2004r vs. 700r4 and rear gear?

[351maverick]

What are your guys takes on one with a manual valve body?

^^^VERY good idea^^^

that will make the car a lot more fun, as it's essentially a clutchless 4 speed...AND you do not need to mess around with the TV cable

I have a 200R4 in my 86 Monte - the TV cable is adjusted perfectly & the trans still is weird sometimes

 

[muscl car]

Thanks guys. All of you are just reassuring my prior thoughts. I'm really probably going to go with the 2004r.

What are your guys takes on one with a manual valve body?

Jay a Manual valve body can be used on the street with no issues ,i used a few of them but back in the early to mid 80's and never had any problems . I would if i were you would look at getting a reverse manual VB just because you're shifting away from reverse . Depending on the shifter though if it has a really good reverse lock out and is a good quality shifter then you can go with a standard "forward" manual valve body but i would still look into a reverse valve body

Manual valve bodies do increase line press so your shifts will be much harder so you will be feeling stronger 2nd gear hits . Also some of the Manual valve bodies don't come with engine braking capabilities so make sure you get one if that is what you're wanting

 

[newschool72]

You may have to run something like a constant pressure valve body , if you go manual on the 2004R. I love the manual valve body and have run a couple on the street( glide and a Th350). The 2004R uses the TV cable to set line pressure and that will have to be addressed in some way. If you don't mind me name dropping, call Lonnie at Extreme Automatics and talk to him about a trans. I don't know anyone in the trans business that has a better rep on building the little trans. And that includes anyone who builds them!!
I would like to try a reverse manual valve body myself. It seems like it would be easier in the burn out box. Backing into the water in reverse (drag radial guy) then 2 clicks back for first , then second, and just a bump forward to be ready in first vrs a million ratchets back and forth with a forward body. More fail proof, IMO.

 

[Cataldo]

Newschool, I have talked to Lonnie a couple of times. He really had some good stuff to say, but Ill be honest, Bowtie overdrives is right by me (almost every weekend I am within 7 miles of their shop) and I have talked to several people around me that have had great luck from Chris and the new guys there. They apparently had a less than stellar reputation for a while, but under the new management with Chris at the helm, their quality has gone way up.

 

[Jason7504]

I also have a stage II 200-4R from Extreme Automatics. I think it's a great transmission and strong too. I only have 3.31 gears but I'm going to swap out to 3.73. I would go 4.10 but I don't know if I want to change carriers. I have been talking to him about converting it to a reverse manual valve body and plan on doing it when I ship the trans back to him in next couple of months. It will eliminate the TV cable. Can't wait!

 

[fbody_mike]

I have dealt with BTO several times over the past few years. Good guys.

 

[newschool72]

I also have a stage II 200-4R from Extreme Automatics. I think it's a great transmission and strong too. I only have 3.31 gears but I'm going to swap out to 3.73. I would go 4.10 but I don't know if I want to change carriers. I have been talking to him about converting it to a reverse manual valve body and plan on doing it when I ship the trans back to him in next couple of months. It will eliminate the TV cable. Can't wait!

That's cool! I might go that way when its time for a refresh. The TV adjustment is a pain in the a$$, LOL. I had the pan off twice, till I understood exactly what I was trying to accomplish. Turned out the bracket I had wasn't compatible with the Fast TB on my engine. It bolted on just like it would a Holley , but the angles were all wrong. I had to custom build my own bracket and trial and error fit it till I had everything within .002. I would much rather shift my own gears than deal with the TV cable again, LOL.

 

[Jason7504]

That's cool! I might go that way when its time for a refresh. The TV adjustment is a pain in the a$$, LOL. I had the pan off twice, till I understood exactly what I was trying to accomplish. Turned out the bracket I had wasn't compatible with the Fast TB on my engine. It bolted on just like it would a Holley , but the angles were all wrong. I had to custom build my own bracket and trial and error fit it till I had everything within .002. I would much rather shift my own gears than deal with the TV cable again, LOL.

yeah it is a pain lol. oh wow, well atleast you figured out something I don't want to mess with all that TV cable mess on my LS3 LOL.
I was going to convert to manual but I might just get my 200-4R converted to a manual valve body instead. Much cheaper even if a little less fun

 

[Widowmaker01]

I'm running 3.73's with a stage 2 200-4r from Extreme. Very happy with it, best of both worlds, red light to red light fun but still able to take trips on the interstate without screaming. Only difference is I'm running a 383 (Vortec heads) so my power band would be a little lower than yours. Dyno showed 441 lb/ft at 4000. I run a big stand alone trans cooler in front of the radiator.

 

[Dogwater]

It's nice to hear from people who run 200r4's. Theirs a lot of questions ask about them but hardly anyone that knows about them answer. An if someone does answer it's either yes/no an that's it, no details. I've sorta fashioned my 78 as an auto cross car even though it's not, if that makes since. So the 700 works for me, I used Dana's road race kit in mine. Besides my paint job I'm finishing up now it was the biggest improvement I've done to my 78.