place I had mine built and his reputation was that he would rebuild it for free outside of 2 years but you pay shipping, no questions asked. You are correct that you are going to have to go banging on doors and walking away if you see the "deer in headlights" look.

Yes, a guy that does modified can do stock but a guy that does stock might not be comfortable doing modified or might not have enough experience.

You would think but YOU actually do it for a hobby so you can spend a lot of free time and actually THINK and put some brain power to it. Many of the mechanics I encounter can only tell you "Oh, the sensor is out. Replace." but not understand it. My backup sensor failed and I had to get Ford to read the code since I don't have NGS. Incredibly, they diagnosed it wrong and I had to buy the module from Ebay since it was no longer available. That didn't fix it, of course. It was a defective speaker unit. WTF!! You can't even follow the FSM and go along with the diagnosis and you call yourself a Ford Certified mechanic?

In my experience, out of 100 people in a profession, maybe 10 are really good and understand what is happening. Maybe 40 are capable of doing something by the book and the the other 40 are able to simply follow directions YOU give them while the last 10 should be shot and put out of their misery.

 

So far, I have been afraid of that. I have seen too many cases of the customer bringing the parts for someone to install and the product goes sideways and the fun begins. The installer blames the parts and the parts people blame the installer. I go along with your plan and if it screws up, you answer for it. I don't care if it is a parts defect or assembly defect. You fix it or my credit card company will get a call from me.

 

True. Every builder, no matter how good has a chance of failure somewhere. However, a builder with an excellent reputation for a certain item has a smaller chance than someone who has never done one and is learning or has probably done one several years ago. Again, YouTube videos are great. That said, a reference from someone like a LPE or similar means more than any video. Sure, he will have a few disgruntled customers. That is par for the course. If you have a lot of bad feedback, it makes me leery of you as a professional. OTOH, if you have a lot of other professional people staking their reputation on you, that makes me feel warm and fuzzy.

10 minivan customers saying you are good might not impress me for a performance build. 2 well known engine builders will.

Yes, I can spend a lot of energy and get frustrated banging on doors sifting the wheat from the chaff but why not get someone that is known for that sort of build? I could get your buddy to build my trans or I can keep banging around and getting frustrated. Might as well get someone good in the first place. Less frustration than trying to sift through the mess of idiots which are in abundance.