i keep seeing this rumor that there was more than one length of TQ arm in the early third gens

yet i see no facts ot back it up

i see no reason why there was more than one length of TQ arms

i have had alot of these cars apart from 82 to 87 and at least one of them each wer a 4 speed saginaw, 5 speed, and 700r4, and none of the arms were any different length than any others,

my 82 t/a with the factory thm200c took a 6" tail th350 without any problem

the 82 4 speed camaro took a 9" tail th350 with no problem

the 5 speed and 700r4 ones would take a 9" tail th350 swap with no problem either


the length of the tranny would have nothing to do with the length of the TQ arm

the TQ arm brackets bolt to the trannies at the exact same point regardless of the length of the tailshaft housing, in which is very contrary to what some noobs state about the TQ arms being different for different tranny lengths, in which i am sick of seeing get posted

so does someone have FACTS and know FORE SURE if there was more than one length of TQ arm in the early years third gens ?

i say they were all the same length until i see something that completely and totally proves otherwise

just wanted to clear it up and learn something new(possibly) and maybe "learn" some noobs for once

 

Whether or not the lengths were different, there have been at least three different torque arms used. One had the "lips" facing the opposite way to the other two, and one had "windows" cut out of it.

 

i used to have an 82....

the only diff is the "lips" aka the way its stamped together.... the length is identical.

 

My stock TA in my T10 '82 was 57.25" long, whereas most any 700r4/T5 car I have measured comes out to 55".

I can back this up as well due to the fact when I bought my Random Tech Adjustable TA I had to lengthen it by 2.25" so that it would reach through the TA bushing on the T10, making it 57.25" long.It was 55" as shipped from RT.

 

Humm, I checked Summit's site. The Edelbrock torque arm is listed as fitting 84 up while the SLP is listed as fitting 82 up. Why? I have a hard time believing it's length.

JamesC

 

interesting stuff

hmm

also i just wanted to add that i just measured the TQ arm from the 82 Z-28(with factory 4 speed saginaw and 305ci) that i still have in the attic, and its 55" overall

 

55" huh? Are you sure it is factory for a 4 speed car?

 

yes

it was an 82 z28 LG4 and saginaw 4 speed

55" long arm

same as the 200c cars apparently

is that not correct or something ?


which way was it ? were the 200c and 4 speed saginaws 55"
or were they 57.5" ?

which one ?

i assumed the 200c and 4 speed were the 55"


right ?



and i didnt know any of the 4 speeds in 82 and 83 were anything but the saginaw


thats sure interesting

hmmm

were all of the 4 speed crossmembers the same ??

the crossmember in the 82 z28 was a wierd one with an extra flat plate above the main crossmember and had two round rubber cushions bolted/sandwiched in between the top of the crossmember and this extra plate

is this how all the 4 speed crossmembers were ?

i thought about saving the crossmember from this car before i hauled it in, but i didnt,

i saved the TQ arm though

i dont like camaros much and no one wanted anything from the car, not even the quick box or anything else so it went to the shredder whole- other than the a/c delete dash and boxes, rocker GFX pair, pass side fender, hatch assembly, seats, and the tailights since they were nice shape(all parts in storage still)





RIP 1982 Z-28

 

Just to be clear, my post was not an "attack" so you can settle down. If it seemed that way I apologize. I simply asked a question. I cannot say if it correct or not for that car, I have never touched it.

AFAIK the early 3 speed auto and 4 speed manual cars TA was 57.25", later 700r4 an T5 cars were 55".
Now am I saying this is set in stone.. not at all. This is what I have concluded from my finding of the cars I have stripped, modified and worked on over the last 15 years.

And yes, there was also a Super T10 Borg Warner 4 speed offered as well as the less desirable Saginaw. I have the build sheet and window sticker to prove so. Do a search to learn more.

"the crossmember in the 82 z28 was a wierd one with an extra flat plate above the main crossmember and had two round rubber cushions bolted/sandwiched in between the top of the crossmember and this extra plate

is this how all the 4 speed crossmembers were ?"

AFAIK yes.And some T5 and 700r4 cars had it as well.JamesC can tell you more on that. He has a post somewhere all about it.

 

The following link on the secondary cross member may provide some info (but little definitive):

https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/hist...ss-member.html

JamesC

 

I don't have any personal experience with the earlier thirdgens, but my understanding is that the 200C autos and the early 4 speeds (both Saginaw and SuperT10) are the same length as the old TH350 and the old Muncie 4 speed trannys. These are shorter than the 700r4 and the T5, which would explain the need for a torque arm that's 2 inches longer, in addition to a longer driveshaft. I'm pretty sure the secondary crossmember was only used to isolate vibrations more, and apparently didn't really make much difference so they abandoned that design altogether on the newer thirdgens. The same goes for the T5's that used the screwy donut style tranny mount. It's expensive and hard to find a replacement, and really simple to replace with a standard style crossmember/tranny mount, so there's no point in keeping that style when it comes time to replace the mount. Maybe you can get away with using the shorter torque arm on the older ones, but common sense would say that you need a longer torque arm on a shorter trans.

 

Here is a pic I found and scanned in of when I discovered the differing lengths when I went to install my Random Tech TA years ago.Now they are not sitting at the exact same spot on the ground as we all can see, but there is still quite a length difference.

 

My T-10 has a normal cross-member, without the extra rubber grommet dealies.
I've never measured the length, but it makes sense that the pre-OD versions would be a tad longer to get to the shorter trannys, along with the lip being on the opposite side. *shrug*

 

I sold an alum drive shaft early on to a member with an 82 or 83 car, IIRC, and the drive shaft wouldn't fit. Apparently, there are some length issues somewhere.

JamesC

 

yes the aluminum shafts are 3" shorter than 82 83 cars