Don 79 TA

What benefits would we expect/gain in by changing the torque convertor in her stock 88 forula 350?
it has the WS6 option and i think it has 3:42 gears
motor is stock, with a cat back.
may do short tube headers
tranny is fine
very clean
and has a shift kit (as far as we know)
i have the derale deep tranny pan on it
and since she wants to race it, was wondering with little modification that we have on the car, would it help?
what size?
and will it affect daily driving (mainly around town driving)

I'm more of a manual tranny guy, been 15+ years since i had an auto in a performance car.

Pat Hall

iTrader: (31)

Most 350 cars got 3.23 gears with the performance package. You usually only see 3.42's in the 305 cars equipped with the G92 package, or 6 cylinder cars. If you want to retain good street manners and driveability, I'd recommend a converter that still has the lockup feature, and a stall speed around 2200-2600 rpm. I'm sure you'd feel a noticeable difference from the stock converter, especially along with the shift kit.

Don 79 TA

so if it does have the 3:23 gears
and a stock motor, can a convertor like the TCI saturday night special be used?

the other thing i started thinking is if it was worth doing, and if it is something that you would feel or would help her in the 1/4 since she wants to race it
would it be worth it to have the tranny rebuilt then?

Pat Hall

iTrader: (31)

If the trans is working just fine, I'm not sure I'd jump into getting it rebuilt right away, unless you don't mind spending the cash for it. If you want to use it for the 1/4 mile, you might want to step up to 3.42 or 3.73 gears. I wouldn't go any lower than 3.73's if you still want to cruise on the street/highway with it. I've heard bad things about TCI and B&M converters for 700r4's. Most guys recommend the Precision Industries Vigilante or Hughes converters. I've heard good things about Yank and Edge converters too. The other upgrades worth mentioning are the .500 corvette boost servo, Kolene steels and Red Eagle clutches, Kevlar band, a ten or thirteen vane pump, and the Beast sunshell/planetary unit. I guess it's all a matter of how bulletproof you want to make it, and how much you want to spend.