well guys i have a delimma

im trying to decide if i wanna get the following in the near future.. i have a built 700r4 with a corvette stall.... (this is my 4th 700r4 and i burnt up my tci streetfighter 3000 converter a while back by the way which is sad)

here are the options

dana probuilt 700r4 with a vigilante 2800 stall

or

t56 out of a lt1 car and better clutch

this is my daily driver and ive been battling back and fourth on which to use...

either transmission will be behind a
forged 355
FIRST fuel injection tpi
gm hotcam
AFR 180 heads
3.27 gears

i dont really race and i love driving my car...

I have seen guys put in t56 in place of autos and with horse power in front of them you have to watch the clutch dumping and banging gears. I have seen several with bent input shafts and broken main shafts from hard launches.
I have also seen guys with with Probuilt automatics transmissions and they love them. Good launches and shifts. The car is quicker with one of his transmissions not to mention better fuel milage because of the low drag steels. Probuilts transmissions aren't just a rebuild with a shift kit a lot of work goes into his kits to make the trans match the engine and car.
Just my 2 cents
Rob

yeah ive heard that dana works wonders on the trannies he builds... one big reason im leaning away from the t56 is because i dont want to do the fab work and change alot of things.... plus 3.27 are not optimal for a t56 while the 3.27 gears and the FIRST TPI is about perfect match for the 4 speed auto... also danas transmission and converter is a bolt on deal for me....

Dana has worked years fixing the 700 and 4L60 problems I just laugh when people say that a good one can't be built. They haven't had one of Dana's in there car.
A good friend of mine has a t56 in his SS Impala and has broken that thing two times now. When he takes off he can't just dump the clutch and when he hits 2nd can't slam the gear. The first time it broke he twisted the main shaft and the second time the input shaft. The car only dyno tuned at 350hp to the wheels. It is a heavy car through.
Rob

If you can afford it, a T56 Magnum... built off the TR-6060 in the new Camaros, Vipers, and Mustangs, beefed up a bit to handle 700 ft-lb... think they go for close to $3000 new and come with a warranty. I'd say that's probably better than spending two grand for a used T56 and hoping it holds up.

The sad part is - considering the rebuild cost of a T56 to stock specs, he could've had something really nice by now. T56's are great transmissions, but they're damn expensive when they break. I had one and sold it in place for a built TH350 instead. I'll miss the 3 extra gears, but my pocket also has $2800 more in it.

well ill have more than 350 to the wheels and close more than likely 400+ torque to the wheels....hmm well i guess ill look into getting danas probuilt 700r4 and vigilante 2800 stall... i can get both brand new for about 2800 dollars....

I don't think you will be disapointed with probuilts transmission. The students that have used his transmissions have been very happy and 6+ years and still going strong.
Rob

Probuilt all the way. With his automatics, you lose nothing in terms of speed or enjoyment that a manual would offer.

thats good to know... i keep hearing on this site how everyone loves his transmissions.... they are expensive though.... i want his road race transmisssion and its 1900 then another 800 for the stall... but its good money spent..... then there are alot of people on here who swear that the t56 is the best transmission ever built or at least thats what they make it out to be.... i never really been a fan of manual cars... i always seem to love built and stalled autos..

SAY WHAT????

No doubt the Pro Built automatics are excellent, but autos just aren't as engaging as manual transmissions. Short of a single or double clutch auto, there are just things you can't do with an automatic that you can with a manual.

Seeing as the OP is saying he is interested in a "road race" trans, I can only assume he is planning on getting his car out to the track. In this regard the manual will be far superior.

Now I'm confused. If you don't like manual cars, whey are considering a manual trans?

i normally dont like manuals but the only reason why i would want one is to try something different... ive been through about 4 700r4s and honestly im bout tired of them..... they seem unreliable to me.... i could have had a t56 by now going through all the 700r4's ive been through... not to mention i went from a stock stall to a tci streetfighter stall now back to a corvette stall... all the converters i had eventually gave out on me or gave me problems... its pretty sad when you cant have a decent tranny behind a strong engine.... and the 700r4 i have in my car now is giving me a little problems..... so yeah a manual looks pretty good right.... im going to use danas 700r4.. that will be my last auto... if that fails im going to say screw it and go manual....

I built a road race for a gentleman running a 70 chevelle he replaced the thm350 with 700 and that was 3 years ago and he is still running the hell out of the car. He was running a 355. The 350 was a tci and a huges converter. After installing the 700 and Edge converter he loves the car and he hasn't lost 3rd gear like the 350 did.
Rob

I would have to say that wherever you got those 700's, they may not have been built the best or not built to YOUR cars needs. In stock form, they dont like too much torque. The tranny I had built for mine will handle 750 hp and guaranteed not to break any hard parts. I have to say I love it, its not a probuilt from Dana, but equally as great. My brother in law has a probuilt behind his 475 hp lt1 with a vig 3600 stall and its help up fantastic with no probs for two years now with lots of abuse and track time. The t56's are nice, dont get me wrong, I like driving manuals too, thats why my daily driver has one. However, you need to spend more on that to make it great and hold up and also all the conversion parts to put it a third gen. I though about it for a while and decided against it and I am glad I went the route I did. I think its just as enjoyable shifting my auto manually when I want or leaving it in drive and letting it do the work.

Could also rebuild your 700r4 with one of Pro-built's kits, its fun work.

still having a hard time deciding on which route to go.... i dont want to go through that hassle of custom doing this for the manual swap... danas 700r4 and vigilante stall is basically a bolt in deal for me...

Trust me a built auto with a good stall with a good matched combo will be as fun as a manual. I like manuals and I wouldn't mind going T56 but it would be more of a experiment to see what the fuzz is about. I always get the ''Why auto?'' from my work friends but they never seem to bring anything to the table besides their fun.

Go with what works for you. I love my 4l60e.

Well since you are looking to do it the easy way then I suppose the automatic is the obvious choice. But frankly there is nothing hard about the T-56 swap, you just have to do your homework.

Dana built me a tranny. It worked great for ~10,000 miles. Then it went to hell. After that he tried to tell me it was the governor sticking.
Told him I really didn't think so but I'll try it his way.
Yeah it wasn't, it was destroyed clutches and pump and everything else. Heck the thing would start out in 2nd gear and slip in 3rd. How he thought that was a governor I don't know. I think he was just going for the cheap $10 option and probably knew the real problem was much worse.
Bottom line with me is Dana builds a good transmission when it works.
When it doesn't, he didn't stand behind ****. I had a local shop rebuild it at my expense.

I've since put in a t56, with an ls1. Stock t56 clutch couldn't hold crap, but my 6 puck monster clutch with chromoly flywheel is doing ok so for.

im sorry to hear that aaron91rs.. i have been through about 4 700r4s three of them being probuilt by various shops, they all lost 4 fourth and starting having sluggish and sloppy shiftts... the one in my car now has a hard time shifting into 4th unless it warmed up, so this makes it the fifth .... to be honest i am tired of the 700r4 and i will be damned if i spend about 2500 for a 700r4 and a vigilante stall only to share the same fate as my other 700r4s... i do want a manual but i just feel it might be too involved for me to do.... thats the only thing stopping me....

started a new thread im going with a t56... i love the sound of shifting through six gears... plus its way more sporty and fun on the street... i am getting a 5 speed ford ranger so this car will not be my daily anymore.... i can learn with my new daily driver and by the time i swap this in i will be pretty good at driving a manual..

did you go with the t56? Looking at the same option