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You might be able to trade your Dana 44 for a late model S-10, truck rear end. They are one inch wider, and will bolt up. Here's a better one if you can find it. G.M. made a high performance S-10 several years back. It came with the 8.5 rear end instead of the 7.5 gears that are common. They also have the disc brakes. I think it was called The Cyclone, and not too many were made. Salvage yards have books that can tell you which rear ends you need. The later model SUV's have coil springs and you will have to weld spring perches on which is not difficult since the coil spring brackets are already at the right angle.

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I want to be different like everybody else.

My staock 78 rerar end is 46 1/2 inches from flange to flange, in case you need to compare. I just measured it on Sunday for RPOZ11.

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OK, I'm over it. Where's the beer?

Don't know if you've seen the Luv V8 Engine swap article listed on the main page, but it is a budget swap, and will give you lot's of help. One thing of note is with the th350, you can use a Camaro driveshaft and will not have to make one. The other thing is for gas mileage you want the 700R4. It has a much lower first gear. You can come off the line and have a better 60 ft. time than a th350. You will also get about 33% better gas mileage than a th350.

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I want to be different like everybody else.

TJ sounds like the man to talk to about tough 700's. Only talking from experience. I had a 700 with a mild 350 and a stock rear end. Had tons of fun but had no go. Went to a 9'' and sportman pros, first broke sun gear then broke plantary. Went to 350 with stock hard parts went about 75 passes before I broke the input shaft. Now Iam just playing with a powerglide. Iam sure you will ask 10 people and get 9 responces so this is mine.


PS.The hard parts in a 4L60 are VERY similar to a 700. Ever heard of a 4L60 breakin? Put a supercharger on my Z-71 it broke the sun gear on the first pass.

But again Iam a nitrous junkie and thats hard on parts. If you ain't sprayin you aint playin:D

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Money can't buy happiness, but it can buy horsepower...and that's kind of the same thing...

Sounds like what you mean by no go is you were spinning the tires. When you put a nine inch and some tires on the back you started breaking stock transmission parts. That's seems to be a familiar experience with Luv owners. I lucked out when I put a transmission in my Suburban. The guy has a small shop, but also builds a lot of racing transmissions. The only one he had left was a buildup of a 700r4 that the guy ran out of money and didn't pick up. My Surburban probably weighs close to 4000 pounds, and I have towed a lot with it and hauled a lot of things around in it. I can punch it from a standing start and it hauls. I've caught myself thinking if I had this in a Luv with a 3500 stall I could pull the front wheels a little. One of these days.

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I want to be different like everybody else.

Hey luvstruck. With sticky tires and a nine inch rear i break aftermarket racing parts. As to the choice between a 700R4 & a turbo 350, I would go with the 700 in this build. The dimensions of the trannies are about the same. Much better performance and mileage over the turbo. I would use one that came from a V8 application. At 300 horses it should hold up. Just make sure the TV cable is properly adjusted. This causes a lot of the 700's problems. It should be a fun ride.

There are company's out there like TCI and lots of others that make hard parts like sun gears,plantares,pumps,and more to make your 700R4 alot stronger start with the 86 up trans or the one i like is the 4l60 out of pickups as some of the parts are already there and you just reinforce them with others. Keep in mind that some people can tear cup an anvil with a feather so be open minded and do some research. TV cable has bit more people in the butt from misadjustment then not.The 700R4 and TH350 will swap back and forth with out changing the drive shaft as long as you have the standard 350 an not the long shaft one witch is hard to find any way.Keep in mind there are still alot of 700R4's and 4L60's going down the hyway every day.

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1978 pro street step/side 455Buick, 4sp,4.11s, 31/18.5s

200 4R would use the same driveshaft as th-350 . We have all seen the GN's haulin' the mail . Alot of these trannys came in olds wagons , cutlass , regals , bonnivilles and there cheap . A s-10 rear with 2.56 , 2.73 or 3.08 and th-350 and tight converter wouldn't be bad . I just don't like the 700.

mytmouz, nice truck. I can see that roll bar and those big fat tires on the back. tjwhite I am very familiar with being able to tear up an anvil, but it sure is fun.

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I want to be different like everybody else.

Iam encourging a 700 for this build. But it is not for the track. Yes Luvstruck thats what I mean, I could xplode 1 tire. But Iam not much on a 1 wheel peel. Never broke an anvil, but I can try. I think it only takes money. Iam building a big bucks powerglide, but thats what I want for the the bottle. I would rather have a 350 but my builder said powerglide would be better. He is the professor. So I dont ask I try to keep mine to what I consider a street car. Now Iam pushing my rules but what I run I think is good for what I have. Point is.......... build what you want its your $ there are guys on this site that have 4 bangers and would not trade them. Not my thing but still would like to look at them. There is nothing like ingenuity and craftmanship. Its not about the finished product its about the blood,sweat, and tears to get there.

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Money can't buy happiness, but it can buy horsepower...and that's kind of the same thing...

Im with you luvit80, big thumbs up for the 700R. Three point something gears in the back and it will roll along the open road at a nice economical RPM. 3.08:1 was the common fit and from memory on 215/60/15 tyres that got you under 2000 RPM at 65mph. Id aim for 3.5 gears or pro stock look tyres under its bum, 4x4 tryes with highway tread would suit the job and they will carry a load too.


tj white, i thought the 4L60 was the computer shifted version of the 700R. So unless he planning on buying ECM's its not a prospect, but i could be wrong.


hotrod80, the 200 4R, is that a 4 speed version of the 200??? We had a box here dubbed the "trimatic" got used in our GM Holden vehicles behind everything from the 60's on. I mean everything, 1200cc 4cyl Opel/Vauxhall engines in early Toranas, to the 253 and 308 V8's in the full sized cars and commercials. It was used behind the G161 engine in our Gemini (I-mark), it was the same housing as the box behind the 308 V8 motor. The box could have been the 180 as that rings a bell.
Theres a big hot up market for the box, its smaller and lighter than the 350 and 400 trannys. 400-450hp is acheivable. I fried more stockies than i care to remember. Just some useless info.


Cheers, Bob.

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Current project, 1979 KB Isuzu Ute.

Daily driver, '86 Rodeo Spacecab.
Chasing parts for Isuzu Impulse.

Most people don't know that from 90 to95or96 some where in there the 700 was upgraded and called a 4l60 then in 95 or96 they went to the 4l60e and your right about the computer thing,so if you were going to an overdrive and want it to last then you would want to use the 4L80E you still need the ecm for it but that trans is a TH400 with a overdrive and damn near bullet proof but most of us don't have a big enough budget to afford one. The 2004 is a very good trans and will work real good also has a dual bolt pattern so it will fit any GM motor, this trans can be made into a very depenable and strong unit. Art Carr is the man to see on building these trans.It all come down to money and personal preference.

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1978 pro street step/side 455Buick, 4sp,4.11s, 31/18.5s

mail jeep dana 44 mid to late 70's is good choice, I agree, have one in mine narrowed with 488 gears , they are tough. they are one inch narrower each side than stock.

Yes there is a difference in between a two wheel drive s10 and a 4 wheel drive rear axel.

None in strength i'm afraid but the 4x4 axel is slightly wider and normally lower geared

I.E. All 2.8 Automatic 4x4 S10 had 411 gears under them

Far as 700R's n TH350

yes the 700R's have an extra clutch pack but unless you get one out of v8 car there know to slip under the torque, v8 ones can hold up to it as long as your not doing any hard launches with slicks

but aftermarket parts such as stall converters will run you much more

Also if you don't proprally adjust the detent cable you might as well start saving to rebuild the tranny

th350 are much cheaper, easier to find( considering that chevy put them in every thing until the mid 80's ), cheaper aftermarket parts, and all you have to with the kick down cable on a th350 is get it close

really though everything is base on your opinion

if you want to spend the money id have the dda4 narrowed its a much stronger rear axel and put up to much more stress plus you have it

i always like to use what i have and if it don't work try to make it...lola

but maybe i was a little help....or maybe i just added to the confusion

whoever said that the 700r4 is the same as a th350 with an extra gear is incorrect. the 700r4 and the th350 do not share any interanal parts that i know of. they are completely different transmission all together.

also, a 700r4 is pyhsically diffrent from the th350 also. the 700r4 is 30 inches long opposed to the th350s 27 inch length. also the tranny mounts spot is 21 1/4inches back, while the th350s is 19 1/2inches. in the early 90s the 700r4 was reworked in a sence. GM fixed alot of the little problem areas of the tranny and called it the 4l60. later on it was made a computer comtrolled tranny, called the 4l60e

now the 2004r is also alltogether a different tranny than other GM trannys. they all came iwth a universal case that made it so you could bolt em to any GM motor.(chevy, buick, olds, pontiac, cadillac) they do share the th350s length of 27 inches, butthey have the same tranny mounting position as the th400. it also have the 27spline output like the th350 and the 2WD 700r4.

as for torque converters, the th350 and the th400 share the same converter. the 2004r and the 700r4 also share the same lockup torque converter. on the over drive trannies though, there were input spline changes over the years, so thats something to watch for.

here some info deal i have...

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"but its that gut feeling of you're drawn to what feels right for yourself and what you're passionate about..."

Yeah I Never Meant The Gears Where The Same....If It Came A Cross That Way I Apologize ( Don't Think I Did Though )But 1st n 2nd Are Much Lower Gears In A 700R Compared To A TH350


Far As Size A 700R Is Closer To A TH400.. But Heavier...Specially The Torq Converter Haven't Truly Found Out Why But They Are

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WHile we are on the subject of 700R & th350 info, The tailhousing that bolts on are the same on some units. I have a 1992 suburban with the 700R,when I got it it had a u-joint fail and slung the shaft, breaking the tailhousing. I got a tailhousing off a cracked th350, installed a new rear seal, and bolted it up. I once had a 1993 1/2 silverado and it had a 4L60, so the update on from the 700r to the 4L60 must have been the 92 to 93 model years.

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If you think no one cares, try missing a couple of payments...



FIAA!

SFPP!

rascal, i stated this before but i will be happy to do it again find a 57-59 ford galaxie or fairlane ,same car basically, grab the 9'' from under it, it will go right under the luv and is only 3/4'' wider i have one in mine i race regularly i run a 8.5'' slick on a 8'' wheel and the frame is stock i have plain old weld wheels on mine if you choose to use them find a set from under a chevy nova with lots of backspacing and they will fit perfect i can actually go about an inch wider on the tire but i am trying to see just how much i can get out of the 8.5s before blowing them loose these rears are hard to find but most came with double rib carriers so that is a plus too

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74 LUV 355 Bracket Car

WANTED DEAD OR ALIVE 68-74 NOVAS

TOO MUCH IS NOT ENOUGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!