I got my transmission back from the shop and i installed it. Transgo shift kit, extra clutchs, higher stall, larger 2nd and 4 servros and a .500 boost valve. My question is, is there anything specific that i need to buy for an 86 700r4 without an aux valve body? The car runs ok, but when i put a load on the transmission, (ie burnout, or slap shifting the gears) it feels like it is binding. When i leave off of the throttle it feels like i have 456 gears in the rear. Also, the shift points shift i think at 4800. What would cause all of this. Plus at higher speeds i hear a knocking sound, but i think that could be from the driveshaft not being in alignment. Whats the best way to line one up properly after the transmission is taken out (left to right play and up and down play)?

 

The '86 without the aux valvebody is still better than the '87-'88 cars that were sort of bastard hybrids of the two systems. That's according to Dana at Pro-Built, who advised me to use a later model valvebody in my '87 trans. He's the king of 700R4s, so when he gives advice I take it. He didn't say that the later valvebody is any better than the earlier ones without the auxilary valvebody. The TransGo kit essentially puts the two on a level playing field.

Clarify the "binding" issue you think the trans is experiencing.

WOT shift RPM is set by the governor assembly. It's inside the steel dome cover on the left side of the trans. B&M makes a kit to recalibrate it. Essentially it works on centrifical force. By changing the weights and springs in the assembly you can alter the shift point. Sadly there is no magic setup for your car. The governor is affected by gear ratio, engine power, converter stall, tire size, vehicle weight, and a lot of other factors. You just have to toy with it until you get it set where you want.

If you mean that when you let off the throttle the car slows down like it has a steep rear gear that's normal. In order to make the trans act more like a stick with a clutch it has been modified to provide compression braking when you let off the gas. If you drive the car in any manner that requires it to handle in more than just a straight line this is desireable.

The driveshaft shouldn't need any special attention when you just swap the trans in and out. If you suspect that there is a problem with it check the u-joints, and replace them if you aren't sure they are good. Then take the shaft and have it balanced.

As far as top to bottom alignment of the pinion angle and the trans angle it shouldn't have changed, unless the trans mount is taller or shorter than stock. I've seen poly mounts cause a vibration due to the fact that with the preload plate they are 1/4" taller than stock. I have a poly mount in my Camaro and it has no problems with vibrations, and I am running the preload plate. I have seen this cause problems before though on other vehicles.

Side to side alignment isn't as crucial, and in fact some degree of side to side misalignment is desireable for the u-joints to work correctly.

I'm not sure what the knocking sound is, but I don't think your driveshaft is the culprit. Is the sound metallic sounding or dull? Where does it seem to be coming from?

 

Umm. The metallic sound is like a dull knock, coming from the transmission, only at high speeds though. I did take out that 1/4" plate. I cant remember if the 4 washers on the tailshaft crossmember act as washers or act as spacers between the crossmember and frame rails. I was talking to my transmission guy yesterday and he said that my tv cable may be stretched and he wants me to put a fishing line weight at the end of it to increase my shift points. We did put in a slightly higher stall converter. I cant remember what the stocker is but i think i have a 2200 rpm stall converter in there. I swear i can remember seeing somewhere that i had to order a different tv plunger bushing for the 700s without the aux valvebody on one of the shift kits advertisement papers. The binding is from the clutches i guess, we put in 9clutch clutch pack in the 3-4. But what gets me is that it only binds every now and then. Like after a burnout itll act like it has the steep cogs, then when it sits for a week its all loose and free. Sometimes when i go down a hill it will just let go and other times it will hold me back.

 

also, my main concern is "what happened to my 3-2 downshift" After the instalation of the kit my downshift disappered. I can be going 45-50 miles an hour and mash the throttle and nothing will happen. Itll just stay in 3rd. At higher speeds the trans will shift from overdrive to 3rd. The stock setup, at any speed under 70, would downshift from OD to 3rd down to 2nd, wail in 2nd for a few seconds to give the car a good kick in the ***, then into 3rd for further pulling.

 

Sounds like you've got some issues. My best guess is the the binding condition is caused by heat temporarily fusing the clutches and plates together. What clutches and steels were used in the 3/4 pack?

The washers for the trans crossmember are washers for the heads of the bolts, not spacers.

Was the new 3-2 downshift valve installed with the kit? Sounds like something isn't assembled correctly. The TransGo kit actually replaces the stock 3-2 valve with another valve in a different bore in the valvebody. Holes need to be drilled to re-direct fluid to the new valve. The instructions are a little confusing in all fairness. I called Dana at Pro-Built while I was physically working on the valvebody and made sure that I did it all correctly.

The knocking sound is a tough one. Is it at engine speed? If it is then the problem is in the input side of the trans (pump, input drum, ect.).

To increase your shift points you need to modify the governor assembly. LEAVE THE TV CABLE ALONE! Go through the automatic adjustment procedure and don't mess with it further. If it's at the end of adjustment replace it with a new cable (I recommend GM OEM, best quality). The TV cable needs to be adjusted correctly, because if it's adjusted incorrectly you can ruin the trans. That TV cable is the only link that the trans has to the engine, but despite that several knowledgeable trans guys around here have told me that adjusting it manually would cure slipping transmissions and transmissions that wouldn't shift at WOT. It's never worked, and all the books I've read have said to auto adjust it. I think a lot of these guys aren't well versed in the new transmissions and still think that a 700R4 acts like a TH350 or TH400 with a kickdown linkage. They are nothing alike.