Best Choice for Drivetrain

[shiftpro]

Ive burned up a couple from not setting the tv right, and ive burned up one from treating it poorly, and to that end, i (for a long time) was permanently disgusted with the 700r4, but i agree, there is always "that one guy" LOL

Like i said, if you're just an operator, and treat the 700r4 like everyone who owns an automatic, (putting it in drive, and never messing with the shifter again except to put it in park) its gonna quit.
You develop an ear for these things, even on my empty suburban, if im going up a hill, and i can HEAR the thing lugging, i downshift it, let the motor wind out.
My sbc makes its torque like a bbc, low rpms, and like a sbc, makes high rpm HP, its ideal for getting a load rolling down the line with the 4.10's and 31's.

When i got it loaded down,
I hold 1st manually until shes wound out to 4,500 and moving about 15mph, then manually shift, keep the load rolling, etc etc.... i let my engine do all the labor, and let the ol' 700r4 just keep the truck going faster, and nothing else.
I control when it shifts, and downshifts, and as a result, its much happier towing.

I have always drove my autos like a standard. I decide when to shift, after all I AM the shiftpro.
You know driving around town. Just relax your gas pedal foot and bing bing it's shifted into 3rd or 4th. In order to make it downshft you have to put your foot into the pedal... lugging then the transmission gets the idea and downshifts... but not until fuel is wasted and slippage and heat produced. But pull that shift lever down and there goes the downshift without the heat and wear. That's why I said old ladies are tranny shops best customers.

 

[Vbb199]

I have always drove my autos like a standard. I decide when to shift, after all I AM the shiftpro.
You know driving around town. Just relax your gas pedal foot and bing bing it's shifted into 3rd or 4th. In order to make it downshft you have to put your foot into the pedal... lugging then the transmission gets the idea and downshifts... but not until fuel is wasted and slippage and heat produced. But pull that shift lever down and there goes the downshift without the heat and wear. That's why I said old ladies are tranny shops best customers.

Oh yeah no doubt. I drive my autos like a manual also

 

[Turbo4whl]

@shiftpro
@Vbb199

I agree. That is what the shift lever is for, shifting gears!

 

[Octane]

Early model year 700s were problematic.They were fixed.The owners manual said if the thing was shifting from gear to gear to take it out of overdrive.Too never tow in overdrive either.I owned 4 trucks with 700s and as vb199 says,learn to shift it as he says & it will last.I changed fliuds every 30k and filters at 100k intervals. Every tranny lasted 200 to 300k and then I sold them in working shape.The highest mileage one only towed a few times .The 4l60e is a computerized upgrade of the 700 model.Some of these when they do go bad are problematic after rebuild also in some cases.If I have a choice I'd do a 400 first and th350 secondly and if I had too then a 4l60e.

 

[Curt]

Had a 700R4 once.It treated me right,but I never towed with it.I don’t like even wondering if my tranny is gonna make it or not.I’d rather just be thinking about the lake and all the milfs in swimwear.

A 700R4 sounds like a quiet ride home in your buddy’s truck with a TH400.

 

[Vbb199]

Early model year 700s were problematic.They were fixed.The owners manual said if the thing was shifting from gear to gear to take it out of overdrive.Too never tow in overdrive either.I owned 4 trucks with 700s and as vb199 says,learn to shift it as he says & it will last.I changed fliuds every 30k and filters at 100k intervals. Every tranny lasted 200 to 300k and then I sold them in working shape.The highest mileage one only towed a few times .The 4l60e is a computerized upgrade of the 700 model.Some of these when they do go bad are problematic after rebuild also in some cases.If I have a choice I'd do a 400 first and th350 secondly and if I had too then a 4l60e.

I do my fluid changes on a basis of the color and smell of the fluid, which it got a fresh change maybe this past spring, and its still pleasant smelling, and is nice and red like fresh fluid.

Or, by default,
After 3-4 heavy tows
(My reason for this being, there was alot of heat built over daily driving, the fluid's viscosity lowered some due to degradation from the heating) seems to work ok thus far.


Speaking of 400's
I need to get back to raising hell with the bitchin' th400 I built for my 502ci c10 *shakes head*

 

[Raider L]

I remember many years ago when 700's first came out unless you drove the thing normally, performance vehicles were having a heck of a time with them holding up. Then years later they came out with a fix, some kind of a valve or something like that? Then that made them much more reliable for performance purposes. Do any of ya'll remember what it was the "industry" came out for the 700"? All I remember about them is people said don't get one because they don't hold up. Even though many people said they were fine I think most of the bad word about them were coming from street racers, customizers and that ilk.

 

[Octane]

They were known for overdrive slipping.Wear particles would get in the fluid because back then hardly anyone would change fluid .And folks would tow with it in overdrive instead as recommended to take it down from (D) to Drive selection.Cant remember for sure but I believe they beefed up the tcc etc.

 

[Snoots]

If you simply MUST have high HP for little $$$, ride the bus.

 

[Vbb199]

I remember many years ago when 700's first came out unless you drove the thing normally, performance vehicles were having a heck of a time with them holding up. Then years later they came out with a fix, some kind of a valve or something like that? Then that made them much more reliable for performance purposes. Do any of ya'll remember what it was the "industry" came out for the 700"? All I remember about them is people said don't get one because they don't hold up. Even though many people said they were fine I think most of the bad word about them were coming from street racers, customizers and that ilk.

Aux valve body is what you're referring to, to feed the low/rev clutches.

Any high performance 700r4 is built from a 87 and up core.

 

[cstew47]

There are many variables. What are your tastes? You say you aren't going off road. Do you want a fun car with lots of low end torque? Or maybe a something to take to shows? HP bragging rights? My first advice is to reject option #1 unless you are going through the entire engine. Just slapping on aluminum heads is probably not going to give you much unless you know your piston specs and cam. Throwing $1500 heads on a old engine is like putting a band-aid on a bullet wound. It's a truck, so, unless you plan on radically changing the ride height and suspension, you probably aren't going to push much past 80-90 mph - I sure wouldn't. I built my 78 K5 with a 383, moderate Brodix aluminum heads and a 218/228 .465 cam running an Edelbrock 1405 carb, 4.56 gears with 35 inch tires and a 4L60. When I hit the go pedal, I can feel the torque, but can cruise at 60 at 1500rpms. A big block is nice, but, you will be doing some mods to fit it in and YMMV.

 

[rt66paul]

RV cams are replacement cams for otherwise stock engines. They have more grunt(torque) at the low end - they have a flatter torque line through out. They are not designed to go over 5000 rpm(neither are stock engines). These give you the power you need without the smog requirements. They do NOT fully burn all the fuel, some dumps, which is how they should be designed if you want low end power. I live in Ca, they are not legal to use, but I would use one on any V8 I was rebuilding to replace a "stock" engine, if I lived anywhere else.