What can an M-22 take?

My engine is 514 hp and 547 ft lbs in a 3650 lb car with 4.10 posi.

I was considering an automatic for this engine but would still like to grind the gears.

Will a fresh M-22 take ocassional trips to the track, launching at about 3000 rpm in addition to continuous street abuse?

Thanks for any advice or experiences.

 

AN M22 will take all the punishment you can give it. I have a M20 that was behind my 462 and it was thrashed all the time.I never hurt it and beat the heck out of it.

 

Well that's good to hear. I had this tranny behind my 425 Cutlass all year and it did fine. This engine is making about 75 more ftlbs of torque so I wasn't sure about it.

I have a 350 trans that I was going to build up but I like ripping gears too much.

 

the m22 gears will take the beating. it is the cracking of the case that can occur.

 

Yes. The case is the same as the M21. Very porous aluminum casting. The pressure of the gears turning against each other actually acts to drive the case in half.

 

So basically the "straight cut" gears of the M-22 reduce end loading but the case is still susceptible to breaking?

 

There is a Supercase made now for Muncies that is much stronger than stock.

I had my M21 rebuilt with a new set of M22 gears made by a company in Italy.

If you use the Supercase and the Italian gears, you pretty much have a bullet proof transmission.

BTW - I beat the heck out of mine, and so far so good..... :TU:

 

$238.00 for a supercase? I'm sold. Those gears are a little spendy but I guess I'll tear into this winter and beef it up a bit.

Thanks for all of the info.

 

Don't forget the iron midplate as well. This combined with the super case (which is a steal for the money) will make it bullet proof. Then you'll have to worry about broken u-joints. :3gears:



You can find cheaper gears but be careful. As you can imagine the cheaper ones are made in China and are inferior. There are also some being made in Taiwan that are supposed to be decent but the Italian Maseris(sp?) gears are the best and of the highest quality.

 

Paul how would you describe the whine coming from the 22 gearset? Is it liveable or is it annoying? Don't get me wrong I think the gear whine is sweet but I was just wondering if it gets kind of loud when your just cruising around.

 

The whine on my M-22 isn't bad at all. I am getting the midplate too. Pretty affordable stuff really.

 

The gear whine is noticeable, especially to those outside the car.... :laugh:

The gear whine is most pronounced in first, second, and third. Fourth gear does not whine much at all.

I like the whine, as it really sounds like a muscle car to me.

Absolutely no regrets on the M22 conversion.

 

check out http://www.m-22.com/m-22/
you can get everythign you need or buy a completed unit!
tested to over 700lb ft.

 

That is the only problem with going all out on a Muncie rebuild. Price.
I have a hard time swallowing $2500 for a Muncie, rebuilt and bulletproof or not. You could do it yourself with the same parts for almost half that. I bought the Muncie rebuild video from www.5speeds.com and it was very informative. Basically the guy rebuilt a muncie with basic shop tools that everyone has laying around. There is only a couple of clearance checks so it seems doable for someone willing to try.
All of these muncie guys sell on ebay as well so you can get everything for a decent price.

 

I'd like to get the wide ratios with the strength of the M-22.

 

That's the route I'd like to go too. That set is about $650. It's made by the Italian co. and is referred to as the m22w. Same ratios as the m20.

 

That's prolly what I'll end up doing then unless I wuss out and rebuild my TH350.

 

You can take a M20/M21 unit, and have it rebuilt with Italian M22 gears for about $950.

That is the end price when you trade in the old gears.

 

Paul that is interesting. Is that including the supercase or is that just swapping the parts into your existing case?
Who does this?

 

It is swapping the Italian M22 gearset into a M21 case. The trans has the 10 spline corse output shaft and the T350 type u-joint flange.

It looks like a M21, but sounds like a M22.

I had Ed Hartnett do mine. He is the guy who does all the Bloomington Vettes, and has been rebuilding Muncies since 1974.

GREAT service, quality, and follow up. I have been in the car hobby since the early 1970's, and I can tell you that he is one of the best folks I have ever dealt with on any car restoration item.