So, i've got this 700r4 transmission in my Z28 that I am replacing the factory torque converter with a performance converter with a higher stall. Is there anywhere (I did a search & found nothing but bits & pieces) that anyone knows of where there are step by step instructions on how to do this from start to finish? Tips for the process or clearances to watch for? Thanks in advance, I have never done this operation on a car before.

 

are you wanting to know just about swapping conerters or removing trans and everything?

 

Pretty much the whole 9 yards, I mean I have to take the drive-shaft off (needs lengthening & balance) and then from there take the cross member off while removing trans mount. Support the transmission w/a floor jack or what not, then from there l need directions. The guy who built my transmission had wired a toggle switch to my council that activated "Lock-up" to the converter, is there also a wiring harness attached to the transmission that I should look for? At the point when the transmission is dropped & brought back to a workable position, I then need to swap out the torque converters. Directions for that as well, including tolerances required & prep for the installation.

 

Invest in a repair manual for your car. When I first read the topic, all I could think of for instructions was:

1: Drain transmission oil
2: Remove transmission. Since you're having problems with that simple task, maybe doing your own torque converter swap isn't the right thing to do.
3: Pull off the old torque converter
4: Fill new converter with oil and install on transmission. You will hear 3 different clicks as it's being pushed on. If it isn't in all the way, you'll damage the transmission or converter. Clearances are tight so you need to rotate or jiggle the converter to get it on all the way.
5: Reinstall transmission, change filter and fill with oil.
6: Install any aftermarket oil cooler.

 

alright, first things first, up at the throttle body, unhook the tv cable. after you have the shaft out and the crossmember out, let it hang down some and take the two cooler lines off from the tranny, (these can be pretty tight at times so if you have one, use a line wrench to break them loose!) Unplug the connector on the drivers side of the tranny, on the pass side, remove the 10 mm bolt that holds the tv calble on, pull it up and you unhook the little "hook" that holts the cable to the rod going into the tranny.

Now at the front of the tranny, take off the converter shield or inspection plate, and you will see the converter nuts, take each of them off, while rotating flex plate each time to gain access to the next nut, and wiggle the converter to verify that its loose.

After that let the tranny sag down damn near as far as it will (carefull, look and time and see if engine driven fan (if equipped) is hitting into rad, or distributor is hitting firewall, (rarely happens on a vehical but there are some out there you have to watch out for) and when the tranny is sagged down enought, you can then use a 3-4 ft or longer extension and a wobble 1/2 and 9/16 sockets (or normal sockets with flex piece) to take off all the bell bolts, The nuts on the studs if there are 1/2 in and the bell bolts are 9/16 right before you do the last stud jack the tranny up just a hair more and make sure you have is supported good and wiggle the tranny loose after you take the bolt out.

3rd gens may require the collectors to be unbolted to gain clearace from exhasut cross over pipe...not sure on that tho.

when putting the new converter on, put it on the shaft and support the bottom with one hand and the other hand wiggle and turn it back and fourth while pushing back and it will catch and slide on further several times as mentioned. Then when its all the way back, you wont be able to get your fingers behind the converter/bellhousing gap as a good rule of thumb.

reverse procedure to install. NOTE! do a few bellhousing bolts FIRST checking periodically to see if the converter still spins freely, if it binds at any time, see whats binding so you dont smash anything.

Also i would reccomend you put in a front seal (converter seal) new input shaft o-ring, and do a service and flush (all of which you can do yourself)

 

What seems simple to you may not be simple to others. How else do you learn? I thought this board was for sharing knowledge w/fellow third-gen members? I appreciate the feedback, but my goal is to learn this and not have to depend on paying someone else to do it. If I am required to change it out again in the future, I can do that...Instead of paying for someone else again. After my project is complete, I can share my experiences with others with intentions of helping other like-minded individuals who want to do such a task. I will look into that repair manual and thanks for the brief tutorial. Keep suggestions coming, thanks again!

 

btw dont get a manual, it wont tell you anything different than i just did or anyone of us can tell you if you dont understand somthing.

 

Wow, thanks Superbee, this info is definitely helpful! I pick up my converter on Tues & then probably the weekend after Easter I'll work on it. Thanks!

 

wheres the oring? i saw my seal and its fine but im worries where the o ring is because i just slid my new converter on and dont want that to be old and broken.

 

eh sorry i think i got ahead of myself, you have to tear it a little further down for it, its an o-ring that u need for lockup, i dont know why i was thinking it was visible with converter off, just ignore that comment.

 

Would you like a book on home dentistry also?

It's simple to me because I've been a mechanic for almost 30 years and somebody who thinks they can be a mechanic wants advise on how to save money by doing it themselves.

I'm all for sharing knowledge but there are too many people who think they can be a mechanic only to get into more trouble than they should. Basic information is fine but if detailed instruction is needed for something as basic as a transmission removal then a line should be drawn as to how much information is given. I'd rather give suggestions and options and let that person make the decision rather then telling them exactly what to do in case they do it wrong.

Yes maybe they can work their way through the procedure with little to no difficulties and be proud that they did it themselves but normally, there will always be something they didn't know or even have a special tool for. In the end, it could be cheaper to have a proper shop do the work which would also include a warranty on the work.

I've seen good and bad information given to someone who has no idea what they're doing. If they screw up or get hurt, then the person who gave what they thought was detailed information should be held at fault.

Trying to save money and doing it wrong a few times doesn't save a lot of money.

 

Dude, you've got me wrong. I am perfectly capable of doing this project, I just wanted some directions in doing so, as to what to expect, some helpful hints and hearing from other peoples experiences. Its not like i'm an office person where i've never gotten my hands dirty for christ sakes, you need to chill out and get off your high horse. I don't need to know that its lefty loosy, righty tighty. Now that we're off topic, lets try to get back on topic without the additive of dry dentistry humor.

Thanks for those others who had offered their information relating to the topic of removal & re-installation of a converter into a 700r4.

 

Alright, I'm gonna start this project on Saturday (tomorrow morning) and was wondering before I allow the transmission to drop & rest it on my trans floor jack, do I have to take anything apart in the interior by the shifter? Any of the shifter panels or the **** or? Perhaps just disconnect the linkage at the transmission so the trans doesn't pull the shifter through the bottom? Thanks.

 

yes just unhook the manual lever cable, the shifter isnt at all connectred to the trans like a maual.

 

As another real, honest-to-goodness, paid and certified mechanic, I will say Ido know where he is coming from though. You have to be careful what you tell someone nowadays. It can come back to haunt you in court. And, nothing sucks worse than being the guy who gets the box of bolts and gets asked to put back together a car that someone else took apart.

 

Where's that book on home dentistry?? Though I understand what you two are saying completely, always have since the other guy said something, but what you two don't understand is that I am capable of doing this job. I said that a few threads back, if you rewind. I (once upon a time) was unfamiliar with removing the engine from a car i previously owned, but with a little investigation and research, i figured it out. Wouldn't ya know it, it was a success. You two should probably start a new thread on that topic for 'do-it-yourselfers & how you should really just go pay someone else because you know nothing.' Perhaps a sticky if there isn't one already, instead of sh!tting on the thread I come to for general instructions, tips & other peoples experiences. I'll start the sticky on how to stick to the topic.

 

Now for the results:

SUCCESS!!

Ha, it took me and one other person from 10am yesterday til about 6pm. Thanks to Superbee & his contributions of general direction & others from other websites, I had put together a procedure that worked for me. For others who decide to search & try to do get some general knowledge in this type of operation, here's my experience. It wasn't as hard as I expected it to be. Was it tedious, hell yes, but none-the-less, pretty easy. Don't need to be a certified mechanic of 30 years to figure it out.

I started by removing the linkage at the throttle body & also the distributer cap from the engine, as later on the engine is going to be tilting back towards the firewall. Next, removed torque arm w/the two bolts through the rear dif. Took off the T.arm mount & completely removed from underneath, set it on the side. Removed drive-shaft from rear by taking out the (4) 7/16 bolts from 2 caps at the rear dif, pulled from trans & put on side. Dropped the pan, drained fluid, replaced filter & re-attached pan, leaving out the two screws where the linkage hooks up.

Removed all the electrical components & started removing bolts from the converter, they were on tight!! Took a hammer to a 1/2 drive ratchet to break free. Flex-head, ratchet wrenches worked great! Rotated the converter/flywheel as needed to get to all 3 bolts. Old converter is now free. Supported the trans w/a motorcycle jack (thats all I had) and started removing the bolts from the bellhousing to the block. 2 on each side that are reachable pretty easy on bottom but there are one more on each side. As it was brought down further, I had gained access to those two upper bolts & also to the trans lines, which I then removed.

The upper 2 bolts on the bellhousing were a B!TCH to get to, I put together like 3 or 4 combination long/short extensions + a universal to gain access to them. It was even more difficult putting them back in, but w/one person on top & one underneath, it worked just fine. (after about an hour of attempts )

Well, now with the trans on the floorjack completely free from the car, but still under the car, I removed the old converter. Placed 1 qt of Trans Fluid in the new converter & placed it onto the trans after replacing the front pump seal. (Wasn't leaking, but what the heck.) I wiggled the converter on and it went through 3 different clicks before it finally bottomed out. Noticing about 1/8 play between the flywheel & converter as it is bottomed out, I thought the spacing was sufficient, so I had lifted the trans back into position to re-install.

After re-install, of transmission in opposite as removal instructions, things were solid. I also replaced the rear seal where the driveshaft goes into. Just because. After together, took it for a ride & I feel an enourmous difference of power to the wheels!! As I took a converter out that was 12" in diameter, probably just a 2200 stall, I put in a 10" converter 3000-3200 stall. The decrease in diameter is probably the direct result in the increase in power due to the less mass required to move by the engine delivering more power.

My one and only question is that I THOUGHT the difference in "STALL" of 2100 and 3200 is the higher the motor would rev before the tires start to turn? I stopped on some back road and with the brakes on, I pressed the gas pedal. Simulating a launch at the track was my intentions, but the tires started spinning at the same RPM level as the old converter did, which was 2100. I thought the higher stall would allow you to bring the RPMS up higher to launch closer to your torque/HP band? Any ideas? Well, again for the purpose of others searching, there is MY experience, hopefully it helps you out.

 

OH yah, and don't forget to add more fluid. That one qt in the new converter prior to installation isn't enough.

 

Hey, GOOD JOB. glad i could be some help. probably **** you off that i can remove one in 30 mins LOL



As for the converter. It will SLIP untill the stall speed. Not be completly free. so even tho its not completely grabbing it will still be transfering some power to the wheels. If you have very sticking drag radials or slicks, you will find you can run it to stall speed without it breaking loose.


on another note, id go to your parts store and throw in a little bottle of this stuff called "lubegaurd" thats awsome stuff. just give your tranny a little more life hopefully. have fun

 

Great thread you guys--I feel like I really learned a lot!