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Circle D 278mm whose got one

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Old Dec 26, 2010 | 05:57 PM
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Default Circle D 278mm whose got one

Hey guys I've been hearing a lot of good things about circle d and noticed thier budget line of 3200 278mm stalls and hear theyre great for daily driving. Stalls have really scared me so far because they seem a bit loose for daily driving ive got 3.42s in my car now but I'm still hesitant about the stall. I was just wondering if any of you had this stall, how it drives and if you could get any vids of it please post up.
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Old Dec 26, 2010 | 06:10 PM
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I asked an almost identical question like a week ago. I ended up buying a Circle D 245mm 3400 2c stall. From what Chris and others have told me you will gain 3-4 tenths with the 278mm and with the 245mm of the same size you will gain about 3 tenths more and the 245mm will make your car quicker after the launch. I went with the one I did because this will be one of my last mods since I wont be going into the motor for a long time. So if you race your car and want the biggest gains go with the 245mm. To me its worth it
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Old Dec 26, 2010 | 06:17 PM
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Ya your thread actually sparked my interest in it. My biggest thing is that i live in south fl and orlando year round south fl traffic isnt so bad but id like to knee the guy in the ***** who designed the roads in orlando traffic is always terrible during the day and im stuck in it a lot i never really go to the track so i was thinking the 278 might be a better choice plus i dont plan on doing a radical heads and cam setup to support the need for the billet converter
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Old Dec 26, 2010 | 07:26 PM
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get a big trans cooler ,and these converters have a lock up clutch,which reduces trans temps.
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Old Dec 26, 2010 | 07:29 PM
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I had it and it drove great. Couldn't even really tell the car was stalled. The converter was very tight. I would recommend it.
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Old Dec 26, 2010 | 07:32 PM
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What cooler did you go with garygnu? Also the 245mm is more efficient up top. I bet the 278mm will get you good gains. Really the 245mm shouldn't run any hotter than the 278 I wuldn't think. the 1c is 3000-3200 stall also so it shouldn't cause anymore heat
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Old Dec 26, 2010 | 07:40 PM
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The car already has the biggest tranny cooler offered by b&m just for insurance so im good there lol. And ya Ive heard from a lot f people its a tight convertter but everyone has an opinion of tight lol, some people say a 3600 is stock like which i hardly agree with. So just hoping with all the people running one that someone could post up a vid btw what were some 60' times with it?
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Old Dec 26, 2010 | 07:46 PM
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I never ran mine at the track, but it really did drive just like stock as far as tightness is concerned. If you barely touched the gas, it would move, (not like other loose stalls that have to rev to the moon before they will move) and the only time you could really tell it was stalled was if you gave it a bunch of gas.

I never got any vids because the tranny let go, and after I put in a new Performabuilt tranny, I ended up selling the car soon after.
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Old Dec 27, 2010 | 09:51 AM
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Gotcha could you tell a definite difference up top and with the shift rpm drop after the converter/ and z99 is yours in yet how do you like it
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Old Dec 27, 2010 | 09:51 AM
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also formulam6 did your mpgs go down the crapper with it in town i know we all dont drive these cars for the fuel economy but its something ill take into consideration.
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Old Dec 27, 2010 | 12:45 PM
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Originally Posted by redbird555
Gotcha could you tell a definite difference up top and with the shift rpm drop after the converter/ and z99 is yours in yet how do you like it
No, mine hasent arrived yet and I will be putting it in at school on a lift, so I have to wait tell the 12th when I go back.
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Old Dec 28, 2010 | 08:18 PM
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I'm actually having my 278mm 3200 stall CircleD torque converter installed tomorrow morning, I will let you guys know how it goes.
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Old Dec 28, 2010 | 08:30 PM
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great if you can make a driving vid our cars have similiar rear gears thanks!
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Old Dec 28, 2010 | 10:23 PM
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Originally Posted by vjo90rs8
I'm actually having my 278mm 3200 stall CircleD torque converter installed tomorrow morning, I will let you guys know how it goes.
I wuld like to see some vids and stuff to
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Old Dec 29, 2010 | 06:38 AM
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The stall came in the car when I bought it, so I can't say how the gas mileage was before it. When I was driving the car, it had the stall, a 230's cam and 3.73 gears and I was getting 18-19mpg on the highway
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Old Dec 29, 2010 | 01:02 PM
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I had one in my car. It's a decent converter for the money. At the track, best 60' I was able to get was a 1.699 and I was running low 12's. I think my best time with that converter was around a 12.1@112 with just basic bolt ons. My car is basically full weight and I just had LCA's and a drag bag in the passenger rear spring at the time. I have an SS4000 now and my 60' is in the 1.5's.
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Old Dec 29, 2010 | 05:56 PM
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thanks for the replys guys, vjo how did the converter install go?
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Old Dec 29, 2010 | 07:02 PM
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Originally Posted by redbird555
thanks for the replies guys, vjo how did the converter install go?
GREAT!!! New Circle D 278mm TC, CAT Racing flex-plate, new AC Delco filter and some fresh fluid installed. The car feels really good and drives very smooth. The converter is very tight but you can definitely tell it is there even under light throttle. It doesn't take much to get the car moving and from that standpoint is very close to stock, maybe just a bit more throttle to get moving but I actually like it. I definitely like how the transmission downshifts now. Before when the transmission would downshift when I come to a stop I would get some bucking/clunking that I believe has to do with my torque arm (happened in my 3rd gen also after replacing the TA). Now when I come to a stop the downshift is very smooth, an added bonus. I did not want to get on it too hard until I put some miles on it but I did give it some light-medium throttle getting onto the freeway, I noticed the RPMs jump to about 2400rpms and threw my head back a bit, I was impressed, I can't wait to break this thing in (probably put a week or two of normal driving just to be save). I have HP Tuners and have the lockup set to 38MPH in 4th gear only (no 3rd gear lockup). I also have the line pressure bumped up a bit and the shift speed curves altered a bit. After I break it in I will see if they need any more tweaking. I don't think I will have the "false misfire" problem that is typically seen with the higher stall, 9.5" converters. I drove the car about 30 miles on the freeway and it felt just like stock (it should feel very very close to stock since it is locked up at that point). I will work on getting a video in the middle of January.
This was a very productive Christmas break, got the torque converter, flex-plate, and filter installed, put on my new SLP loudmouth exhaust, Professional Products 80mm throttle body, and upgrade some battery cables with 0AWG wire. Just a few more things to do to the car and I think I'm done with it FOREVER!!! (yeah right)
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Old Dec 29, 2010 | 07:07 PM
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great to hear, so where are the vids lol? if you can get some dailly driving vids of it just putting around asap i really wanna see one as the only ones ive seen ae with huge stalls like a 4k or 3600.
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Old Dec 30, 2010 | 07:47 AM
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Originally Posted by vjo90rs8
GREAT!!! New Circle D 278mm TC, CAT Racing flex-plate, new AC Delco filter and some fresh fluid installed. The car feels really good and drives very smooth. The converter is very tight but you can definitely tell it is there even under light throttle. It doesn't take much to get the car moving and from that standpoint is very close to stock, maybe just a bit more throttle to get moving but I actually like it. I definitely like how the transmission downshifts now. Before when the transmission would downshift when I come to a stop I would get some bucking/clunking that I believe has to do with my torque arm (happened in my 3rd gen also after replacing the TA). Now when I come to a stop the downshift is very smooth, an added bonus. I did not want to get on it too hard until I put some miles on it but I did give it some light-medium throttle getting onto the freeway, I noticed the RPMs jump to about 2400rpms and threw my head back a bit, I was impressed, I can't wait to break this thing in (probably put a week or two of normal driving just to be save). I have HP Tuners and have the lockup set to 38MPH in 4th gear only (no 3rd gear lockup). I also have the line pressure bumped up a bit and the shift speed curves altered a bit. After I break it in I will see if they need any more tweaking. I don't think I will have the "false misfire" problem that is typically seen with the higher stall, 9.5" converters. I drove the car about 30 miles on the freeway and it felt just like stock (it should feel very very close to stock since it is locked up at that point). I will work on getting a video in the middle of January.
This was a very productive Christmas break, got the torque converter, flex-plate, and filter installed, put on my new SLP loudmouth exhaust, Professional Products 80mm throttle body, and upgrade some battery cables with 0AWG wire. Just a few more things to do to the car and I think I'm done with it FOREVER!!! (yeah right)
Good write up, looking forward to the video.

Chris
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