How "wild & crazy" have you gone w/ converter for street?

Current 9.5" converter used to flash right about 4500 RPM and slipped ~ 8%

Trap RPM w/ old engine build was as high at 6800

New engine build bumped up the torque & HP, so I'll take a w.a.g. and say the converter will flash maybe 4600-4700 and trap RPM will be 7000-7100 using same gears & tire size

Engine dyno showed peak torque at 5100 and peak HP at 6800

If this was a track-only ride, I'd expect people would want to see it flash 5400-5600

Since this is a street/strip car, I know the converter needs to be configured differently so that it doesn't slip horribly driving around at moderate RPM

How close to "race" converter stall would be realistic w/o killing efficiency, if a converter swap is made to improve the 60-fts? The best before were 1.45-1.46, FWIW.

Interested in what other people's experiences and thoughts are on this. Thx

UNLESS your daily driving it / commuting with it ...... who really cares??

Get the best converter that works at the track , get a decent cooler on it and a trans temp gauge. Street cruise it....
thats what i would do .....

Mine is an 8" TA rated at 4500. It flashes to 6400 in good air and I shift at 7. I have done 5 drag weeks with this converter. 4.10 gear 28" tall tire and the weight while on the road with passenger and gear is going to be around 4000-4100lbs. Hottest trans temp I have ever seen in the pan is a little over 200* and that was in some really nasty traffic for a couple of hours with temps in the upper 80s IIRC. I usually cruise about 3500RPM and that can be 55-65 mph depending on grade and wind. It drives fine in town.

This same converter used to flash about 5400RPM until I put the tunnel ram on it. The tunnel ram really kicked it in the nuts for torque the flash went way up and the 60ft dropped almost a tenth. Best 60ft to date is 1.411@3550lbs.

I know the drag and drive guys, especially the NA ones have to make converter companies heads explode. "I need a converter that will flash 7500RPM and needs to be able to pull a 1500lbs trailer".

I was happy with the Turbo Action converter that I had in the Duster. It was one of their Pro series designed for street driving. I had a data logger and a driveshaft sensor on that car so I could record the driveshaft speed in comparison to the engine speed. It was interesting to see how the converter dealt with different situations. That converter worked really well for street and freeway cruising and it had roughly 4000 stall when launching. Mine was a 10 inch, sounds like you have the next step up in terms of stall speed.

The converter in my 68 Charger will flash 5100, but driving it is very tight , I was very surprised it drives on the street as well as it does, 4.10 gears does help , when it had 3.54 gears it did feel a lot looser but still very tolerable.

5600 8". with a 4.30 gear it was fine on the street. Never ran hot. Finally broke it. now it's got a 5300 9"
Doug

Even as far back as the mid-80’s, the “normal” 8” T/A converter for a 440(17508M38) would flash 5600.

Dont forget that while driving around at small-to-medium throttle openings, you are only making maybe 150-250ft/lbs of torque. So you arent going to "run over" the convertor as much as you think.

In my street car (90%street driven) I still run a T/A 17805 that has been sent twice to be loosened up. Since then, I added a Gear Vendors, increased tire from 26.75" to 27.75, changed from 3.91 to 3.73......all of these things had me very concerned about the convertor.


In the end, very little difference. The car drives nicely in O/D but will stall high when you mat the throttle. Flash went up by about 300rpm, but drivability stayed excellent at lower throttle openings. I do run a huge cooler, but that has always been the case.

I have run an 8" 5200 on the street for years with 4.56 gears and then 4.10 gears...Loved it when it boil the fluid enough to come out the vent hole.....I have now switched to a 9.5 4500 ATI and 3.73 gear....Much nicer....And with 605 cubes, I do not need a lot anymore.

Brad ,
as you know I run a 6000 stall in my Satellite , 4.1 gear & 29"rear tyre on the street and highway . And highway would be interstate so 12 hours or more loaded for racing so well north of 4000 lbs . Never an issue heatwise . Now of corse I finally broke and bought a ute and open trailer as i cant justify the $12/1400.00 fuel bill for interstate racing . Really just buy the stall you want/need , get a decent cooler and get after it

Tex

Ultimate 8" from Lenny. With a 5.14 rear gear and a 104 rollout tire, it would flash to 7200 rpm, yet was very driveable.

Agree 100%… converter technology has come a long ways.
I have never run anything but 8 inch converter suited to best Et at the track, and everything I have had in the last 30 years has been street/ strip. Good cooler, have fun.

Definitely was never a daily driver; the majority of its street miles will come from trips to the track.

I use a deep pan, a trans cooler and synthetic Type F fluid to help deal with the heat, although I don't have a trans temp gauge at this time.

I used a T/A O69J SS/AH converter in my old pump gas Duster, it was great at light part throttle driving and also foot stalling it around 2000 RPM, it would flash up to around 4600 in high gear and around 4400 in low gear, 2:77 low gear set. I liked it a lot

9.5" Dynamic converter here, 4000 flash with my old 360 motor and 4.10 gearing, used in my Dippy coupe for about 90% street and 10% strip (if that, to be honest).

That is how I spec'd it, that was what was delivered. I was worried about it making all throttle response in street driving completely "go-away", found out that it wasn't the case at all. Yes, the throttle is looser, but no complaints. In fact given the combo I had at that time, going to that converter from the previous 2800 stall piece was precisely what was needed!

I did run a cooler (stacked plate one), and a deep pan.

I used a ATi 8" treemaster that was designed for a 528 behind a 580ci motor, it worked great street and strip. TBH I couldn't drive it fast on the street without wheelspin on the street tyres. That converter did take a dive when we switched to 3.73 from 4:10's, we just blew through it after that.

I run an 8" converter that hits about 6500-6600, on the street in my Road Runner. I drive it around on the weekends and maybe once a week to work. It's no express way car, but that's because of the rear gear. It goes about 55 at about 3500 rpm. It runs fine for surface streets.

Wont be an issue. Get a good stacked fin cooler with a dedicated fan if you are worried about it but I have done it many times. My street car has a partial fill, 6500 stall converter in an 870hp pump gas combo. Never an issue with trans temp or oil temp, but I do run coolers for each.

FWIW, I talked to Sean at Dynamic and asked him if they'd recommend an 8" to better suit the new engine combination than my current 9.5". Surprisingly (to me, at least) he said they'd stick w/ a 9.5" but build it with a different stator (and?) to account for the change in HP & torque curves.

I also e-mailed the ATI tech folks asking about one of their 8" Treemaster converters; not sure when I'll hear back on that, but I'm curious what they say. ATI's maybe 60-65 miles from me, so they're not too far away.

You got a PM on this

Run what the combo needs to go fast. With a decent trans cooler it'll be fine on the street.
I've run a couple of different 5000-5200 converters on the street w/ no issues.

Like Fred from Scooby Doo says: Hey, gang, I have a plan!

I have a 9" Ultimate in my car, it flashes around 4500 at launch and is ~5k minimum going down the track on nitrous passes. No issues with trans temp, the fluid always looks perfect and I've put thousands of miles on it, including a 700 mile drag and drive last month. I do use ATI synthetic type F though. It cruises fine with 2-3% slip at moderate freeway speeds. 30" tall tire and 4.10's. As long as you can live with the slightly disconnected feeling at low speeds I wouldn't worry at all.

I have a Turbo Action "J" converter that was custom built for a completely different combination, totally unrelated to mine (572ci, high compression nitrous A body).
According to Paul at TA it's built as tight as they can possibly make that configuration. It's only around 4500 flash with my wimpy street combination.

Overall I do like it, but I've found the more I load the vehicle down the less I like it.

Back in the days of dragging around two extra wheels and tires, full size steel floor jack, jack stands, couple tool boxes, etc etc etc
(And then hope like hell Blusmbl would show up and help me change the tires), it did feel pretty darn sloppy after an hour and a half on
M59 and 23 commuting to and from Milan in the summer heat. The rest of the time, no complaints. Driving a shorter distance to and from Lapeer and NOT changing tires,
and not hauling tons of extra stuff around, I get along with it much better. Normal cruising without a big payload, it's good.

If anything I'll be adding weight to the car, and 451ci to 572ci is a substantial jump, but I'll try it with the big motor to see if I can get along with it.

Honestly I'd prefer it to be tighter for driving around, and maybe a 572 ci street engine doesn't need all that stall speed, but there's only one way to find out.

Oh, and when I redo the interior I'm putting the 4 speed piece back on the trans tunnel as Chrysler intended.
Because.....well, you never know......The pedals are still there.....
I'll mount an automatic shifter to it but who knows what might happen later?

Isn't the solution to this in a modern automatic with electronic control? Run a big stall, but have electronic lockup with a triple disc converter for cruising around and "normal" acceleration.

^^^ Not for my car, unless you are funding the initiative

Great converters!
I run an Ultimate/Lenny 8 1/2" 5500 behind a 540, with 4.10s. Totally street driven. Never had any heating issues with a good cooler and deep pan.

Every street and strip car that I have had a good tranny temp gauge with a 8 or 9 inch good street and strip converter was hard to get them to run above 160F with a decent size tranny cooler mounted in front of the radiators without routing the tranny fluid through the stock type tranny cooler in them
Dominic ended up moving his down lower behind the front bumper to get his to run above 160F

Myself and friends have had really good success with the Dynamic 9.5 for street and track use, for many years now.
They can do a lot with the stator

I'm purchasing an ATI 8" that Dwayne Porter spec'd originally for a 440 bracket car, but never used.

ATI says it's too loose for my application, but the option is always there to have them re-config it w/ different pump & stator, per their Tech Dept.

With my experience with ATI if they say its going to be to loose I would be willing to bet its spot on. Every converter I have ever gotten from them for me or a customer was on the tight side.

The driveshaft speed sensor on your data logger will tell you what the stall speed is

anyone ever use a transbrake converter with a normal manual valve body ?
if so, did the converter work ok ?
if the converter didn't work out, what was/were the issue/issues with it not working ?
just a general question, as i have a converter that was used in a transmission i have now, that i was planning to use. however, i plan to replace the transbrake valve body that is in the transmission now with a normal manual valve body.

Just got back from cruising my long dormant street car. Supercharged mild 340, 9.5" PTC 5300 flash, average size trans cooler, generic 2 row aluminum radiator, junkyard electric fan, 4.30 gear, 325/50 radials, 3885lbs with me in it. It's 87 degrees here. Stop and go and a 50 mph cruise. Coolant never went over 195. Trans stayed below 200. Beat on it some to boot.
Doug

9.5" PTC 5300 flash, average size trans cooler, generic 2 row aluminum radiator, junkyard electric fan, 4.30 gear, 325/50 radials


SAME here on the above

Im pretty fond of my PTC 9.5 vert, hurts many modern car guys feeling when the start talking about there factory 2 step and 7k redline... ha ha ha

is anyone running one of these 300$+ trans coolers? are they necessary????

I think one of those is better suited when you are running it under the car with no airflow.

I use an old permacool (i think?) trans cooler I bought off the shelf at advance auto parts 25 years ago, lol.

What is a "Trans Cooler"??? LOL!!!

It is used to keep the dustless fluid cool in the magic viscous torque multiplying device with lightning fast shifts.

Wow.... inflation and a few years has really moved the costs up.

I run this on the support that holds the hood latch so its a couple inches in front of the radiator. B@M 70297

Might be overkill but at the time it was easier to buy a 727 from a decent builder vs build so I didnt mind spending a bit more and might be doing the placement more under the car to the rear during the next revamp.

Sounds like a foreign language to me...

'tater, is your fan a push or pull type ?
TIA.

Mine pulls air through. Some other brands say they can be either clearly by a polarity reversal however the B@M instructions say it should pull and if not correct the polarity. But it does not say you should not or it would cause damage. I have it on the built in T stat and a bypass switch. The fan hardly ever kicks on by itself.

I will try to snap an installed pic today or tomorrow.

https://documents.holley.com/70297.pdf

The rocky runs an 8" A-1 with 5300 stall with a 2700 pound 414" SB with 4.10 gears and doessn't really slip much at all above 30-35. from my experience I think weight has more to do with converter street drivability than any other one factor.

Me no have data logger, but I have upgraded to a playback tach