When do you need a Powerglide?
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From: Nawf Carolina
When do you need a Powerglide? How do you decided when a car would be better suited with a Glide than a TH350 or TH400? Huge power with low weight? If you're killing the tires hard with the 3 speeds? I've seen 396 and 383 Camaros run all over the 10s with a Glide, just seems like they'd be better suited with a 3 speed.
I know two members of this board are going to/planning on backing an LS1 with a 'Glide, so its kinda a relevent question.
J.
I know two members of this board are going to/planning on backing an LS1 with a 'Glide, so its kinda a relevent question.
J.
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From: Nawf Carolina
Re: When do you need a Powerglide? All kinds of production cars used to have Glides, so I dont see why they couldn't be streetable today. If you're spraying a lot, then the stall on spray will be much higher than on motor, so it would retain pretty decent manners around town. Or so I would think.
I'm not even remotely planning on it, I just wonder when is a Glide better, and when would you actually ET slower with one?
I'm not even remotely planning on it, I just wonder when is a Glide better, and when would you actually ET slower with one?
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From: Chi-Town
Re: When do you need a Powerglide? with the glide and the lack of a high numerical first gear means
-much bigger converter
-much bigger gear
to have the same as a 3 speed and it also means you really have to rev out first gear pretty high
-much bigger converter
-much bigger gear
to have the same as a 3 speed and it also means you really have to rev out first gear pretty high
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From: Indianapolis, IN
Re: When do you need a Powerglide? when I did my TH400, first I was gonna do a 350 just cause its supposed to be more effcient? no idea about the actual facts of that. and the 350 is lighter....but the tranny guy said it took alot of work and money to make a 350 as good as a 400. Then I asked about a glide and he did nothing but talk me out of it. He said weight was not THAT much of a factor, just that he had a 400 in his car and was talked into doing a glide and it went slower so the 400 went back in. And he has like 5.xx gears and 31" slicks (1st gen Camaro).
I am really not sure when a glide would be better. Maybe an all out application with 6.xx gears? It would have to feel pretty sluggish on the street I would think cause the first gear is only like 1.76 or something. so it would be almost like using a 350/400 in 2nd gear to launch or a 4L60E in "2nd gear start"
you just must need a TON of HP/TQ where a 2.XX gear is just too much to launch on?
I am really not sure when a glide would be better. Maybe an all out application with 6.xx gears? It would have to feel pretty sluggish on the street I would think cause the first gear is only like 1.76 or something. so it would be almost like using a 350/400 in 2nd gear to launch or a 4L60E in "2nd gear start"
you just must need a TON of HP/TQ where a 2.XX gear is just too much to launch on?
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From: Chi-Town
Re: When do you need a Powerglide? as matt said...
the TH350 is more efficient because it is lighter and the internal components are lighter thus equating to eating up less hp than a TH400 does
but also, as matt said, a TH350 takes a lot more money that a TH400 to build to hold the same hp level
As with the p/g, it is the lightest of the above 3 trannies mentioned and is also the MOST EXPENSIVE to build because GM never planned on using this transmission for what some people are doing.
Getting a p/g combo setup properly isn't easy and with more time i bet your friend would've found the right combo matt, but we'll never know. Takes time and money and if something works why change it right?
Lastly, as matt said again <img src="gr_images/icons/wink.gif" border="0"> , one of the MAIN reasons people go to a p/g is because they are just making TOO MUCH HP for that 2.XX first gear of a 3 speed. Take for example those SS/O cars in NMRA making close to 1700hp on a little itty bitty true 10" tire. They use p/g's for this very reason and also if you have that much hp on that little of a tire, would you want to deal with 2 violent gear changes or one? <img src="gr_images/icons/wink.gif" border="0">
the TH350 is more efficient because it is lighter and the internal components are lighter thus equating to eating up less hp than a TH400 does
but also, as matt said, a TH350 takes a lot more money that a TH400 to build to hold the same hp level
As with the p/g, it is the lightest of the above 3 trannies mentioned and is also the MOST EXPENSIVE to build because GM never planned on using this transmission for what some people are doing.
Getting a p/g combo setup properly isn't easy and with more time i bet your friend would've found the right combo matt, but we'll never know. Takes time and money and if something works why change it right?
Lastly, as matt said again <img src="gr_images/icons/wink.gif" border="0"> , one of the MAIN reasons people go to a p/g is because they are just making TOO MUCH HP for that 2.XX first gear of a 3 speed. Take for example those SS/O cars in NMRA making close to 1700hp on a little itty bitty true 10" tire. They use p/g's for this very reason and also if you have that much hp on that little of a tire, would you want to deal with 2 violent gear changes or one? <img src="gr_images/icons/wink.gif" border="0">
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