700r4 questions help..........
 

I,AM thinkin about installing a 1987 700r4 trans out of a pontiac trans am GTA. it had a 350 engine in it. i want to install it behind my 1972 chevy 383 stroker engine. i,ve never delt with this model trans before so any help or tips would be greatly appreciated. what modifications should i do before installing it. i think i,ll have to build my own cross member and modify the drive line. what is the best steering column to use. there sure can be alot involved if you dont do your homework first.
thanks ahead guys
bob

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

from my understanding, a 700r4 is the same length as a 350 with a 9" tailshaft, also you can reuse the same d/s if you have the 9" tailshaft trans. i believe you can also reuse the factory cross member just have to drill new holes in the frame.

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

I think the flex plate from the 87 wont fit,89 wouldnt. summit and others have them
bob

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

Probably be easier to just use a floor shifter if you don't mind the looks. '86 and up blocks use a one piece rear main seal and corresponding flexplate, so you can't use the one from the trans am like short step said but you probably have a specially balanced flexplate with that stroker crank anyway.....Good luck shouldn't be that big of a deal.

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

http://www.tciauto.com/Products/TechInfo/trans_dims.asp

This is a good source for all of the various GM transmission case lengths. Forgot I had it.

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

1987 700r4 should be manuel shift right ? not electronic shift

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

Yeah, manual shift

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

Ttt

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

The stock crossmember will work if you drill new holes in the frame and If I remember correctly the mount is also different so you must drill a hole in the crossmember for the 700R4 mount. It has only one bolt instead of 2 like the TH350. The tailshaft on my TH350 was the short one, so I took the driveshaft to a shop and they shortened it and re-balanced it for me. I gave them all the measurements and it worked out good. As far as the actual tranny, you might want to have it checked out by a shop or rebuilt if possible. The 700R4 is great if you do alot of highway driving ! You will cruise with RPM's alot lower and save some gas ! Good luck with it.

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

I am running a 700r4 behind my stock 283 and really enjoy it. Just be certain when you set it up to set-up and adjust the TV cable properly. If not the tranny won't shift right and you can burn it up real quick. You can buy a bracket (if you don't already have one) from your local auto parts store or from Summit, Jeg's, etc. to mount the cable to the intake. I have driven mine to Tennessee and Colorado as well as alot of Missouri miles and it works great, helps with fuel mileage too! :)

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

I'm interested in this and have no clue as to bolt patterns or what will work and what won't. Anyone have info in the interchangeability? I have a T350 on a LWB. It is stalled at or about 2400. Is the 700R4 the only option if I'm running the original block? I see the tech at TCI but it doesn't really say if the 700R4 is the only one I can use. Any other idea's?

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

I pulled mine from a 1994 Trans Am, used the same drive shaft, column out of a Cutlass, moved my crossmember to meet the tranny. The kickdown cable took some engineering to get right, some washers and a spring fixed it up right though. Exploded the tailshaft later and when I found another one, found out there were different length tailshafts and ended up shortening my drive shaft three inches.

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

i just did this 700r4 conversion 1 month ago the driveshaft out of a 1993 chevy 1500 swb with the 700r4 is the exact fit you need i got myne used for 35 bucks this will only work if your is a swb you will also need a cross joint your local driveline shop will have them its a u joint that will go from big driveshaft to the smaller rearend yoke i just went to spicer drivetrain told them what i was doing and he went in the back and got the exact ujoint i needed the crossmember will slide back where it needs to go the 700r4 uses a single bolt mount i just took a grinder and cut a slit from bolt hole to bolt hole on the crossmember works perfect you will also need a tv cable corrector depending on which carb you have i have a holley so this is the one i used it was like 32 bucks http://www.sonnax.com/part_summary.php?id=2456&pl=1 what it does is correct the geometry of the throttle lever so that you have the corect shift points. makes a big difference and on a 700r4 it needed more than anything. the reason that there used to be som many problems with 700r4 is because people installed aftermarket carbs like holley edelbrock and with out the tv cable adjusted properly you will burn your tranny up the bracket is just an extra precaution. the only other thing i needed was th chrome cable brcket from autozone cost $18. also here is some info on adjusting the tv cable http://www.outlawtransmissions.com/v.../tv_cables.pdf

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

I getting ready to do this one myself and if I read this right you need a angle correcting lever aa adjustable TV cable and a cable bracket that works with a holley and thats it, I have a turbo 350 with a 9" tail in it now. I have a 4571 spreadbore on it with the stock qjet trans cable bracket. It works ok on the th350 does anyone know if it will work on the 700

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

this link might help ya out

http://www.transmissioncenter.net/700R4_Swap_Info.htm

this is what info i obtained before doing my swap alot of info here

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

i have pictures of the entire set up in the parts section, under "700r4 conversion" posted on the 10th. i bought the x member from cpp.

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

I (actually "he" brother-in-law is a transmission guy) put one in my 68...I had an I-6 with a 3OT...I don't ahve a clue if that was original or not. I bought a 307 from a guy that was upgrading to a 383 and a guy at the race track gave me a 700R4. Long story short, the top of the tranny hit the hump and wouldn't fit. I don't know if the motor mounts were inthe wrong place or what...my solution was cut out the low hump and stick a high hump in there...problem solved. Now if I could just get it running and on the road I'd be in business.

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

One thing I want to mention. The Lock up kit for the torque converter is very important. Without it, your transmission will most likely not last a hundred miles. (That's about as long as my firt lasted) There are ways to get around buying a kit, and you can find them on the internet, but I have bought kits for two seperate 700r4's. The one in my '79 firebird has been a very strong unit. Both kits were from Bowtie Overdrives....they are easy to deal with and the instructions for installation make it a breeze.

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

I am guessing this is an overdrive tranny is why everyone uses it over the TH 350/400?

Some of the ones I am seeing are pricey but sure there are bargins if one knows where to find one.

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

Another link that may help:

http://www.chevyhiperformance.com/te...ech/index.html

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

I haven't had the lock-up connected on mine since I put it in and have driven it to Big Sandy, TN...Riverside, MO...and to Pueblo, CO...as well as thousands of miles in between, haven't had a single problem with the tranny and still handles a mean burn-out. :) I know the gas mileage would be better with it, but just haven't done it yet. Out to Big Sandy I averaged 20 mpg with the stock 283 and a 2 bbl carb, when I made the trip to Colorado I had redone the heads completely and installed a 4 bbl intake and Edelbrock carb and still got 17 mpg...

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

I placed the 700r4 behind my 383 and it drives great. Mine is also a 4x4. The length was a little longer but I used the same mount and slid my engine forward for more clearance and still used the stock steering etc. Make sure to do the lockup kit when you do the build if not it is a mess later. I did not have the lockup at first and now I am glad I did it. It runs great down the highway with 4:10's and 285/75r16. I am ready for a big trip as soon as I get my brakes and interior done. Good Luck

Re: 700r4 questions help..........
 

having no lockup will not burn up the tranny lock up kicks in after 45 50 miles an hour it just a pressure switch that puts more pressure/fluid to the torqe converter. 99% of all 700r4 failures is from not having the tv cable adjusted right. the tv cable is set up for the stock carb holley and edelbrock carbs dont have the right geometry for the tv cable. The tv cable controls the shift points you have to buy a tv cable corrector kit for this application.or you will most likely burn the tranny up.