I have a 71 Elky with a 3 speed auto TH350. Ive grown to like the tranny around town, but on the highway, it sucks, literally. I have a 80s camaro that ive been parting out that has a relatively low mileage 700R4 in it. I really liked that tranny before I totalled the car... I was considering putting that tranny in the elky and wanted to know what would be involved? I know its an electronically controlled trans, but im not sure what that would mean as far as the swap. Also, that trans has a speed limiter that I would want to get rid of. How would I go about this? Is this swap even worth doing or should I just stick with the TH350? Thanks - Jeff

Yes, its worth it. I have a 200-4R in my '77...

There are several places that sell install kits and parts...

Here is the one I use. Their site also has some very good info...
www.bowtieoverdrives.com

The 700R4 is the best way to go for all around driving. It has a lower 1st & 2nd gear than the turbo 400 and I think that applies to the 350 also an equal 3rd and then the 4th gear with lockup just makes the engine go away you can switch the lockup so you can drive in traffic with put going in and out all of the time. Allf these varibles can depend on engine rear end gears and type Brakests and cables kit you are willing to pay for.
From this point I am not sure exactly what year the big change in the 700R4 happened but there is some differnece in the old 26 spline and the 31 spline. It is a one wire lock up and shift paonts come off the TV cable at the carb from pressure you are not talking computer shifting that came much later I beleive very late 80"s early 90's
I can tell you that in oneof my Big Block cars with 3:73 rear end the differnce is 3.5MPG or more and the RPM is around 900 RPM lower in the 62 to 70 plus MPH and theat leads to a much quieter drive with a radio you can hear. OH yes a minor thing your engine will live a lot longer. Rember I am taling Big Block in a small block its even better.
If you know what year the trans is and you have the numbers go googling or head down to a good shop that builds performance 700R4's and let them tell you whats up. There is monut moving and drive shaft cutting wioth the 400TH swaps but the 350 maybe a swap with less work.

The trans is out of an 89 Camaro. Might there be electronic shifting?

No, I would buy the lock-up kit and you should be good to go.

I put an '88 700R4 in my '85. the crossmember took some fandangling and I had to drill holes in the driver's side framerail to mount it and I had to get my driveshaft shortend. It was easy to put everything together and I got a wiring kit for the tranny to lock up the converter from TCI, it took almost 10 minutes to rewire and hook up a vaccuum hose. I would do it. I am not sure about the '89 not being electronic. You can run the numbers to see if it's a 4L80 or 4L80E (electronic). Check out 700r4.com.

Okay, Ive been thinking of doing this swap some more and I read that pre 87 th700R4s are 27 spline and post 87s are 30 spline. Mine is an 89 and will, therefore, be a 30. Is this going to be impossible to install? Also, can I use the torque converter out of the 89 camaro this tranny would be coming out of or am i going to need a new one?

Okay, Ive been thinking of doing this swap some more and I read that pre 87 th700R4s are 27 spline and post 87s are 30 spline. Mine is an 89 and will, therefore, be a 30. Is this going to be impossible to install? Also, can I use the torque converter out of the 89 camaro this tranny would be coming out of or am i going to need a new one?

The 87 and later tranny large input shaft model is the one you want. I've got a 90 year model 700 I ran in my elky with a small block, it was not electronic other than the lockup converter. Yes, use the Camaro torque converter unless you want a new one.

No speed limiter in the tranny, that's in the ECM for the engine.

I am doing the same swap at my '68 at the moment, the major things to do are customizing the crossmember and shortening the driveshaft. The rest is quiet easy, fabricating a bracket for the tv-kabel and doing some wiring for the lockup.

From what I know, the major change regarding the input spline was '86. For doing the swap it doesnt matter if 27 or 30 spline, that only affects the converter and the tranny-rebuilt-kit you may purchase and built in (what I do recommend).

The next big change on the TH700 was 89 when GM swapped to elektronically controlled Lockup so the control valve in the valve body for the lockup is missing. Here you have to puzzle a bit to get the Lockup working ;)

Also, can I use the torque converter out of the 89 camaro this tranny would be coming out of or am i going to need a new one?

My philosophy is this...

Replace the converter. Here is the deal the converter was designed around the Camaro's torque curve. That is how the torque converters work. I don't like B&M converters by the way. TCI has some great converters and they'll take your engine's specs and match that converter to your engine, that is important for the best results. Also a used converter is always trouble.

Get a new one, match it to your engine's specs.


Just my $0.02 worth.


P.S. The TV Cable is a critical adjustment! It will determine wheather or not the transmission shift properly or not, moreover it will also determine the longivity of the transmission. A properly adjusted TV cable will give you good shifts and long life. Poor or wrong adjustment will burn up your transmission and shift like a punk.

Well, the camaro didnt have too many miles on it, and it was driven very gently for most of its life, so I think the converter should be in pretty good condition. My el camino isnt putting out a huge amount of power at this point... will the converter be okay? Also, I have a Trans-Go Shift kit I bought a long time ago and never put in, will this kit be enough to keep the tranny from going out for awhile? Thank you for all the responses! I really appreciate it.

OK you have had everyone put in 2 cents. I went to Bowtie Overdrive's web site. I gave them my specs type of trans what was or was not done to it and the engine and ask them what I need to make the change on my 69 BB. I also had a 31 spline none electronic 700R from a Vette. Bowtie gave me the Converter stall I needed and the TV cable and Carb Bracket & plate set that Bowtie makes. The TV cable match up and adapter kit is ALL IMPORTANT"for correct shifting and adjustment changes. Everyone makes differents ones but a large amount of Transmission builders buy and use the Bowtie kits and they are a little more in cost "but better" just ask a few performance tranny shops what they use. I went and check two shops and talked to many different car guys! My final choice was to go through the trans and make it better than new, use a converter that was what Bowtie specified and was the same as the tranny shop wanted to use for my car and engine and rear end gears. The tranny shop used bowtie kits for the need hook ups along with a Bowtie linkage kit for stock column shift car so that I would not lose the ability to use all gears manually this is not very old and to my knowledge the only available from Bowtie unless you make it yourself. If you hook up to a stock chevy column shift with stock linkage you will not be able to get into 1st gear/ console cars are no problem at all. The sorten of the drive shaft and moving the cross member are a given to this change over. What ever you have to do don't save a dime where you should spend a dollar and you will love the 700R4 no matter what engine you have and if you ever change engines the worse that will happen is a different Converter.

Jeff,

The short answer is "Yes" you can use the converter from the other car.

Understand that the torque converter is built based on the engine's torque curve, weight of the car and things like that. It may very well be a good converter but it can also be something that creats a big problem.

Maybe the torque converter will last you a while and may only last you a week, month or only a day or two. If it does last is is completely by accident. I can assure you your engine's output is not the same as the 305's output that was in the Camaro, you are heavier too.

If the torque converter goes south on you you will need to pull the transmission again but more over it can damage the inside of the transmission and at the very least you'll need to clean out the transmission. Not to mention you may end up on the side of a road instead of work, home, girlfriend's or what ever.


Yes, you can use that converter. Ether way, good luck.


I like the 700R4 transmission. It helps make my Elky drivable. Definatly get some lockup kit for it, remember for optimal performance you'll need the TV cable adjusted right, you'll need the Lock-up harness and you really should consider a torque converter built to your engine's specs.

A shop can modify the driveshaft and make sure it's balanced properly when they're finished.

Well put Pete good answer sorta what I was trying to say. good job

The other way to think about it Chevelcamino is "TANFL" = THERE ARE NO FREE LUNCHES. Do the job right you cut a corner inside an engine or trans and it breaks something else.

I''m more of a maual trans Elky guy...but even if I was to make a swap such as this, I would definetly go with a new torque converter, it may save you from having to pull the trans back out and replacing it later..or worse yet replacing both the converter and replacing/rebuilding the trans. They're not all that expensive (B&M or TCI) and look at it as a lil added insurance. The Trans Go shift kit will do absolutely nothing as far as increasing longevity of the trans if the torque converter is/goes bad.

The trans guy I deal with WILL NOT put a used converter back into a car.

GO NEW!