Hey i have a 87 firebird with the 700 R4 tranny in it , and i just got a replacement for it and i dont know how to do it , my lift has broke so i have to do it on the ground and i wanna know step by step on how to do it , i need to have it in and finished by 5 for friday night test and tune at the drag track

Step 1: Figure out your plan of attack. You either need to yank your entire motor and tranny togther, or cut some holes in your floorboards to access the bellhousing bolts.

Step 2: Make new plans for Friday night.

Neither, Do not cut holes or remove engine it is not necessary! Remove the tranny cross member and let it hang down. You can reach the bellhousing bolts then.
1 Remove driveshaft, put pan under tail shaft
2 Remove cross member let tranny hangas low as it goes, put jack w/ wood pad under to support weight only. Disconnect speedo, shifter cable, tranny lines, unplug computer wires.
3 Remove TV cable at Throttle body, pull it down from underneath.
4 Remove inspection cover, unbolt Torque converter, unbolt bell housing bolts, use long extension w/swivel on top bolts
5 have a jack w/wood block under pan supporting tranny, when all is unbolted, pull it straight back off of pegs, lower Tranny.
6 Remove whayever parts you need off of old tranny, speedo drive, TV cable etc. put on new tranny.
7 Reverse process to install.
You do not need to pull your engine, or cut holes in your floorboard, that's crazy... Take your time and do one thing at a time, PM me if you need additional help..

thanks guy yeah i have never changed one like im only 18 and doing this is crazy for me yeah i wouldn't cut holes or pull the engine its no need i knew that one i just didtn' know what to take off and how the concept like its only 6 bolts on the tranny but i was told i gotta take the touque converter off befor i take the tranny down ? would u know what sockets i should need ? for the whole thing and my motor is a 305 carberated

there are 3 bolts holding the converter to the flexplate, you have to remove them before you do anything. Remove the inspection cover, and unbolt them, its a tight fit, but not bad. may have to rotate the output shaft to get to all 3 bolts.

Dont forget the fluid cooler lines.

ok , i can see my converter when i look under the car does that mean i have no inspection cover? i just started working on this car im only 18 so i dont know vary much about transmissions never touched one .

no cover that's ok 9/16 0r 14mm bolts on bellhousing same on torque converter

Haha for not knowing a lot you sure know a bunch. The bellhousing bolts in our cars were positioned against the firewall in such a way to make them nearly impossible to access, no matter what's dropped and what extensions and swivels are used. Be sure to post your results if the method described above give positive results; it sounds like the best alternative I've heard yet.

Like thats all i figured but i just wanted to know everything , and when i was looking under it , i looked big enough gap to put a short socket and rachete on it but thanks for the help guys i will deff be putting my results up hopefully i get it done by 5 for the drag track

Has worked for me a few times, it has to be a long extension like go in from the tail shaft w/ a swivel, it'll work' let the weight of the tranny hanging work for you. It is easier w/ rubber motor mounts as they flex more than the polymounts...

Best of luck Kenny. Dylan here. I'll stop by today and see how your progress is.

-OSS

Any update on whether or not you were successful?

Any results???????????????????????????????

Looks like I'll have to find out for myself. I'm going to attempt taking my tranny out tonight using the method you described, J91.

Worked like a charm! I would suggest a few additional things for someone who has never attempted this:

1. Drain as much fluid as you can before you get too far - including pulling the pan.
2. Take all electrical connections and the distributor cap off of the distributor. These will get munched when the engine tips back otherwise.
3. Be sure to use a 6-point socket on the hard to reach bellhousing bolts. It's pretty difficult to get securely on them, especially when you're using swivels on something you can't see. The last thing you want to do is strip one of those bolts.
4. If you're using jackstands, you will want the entire car at least 2 feet off of the ground so you've got enough room for the jack, wood block, and tranny.