PT

Has anyone tried the above that Andial sells for our 4 speed box?

thanks...

jhunt@huntinter

I have it. Great with a stock or near stock motor (less then 380hp or so). Wouldn't do it again in a 450hp motor.

PT

John, why not on a 450hp car? The gear set can't handle the power?

Brent 930

I have it too and like it but you have to consider what you want. The 4 speed is geared very high and being in the states with all the traffic the R&P will help. It won't do anything for closing the rpm gap but just better acceleration in each. There is no issue doing it with a 450hp motor, or the limits of CIS. With that said if your going to be within the power of CIS and want better acceleration with keeping your cruise gear for the hwy then go for it. You can still have fun at the track and depending on what track it could be better or worse but the 4spd. is not a track trans. they also don't shift very well. Then you would save your money and get a G50 with Carrera gears like Geoffrey did, now your talkin.

PT

Brent - totally agree with the G50/50, but we are talking about big $$$ for that. But te R&P is only about $1500. I think to retrofit the G50 to our car, it will be closer to 5k if not more.
The 4 speed actually is not bad for the track at all - in most tracks, I actually shift quite a few times less than others (i.e. saving time) and yes, you do change your driving a bit to adjust for the turbo, but that's part of the fun. The fastest track that I'd go around here would be the Glen and I definitely don't need a 180Mph 4th gear (nor can the car ever get there).

Brent 930

Funny, $1500 will buy the R&P and then there is labor which will bump that up to $2500. Installing the R&P is time consuming and needs to be done by someone who knows what they are doing. The G50 will run $8-10K from what I hear when it's all said and done, again funny you mention only $5k, I wish.

As for the trans. I run at a short track so I'm in 2nd gear except for 2 spots. Problem is this, to keep the transition into the turns smooth I bog out of them losing alot of time. Since I have the R&P I rap it out in 2nd gear alot of times yet stay in 2nd gear out of the turns since 1st gear is very abrupt and I feel hurky jerky if you know what I mean. In some cases the stock gearing would be better but I would lose acceleration at the 2 points of higher speed. Case in point the 4spd is a losing cause for the track if you want to get serious but again it's a blast since my car is still street.

Later

jhunt@huntinter

The short R&P with a strong motor means you have to shift really quickly. If you could stay in first a bit longer it would be an easier car to drive on the street.

As for the track, well you should do it like the factory does. Custom gear the thing for the track you intend to run at for best performance. A lower R&P may or may not be an advantage.

PT

Thanks for the feedback & suggestions folks...

As you can tell, I'm really weighing the cost/benefit equaition here. No doubt, custom gearing would be the best choice (IMHO) but its a $5k proposition for parts alone from what I understand. And Brent is probably right that getting a G50 will be >$5k again parts only; as I haven't really done any research yet. Time for more procrastination

BTW - from my calculation, with 8:30 R&P, 1st will be geared to ~40mph, 70mph at 4th would be around 3200rpm and top speed is ~150 mph. Is that about right?

Thanks again for sharing your experience...

Brent 930

Plan on spending about $1k per gear set to re gear the box. $8-10K will get you the used G50 and labor and extra parts needed for the whole job, wow what a deal.

A 8:39 R&P with a rear tire/wheel of 265/40/17 will give you the following;

1st 47mph
2nd 81mph
3rd 118mph
4th 168mph

You will cruise at 3030 rpm's at 75mph in 4th gear

Hope this helps

Brent 930

Forgot, those speeds are at 6800 rpms or redline.

PT

Thanks for the info Brent... my 4 speed is due for a rebuild so now would be time to make a call on R&P or G50 or new gear set or, I suppose, a "simple" rebuild

jhunt@huntinter

make sure the shop knows how to do the r&p specifically. If they don't get the backlash right (and it is a tedious process) the tranny will fail much earlier then you would expect or want.

PT

John, thanks for the heads up.
Been looking around for a reputable shop locally. It might end up that I'll be rebuilding it myself

Brent 930

Odds are you won't be able to install the R&P yourself. That is a totally different part of the trans. and who knows what else you will find if and when you get it changed. If you get the trans. rebuilt and the R&P done at the same time give yourself about $4k. At that point you need to think about the G50 conversion.

PT

So... any suggestion of where to look for a G50?