I would appreciate any advise on this subject.
I am putting in a TH-400 in place of the powerglide. In a couple of months I will be following with a 502 motor (500+hp and 600 ft-lbs)
Is the TH-400 strong enough for this motor? Also, I was thinking about getting a 2400 stall converter with 3.73:1 rear gear ratio. Someone told me that this combination would make the car very hard to drive on a daily basis. I am planning on driving the car 3-4 times a week and race it once in a while. What would you recommend for stall conv/rear gear combination?
Thanks in advance for your advise and keep up the good work with this great web page.

I have 3.73s and a 10 inch 3500 stall B&M converter in my 69, Th350. I drive it nearly every day. I also drive about 65-90 miles a day. MY MILEAGE SUCKS! Other than that it is not a problem with a good trans cooler. Yes a th400 should handel a 502, assuming that it is well built. Th400 are about as strong as they get. Have LOTS of FUN man.

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RYAN REEVES
rreeves@lightspeed.net
http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Boulevard/6987/ryanreeves/reeves_main.html

With that big motor, I'd be tempted to run the stock converter and the 3.73's. I've looked at a couple of these 502's, they didn't idle all that bad and had power on the bottom end. Why do you need it? Stall converters = terrible gas mileage.

Yanniz, my friend just put together a 510 ( marine block) with exactly the T400 /gear setup you mentioned. It's perfect. Before that he ran the L88 that going in my "elle in a few weeks. Perfect. The 2400 stall may not be necessary with the stock 502 cam. The L88 ran a Crane mech with 238/248 at 0.050. It needed the 2400 stall and the new motor has a solid roller with 250. The T400 is really strong, although he did replace a part, I think it was the intermediate sprag, with an aftermarket piece. Word of advice he found out, don't downshift and horse on it. Horse on it first, then downshift. Apparently that contributed to the demise of 2nd gear. 2400 stall is not that much given you're running 3.73's, in my opinion. The bad gas milage stuff occurs with real slippery converters 3000-4000. The T400 is going to suck alot of HP due to internal friction. My friend lost 2-4 MPG when he switched from a Muncie to the T400, although he doesn't regret it a bit. I'd start concerning myself with getting 600 ft.lbs. to hook up to the pavement!

By the way, who ever told you it won't be streetable "knows not of what he speaks". I've driven my buds Camaro ( with the 427), it is entirely streetable and is fully capable of getting the groceries ( with 500 HP!). It sounds like a great combo, stop doubting yourself and start figuring out how you're gonna rig your assend to hook up. Wheels up!

[This message has been edited by Gene Chas (edited 05-26-99).]

Hey guys. Thanks for the replies/advise. I think I will go for the 2400/3.73 combo and see what happens!
Gene, or anyone else, what can I do to make sure that the car hooks up with all that torque?
Any suggestions would be greately appreciated.
Thank you all.

Yanniz, I haven't played with my rear suspension yet, so I can't talk from experience. But if you do a search( on this site), you'll find answers. I'm running ladders ( ugly!), airbag under the right spring, and drag radials. My '67 sits a little higher in the front, which helps weight transfer. Another place to check for good info is Fred Aldrich's personal website. Find one of his posts and click on his profile and then into his site, there's an area called "drag suspension". Wheels up!



[This message has been edited by Gene Chas (edited 05-26-99).]