Low Hump with Tremec Trans

[jac70ss]

Will a Tremec TKO or the new Keisler RS transmission clear the floor on a low hump cab or do I need to install the tall hump floor section?

[cb1965]

it will. my 66 has a tko 500 and a low hump and fits good. the PO took it to a shop to get installed. other than the guys there cutting the floor in a poor manner, it fits nicely. dont know about the keisler trans.

[jocko]

and if the TKO500 fits, so will an RS. It's is the same size or smaller for the main case.

have you had any luck dealing with Keisler? I tried real hard to order an RS400 from them, but they acted like I was bothering them when I called to ask a question and then they never returned an email request for a quote, their preferred way to give them...

This was a while ago, so maybe better now - at that time, the RS trans's were TKO tailshaft I think - and re-designed (smaller) main case. Bumped into Ted's Hot Rods guys at L.A. Roadster Show this summer and one mentioned a rumor there were some issues with the RS trans. No more details - but he had a problem trying to work with Keisler also apparently. So, that is why their gorgeous 40 Merc from Chop/Cut/Rebuild has a TKO 5-speed, not from Keisler.

My 2 cents. You may have better luck dealing with them than I did, but I REALLY wanted to buy the RS400, and for a while there I thought I was gonna have to drive to their front door to force my money on them. I finally just gave up and am happily enjoying my little T5 swap! It's really a sweet setup and I'm pretty happy with it. Finally got the back-up light harness all spliced in and the new speedo cable and it's finally done.

Interested to see which direction you go - best of luck and looking fwd to pics!

[jac70ss]

Thanks for the info on the trans fitment. One less thing to worry about. I have heard similar comments about Keisler. I don't know if the poor customer service was due to a new product and the bugs hadn't been worked out or something else. There is a local builder who is a dealer and I was hoping that may ease the process. I'm not set on Keisler, so if necessry, I can work with someone else.
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[bosephus]

I put a tko-600 in my 61 and had to modify my low hump cover and the corresponding piece on the firewall. The high hump would have been much easier to install if you can fi nd the cover and the firewall piece.

[pdxhall]

Originally Posted by jocko

and if the TKO500 fits, so will an RS. It's is the same size or smaller for the main case.

have you had any luck dealing with Keisler? I tried real hard to order an RS400 from them, but they acted like I was bothering them when I called to ask a question and then they never returned an email request for a quote, their preferred way to give them...

This was a while ago, so maybe better now - at that time, the RS trans's were TKO tailshaft I think - and re-designed (smaller) main case. Bumped into Ted's Hot Rods guys at L.A. Roadster Show this summer and one mentioned a rumor there were some issues with the RS trans. No more details - but he had a problem trying to work with Keisler also apparently. So, that is why their gorgeous 40 Merc from Chop/Cut/Rebuild has a TKO 5-speed, not from Keisler.

My 2 cents. You may have better luck dealing with them than I did, but I REALLY wanted to buy the RS400, and for a while there I thought I was gonna have to drive to their front door to force my money on them. I finally just gave up and am happily enjoying my little T5 swap! It's really a sweet setup and I'm pretty happy with it. Finally got the back-up light harness all spliced in and the new speedo cable and it's finally done.

Interested to see which direction you go - best of luck and looking fwd to pics!

Jocko, they seem to be getting much better to deal with than you describe. I emailed for a quote and they got right back to me. They are also selling Keisler's on ebay now. I haven't bought from them yet but when the time comes I really want one of those transmissions. They will set them up so the shifter is in the right position for your truck.

[jocko]

thanks pdx, that's good to hear. Yes, I think they have some really nice products, but I was turned off by the customer service at the time. It very well may have been due to an immature product. At the time, the main case (or tailshaft housing, don't remember which) was still in final design. A local dealer would have eased my worries a great deal (and I'd probably have the RS400 in my truck right now too... but I'd also be out a significant extra amount of dinero). If I had a modified small block or anything bigger, I'd have gone TKO 500 (or RS 400) with no questions. Was a little nervous about the T5 approach - but my 283 is pretty tame (as am I compared to younger driving habits) so it is working out nicely so far.

One thing I did note from Keisler - the kits they sell are a single shot deal, there was no mix/match to customize the combo, even though they did sell all parts separately I think. It was weird. To be clear, I did get one quote from them fairly quickly - I think I mis-spoke a bit above - but I had a quick follow-on question, and never heard from them again. But could have just gotten lost in the mail, who knows.