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4L6?E or 4L80E on turbo setup??

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Old Jun 26, 2005 | 01:43 PM
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Default 4L6?E or 4L80E on turbo setup??

I know turbo setups produce A LOT of torque and hp that automatic transmissions have to deal with...

I am putting together a 1985 Jaguar XJ6 LS1 turbo project. I am planning a 5.7L or 6.0L block w/forged pistons and rods and a single turbo setup shooting for around 625rwhp and 550ft/lb of torque on a safe tune... of course these are just goals but I think def within the means of my project. My car will weigh about 3800lbs - 3900lbs done. For the most part it will be a street car with street tires only... I'll prob only be able to put 9.5" of rubber on the rear wheels... don't think 10.5's or 11's will fit.

So what kind of trans? a 4L60E or 4L80E?? I know that 80 is a BEAST... I know it's about 100lbs heavier and prob takes a lot more power to turn and leech off my engine... however it will take a beating. Would I be better off to save 100lbs in weight and go with a built 4L60E?? What about the 4L65E??
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Old Jun 26, 2005 | 01:46 PM
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4l60 by a GOOD builder...your car sounds just like mine....see sig
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Old Jun 26, 2005 | 02:32 PM
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Id get a 4l80e they are simply just stronger transmissions.
If you get a good 60e you wont have a problem for now, but eventually it will break. The good builders five you a 1 year warrenty, but they can last that long, it is not going to be a life long tranny, or a track car for a long time.
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Old Jun 27, 2005 | 11:54 AM
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What's the parasitic loss like on a 4L80E vs a 4L60E? Does it rob that much more power??


Originally Posted by 69firebird
Id get a 4l80e they are simply just stronger transmissions.
If you get a good 60e you wont have a problem for now, but eventually it will break. The good builders five you a 1 year warrenty, but they can last that long, it is not going to be a life long tranny, or a track car for a long time.
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Old Jun 27, 2005 | 12:10 PM
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no way in hell i'd ever use a 4l60 for anything over 450hp... i dont care what anyone tells you, builder, etc. The facts are out on that one, serveral "good" builders have built 60s for me and my friends and we've all managed to break them. Get a 4l80 if you want a cheap 4th, or a th400 w/ gv. The 4l80 can be built up like a 400 but has the luxury of the 4th gear (which apparently cant be built up, so dont hit high hp in 4th lol)
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Old Jun 27, 2005 | 12:11 PM
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also I heard rossler can make them but for something like 6k... nuts!
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Old Jun 27, 2005 | 12:16 PM
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nah listen to cablebandit his car is over 700rwhp (turbo) pushing a 4l60e Im following suit behind him with the same tranny and power more or less
Originally Posted by 02BlueFirehawk
also I heard rossler can make them but for something like 6k... nuts!
I think rock on's is under 3k or right at 3k
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Old Jun 27, 2005 | 03:37 PM
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im getting my 4l65 built up right now as i was shooting for more than 450awhp.
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Old Jun 27, 2005 | 03:55 PM
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I have a fresh 0 mile since build 4L80E ready to ship. It has all the upgrade parts in it and cryo treated to make it even stronger. I have the trans, a Yank PY3400E convertor, TCI trans control module and a couple of other things. Let me know if you are interested. Thanks Dave indacalinc@sbcglobal.net
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Old Jun 27, 2005 | 04:09 PM
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I got my 4L80e from dave and it is holding up great. I don't notice much of a difference from second on power wise, but 1st with a lower gear is slower. Not a bad trade off for not having to pull the trans out once a month. I had a 60e with 600 rwhp on spray and 500 on motor on a 3900 lb race weight and died after 130 passes. Never could get it to run right after five different times back to the builder. The 80e is worth the disadvantage of the weight for longevity. That would be my vote. I have not seen a 60e hold that kind of power on anything but a stripped race car.
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Old Jun 27, 2005 | 04:16 PM
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Also, I had nothing to do what so ever with the 60E build or related problems strokedls1/Jason had in there before. Thanks for the input Jason. Dave
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Old Jun 28, 2005 | 09:55 AM
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I hate the god forsaken 60E so damned much I swapped to an 80E in BOTH my trucks. The 1st gear sucks in my N/A truck but I'm sure it will be very benificial in my turbocharged monster.
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Old Jun 28, 2005 | 10:08 AM
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I have an 4L80 in my chevy ll. Went from a 700r4 to it. It comes from the factory rated 300-400 ft lb. more than the 4l60. I got tired of replacing clutch pacs.

4l80e and the tci controller is what you want. You set shift points on low and high rpm and how hard you want it to shift. It locks your converter and gives you option to lock converter at WOT. Set your WOT shift points and do nothing but hold on to the wheel!!

Rossler has a trans brake for it. Little over 600.00 but the trans must be opened up to install corredtly.
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Old Jun 28, 2005 | 10:24 AM
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Originally Posted by 02BlueFirehawk
no way in hell i'd ever use a 4l60 for anything over 450hp... i dont care what anyone tells you, builder, etc. The facts are out on that one, serveral "good" builders have built 60s for me and my friends and we've all managed to break them. Get a 4l80 if you want a cheap 4th, or a th400 w/ gv. The 4l80 can be built up like a 400 but has the luxury of the 4th gear (which apparently cant be built up, so dont hit high hp in 4th lol)
if you broke one with that little power...something wasnt right in the tranny. I agree the 4l80e is stronger but a 4l60e can be built to be one tuff tranny. NO tranny that gets drag raced is gonna last forever. 4l60e has gotten a bad rap because of unknowledgeable builders and pcm issues that get blamed on the tranny. Remember, they used to say you couldnt go over 15 psi without lifting heads. Nothing changed to make that false except knowledge. I probably dont have but 50 passes on mine but it is a 3820# raceweight car with 3.23 gears...3800 stall and at least 700hp/775tq. Plus I have put over 20000 street miles on it. If I were at 600rwhp like i originally told my builder, I'd expect it to last a long time but now...who knows
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Old Jun 28, 2005 | 03:45 PM
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I would say your more of an exception in that case. There is not a drastic price difference from a 60e that will handle 600 rwhp to a 80e that can handle 900 rwhp. The only negatives are the gearing and weight. The two trannies size wise are pretty close. Mine was rated for 600 and when I ran that it smoked the pump. If your a gambling man go with a 60e and hope that you get it built right like cablebandit.
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Old Jun 28, 2005 | 04:10 PM
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Yea the gearing sucks... the 1st gear is pretty high and the OD gear is lower than the 4L60E.... def NOT the best of both worlds hahaha wish I could just get that OD gear a little higher!!! (and gear vendors are expensive - not an option)

However, I think for strength it should be worth it... it's a heavy car and the last thing I want to do is get stuck with it somewhere because I was beatin on it a little on the hilly highways here in the east!

Originally Posted by strokedls1
I would say your more of an exception in that case. There is not a drastic price difference from a 60e that will handle 600 rwhp to a 80e that can handle 900 rwhp. The only negatives are the gearing and weight. The two trannies size wise are pretty close. Mine was rated for 600 and when I ran that it smoked the pump. If your a gambling man go with a 60e and hope that you get it built right like cablebandit.
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Old Jun 28, 2005 | 04:16 PM
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get a built 4l60 and change the fluid often, it should last.

that with a 24-28 k tranny cooler should be ok.
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Old Jun 28, 2005 | 08:23 PM
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Avoid WOT kickdowns with the 4L60e. That seems to be there weakest link. I was drag racing the other day and it was fine, on the way home another TA wanted to play and I smoked the 3-4 clutch pack kicking it down. On top of smoking the trans. It looked like I lost to a relatively stock TA. I'm back running now but I won't be doing the kickdowns anymore.
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Old Jun 28, 2005 | 08:46 PM
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Call Rossler. He can build you a 4L65E to handle that much power with ease. He can build you a 4L80E to handle twice that if needed. Like Cablebandit said the 4L6?'s arent as bad as people have made them out to be. Just a lot of bad builders. Plus there are more parts available now. I wouldn't give up on the 60's at that power level anymore.
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Old Jun 28, 2005 | 08:46 PM
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Default WOT kickdowns are FUN!!

WOT kickdowns are FUN!!! I want to do them!! What's the use of building a pissed-off street machine if I can't push it around!! I almost forgot about that sensative area with the 4L60E and kind of dismissed it as a result of poor tuning.... I thought for sure there would be some way to beat them, like softening the WOT shifts on your tune...

Originally Posted by 2001WS6Vert
Avoid WOT kickdowns with the 4L60e. That seems to be there weakest link. I was drag racing the other day and it was fine, on the way home another TA wanted to play and I smoked the 3-4 clutch pack kicking it down. On top of smoking the trans. It looked like I lost to a relatively stock TA. I'm back running now but I won't be doing the kickdowns anymore.
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