Fergymotos Transmission Carnage PICS INSIDE
05-04-2009, 12:52 PM
#1
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Fergymotos Transmission Carnage PICS INSIDE We were playing with Fergymotos tune last weekend at my apartment in pittsburgh and we pieced one together and just nailed it.
We took it out on the street and were driving around feeling it out and it felt awesome. We pulled up to a red light with **** eating grins on our faces ready to romp on it, rolled out from the stop light and went wide open. The car unloaded the suspension (and was close to lifting the tires imo) and then boom, nothing but limiter and the sound of what appeared to be an 871 blower. This is what it was......
We took it out on the street and were driving around feeling it out and it felt awesome. We pulled up to a red light with **** eating grins on our faces ready to romp on it, rolled out from the stop light and went wide open. The car unloaded the suspension (and was close to lifting the tires imo) and then boom, nothing but limiter and the sound of what appeared to be an 871 blower. This is what it was......
05-04-2009, 01:55 PM
#5
Thats funny, I recently screwed my input shaft up as well among other things. My builder told me alot of input shafts weren't hardened like they were supposed to be from GM. Kinda like the GM guideplates that are hit or miss in terms of being hardened.
05-04-2009, 06:44 PM
#6
It was the original 4L60E in my '97 WS6 in my sig. It had about 120,500 miles on it and has been running 12.20s or quicker with several different engine setups since it had 103k. It still shifted great.
We were doing some tuning on the car (it has had a tune that was pretty far off for a long time). We got it running awesome, it had more power than it has ever had before by far. I knew the tune was off but I didn't know it was that far off. The car was an animal for the 20 minutes we got to drive it before the transmission broke.
We were at a red light and when it turned green we creeped away and when at about 2,000rpm in first gear I nailed the gas and it hooked and just as the suspension started to unload there was a pop. I give it very light throttle, obviously no power is getting through the transmission, so I pulled over. As I'm idling the thing is whining like an 8-71 blower LOL. The only part that would function was park so I figured it was the input shaft or sun gears. As you see when I pulled it out it turned out to be the input shaft.
As far as why this trans lasted so long, I have no idea. I don't know if it was just luck or if it was the right setup. It had a TransGo HD-2 shift kit, a really good cooler, a deep pan with cooling fins and drain plug, and a Fuddle 3400 2.1str stall. It has seen a lot of 1.60-1.63 short times.
I'm not sure what I'm going to do about fixing it. It seems to cost big money to build a strong 4L60E, and on top of that my converter at least needs to be taken apart, looked at, and re-stalled but I would honestly like to get a different converter. Not to mention now I am a little afraid to use a stock input shaft, and a billet one from Rossler is $450
I am considering a T56, but there goes my good 60' times without getting a rear end and suspension, etc.
We were doing some tuning on the car (it has had a tune that was pretty far off for a long time). We got it running awesome, it had more power than it has ever had before by far. I knew the tune was off but I didn't know it was that far off. The car was an animal for the 20 minutes we got to drive it before the transmission broke.
We were at a red light and when it turned green we creeped away and when at about 2,000rpm in first gear I nailed the gas and it hooked and just as the suspension started to unload there was a pop. I give it very light throttle, obviously no power is getting through the transmission, so I pulled over. As I'm idling the thing is whining like an 8-71 blower LOL. The only part that would function was park so I figured it was the input shaft or sun gears. As you see when I pulled it out it turned out to be the input shaft.
As far as why this trans lasted so long, I have no idea. I don't know if it was just luck or if it was the right setup. It had a TransGo HD-2 shift kit, a really good cooler, a deep pan with cooling fins and drain plug, and a Fuddle 3400 2.1str stall. It has seen a lot of 1.60-1.63 short times.
I'm not sure what I'm going to do about fixing it. It seems to cost big money to build a strong 4L60E, and on top of that my converter at least needs to be taken apart, looked at, and re-stalled but I would honestly like to get a different converter. Not to mention now I am a little afraid to use a stock input shaft, and a billet one from Rossler is $450
I am considering a T56, but there goes my good 60' times without getting a rear end and suspension, etc.
05-04-2009, 06:54 PM
#7
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05-04-2009, 07:37 PM
#10
from what i've seen, doing a t56 swap and getting a built 4L60e are gonna cost about the same. i have a performabuilt level 2 4l60e in my car with one of their stall convertors and i love it, and while i do love a 6spd, i'm glad i put the built auto in mine instead of doing the swap because of the labor involved and the peace of mind that it will hold 700 hp
05-04-2009, 09:54 PM
#11
I had my 4L60E recently built by Frank at CPT for $1500 "Pro Race". I also had my stall restalled by Yank and everything came to just under $1800. He used a hardened 4L65E output shaft which seems to work for 99% of people but he can put billet ones in there for extra money. Not sure where you are located in PA but he's down in Delaware. I was considering a T-56 swap but to do it right it would have been atleast another $1000 or so with good clutch etc. and a new rear end would be almost necessary so it was a no brainer for me. I also didn't want to give up my 60' times and stalled autos are just too fun.
BTW just recently met a guy at a PSU car meet last week who has some horror stories and some not so nice things to say about Performabuilt. He's on this forum I don't know his name though. I was considering them so I'm glad I didn't go with them but just a heads up.
BTW just recently met a guy at a PSU car meet last week who has some horror stories and some not so nice things to say about Performabuilt. He's on this forum I don't know his name though. I was considering them so I'm glad I didn't go with them but just a heads up.
05-04-2009, 10:31 PM
#12
The cooler helps a TON with tranny life. I run a big mobile home tranny cooler kit.
A t56 will be a LOT harder on the rear end. I would go 4l60e/700r4 from one of the big guys like performabuilt or CPT. Performance transmissions are not something I would trust with the local tranny shop or a shade tree mechanic. It takes more then throwing money at them to make them last.
Stealths first paragraph above is a great example of a possible route to take, although I have not heard anything bad about performabuilt stuff (and this is not the place to discuss, please do not turn this into a thread about horror stories on a sponsor!) It would be worth a PM for piece of mind if you were serious about buying one, but not posted publicly since we all know how internet wildfires start.
A t56 will be a LOT harder on the rear end. I would go 4l60e/700r4 from one of the big guys like performabuilt or CPT. Performance transmissions are not something I would trust with the local tranny shop or a shade tree mechanic. It takes more then throwing money at them to make them last.
Stealths first paragraph above is a great example of a possible route to take, although I have not heard anything bad about performabuilt stuff (and this is not the place to discuss, please do not turn this into a thread about horror stories on a sponsor!) It would be worth a PM for piece of mind if you were serious about buying one, but not posted publicly since we all know how internet wildfires start.
05-05-2009, 02:37 AM
#13
i did a lot of research in a few companies that build 4l60e's and what they do, and for me they worked well. any of the sponsors who build 4l60e's, primarily FLT or Performabuilt, do quality work. with any company you can have problems. a friend of mine had a horrible time with a textralia oz700 clutch before it even hit 500 miles, but everyone on here knows textralia is undoubtedly one of the best clutches out.
as for the OP's current situation, in my experience, when your forced to go with a trans and money is an issue, a 6spd swap is not the way to go. i've seen complete bone stock set-ups with a used clutch go for $1500 with all hydralics. to do it reliably, you will want new hydralics, a new clutch, and its definately a job to do the swap with cutting the floor and all. and even a t56 is going to break at some point, i've had 2 friends break them, one in a h/c/i formula and one in a stock ss. a built t56 costs as much as a built auto, and thats without a clutch that can hang with the tranny...
so all that being said, if you can afford to get a built auto, now is the time to do it. if money is tight, order a hardened shaft from a sponsor and either put it in yourself (sounds like you have the capabilities) or have a local shop ONLY do that. as said before, i'd never trust a local average shop to build you a 4l60e
as for the OP's current situation, in my experience, when your forced to go with a trans and money is an issue, a 6spd swap is not the way to go. i've seen complete bone stock set-ups with a used clutch go for $1500 with all hydralics. to do it reliably, you will want new hydralics, a new clutch, and its definately a job to do the swap with cutting the floor and all. and even a t56 is going to break at some point, i've had 2 friends break them, one in a h/c/i formula and one in a stock ss. a built t56 costs as much as a built auto, and thats without a clutch that can hang with the tranny...
so all that being said, if you can afford to get a built auto, now is the time to do it. if money is tight, order a hardened shaft from a sponsor and either put it in yourself (sounds like you have the capabilities) or have a local shop ONLY do that. as said before, i'd never trust a local average shop to build you a 4l60e
05-05-2009, 04:42 AM
#14
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I had my 4L60E recently built by Frank at CPT for $1500 "Pro Race".
who has some horror stories and some not so nice things to say about Performabuilt. He's on this forum I don't know his name though. I was considering them so I'm glad I didn't go with them but just a heads up.
who has some horror stories and some not so nice things to say about Performabuilt. He's on this forum I don't know his name though. I was considering them so I'm glad I didn't go with them but just a heads up.
05-05-2009, 09:18 AM
#15
If I stick with the auto I would like to have it built by Carl Rossler because he is local to me and has some killer transmissions. I'm looking at $2000-$2400 through him though. I could always go through FLT, CPT, Performabuilt, etc but I would probably have $300 in shipping it there and back. If I ever have a problem with the Rossler unit I can just drive over to his shop in 25 minutes.
I was wanting to get a new converter too, most likely Yank. That would probably easily put this over $3,000. I would just hate to spend that kind of money and then have it break again. Especially with as long as it lasted stock.
As for the T56, one reason it is tempting is because I know that I can rebuild it myself and have it last. Rebuilding an auto transmission is one thing I haven't done before and I wouldn't want to spend all the money on parts and do it myself as finicky as they are. Maybe if I had a lot of info, but there seems to be too much of a lack of info out there to make me comfortable with it. If my car was at a stockish power level, or it was a TH350 or 400, I would do it. The 4L60E requires a little more special touch though I think.
I will soon be able to afford to fix the auto setup the way I want to, but what I cannot afford is to fix it then have it break again. I can't have that
I was wanting to get a new converter too, most likely Yank. That would probably easily put this over $3,000. I would just hate to spend that kind of money and then have it break again. Especially with as long as it lasted stock.
As for the T56, one reason it is tempting is because I know that I can rebuild it myself and have it last. Rebuilding an auto transmission is one thing I haven't done before and I wouldn't want to spend all the money on parts and do it myself as finicky as they are. Maybe if I had a lot of info, but there seems to be too much of a lack of info out there to make me comfortable with it. If my car was at a stockish power level, or it was a TH350 or 400, I would do it. The 4L60E requires a little more special touch though I think.
I will soon be able to afford to fix the auto setup the way I want to, but what I cannot afford is to fix it then have it break again. I can't have that
05-05-2009, 10:13 AM
#16
Yes you are correct. I personally had a pleasant experience with CPT lately, granted I dropped off the tranny and picked it back up. There is beef with any company really but within the last month I've met two people with negative things to say about the company I mentioned above. It was to my surprise since I was considering them before I decided to take it somewhere else and they seemed to have alot of happy customers.
05-05-2009, 10:32 AM
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hahaha when i first looked at the trans the first glance i was like **** whats wrong with this thing. lmao then i looked and was like damn i spun that down like a damn lathe.
