southerniroc

I really don't want to spend a fortune on a converter, but I do want one that isn't going to crap out on me and leave me having tranny problems. I saw one from summit that seemed pretty reasonable. It was the TCI staurday night special for the 700R4 with a stall speed around 2,000 and a 30-spline, 1.703 pilot for $265. It is my daily driver, so I don't need a very high stall. What are your thoughts on this one or advice on another one?

I plan on putting one on when I have the engine out. This will be the set up I will have: Edelbrock heads and high flow intake, LT4 hot cam, 1.6RR, and a few other things.

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87'IROC-Z 350 TPI
Ported Plenum,Hypertech Air Foil,Ram Air kit,SLP headers,AFPR,80series flowmaster and MAF screens removed.
14.61@94mph(90+ degree weather)

[This message has been edited by southerniroc (edited October 16, 2000).]

89ProchargedROC

Precision Industries all the way, cant be it. Nothing else except nitrous or MAYBE high gears will give you 4-5 tenths and 1-2 tenths off your 60'. Plus with a P.I. you dont have to run a big gear which helps with gas mileage. I have many friends with LS1's and 3.23 gears with P.I.'s and they pull anywhere from 1.553-1.68 60'. WOW www.converter.com

Ski89Z28

I had gotten that same converter, TCI staurday night special, when I had my tranny rebuilt. My engine was still stock but it did make a difference. Unfortunately I never took it to the track so no times.
But then I put new heads (6085's) and a cam and RR and I think I would have liked a converter with a little higher stall say around 2500-2700.
My car is a daily driver and it has 2.77 gears in it. The tranny and converter are giong on 2 years and I've even took it to the track, see signature. I think the times would be better since I have a couple bad injectors. I think my 60' time was 2.05 or 2.03, not really sure, and no suspension mods yet.
If I was you I would try to get the VIGILANTE converter that "89ProchargerdROC" told you about. You will be much happier in the long run. It cost about 3x more but well worth it in the long run.
Good Luck!


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89 IROC 350 Auto
TRUE DUAL Exhaust
Edelbrock Performer Aluminum Heads
ZZ9 Cam
TPIS Level 5 Chip
14.01 @ 97.0mph with 2.77's gears

vortecfcar

by the way the P.I engineering converter is 800$!!!!!. The holeshot 2400 with lockup is only 334 from summit and you can bet you'll fell that one......thats what Im going with

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91 RS W/carbed 350, Vortec heads, performer rpm, Comp cams Xtreme energy 280 grind. BFG Drag radials. 3.42 posi,Corvette servoed 700r4, ****ty stock converter
13.24@104

Willie

iTrader: (1)

That's absolutely true. There is not another torque converter on the market today that costs as much as PI's. You've heard the saying, "You get what you pay for?" Read on to hear the other side of the story....

Wanna bet? I was running a 10-1/2" Pro Torque unit which gave me 2000 brake and 2600 flash stall. My best 60-foot time with it was a 1.79. Then I blew my tranny and decided to go with the "best", a Vigilante. I paid $1000 for a 9.5-inch 5-disc Vigilante. Precision did a horrible job mapping the stall speed -- It was supposed to give me stall speeds equivalent to the Pro Torque -- I did not get any more than my STOCK torque converter. So out it came and shipped back for an "adjustment". Now, I get 1700 brake and 3000 flash, relatively close values to the Pro Torque. But Terry, the owner of Precision emphasized that torque multiplication is the key and not stall speed. He said his converter has a 2.5:1 ratio, higher than any other. Well, track results tell all. My best with the Vigilante is a 1.80 60-footer, equal to my Pro Torque.

It was a complete waste of $1000. If I had to do it all over again, Pro Torque is the way to go.

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Willie

Supercharged 1987 305 IROC-Z, Daily-Driver, Emissions-Legal.
12.57 @ 111 mph.
12.04 @ 114 mph (50-hp nitrous).
http://www.ozemail.com/au/jca69/mods/williesz/willie.html

1987 "20th Anniversary Commemorative Edition" Z28 Convertible -- Super Chevy Show Class Winner, 1998.

[This message has been edited by Willie (edited October 17, 2000).]

P J Moran

I have been running an SLP converter for years, and love it. I also have the Edelbrock heads and a mild cam. Check 'em out. I think the Vigilante is overrated, especially for a daily driver.

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'87 IROC 5.7l TPI - original owner!

kwikgta

Willie,where can I get a stall like yours & how much are they?

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92 GTA(only 226 made)ort matched sportsman heads with 2.05 valves,64 cc,milled .015,.028 head gaskets,port matched Accel runners,port matched plenum,port matched edelbrock intake,flow matched injectors,jet hot headers and 2.5" mandrel bent exhaust,Flowmaster muffler,underdrive pulleys,slp cam,1.6 rockers,slp cold air induction,52mm throttlebody,performance resource custom chip,Dyna module,Screamin Demon coil,Accel 8.8 wires,Bosch platinum plugs,timing at 10 degrees,tb bypass,relocated map sensor,shift kit,Fairbanks billet servo,pump vane kit & 2400 stall,Torque converter lockup switch,3.42 posi with welded axle tubes,Zexel Torsen HD diff.,Summit rearend girdle,solid pinion spacer,& alloy axles.Boxed panhard bar,lakewood lca's & edelbrock strut tower brace,Jeg's torque arm,Jegs welded in subframe connecters.Performance friction pads,turbo slotted front rotors,stainless braid brake lines.Roh ZT 17x8.5 front wheels with 255/40ZR/17 tires. 17x9.5 rear wheels with 275/40ZR/17's on the street.Hoosier 26x9.5 slicks on the strip.

Willie

iTrader: (1)

www.protorque.com

I believe I paid $600. I know it's a bit on the pricy side, but I heard bad things (premature failure) about the "cheaper" units like TCI & B&M.

Willie

quickL98

iTrader: (2)

i paid 60 bucks for my 2800 non lck-up. and i paid 60 for my other one which had a 106K miles on it it was only a 2200 though, it lasted 2 yrs before i swapped it out when i put the 355 in and went with the 2800. the local converter shop modifies stock cases and builds race converters as well for about 500 i could've gotten a 10" 3000 stall, 2800 is the highest he could get with my stock 12", it works great but! my car suck on street tires, my stall is a little too high. hell istill get a little spin with slicks

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87GTA looking for a super ram!!! 355, A4 ran high 12's with old school setup and radials, hoping for low 12's or better /91 TA daily driver LB9 A4 2.73,

quickL98

iTrader: (2)

i paid 60 bucks for my 2800 non lck-up. and i paid 60 for my other one which had a 106K miles on it it was only a 2200 though, it lasted 2 yrs before i swapped it out when i put the 355 in and went with the 2800. the local converter shop modifies stock cases and builds race converters as well for about 500 i could've gotten a 10" 3000 stall, 2800 is the highest he could get with my stock 12", it works great but! my car suck on street tires, my stall is a little too high. hell istill get a little spin with slicks

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87GTA looking for a super ram!!! 355, A4 ran high 12's with old school setup and radials, hoping for low 12's or better /91 TA daily driver LB9 A4 2.73,

89ProchargedROC

Well, i know of a place by me that sells them for $700. Plus, so many people like them, it is easy to start a group purchase for them. Also, i think they really know what they are doing. Not flaming you willie, but when my friends can cut 1.55 with 3.23's in a LS1, that is impressive.

Jza

If you're tight for money, you could get stock replacements.

My 86 came with a B-type converter, which has a stall speed of 2400. It barely moves when you let off the brake and will actually roll back some on a hill. It bet it goes for $80 at most from a transmission parts retailer (DAACO/DETROIT).
My 89 came with the E-type, which is not as good (it's an RS, not a Z28 like the 86), and I think it's stall is 2000 or 2100. It'll pretty much run up to 30mph when you let off the brake. It's not as nice as the 86's TC.

Willie

iTrader: (1)

Agreed. I oppose the concept of flaming ANYONE, and I expect others to treat me the same way. So I know you're not flaming me. I was merely stating my personal experience, nothing more.

As with any product, you'll see different people get different results. You'll see people swear by Fords (for example) and others who swear at them.

The reason why I decided to buy the Vigilante is because everyone had good things to say, never heard anyone with a bad experience. Unfortunately, I was the one. But I do have to give credit to PI for their absolutely awesome customer service. Normally, you get one "free" stall speed adjustment. Terry told me (at the time I had mine adjusted) that if it still doesn't work out, he will adjust it one more time at no cost. Needless to say, it will be shipped back for a second adjustment in the future.

Willie

P J Moran

BTW, I seem to recall reading posts from Vader somewhere before in which he discussed various GM converters that were worth seriously considering. I think he referred to an S10 (yeah, the little pickup) converter that would fit the bill for most folks. It's relatively inexpensive and covered by warranty. Look it up.

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'87 IROC 5.7l TPI - original owner!

raven350

I love my Vigilante... Was well worth the money. I had the street fighter before, and I barely noticed any improvement over stock... But the Vigilante blows the Street Fighter away..

To give you an idea... I am running 1.88 60's while running a 14.1 in the quarter mile. (intake is my limiting factor right now) Before that I was in the high 1.9's 2.0's with the Street Fighter. And i get a lot more spin now and I do not have any aftermarket suspension components... I still have the 12 year old original bushings....

I know it sounds expensive, but they custom build them to your application and they are well worth the money.

The most expensive brand isn't always the best... But do a search on Vigilante or torqu convertors and see what you come up with. I bet Vigilante has the best satisfaction rate among us 3rd genners...