I spoke to someone the other day on my quest to have my tranny rebuilt and I inquired about a shift kit with my stall. The guy told me that I didn't need a shift kit, that they can do some stuff to it to make it shift harder. He said something about a pump of some sort. What can you do to our transmissions other than a program and a shift kit to increase shift firmness? And can these methods cause premature wear? Thanks

 

any stuff done to the tranny to make it shift harder is harsh for the tranny. get a shift kit, it is better and make the tranny last longer......

 

I always thought shift kits did just the opposite

 

Went I said "premature" I ment as in more wear as opposed to just a normal shift kit. And I always thought shift kits were better for the tranny.

 

yes, any tranny expert will tell you the same thing. i'm not a tranny expert, but there are numerous number of people say that tranny shift kit is good for the tranny, and also get a TRANNY COOLER.......

 

if you have a 1994 or 1995 A4 then you can do what i did to mine. Install a trans button. Heres a link on the How To:
http://home.tampabay.rr.com/jayz28/tranperformance.htm

and heres where i put the button for mine. Big Difference you can feel. Nice Head Snap.
http://gallery7275.fotopic.net/show_...n.php?id=19949

 

The 4l60E needs more things addressed internally to make it a good performance transmission. A shift kit is merely a "band-aid" on a bullet wound. The fact is what most people don't realize is their transmissions will last LONGER without a "Trans-Stop" shift kit in it. The fact is Trans-Go kits tear stuff up. They cause premature 2-4 band and 3-4 clutch failure.
The single most important part of a high RPM 4L60E is the pump slide spring. These transmissions were designed to drop pressure at high RPMs. This is OK for a normal car, but it doesn't work very well in a performance application. You can put whatever "kit" in it you'd like, but until you get the 3-4 "load release" springs out of the forward drum, you're going to keep burning 3-4 clutches up.
In a 4L60E, you only need to raise the pressure to make it shift firmer, raising the pressure will help the transmission (within reason), because higher pressure gives the clutches less chance to slip. Higher pressure is only part of the solution, though.
You've still got a weak input sprag, 3-4 "load release" springs, and a stock slide spring, etc. to address.
"Holding Power" is also important in a performance transmision. I build my racing transmissions with the best frictions and bands available.

To accurately answer your question. No, you don't need a "shift kit" to make a transmission shift firmer. There are too many "free mods" that you can do to a 700/4L60E to make it shift better and last longer. You just need to know what your doing. I've got high 10 /low 11 second 700/4L60E's out there that don't have a shift kit in them. Just a little knowledge, and almost 15 years experience.

Frank

 

Frank,

Will these free mods work after you install a converter? I want to get the firmness back that I had before the tranny so if kits are bad, will the free ones work for what I want? What are the free ones. Am I stuck installing a TransGo to get the performance "feel" back to my shifts? Thanks

 

Thanks for the proper info Frank, i am by far no expert but i think you just saved this thread It was headed towards a lot of misinformation.

 

Both the 700 and 4L60E will benefit from leaving the 2nd check gear ball out. All 4th gen. Z's and SSs already have Corvette servos. A Fairbanks 2nd Billet servo is a good racing upgrade. These will provide a VERY positive 1-2 shift, and will help the 2-3 quite abit, too. A Sonnax Ind. "Super Hold" 4th servo will firm up the 3-4 shift. Both of these servos do this by increasing apply area on the servo piston. With the Corvette 2-4 servo, I block the 1-2 accumulator piston. If you do this with a billet servo, it will make the 1-2 waaaaay too obnoxious. With the billet, it's not a real good idea to leave the ball out either. I had my 700 like that for a while, and when it made a 1-2 shift, it would throw all the cassettes out of the holder in the console. The billet servo should only be used with a 2-4 band that has a reinforced anchor, also. ALL of them will benefit from blocking the 3-4 accumulator. They all need either a Sonnax, or Art Carr pump slide spring, .500" boost valve, and stiffer pressure regulator spring. I drill a few clutch feed holes in the seperator plate for 3rd and 4th gear.
All in all, it costs me somewhere around $30 for parts to make one shift firmer and last longer than any "Trans-Stop" shift kit out there... Remember, that's just for "shift kit" parts...Springs, boost valves, etc. Obviously that doesn't include clutches, bands, sprags, or billet servos.

Frank

 

lol, I wish I knew what the hell you were talking about, cause it sounds like it works wonders.

I couldn't find a TCI kit like you suggested(or maybe said it was the lesser of the evils?) and Superior doesn't make anything for my 4L60E, so I bought a B&M. Any advice tips or tricks for it??

John

 

Superior makes a 4L60E kit, just not an HP kit yet. The regular Superior kit will work better than a Trans-Go. I'm not real familiar with the B&M kits. I know they make great kits for TH350's and TH400's.

Frank

 

I wish I knew what he was taling about to, but over my head

I have seen that jet is making a new servo for the 4L60E tranny though, one is a powr-servo and the other is a billet. I think they are only for the 1-2 shift though, could be wrong. I wish I knew where he was getting these parts from because this one jet servo is 45 and 85 for the billet

 

What ever you need>> http://www.4l60-e.com/