I think both converters are quality products - but it should be noted that when Yank verters are on GP Buy (as they are right now) a PY3600E shipped to your door goes for exactly $5 whopping dollars more than the comparable (as far as features go) Fuddle HP/Race Converter without the shipping added in.

So I guess what I'm saying is - you can't go wrong with either, but if you look around for the deals - you can make the price issue drop out of the equation.

My Phoenix T/A has a PY3600E and I love it, the other car has a Midwest, which seemed to be an OK verter, but now I'm getting a vibration so it's time to replace. I haven't made up my mind as to which verter to use in this car...

 

There is one thing that jumps out at me while reading this thread. Eeryone who has a Yank verter loves it. Everone that has a Fuddle verter loves it. There is only one thing that is different........hundreds of dollars.

 

Which, as I stated above, is not the case at this time.

You have to compare apples to apples - it's not fair to compare the base Fuddle converter price against a top of the line Yank PYE verter.

So if you compare the price of the Fuddle HP/Race verter to the current Yank GP buy price for PYE verter - the Yank is $5 more (not 500 - 5)!

And that includes the shipping on the Yank - not on the Fuddle. So actually right now you could get a Yank for less...

 

then take the highest dollar converter for both companies out of the equation. not all of us will need that specialized of a converter.

then you are still seeing differences in price, by hundreds of dollars in some cases. you cant take price completely out of this equation.

just wanted to add that i am an extremely happy fuddle owner. back when i was still looking, i was going to buy a yank, hands down. everything bad that might be said about them set aside, they have great converters. then i talked with john in a few PMs. he had me second guessing my decision. then i talked with some one(who will remain nameless)that i hold a great deal of respect for in the "LS1 universe". and he told me i wouldnt be disappointed with fuddle. and im not.

 

True......I don't remember the exact numbers but when I bought mine the price difference was alot. I went with Fuddle for that reason combined with all the positive feedback I was getting from other members on this site.

 

werd Make sure prices are right here. The Race from fuddle is 770 and is their race 6bolt converter. PYE would have to sell for 230off... maybe?
What about real world converters. if you compare apples to apples on the converters most people buy - the fuddles are a ton less

 

Prices are correct for the verters I mentioned - already got a PM for pricing on PY3600E shipped to my door on latest GP buy thru this forum

 

Ok, so why not compare both prices when at GP deals? Oh have I mentioned that I love my Fuddle today?

 

I looked in to getting a Fuddle HP/Race verter when they WERE on special - they weren't offering as much of a deal on that model as compared with their lower models - and not anywhere near the price cut that Yank is offering. If they were, I would have been able to get their top of the line verter for the cost of a basic verter.

I don't take in to account the price of a speed part - I only care about the quality/durability. I don't throw away $$ needlessly either - If it happens that a lesser cost part will do the job I'm asking - then I go with that. I also tend to err on the side of overkill for performance/reliabilty - I don't want to run on the 'ragged edge' with a part just because it's cheaper - I'd much rather have a buffer zone. After all, most of the expensive mods to our cars are also very labor intensive - I don't plan on doing the job twice just because I settled for a cheaper part. It's easy to say go with Fuddle because they are less expensive - but we all know that beyond the fact that Yank is probably getting xtra just for their name (which happens in every consumer product you buy), their verters are made from entirely new parts. Billet covers, machine time, etc. don't come for free.

Everyone here always dwells on price - ignore the price for a second and concentrate on the performance reliability.

I think both verters are quality parts and I too have talked with John - very knowledgeable, and from what I can tell he probably has much better customer service after the sale.

I went against my better judgement once with my T/A and went with a Midwest verter - everyone was raving about their performance, customer service, & cheaper price - well I even bought the HD version built for nitrous (which I didn't have at the time), and there it was, 8K miles later and the POS first exhibited a bad vibration @ certain rpm's - then finally went out to lunch behind NA 426rwhp/418rwtq. I don't even race my car on the track - just very 'spirited' street driving.

And where is Midwest now? OUT OF BUSINESS

And yes, at this time Yank has a larger customer base and proven performance than Fuddle but that might change.

I have nothing against John or his company - after all Yank had to start out somewhere didn't they? John has done a very good job filling the intermediate niche between a run of the mill verter and the high end verters as far as I can tell; in both quality & price. This was an area that was lacking - John saw this & patterned his product/marketing toward this. That's what makes America great - there's room for everyone.

As far as customer service goes - if the part performs as it should, then you should never need customer service after the sale, right?

Original question was to get OPINIONS from members on whether to go with Fuddle or Yank. This is mine. Albeit, if this was 25 years ago and I was still in college, with very little $$ to spend on car parts, my choice would probably be different - I would then fall into the intermediate niche that John has filled.

Torque converters and their design have been around for a long time - not rocket science by any means. You won't see anyone coming out with any ground shaking, major improvements in the design - just very small tweaks. In the end it all comes down to the quality of the parts used and even more importantly, the manufacturing process.

Both converters are quality products - you just have to fully understand what your requirements/budget are/is - and go with the appropriate mfg. I personally would have never thought to buy a Yank for my T/A if it was completely stock and I never had plans to upgrade the engine or add forced induction, nitrous, etc - the performance demands would have not warranted a verter of this price.

 

after alot (litterally months) of deliberation I decided to go with a Fuddle 3400/2.1str. I've had two Vigilante's on different cars in the past and although I just got it in the car the Fuddle feels every bit as good as those were and at half the price. Of course the true test will be at the track but I'm expecting similar gains as with the PI's I've had if not better.
another happy Fuddle customer.

 

well, no one has proven that the performance or reliability of yank is better than fudddle. billet this and billet that. blah blah blah. and they have been around a long time offering a good product; good for them. but you siad it yourself, everyone has to start somewhere. from what ive read fuddle is every bit of yank and PI's equal. maybe better????? time will tell. and i dont see john going under anytime soon.

and on a personal note, ive street driven a car with a vig and a yank. and when compared to my much larger fuddle stall, i think mine drives alot better.

and i too wouldnt put price over performance/reliability. i went with a fuddle becuase im confident that it will do everything as well as a yank or vig will. the fact that it cost hundreds less than the oither two, thats just a breath of fresh air for the hobby.