t-850 in an l-body

[rdnoel86]

I know there was some discussion about putting in the srt trans in an L-body but has anyone actually done it? I thought I remember concerns with clearence in the wheel area? as in the tire/wheel assembly might hit the trans on turns because it was bigger?? I was going to go all auto's but now I'm thinking having 1 manual would be fun. I really don't want to go the 568 route unless I have too and I have an 850 sitting here....also was thinking of maybe the pt 6 speed....any thoughts???

[rbryant]

The PT trans (getrag 284?) is still a 5 speed but it might actually be better than the 850 other than not having a stock quaife.

The 850 has synchro issues and it also weighs twice as much as the 568.

That is why we are all sticking with the 568.

-Rich

[rdnoel86]

yep, right thats a 288 5 speed, but I'm just not comfortable with the whole making a bracket or welding the trans case up to mate up with the 2.4. I'd rather put in a hydraulic clutch system or?? This car wouldn't be a high horsepower animal...250-275 tops. So I thought an 850 would hold up fine, just not sure it will fit, same with the getrag...



The PT trans (getrag 284?) is still a 5 speed but it might actually be better than the 850 other than not having a stock quaife.

The 850 has synchro issues and it also weighs twice as much as the 568.

That is why we are all sticking with the 568.

-Rich

[ATaylorRacing]

Go with the 568. The 850s shift like crap even when new...meaning just way too notchy. I was always able to do WOT shifts on my 2.2s, but have to lift off the throttle every time I shift the SRT4.

[rbryant]

yep, right thats a 288 5 speed, but I'm just not comfortable with the whole making a bracket or welding the trans case up to mate up with the 2.4. I'd rather put in a hydraulic clutch system or?? This car wouldn't be a high horsepower animal...250-275 tops. So I thought an 850 would hold up fine, just not sure it will fit, same with the getrag...




Yep you are right it is a 288 I should have looked it up.

Anyway... At 250-275 you can probably get away with just a plain old cheap T-350. The older 350s had a clutch cable too so you can avoid the hydro clutch. They even have a removable bellhousing so you can use a newer heavy duty 350 with the older style cable clutch bellhousing as the type of clutch is determined by the bellhousing not the actual tranny...

By going with a native 2.0/2.4 5 speed you will push the work from making a modification to the bellhousing into making a driver side tranny mount that fits the 2.2/2.5 tranny attachment point on the car... :)

The only 2.0/2.4 tranny I know that will fit with a 2.2/2.5 tranny mount is the 2.0/2.4 version of the a413 automatic.

-Rich

[rdnoel86]

well let me digress for a moment....is it possible to make an adapter plate for a 2.4/568 combo? And actually what is the general concensus on how much hp a 568 will handle??

[rbryant]

well let me digress for a moment....is it possible to make an adapter plate for a 2.4/568 combo? And actually what is the general concensus on how much hp a 568 will handle??

Hmm well...

The 568 ends up about 1/4 to 3/8" farther in toward the engine compared to a 2.2/2.5.

I could make a plate that spaces it back to stock and connects the two front holes that are different. The basic template would match my already existing dust shield and it should basically work and would serve as both the dust shield and an adapter plate...

If it were 1/4" thick steel with a stud welded into it (sticking toward the engine side while flat on the tranny side for the 2.0/2.4 bolt hole) then it would probably be strong enough to work as an adapter with no modifications required to the tranny bellhousing...

This is the first that I have thought about actually taking advantage of the change in spacing. It would also solve any throw out bearing problems with fatter clutch disks.

As for 568 horsepower it all depends. I know that people have put 400 to them in the past fairly reliably.

I will look into it the actual spacing will have to be checked and they will be a little heavy if made from steel but 1/4" might be strong enough. I am not sure that 3/8 aluminum would get the job done because it wouldn't be all that strong for holding a stud in place.

One last thing that might be a problem though is that the entire engine would be shifted to the passenger side by the plate thickness. On my Lbody 2.4 conversion that would push the PS pump into the frame rail so it wouldn't work. So it wouldn't be for everyone...

-Rich

[Ondonti]

Nobody has destroyed a weaker 523 from "horsepower" so 568 is just fine too.
250-275hp means it doesnt even really make sense to keep asking what HP a trans will hold up to.

The 850 is a diesel trans, thats why its such a piece of junk for high reving gasoline motors. Putting a 200 pound manual transmission into an Omni sounds like a horrible idea. I would 350 all day before 850. There are people WOT shifting those at 8500 rpms without fancy clutches.

[rdnoel86]

The reason I backed up and asked about the hp aspect was for a different project. It should be in the 450-500hp range. I already have a neon auto trans apart ready for the build up, but I'm still debating my options. I'm guessing that I'll still end up with an auto for that car.

The adapter plate was an idea I had thought about due to DCR offering them for a variety of aplications. If it was more of a bolt in deal I would consider it. For me ps isn't a problem as I have converted to a manual rack.

I'm sort of a parts horder....not quite to Mario's standard but I have a bunch of 2.4 stuff laying around..including an 850 and 4 31th's but I only have 1 2.2 trans which is a 520. If the 850 shouldn't be an option I'll sell it and decide on a 350 or 568. But a big deciding factor on anything I do is time. I have little time to do fabbing and stuff, I need the most bolt in type stuff as possible.

[SoCalCSX]

FYI, the PT Cruiser Getrag is physically smaller than the T-850

[rdnoel86]

hmmm....so that automatically becomes a better option then the 850 for a lower hp project....thanx!:thumb:


FYI, the PT Cruiser Getrag is physically smaller than the T-850

[SoCalCSX]

hmmm....so that automatically becomes a better option then the 850 for a lower hp project....thanx!:thumb:



They are also cable, not hydro. I'd look into a little better clutch though, the stock ones start getting pissed at the power levels you're looking at.

Edit: forgot about the weight difference we're talking about here, stock clutch might be ok.

[rdnoel86]

cool, I'm liking this option more and more...





They are also cable, not hydro. I'd look into a little better clutch though, the stock ones start getting pissed at the power levels you're looking at.

Edit: forgot about the weight difference we're talking about here, stock clutch might be ok.

[Mario]

t3rse has done it if I recall correctly.

[rbryant]

I believe that the 288 was also originally a diesel tranny. I am not sure how they are holding up but I haven't heard all that much bad about them.

I really wonder if they share the same diff as the GM F23 trans that comes in the GM cars which is actually a getrag 287. There is an OBX helical diff available for that application...

There is a quaife for the 288 which is still in production and it would still be cheaper than buying a 850 even if you added the quaife to the price.

-Rich