It seems like vig's are the only converters talked about on this board. Are they really that good or just talked about the most. In my opinion 700 bucks is a lot of money for a converter. mabe something a little cheaper but ust as good out there?

 

I hear you. This board does seem to be partial to Vigs and to some degree Midwest. LS1tech seems partial to Yanks and TCI for the most part. I myself have a TCI SSF3500 coming my way soon

After hours and hours of reading and research on torque converters I have come to this conclusion. I'll list them in order of how I rate them.

1) Yank. For Effiency, street manners and of course performance I see Yank as the best. Unfortunately there costomer service and price are not as outstanding as thier product from what I understand.

2). Vigilante. PI makes the next best product for street manners and performance (and ironically they are second highest price next to yank). I have heard thier effiency lacks a bit but then again dyno numbers are not a huge concern for automatics anyway. They give the one free restall which is cool and thier customer service has never been complained about or praised so I assume it's good.

3). TCI. Since the demise of TCS it seems TCI has stepped up a bit to try and compete. They have had rave reviews from a lot of people on the SSF3500 with the 2.5 STR. There is one guy I know of for sure who has used Yanks, Vigs & TCI and he got 1.61 60' time and 11.8x timeslips on that converter. He calls TCI the best "bang for the buck" converter out there. Kevin @ TCI has stepped up to make customer service top notch by giving several customers a free restall even though they do not offer it in writing like PI does. I emailed him once and got a response in less then an hour.

4). Midwest. The quality of the product is right in line with TCI as is the price. I only rate it under TCI because of the customer service. I have not heard anything bad about midwest customer service but I never heard anyone rave about it either. But the products are just as good as TCI from what I read. Not sure about a restall with them or not.

So over all I rate them,

Yank I give five x

Vigilante I give four x

TCI I give three x

Midwest I give two and 3/4

These are just my personal ratings that are my opinion only and based on lots of eye bleeding research of peoples reviews on the various torque converters. All was for LS1 applications though but I don't think it would change much for LT1 applications.

All the above companies make a good product that has made lots of people happy. If I had the cash I would get a Yank or Vig but since I don't I chose TCI.

Good Luck

 

TCI 3000-3200 here and lovin' it.

 

I consider myself a long term test mule for Vig....My 9.5" 3600 has been in the car for over 8 years, and performs flawlessly and can be driven every day to work, track, whatever and got 5 solid tenths (even over an LPE converter)...I just sent it back to Precision for a freshening only because I was building a 650hp capable 4L60E and wanted everything new...Vicki at Precision said that the converter was in terrific shape after being used for over 8 years...It was $225 to freshen it, and now I'm good for at least another 8...you definitely get what you pay for...I'm into the converter for $925 ($700 & $225) over 8 years...inmho thats $$$well spent...
--Alan

 

i'm glad u made this post 'cuz i was just about to. i'm lookin almost strictly at TCI torque converters right now and i'm probably going to get one very soon. will a 3600 still be streetable? i won't have problems with the stall wall since i'll have stock cam and most everythin else besides basic bolt ons. also lookin to upgrade to 3.73 gears at the same time and possibly spray in the future. what are the difference between the lockup and antiballooning nonlockup besides the anti is used for nitrous.

 

The vigs come with an anti-ballooning plate which keeps the converter from swelling ("ballooning") under high pressures created by hits of nitrous and supercharging, and I wanted to retain the lock up feature for highway cruising and I might experiment with a lock up switch ( had one on my 87 GN and picked up 2 tenths...) They also make a multi disk lock up for extremely high hp set ups, but I think it adds like $500 to the cost...As far as everyday driving, it behaves like a stock converter until you nail it, then all hell breaks loose...its easily docile enough to drive anywhere, in city traffic, on long trips, etc. I run 3.42s with mine mainly because hooking up on BFG DRs with the 3.06 first gear of the 4L60E is a constant battle, I can't imagine what 3.73s would be like...All I can say is that these converters are awesome, and I've never heard of anyone breaking one...If you are serious just call Vicki at Precision Industries www.converter.com she'll go over your combo and you goals for your car and they will custom make one for you...hands down the best bang for the buck...you won't be disappointed...
--Alan

 

i'm pretty sure u can get the antiballooning plates for use with nitrous with any of the TCs, and at least with TCI for sure. TCI is a great piece of equipment and on my college budget i can't justify spending double the price almost for a vigi. don't get me wrong they are great but i'd say almost overpriced. i've never heard anyone talk bad about their TCI.

i'm mostly curious about how a 3600 would act with just a basic bolt on OBDI car and if i will have problems with the stall wall.

 

this is just my opinion but i had a 3600 stall on a stock 95 z and i did not like it. With a nice cam and 3:73's it wouldnt be that bad but not stock. maybe some others will chime in with there opinions.

 

I agree completely with 94droptopz. A bolt-on LT1 is not going to like a 3600 stall if you drive anywhere other then a track. There are some cases where bigger isn't always better. A 3600 stall on a LT1 with a nice heads/cam package would be a great combo. But for a bolt-on LT1 with stock insides I wouldn't go higher then 3200. Personally I think the TCI 3000 stall would be an excellent choice for your car.

 

that's what i was lookin for. i had planned on a 3200 but if a 3600 would still be streetable then i'd go with that as this car will become more and more modded.

i've been looking around a lot and a TCI 3200 just keeps looking better and better.

 

TCI 3800 and the only complaint I have is no traction. Great stalls, cant go wrong.