I got 3.42 rear and want to go with the tremec t56 magnum.They will have 3 sets of gear available: A 1- 2.66:1 2- 1.78:1 3- 1.30:1 4- 1:1 5- 0.80:1 6- 0.63:1 B 1- 2.97:1 2- 2.10:1 3- 1.46:1 4- 1:1 5- 0.74:1 6- 0.50:1 C 1- 2.66:1 2- 1.78:1 3- 1.30:1 4- 1:1 5- 0.74:1 6- 0.50:1 Now considering im not much of a dragster guy and that my engine is a stock 455 (.060 oversize = 462 cu.in) and I got 3.42 posi rear and like to cruise a low rpm and like highways! Now I have a TH400 and the 1st gear is, I think, 2.48:1, and I find it very high. What should I go for??? Give me your thoughts guys!! Im really not sure and its an expensive project, I would not want to end up with gears that I hate. I would think the C setup would be ideal for me, am I right, will it work, will the stock 455 (462) with 3.42 be able to run in the 6th speed that is 0.50:1??
You are wasting your time with a 6 speed. 5 is plenty. I'll get some pics to you of that console. Bob
Yea Bob....I was just about to order the TKO 0.64 overdrive, and + I got parts for it (bellhousing...) but then I fall on that T56 Magnum and since im having a hard time deciding before spending all that money! I got a ''high'' rear axle,(3.42) and it gave me second-thought about the 0.64 o/d...then the double o/d T56 magnum shows up, and I think its about the same price....I sure dont see why anyone would want to go 160mph in an A body, unless your suicidal, but im seeing it as I could cruise on the highway at 70 with something like 1800 rpm.That would be cool! I know a t56 will require a BIG hole in the floor, but im riding a clone...Yes I would apreciate to see how the console fit Bob, thanks
I was thinking the same thing about the mismatch of a 6 speed and a BBB . I would look into the Autogear M21 Y overdrive set up with 2.199 / 1.506 / 1.0 /0.859 http://www.autogear.net/literature2.htm#
Hey Marc, call Dennis at DME 606.237.6648 and see if he will build you a trans. If you were willing to drop the coin for that Magnum, you can get a great Mucnie built and have money for more parts, just my .02 cents.
Marc; My buddy just did a 4 spd swap in his car. Just to let you know, a 4sp (done right with quality parts new), and the Tremec TK0 kits run pretty close in cost. Youre looking at $5500 installed when all is said in done (CAD ofcourse) for a 4sp. The TKO will set you back just under $7k. If cost is an issue, just be warned its ALOT of money to go manual trans, no matter what you pick. So just pick whatever you like best, its all expensive. If you are buying a T56 Magnum KIT!!! They should tell you what it fits. If they say Lt1, LS1 only, you have ALOT of homework to do. Its not easy, but can be done. If they say it will fit anything, the way the kits work, is they "adapt" the transmission housing to a MUNCIE 4 sp bell and clutch. THIS MEANS; You use the muncie 4sp parts, and bolt on a tremec behind your belhousing. Now as for gears. Wasting your time with 6 sp? Hardly. I have a T56 in one of my other cars, with 3.42 gears. with this gear ratio; C 1- 2.66:1 2- 1.78:1 3- 1.30:1 4- 1:1 5- 0.74:1 6- 0.50:1 I CAN drive in 6th gear without speeding. The ideal gear for this setup is a 4.10. That will put you at 100mph in 4th @ 5500rpm. 3.73 are also good. But a 3.42 will work. THE SECRET TO MAKING SUCH A LOW GEAR WORK WITH A 0.5 6th? 4 corner idle (Holley) or Idle Ease (Demon). I have a 750 double pumper, 4 corner idle on my chev 355. Because this carb uses all 4 barrels to idle, i have enormous amounts of steady torque at low revs. I have also used a freind's 650 DP, that does not have the 4 corner idle, and i CANNOT use 6th with this carb. It just surges, and leans out too quickly. If my measly chev can push the car at such low revs, the 462 will have absolutely no problems. LIke i ssaid though, you may need the proper carb to be able to use it. Common Canadian speed limits and revs with a 235/60/R14 tire. 40 km/h = 3rd gear @ 1500rpm 60/km/h = 4th gear @ 1500rpm 70km/h = 5th gear @ 1400 rpm 100km/h = 6th gear @ 1400 rpm. Because of this configuration, ive clocked my 3500lb car (with 3 passengers) at 34 MPG highway. THATS BETTER FUEL ECONOMY THAN A PRIUS! and most hybrids.
One more thing; The 3.42 is cool and all, but i really really want a 4.10 rear gear. WHY? Because this is my summer fun car (not a daily driver). So i dont mind if i lose just a wee bit of mileage. a 4.10 with 0.5 6th, would be the same as a 0.74 and a 3.42 rear gear.... My other car is a firebird, it used to have a 700R4 trans (4sp auto with overdriver) final gear of 0.74. So putting in 4.10 will be the same as having a 700R4 basically, except the T56 can take alot of power. ALso be warned, if you go with the 3.42 gears. The car will be VERY VERY VERY fast. Make sure you have a working speedometer at all times. I neglected to do this, and i ended up going much faster than i thought i was. the car will hit 70km/h in 1st, it will break the speed limit in 2nd on the highway, and if youre going WOT in 3rd, youre speeding big time. THE only thing i dont like about the 3.42 rear gear, is the slowest you can go in first with the clutch engaged fully is 20km/h. This means, if youre going up hill, or are stuck in rush hour, you have to ride the clutch alot, its very annoying. Other than that, i absolutely love it.
Thanks for the response guys!it gives me lots of option and will have to reflect on it.Azeem, you say that in 1st gear (that is 2.66) and with your 3.42 rear you go up to 70 km/h, but with my car with the TH400 that is 2.48, lower than 2.66, and with my 3.42 rear, I cant reach 70 km/h, and on what you say since the 2,48 on my TH400 is lower than the 1st gear 2.66 on your car, I should be able to go much faster than 70 km/h wich is not the case.
Don't forget to consider your cam when choosing your transmission gears. Do you run a duel plane or single plane intake? Dual plane and 4.10 rear.....you may not like. Using a 4.10 will limit traction in first. Using a 3.42 and overdrive on the highway can be ticket city. I'd stay away from the 2.97 first gear either way. I think 6 speeds work best with a mild torque Buick 455, to get better use of the upper gears.
They dont have the 2.66 1st gear and 0.50 6th gear T56 Magnum yet, they will receive them at the end of 2009. They have the 2.97 1st gear and 0.50 6th gear T56 Magnum, I dont know if id be happy with this one, would the 1st gear be drivable with the 3.42 rear ???? Hey Bob, whats the spec on your TKO 1st gear and whats your rear end ratio??How does it drives?? I know they got TKO with the 1st gear being 3.27!!!!Thats freaking high!, as to be run with 2.73 axle.....unless your car is a drag only monster
Dont forget about the tires size as well. I can record a vid of my car hitting 70 in first if you like. It definately gets there, but its just above 6000rpm... Maybe you shouldnt go that high with the buick. Dont worry too much about what the gear ratios are. What you will notice while driving is how close they are. For example, in my T56, the gear ratios seem alright between shifts, but the drop between 5th and 6th is huge in revs. Doesnt seem natural. But its overdrive, so i dont care. You will have the overdrive for saving fuel and revs, just find a trans where you can hit your target speed at the dragstrip, around 5000 RPM.
Ok Azeem, 6000 rpm, I dont get nearly that!!!! Ok, now it makes sense. And since I got the stock cam in the 462 (called the ''broom handle'' cam, haha) I have lots of torque at lower rpm, wich would seem a good thing for the 5th and 6th gear.Now what do you think, with the 3.42 rear, am I better with the 2.66 1st, 1.78 2nd, and 1.30 3rd (wich wont be available until 2010) or would it be drivable with the 2.97 1st, 2.10 2nd and 1.46 3rd, wich is available right now.????
Not worth the wait in my opinion. Remember i said, the SLOWEST i can go is 20km/h (thats really fast) with the clutch fully engaged in 1st. This sucks if youre trying to go slow. 2.97 you wont notice that big of a difference. Probably be better for your 3.42 rear gears. If you are set on getting this trans, i wouldnt let the gear ratios bother you, they are so close. 2.97 will make it feel a bit more torquey as well.
Marc; Try this link; www.f-body.org/gears/ (sometimes it doesnt work, try copy/pasting into browser if it doesnt). Type in your tire size, all 6 gears of the magnum, and the 3.42 rear gear. You can choose the max rpm you want to run in your car, and the RPM increments it displays for RPM/MPH. You can use that graph to figure out what rpm your car will be turning for what speed. (you have to do some MPH to KM/H conversions, but thats not so bad). Heres the breakdown for my car (in MPH). Also i looked it up and 70km = 44 mph approximately. I hit that at 5200rpm, with my setup. HTML: RPM 1st Gear 2nd Gear 3rd Gear 4th Gear 5th Gear 6th Gear 500 4 6 8 11 15 22 600 5 7 10 13 18 26 700 6 9 12 15 21 31 800 7 10 13 17 24 35 900 7 11 15 20 27 39 1000 8 12 17 22 30 44 1100 9 13 18 24 32 48 1200 10 15 20 26 35 52 1300 11 16 22 28 38 57 1400 11 17 24 31 41 61 1500 12 18 25 33 44 66 1600 13 20 27 35 47 70 1700 14 21 29 37 50 74 1800 15 22 30 39 53 79 1900 16 23 32 41 56 83 2000 16 25 34 44 59 87
Marc, consider these two scenario's, they are at each end of the gearing spectrum. A. - Heavy vehicle - Less torque, more HP (single plane intake, large head ports, large valves, big cam) - Large diameter tire (28" or more) B. - Light car - More torque, less HP (dual plane intake, small ports, small valves, small cam) - Small diameter tire (24" or less) It's obvious that scenario A needs much more gear to get moving and maintain than scenario B. Consider these factors with your gearing choice: The Buick motors, that are still somewhat close to stock, tend to have more torque and less HP, this was by design from the factory. Our GS's and Skylarks weight less than the typical Buick full size cars these motors typically powered by several hundred pounds (good off the line performance). Our A-bodies typically have more gear than the typical Buick full size cars. I can't tell you how many guys I've seen take their 5-speed Mustang GT and put 4.10 rear gears in them ou: . First gear of the T-5 is 3.35, take that ratio and multiply it by 4.10 and you get 13.735 overall 1st gear ratio, combine that with a 25" street tire and you have absolutely no traction. In my opinion, with street tires in the 25 to 26 diameter range you should have an overall first gear of 8.2 to 10.2. The more torque you have the lower in this range you want to be. That being said if you were to add soft tires to the mix you could go higher in this range to take advantage of the additional traction. Good luck with this project, it's going to be fun :3gears:
Just for you Marc. Here it is hitting/surpassing 70km/h in first..... It actually hits about 85 if you look close at 6000rpm. For reference, heres the markings on the Speedo. Perfectly horizantal to the left (9 O'clock) is 80km/h. It goes just over in the vid.
