rock7174

I got a complete ls3 out of a 2010 vette. I want a 4l60e or 4l65e that is beefed up to handle HP. I thought I read somewhere that the tranny has to be from a specific year to work with ecm that I got with my ls3. Can anyone help me out here? The guys over at chevelles.com told me to fish over here. Its going in a 72 chevelle. Thanks for the help!

rock7174

anybody?

clinebarger

Sourcing a '07 & up 4L60E with an ISS Sensor would simplify the Tuning, I'm not going too say ISS 4L60E's are rare, But the cores don't just fall out of the sky. ISS 4L65E/4L70E are tough to come by, Trailblazer SS, Vortec Max, & 6.0L 1/2 ton SUV's had them....IIRC that's it.

I would go with a 4L80E, They all have a ISS Sensor, It will fit your Chevelle & a lot tougher than ANY "Built" 4L65E.

You can source a E38 & T42 ECM/TCM combo out of a '08-'10 Express/Savanna 2500/3500 Van that originally had a 4L80E, It has been my unfortunate experience that buying a matched pair of Modules is cheaper than paying a Tuner to play Russian Roulette with your ECM & a New T42.

rock7174

Yeah I thought about going the 4l80e route but I already converted my chevelle to OD with a 700r4 so the 4l60e would bolt right up to the driveshaft and crossmember. Its a trade off. I paid $130 for the flexplate kit already. I a little less than a new driveshaft (I just had the driveshaft custom made a year ago). I don't run it that hard often. Its actually my wifes car. It has a 454 with a fitech that I'm tired of constantly fixing. Can't wait for the reliability of the ls3!

rock7174

oh and thanks for the help, it was exactly what I needed.

clinebarger

Hold on, A 300mm 4L60E is Longer than a 700R4 by about 1 1/2", The Mount is NOT in the same location. You can buy some "Slider" engine mount plates & move the engine forward, But that is a "rig" in my opinion!

You can have a 4L80E converter built with a front cover too fit a Dished Flexplate at no extra cost usually.

A lot of people say they won't run something hard 'til they have a LS3, And it will get driven more!

rock7174

I must be missing something. I went to tci auto to their dimension reference guide at http://www.tciauto.com/tc/trans-dim and it shows length (30 3/4") are one in the same for a 1996 or later 4l60e and a 700r4. The mounting position is 1/2" different which I can correct with adjustable motor mounts I have. What am I missing here? Also, what is lost by getting a non ISS Sensor 4l60e? Like you said, they aren't falling out of the sky. I'm in a remote area where parts aren't easy to come by. If I am missing something I may be rethinking my selection.

clinebarger

Here is a pic of a 300mm 4L60E next to a 4L80E, Both were leveled at the bellhousings with a straight edge before the picture. How much longer is a 4L60E than a 4L80E according too TCI?

rock7174

It gives dimensions for the total length for 4l60e as 30 3/4". It gives dimensions for the total length of the 4l80e as 32 11/16" for the standard 2wd, 31 15/16" for the HD 2wd.

mrvedit

First, your LS3 has a 58x reluctor which requires a newer GM ECM (not PCM). That ECM then needs to work with matching TCM and all GM TCM only work with ISS.
A bunch of experienced tuners have tried to make the GM TCMs work with non-ISS and none have figured it out.

Next, the bell housing of a 300mm input shaft 4L60E is about 1" deeper than a 298mm 4L60E/700R4. So maybe not quite the 1-1/2" that Clinebarger mentioned but enough to really move things around.

Buying a new driveshaft for $250 is peanuts compared the costs and trouble you can quickly get into with incompatible parts.

Clinebarger's suggestion to go 4L80E is excellent. Used ones are much cheaper than a well built 4L65E, are stronger, and all have the necessary ISS. And easily fit a Chevelle.
Just redrill the frame to move your existing trans crossmember back 2" (or so) and get a new custom driveshaft.

rock7174

Sounds legit. Will a 4l80e from any year work? If not what year range am I looking for? I assume all 4l80e's come in ISS? What does it take to fit to my LS3? Just a dished flexplate? Or just a crankshaft spacer with a flat flexplate? Thanks! I'm just getting started into the education of a ls swap, I definitely don't know as much as I thought!

solidaxel

Following this one!

rock7174

Found out from PCI Conversion that any 98 or newer 4l80e can be controlled with a ls harness and TCM. Found one from a pull a part and ordered flexplate ATP Z-270 that already has the spacer and extra long flexplate bolts with it. Was told that I can use a 4l80e torque converter with 11.50" bolt pattern. Just putting this in here because I struggled to find all the info in one place.