Automatic transmission options for a 93
 

Following my 383 build, it's becoming more apparent that a stock 4L60(non-e)
is simply no longer the right choice for this vehicle. It's only a matter of time
before I blow it to bits. I'd might as well swap it out before that happens.

Now I'm weighing my options; (or at least trying to discover what those options are)

The vehicle is a street toy / weekend track car.
1993 Firehawk, 383 Lt1, Hyd Cam, ported heads....
Currently an N/A 383 (~550 crank hp) . Will go with a slightly larger cam this winter and a modest (~200) shot of N20 next season.
I would like to keep OD if at all possible.

I run an ATI 4000 stall, which seems about right for the N/A setup.
I'll probably want to consider something else next year if I do the N20.
It has a lockup, but it's worthless due to cam surge at highway speeds.

I've played with the governor calibration kits quite a bit, but it looks like a
ratchet shifter is where I'm going to end up. Although I would like to be able
to keep automatic shifting available for cruising on the street. Optimal shifting
is right up against (or slightly above) the ECM's 7000RPM limit, which has lead
me to consider a F.A.S.T. ECU.


Thoughts?

James,

Look in to a manual valve body, I don't think it would be bad at all on the street since most Th350s people use are manual valve bodies, you keep over drive. You can control shift points with out having to mess with any thing. I was in the same pickle as you, decided go a whole new route with a T56 swap, but if I was dead set on an auto, either a manual 700R4 or 2004R seem to fit the bill if over drive is important to you. I bet you could get away with a yank 3600 in that car for gas and not hurt it all that bad on motor. Also if you want and are serious about an XFI swap, I have a custom FAST XFI engine harness for a 93 LT1 F-car Brian Macey built for me. Same set up as SRZ and Sean is doing in his 93. Piggy backs to the stock computer, I had it built but it's been sitting here for a while.

Neil

Thanks for the feedback Neil, I'm looking into manual valve body options and features.

Computer choice ... still kind of up in the air while I weight the pros and cons of each setup.