Would you believe the old dirty bast... uh, bird, laid down a 13.590 at 99.35 mph with a terrible ignition misfire on the top of second and third gear and through a badly slipping 4L60E? It may not seem blistering fast, but considering the money we had invested so far, it was a great start. But, it also reaffirmed the reality of buying another man’s project--there is always a catch. Since we don’t have a ton of cash to spend on the Dirty Bird, we did what any smart enthusiast would do and turned to the largest online marketplace in the world: eBay Motors.
Obviously, eBay needs no introduction, but besides great deals on used and new cars, it can be a virtual treasure trove of great automotive parts deals, and Greg is one of the best at sniffing them out. A quick search brought up a ton of transmission choices, everything from high dollar 6L80E’s to low buck TH400’s, but we were looking for a slightly more efficient TH350, since we knew it would bolt up to our LT1 engine and work well for our eventual power goals. Then we saw it, a listing simply titled "FTI 9-inch TH350 Transmission." It was a pick-up only deal, 1,000-dollar "buy it now" and looked, at least on the outside, to be in great shape. Sold!
After winning the auction, we called the crew at FTI Competition Converters and Transmissions, arranged a time to pick up the transmission, and talked to owner Greg Samuel about our project and our overall goals. Greg was eager to help out and, after a couple minutes of talking, had us sold on a new 9-inch torque converter to go along with our project. A couple of days later, we had both the FTI-built TH350 in hand and a new 9-inch torque converter, both of which we were excited to install in the Dirty Bird. Want to see how it all went together and how well it worked? Read on--the best is yet to come!
[10]We’re going to reuse the...
[10]We’re going to reuse the stock driveshaft with our new transmission, so Greg took care while removing it. On a new project car, make sure you check out all of the pieces you remove for excessive wear or dangerous cracks—as fun as racing is, it’s best to think safety first!
[11]Next, Greg removed the...
[11]Next, Greg removed the stock shift selector cable from the 4L60E and unbolted the factory transmission crossmember. It is possible to use the stock crossmember with the TH350, but Greg prefers to externally mount the torque arm away from the transmission, so we ordered a much stouter unit from BMR Fabrication to handle the job.
[12]Speaking of moving the...
[12]Speaking of moving the torque arm, here you can see Greg removing the factory torque arm mount. While it may work on a stock or mild strip warrior, mounting the torque arm to the transmission can be a risky move, as it can break the tailhousing under heavy acceleration and generally places a lot of unnecessary stress on the transmission case.
[13]With the 4L60E transmission...
[13]With the 4L60E transmission lowered slightly, Greg pulled the two transmission cooler lines off and began unbolting the transmission from the back of the engine. This can be tricky; you should definitely have a set of swivel sockets and long extensions on hand—not to mention a calm demeanor!
[14]Out with the old…
[15]…and in with the new!...
[15]…and in with the new! Well, not yet, but we’re getting closer. Here you can see the custom 9-inch FTI TH350 torque converter, which Greg Samuel built specifically for this application, as he does for every custom converter. If you have a hard time installing any converter, flip the transmission up on its end and spin the converter on the input shaft until it drops perfectly in place.
[16]One of the disadvantages...
[16]One of the disadvantages of a typical TH350 installation is the loss of a transmission installed vehicle speed sensor (VSS), which installs on the output shaft of the transmission. Here, you can see a stock 4L60E reluctor wheel, which we pressed off of the stock 4L60E shaft…
[17]…and pressed onto our...
[17]…and pressed onto our new TH350 output shaft. Now, this is only a prototype piece, so excuse the looks, but it works! Basically, what you see is a stock VSS reluctor wheel welded to a 10-bolt front pinion bearing, which happens to be the perfect inner diameter to press fit onto the TH350 output shaft.
[18]Thanks to the FTI supplied...
[18]Thanks to the FTI supplied spacer, we were able to swap the stock 4L60E tailhousing onto the TH350 transmission, which meant we could plug the factory VSS sensor back in the stock housing and keep our speedometer and VSS readings in working order. By the time you read this, AntiVenom and FTI should have a much nicer machined piece, which you can order and install on your own project.