I love it when I read stuff like that. When I dumped the 2.59 gears in my C4 in favor of some 3.54 gears, my gas mileage plummeted from 30mpg to 23/24.

Now, on my present C5, I retained the 2.73 gears and dropped in a Yank SS3200 TC and now I have the best of both worlds. Power on demand when I press down on the 'go pedal' and 30 mpg when I am cruising the interstate.

I'd be willing to put my dog-earred 2.73 gears and 3200 stall conv up against an equal vette with 3.42 gears and just see who would get from point A to point B the quickest.

I think it'd be pretty damned close. Anyone ever tried comparing the two? And then when we're done with that, top off the gas tanks and let's just see how much mpg is lost by those gears.

 

 

You would beat the 3.42 gear/stock stalled car 1/4 mile, all else being equal.

tc alone > gears alone

 

Yank converter info........

Vigilante info..........


Both of these will give you some basic info into the world of torque converters.

I bought a used Yank SY3500 (which is no longer made) that came along with my FLP Level IV trans. I put in a 3.42 rear end in it too, and now wish that I'd have went with 3.73's now. My converter feels like a smooth driving stick car gently slipping the clutch to get started when normal driving. When you either brake stall it or just flash the converter (step on the gas), the tires do take a beating (and my converter is loose compared to an SS series Yank)! My converter was designed to be run with street tires (low STR of 1.71) and works Great for my purpose, which is 99% street driven, and driven on street tires.
The first thing that you should factor in is how you drive the car. If you're taking it to the track and running some tire on the car (drag radials or ET streets), then a higher STR might be good for you (and will also slip less).

Another great thing about getting a converter is called shift extension. This is best desribed as rpm drop after the trans shifts. When you're getting on it and the car shifts from first to second, the rpms drop quite a bit with the stock converter, and has to build the revs back up. With the stall speed, the converter keeps the car in the rpm range of the cam, and in the powerband. It just keeps on pulling during shifts instead of losing rpms. Converters in these cars lock up at a programmed rpm, and after they lock up, they're all pretty much the same as far as gas mileage goes. It's just htat some get to lock up speed a little quicker than others. I believe mine is around 40 mph.

Rear gears will tighten up a loose converter and make it more driveable. What I mean by this is that it makes it feel tighter and hides the slippage a bit, but don't go too crazy on gear because of the RPM's when you drive on the highway, unless you like to hear your motor rev.

I do agree that buying a used converter is like rolling the dice, but if you can have it checked out, then you might be alright. I bought mine from a private party that I trusted, and only had 1800 miles on it, so I wasn't worried too much. Every deal is different.

My advice is to try to find someone in your area that has a converter in their car and ask them for a ride. It changes the way your car feels and almost feels like you've added power to the car.

Good Luck and sorry for the short novel!

 

2.73/3200 stall vs. 3.42/3200 stall, the 3.42 car will be slightly quicker, maybe a tenth or two.

 

I had that converter with 3.15's. Then I had 3.73's put in, made a world of a difference.

 

Vigilante 3200 multi disk locker w/DTE 3.73 & Brace/ FLT 4L60E Stage V, and an ECS Driveshaft w/U-Joints = Mid 9's and good RELIBILITY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!

JR