700R4 Information Thread

[Ricko1966]

Making sure I'm not overlooking something obvious-
My TCC brake switch is starting to fail. Currently it is hooked to the cruise control vacuum brake switch. (I don't have cruise control anymore) I know the circuit must be opened when brake is pressed (opposite of brake lights). Wouldn't a 4 terminal brake light(cruise control) switch work? Or is there another switch that is preferred?

sorry the question might be slightly off topic-

All you have to do is break 12v source to transmission. IDK why you wouldnt just use factory pieces and put it back as factory, you can interupt 12 power with a standard parts store relay. Wire it so relay is normally closed. 12 v from brakelight switch opens the relay, interrupting 12v to transmission. Ill try to find you a relay number and write a schematic for you. Okay looks like ry116 would be a good candidate. Run 12v supply to the transmission through 30 and 87a, ground 86 and supply power to 85 from the brakelight switch. Now when you step on the brakes the 12v source from the brake light switch will open 30-87a interupting power to transmission.

 

[Wumbo]

New question -
5 pinion planetaries, is the juice worth the squeeze?

Gathering parts for a 700r4 that will go behind a 454 in my C20. Mild build, probably 500 ft/lbs at the crank. Strictly street driven.

Pros - I think the torrington bearing vs flat washer is big step forward for reliability.
They should distribute torque more evenly, and they're supposed to be stronger

Cons - The 5 pinion planetaries add rotating mass, and it's an added expense.
The 4 pinion planetaries are rarely a failure point (from research)

 

[NickTransmissions]

New question -
5 pinion planetaries, is the juice worth the squeeze?

Gathering parts for a 700r4 that will go behind a 454 in my C20. Mild build, probably 500 ft/lbs at the crank. Strictly street driven.

Pros - I think the torrington bearing vs flat washer is big step forward for reliability.
They should distribute torque more evenly, and they're supposed to be stronger

Cons - The 5 pinion planetaries add rotating mass, and it's an added expense.
The 4 pinion planetaries are rarely a failure point (from research)

The main killers of gears, esp planetaries is heat, lube starvation and/or aged/contaminated fluid so if you keep up with fluid changes, ensure fluid levels are always where they need to be, your circulation has no obstructions or restrictions and temps are 175-180 max on a continual basis, chances are you'll be fine with 4-pinion however five does give you more torque handling capacity all other things equal. So judgement call based on which side of the the tradeoffs between addl capacity vs hp consumption you'd prefer to be on..

 

[Wumbo]

Picked up a 2003 4l65e for parts.

One of the transmissions I'm going to build is a first gen 700. I have the 716 drum from the 65e, and I want to press out the 300mm input shaft, and install the 298mm input shaft from the 700.

Will the pump from the 65e work with this input shaft, or do I need to swap stator supports? I've watched your forward drum video 4 times, and I think this works.

I understand the harsh engagement that comes with the 716 drum.

 

[NickTransmissions]

Picked up a 2003 4l65e for parts.

One of the transmissions I'm going to build is a first gen 700. I have the 716 drum from the 65e, and I want to press out the 300mm input shaft, and install the 298mm input shaft from the 700.

Will the pump from the 65e work with this input shaft, or do I need to swap stator supports? I've watched your forward drum video 4 times, and I think this works.

I understand the harsh engagement that comes with the 716 drum.

You can run the 298mm shaft in the 716 drum and that will work with a 303/304 700r4 pump as is.

DO NOT install the 4L65e pump (any parts of it, except the rotor-slide as they can be swapped in) into the 700r4. They are not interchangeable without extensive modifications, revisions and adaptations and its not worth doing, IMO. I mean, feel free to do the research and figure out how to make it all work if you want but not advisable...

Keep it aside as a spare if you have a 4L60e-equipped vehicle or sell it used to recoup some expense. That 65E pump has a hardened/heat treated stator so its worth a bit more than the garden varity 4L60E pump of the same vintage...Acquire a L84-87 700r4 pump and have it gone through if your 700r4 is an 82-E84 unit (otherwise recondition and beef up the 700 pump that's in there now accordingly).

 

[Wumbo]

Not advisable, 10-4

My other trucks have 6l80s, so ill just keep the slide and rotor for the 700.

Not 100% sure what year the 700 with the bad pump is. It's buried under some camaro parts at the moment.

Thanks Nick!

 

[NickTransmissions]

Bumping this one up....Ive been seeing a lot of threads on 4L60E transmission replacement lately and know not everyone can afford to drop $1500-$3000 on a complete rebuild on short notice so are looking to the used transmission market as a stop gap solution.

To that end, I decided to do a video on the things I look for when buying a 4L60E or 700R4 core to rebuild and threw in a bunch of tips for folks looking for one to bolt in "as-is" to get the vehicle back on the road quickly while they save for a proper overhaul or replacement.

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Feel free to ask questions or add some tips of your own; if I get enough input ill do a part 2 or 3 (I'm already planning a 4L60E interchange video as well so look for that in the next couple weeks or so).

Note: Most 700R4s from late 1984 will interchange with any later year; 82-E84 have smaller diameter input shafts and take different torque converters and generally not recommended for anything performance related.

 

[HotRodPC]

Awesome, thank you!

Another great one. I also subbed to your YT channel and will with other ID's also. Is your channel monotized yet? I see you have enough subscribers, but watch hours seem to be the big hurdle for many small channels.

 

[NickTransmissions]

Another great one. I also subbed to your YT channel and will with other ID's also. Is your channel monotized yet? I see you have enough subscribers, but watch hours seem to be the big hurdle for many small channels.

Thanks again, man. It is monetized however you are spot-on when it comes to the watch hours on smaller channels...My cousin has a channel w/50k subs and he told me his watch hours didn't start to shoot up until he hit about 15k or so and his channel is sports-related which typically would get more traffic than a transmission focused channel. So mine are as expected given where I'm at but once the channel doubles in size or so, I expect watch hours to rise more in proportion to subscriber counts. I will say it takes forever just to get to 1,000 subs where you can start getting some compensation and read somewhere that 95% of channels never make it (it's a lot like starting a restaurant, lol). I'm relatively new to Youtube so still learning it's ways...

 

[HotRodPC]

Bumping this one up....Ive been seeing a lot of threads on 4L60E transmission replacement lately and know not everyone can afford to drop $1500-$3000 on a complete rebuild on short notice so are looking to the used transmission market as a stop gap solution.

To that end, I decided to do a video on the things I look for when buying a 4L60E or 700R4 core to rebuild and threw in a bunch of tips for folks looking for one to bolt in "as-is" to get the vehicle back on the road quickly while they save for a proper overhaul or replacement.

xc_hide_links_from_guests_guests_error_hide_media

Feel free to ask questions or add some tips of your own; if I get enough input ill do a part 2 or 3 (I'm already planning a 4L60E interchange video as well so look for that in the next couple weeks or so).

Note: Most 700R4s from late 1984 will interchange with any later year; 82-E84 have smaller diameter input shafts and take different torque converters and generally not recommended for anything performance related.

Tis true about the 84-86 700r4's. I personally just don't even consider those year models worthy and highly encourage if you need an 84-86 rebuild, just set that one aside and find you an 87-92(93) core to build.

I know the 4L60-E is extremely similar to the 700r4 but if you have the same type thread worked up on 4L60-E, 4L80-E and later, even though they weren't factory installed in our squares, feel free to post those threads too. They are beneficial to the guys doing LS swaps.

 

[Soundmound]

Tis true about the 84-86 700r4's. I personally just don't even consider those year models worthy and highly encourage if you need an 84-86 rebuild, just set that one aside and find you an 87-92(93) core to build.

Sad face... my 84 has no lockup and I was hoping just to rebuild what I have not source another.

 

[HotRodPC]

Thanks again, man. It is monetized however you are spot-on when it comes to the watch hours on smaller channels...My cousin has a channel w/50k subs and he told me his watch hours didn't start to shoot up until he hit about 15k or so and his channel is sports-related which typically would get more traffic than a transmission focused channel. So mine are as expected given where I'm at but once the channel doubles in size or so, I expect watch hours to rise more in proportion to subscriber counts. I will say it takes forever just to get to 1,000 subs where you can start getting some compensation and read somewhere that 95% of channels never make it (it's a lot like starting a restaurant, lol). I'm relatively new to Youtube so still learning it's ways...

I also hear even if you're monotized, if you don't have a minimum of $100 in earnings, YT doesn't send you a check. Not sure how true, or if they'll send a short month with the next months, or if you simply don't get paid at all. I need to get my channel started. So many different projects though. Hopefully you can generate some views here.

 

[NickTransmissions]

Tis true about the 84-86 700r4's. I personally just don't even consider those year models worthy and highly encourage if you need an 84-86 rebuild, just set that one aside and find you an 87-92(93) core to build.

I know the 4L60-E is extremely similar to the 700r4 but if you have the same type thread worked up on 4L60-E, 4L80-E and later, even though they weren't factory installed in our squares, feel free to post those threads too. They are beneficial to the guys doing LS swaps.

The late 84-86 units are ok, they all have the wider input shaft w/30 splines but still need some 'modding'...All my 700R4s get 4L60E bonded steel/rubber pistons and corresponding return springs as well as 4L60E spec high energy clutches and .105 thick steels; those earlier pre-88 units are also upgraded with the 29-element BW sprag and corresponding assembly...

The ideal combo 700-wise for resto-modders is an 88-92 with an early 82-87 valve body with a Transgo mechanical TCC lock up kit installed w/the heaviest spring that comes in that kit...Install a 4L60E dual-feed converter clutch capsule in the snout of the input shaft and you'll have TCC lock up around 50 mph with no electrical or computer-control necessary.

I'll create info threads for the 4L60E and 80 as well and post them on here sometime after Christmas.

 

[HotRodPC]

Sad face... my 84 has no lockup and I was hoping just to rebuild what I have not source another.

You Can certainly rebuild the 84 model. If it's lasted this long then you're easy on it obviously. No luck up doesn't mean it needs rebuilt. A few things can cause a non lock up condition. Other than replacing the torque converter for a wore out TCC, most lock up related things can be repaired without removing the transmission.

 

[NickTransmissions]

Sad face... my 84 has no lockup and I was hoping just to rebuild what I have not source another.

See my above - if you have an early 1984 unit with a 27 spline input shaft and '368' drum then you'll want to swap over to a '152' drum that has the 30-spline input shaft along with a corresponding L84-86 pump assembly. The 7 vane rotor is fine for most stock to mild applications but upgrading to a 10-vane is recommended for anything performance oriented.

Let me know if you need any assistance or more details...Also, no TCC lock up can be addressed via the valve body in your 1984 unit without having to resort to running wires or computer/electronic control...

Meanwhile, here's some info on the pump/input drum assemblies over the years along with interchange info:

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Also, valve body info on the 700R4s; I get into the mechanical TCC lock up at somepoint mid-way through the video:

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