Hi I am looking to improve the performance of my Formula and shift kits are pretty cheap and seem to make a big difference in performance. I was looking at the description for the TransGo kit on summit racing and it read "Crisp muscle car or full race shifts. Puts the driver in command. Holds 1st, 2nd, and 3rd to any speed. Backshifts to 3rd, 2nd and 1st by moving the lever. 1998 and up, if vehicle has torque management this kit will not make hard shifts."

Does this mean the 4L60e basically becomes a manual tranny?
What is torque management and do all stock cars have it?
Besides better shifting how else will it improve performance?
Does it have a big effect on daily driving?
Is there anything else I'll need to purchase for proper install?
Is there a significant difference between the TransGo kit and the B&M kit?

Sorry for so many questions but I'm a complete noob haha just trying to learn more about these cars and whats best for my car as far as mods go.

 

Start at these threads:

https://ls1tech.com/forums/automatic...d2-yes-no.html
https://ls1tech.com/forums/automatic...hift-kits.html
https://ls1tech.com/forums/automatic...shift-kit.html

To quickly answer your Qs:
It does not make it a manual tranny. Personally I did not install the "hold any gear" valve to prevent accidental overrev.
Torque management is when the ignition advance is reduced during the shift to reduce wear and soften the shift. It can be programmed out.
Read the threads; it will prolong the life of your trans.
Little effect on daily driving; just slightly firmer shifts.
It is not trivial to install and you may want to hire that out; figure about $250-$400 to install.
Avoid the B&M; its just a few parts to "bang" your gears which is fine for kids but will ruin your trans and drivetrain.

Since you say you are a trans "noob", I cannot recommend trying to install a shift kit yourself. While many here have done it successfully, others have made mistakes that are time consuming and/or expensive to fix. The transgo instructions can politely be called "terse".

 

Thank you for the threads. I typed shift kit in the search bar and none of those threads came up for some reason. What exactly is being described in the description? If I install the "hold any gear" valve will I be required to use the lever to downshift? Sorry if this sounds stupid but I just don't understand what they mean by that description.

 

"Hold any gear" means that when you're shifting manually it won't shift till you move the lever - no matter how high it revs. Automatic shifting isn't affected.

 

The search doesn't always bring up what you; at least you tried!
Here is another very useful thread on the issue including the Transgo instructions:

https://ls1tech.com/forums/automatic...questions.html

Revgto answered your other question.
If you don't want the "Hold any gear" feature, leave out Step 5 on Page 2 of the instructions.

 

you dont have to use the hold any gear function if you dont want to......i never use mine

 

Does this mean the tranny can be used as kind of a tiptronic style transmission? I read it's bad to manually shift an auto. Is that still the case after installing the shift kit with the hold any gear valve?

 

LoL Ive argued that till the cows come home If it was gonna kill the trans GM woulda put Park , Reverse, Nuetral, Overdrive & no 1,2,3 The hold any gear just lets you shift when you want & gets rid of the factory automatic upshift to 2nd gear when you nail it hard in 1st Dont over complicate things lol Install the Shift kit If I remember right one of the Trans Go shift kits are best Search or Google 4L60E shift kit Theres other upgrades too but save all those for rebuild time

 

Haha alright thanks.