Gear head torque converter

[Austin2013SHO]

So I have read out there many early on sho guys having swapped to a gear head torque converter. Can anyone give me some feedback back on it. What specifically was upgraded on it, did you notice or feel a difference, was it worth it? I noticed gear head doesn’t advertise them any more anyone know why?

 

[Austin2013SHO]

@kryptto @SM105K can y’all shed any light on this?

 

[kryptto]

So I have read out there many early on sho guys having swapped to a gear head torque converter. Can anyone give me some feedback back on it. What specifically was upgraded on it, did you notice or feel a difference, was it worth it? I noticed gear head doesn’t advertise them any more anyone know why?

so I don't have one, however Matt has started a while back phasing out Taurus modded parts, there is a post here where Jordan said he shipped a bunch, though a very while back to GH. that said I have heard you give Matt one, pay to ship it and contact him directly he will mod it.

then there is this vendor https://gopnh.com/Torque-Converter-Specifications?AID=1005

and I heard from @yaycandy I BELIEVE said he used one from them... I have a post here and those who used it saying it was great.

best I can do since I never did anything with my transmission on a 28K mile SHO yet.

good luck

 

[Austin2013SHO]

@kryptto i emailed Matt about them and they have them in stock said he could send one out and when done send my core for $250 off. He said the internals are upgraded, clutches are 15% increased to help handle with power increases. I’m thinking about getting one so I will let you know after I install if it my thoughts on it. But with the PTU and trans being our weakest point on platform I would think this would help alleviate so of the stress.

I’m waiting for the day someone tells us there are upgraded ptu’s and trans. That will be the day all us gen 4 guys start to grin while reading

 

[Austin2013SHO]

@kryptto i bought my car from bartow ford about 2 years ago and it had 70k at purchase, currently at 127k but this is my daily and she has been from California and Florida a few times

 

[kryptto]

@kryptto i bought my car from bartow ford about 2 years ago and it had 70k at purchase, currently at 127k but this is my daily and she has been from California and Florida a few times

nice

 

[kryptto]

@kryptto i emailed Matt about them and they have them in stock said he could send one out and when done send my core for $250 off. He said the internals are upgraded, clutches are 15% increased to help handle with power increases. I’m thinking about getting one so I will let you know after I install if it my thoughts on it. But with the PTU and trans being our weakest point on platform I would think this would help alleviate so of the stress.

I’m waiting for the day someone tells us there are upgraded ptu’s and trans. That will be the day all us gen 4 guys start to grin while reading

so I would say that is awesome, not a job for me or my equipment. the ptu is what it is change the oil every 20-30k is the best we can do. there is a part and not recalling that can lock the ptu and force both fronts to take off with. I have references to that part and a blog if interested

 

[Austin2013SHO]

so I would say that is awesome, not a job for me or my equipment. the ptu is what it is change the oil every 20-30k is the best we can do. there is a part and not recalling that can lock the ptu and force both fronts to take off with. I have references to that part and a blog if interested

Yes please very interested. I enrolled in school few days ago to start working toward my ASE. So if nothing else the car is teaching me some new things.

In other news I got the IC put in last night. Below are a few photos. If you would like a step by step about it let me know and I’ll post those instructions here. Two significant things with this job, if you radiator hose clamps are not in the perfect position, well let’s say your in for a real treat. (Bottom hose and PTU cooler line )., se one the size and weight compare to original must be a solid 30-50lb difference. I placed my vape on top of both as a reference to size in thickness.

 

[kryptto]

ohh yeah that tight spot down on the drivers side with all those hoses... what a pita, glad you got it in there, and it MAKES a world of difference, less heat soak in general, and better/faster cool off times between pressing her hard. its a great add in... that said a walk through posted here, if you have the time, why not. this is the "bible" for all things 3.5l TT Ford Cyclones

my biggest suggestion is to cut the IC box ot similar and blue tape it to the front and back of the radiator when getting it in... stop fin damage

 

[Austin2013SHO]

ohh yeah that tight spot down on the drivers side with all those hoses... what a pita, glad you got it in there, and it MAKES a world of difference, less heat soak in general, and better/faster cool off times between pressing her hard. its a great add in... that said a walk through posted here, if you have the time, why not. this is the "bible" for all things 3.5l TT Ford Cyclones

my biggest suggestion is to cut the IC box ot similar and blue tape it to the front and back of the radiator when getting it in... stop fin damage

So after driving it today briefly to and from work, roughly 20 mins each way. Car drives fine, no dash codes IAT’s were lower than yesterdays before the install. One thing I will say is I definitely feel the weight difference in driving and I know this sounds crazy but it almost feels a little heavier and stiffer but I know only one of them to be true. (Heavier)

Going to continue to monitor and keep updates coming.

My next upgrades are going to be EPP hot pipes, followed by MSD coil packs, GH torque converter and then an exhaust system. Once I hit that point I’ve got some serious contemplating to do. Do I keep packing it on or do I start on some cosmetic stuff.
Eventually going to do the turbos from GH but I want all supporting parts done before I go for it.

Again my goal isn’t to be the fastest out there just beat my buddies in races and the typical ass clown that thinks his stock srt8 is about to leave me from light to light. I know stupid goals but gotta have some fun with it or the project is pointless

 

[SM105K]

I have zero experience with them. I would ask @802SHO and @Jordan_R

 

[Mahu24]

@kryptto i emailed Matt about them and they have them in stock said he could send one out and when done send my core for $250 off. He said the internals are upgraded, clutches are 15% increased to help handle with power increases. I’m thinking about getting one so I will let you know after I install if it my thoughts on it. But with the PTU and trans being our weakest point on platform I would think this would help alleviate so of the stress.

I’m waiting for the day someone tells us there are upgraded ptu’s and trans. That will be the day all us gen 4 guys start to grin while reading

There are upgrades available for the transmission now, it's always been the clutches in the trans that was the weak point, now there are upgraded ones available. PTU is not the weak point power wise, it's lack of maintenance that kills the PTU

 

[Austin2013SHO]

I have zero experience with them. I would ask @802SHO and @Jordan_R

Thanks bro

 

[Austin2013SHO]

There are upgrades available for the transmission now, it's always been the clutches in the trans that was the weak point, now there are upgraded ones available. PTU is not the weak point power wise, it's lack of maintenance that kills the PTU

So according to GH they have always sold these torque converters but don’t advertise them. From my understanding once you hit a certain spot power wise its is recommended by them. It’s not the entire trans just the torque converter.

Idk about that cars roughly got 130k miles I have replaced PTU twice, first time lack of maintenance. I bought it with it already had.

2nd time it decided to grind up the little beating balls on the end of the gear on the inside. Outter seal went bad as well. So I decided to do it a second time. I don’t feel they are great at all .

Meanwhile original trans

 

[Mahu24]

So according to GH they have always sold these torque converters but don’t advertise them. From my understanding once you hit a certain spot power wise its is recommended by them. It’s not the entire trans just the torque converter.

Idk about that cars roughly got 130k miles I have replaced PTU twice, first time lack of maintenance. I bought it with it already had.

2nd time it decided to grind up the little beating balls on the end of the gear on the inside. Outter seal went bad as well. So I decided to do it a second time. I don’t feel they are great at all .

Meanwhile original trans

I am referring to a transmission and torque converter as two separate items, hence no mention of a TC in my comment. The first drivetrain weakness is the TC, the first transmission weakness is the clutches.

GH converters have been around for years, however upgrade transmission clutches have only been available for a year, hence the "now".

Depends what you replaced it with, I've never heard of somebody breaking a PTU that was in perfect condition, it's always paired with lack of maintenance, or low oil, or leaking seal, etc.

 

[Austin2013SHO]

Yes I understand but clearly you misread the original post, it said the clutch in the torque converter not transmission. Hence the post being on the torque converter and not transmission. You have a lock up clutch in the torque converter that they upgrade to a 15% increase from original spec. It’s supposed to help your overall smoothness or shifts and transfer the increased power like OEM would do for stock but with the increased power the OEM clutch struggles to transfer power as effectively giving less productive shifts and smooth shift’s especially at WOT. Now I have read about some clutches for our car that are out by a different company. I believe you can find them in a couple threads or YouTube videos but from my understanding they were supposed to be slightly better than original but I have yet to talk to anyone about their experience with them.

Bought PTU from Brandon ford and installed. Within a month or so the seals on passenger side begin to leak and fail. So I say it failed but because of the short time it had before it began to leak. I personally think the seals were just ******. The ones that came out were soft and had some play while the ones I replaced them with were much harder and firm and almost like a steel ring with rubber around it while the ones that failed was just rubber.
I’m not a small guy so I just removed the PTU completely when doing the seals and noticed when I spun it, there was a weird noise I didn’t feel was right. So I opened it and found the little bearing balls loose in it from one of the gears (I guess that’s what you would call it.) I took the one from my old one popped it on closed it up and put new seals in it and it’s been fine since.

This has been the only part on my car to go bad other than a clock spring. So this is why my opinion is more on the PTU rather than trans but when it fails I’m sure my opinion may change.

 

[Austin2013SHO]

While we are referring to trans though I had a thought that exceeds my bank account but has anyone ever looked at the trans off of a ford GT? I personally haven’t but I have read they use our 3.5 ecoboost platform. Depending on the set up and configuration needed that might be a good place to start looking. Again I have done zero research into this but just something I’ve always wondered

 

[Mahu24]

Yes I understand but clearly you misread the original post, it said the clutch in the torque converter not transmission. Hence the post being on the torque converter and not transmission. You have a lock up clutch in the torque converter that they upgrade to a 15% increase from original spec. It’s supposed to help your overall smoothness or shifts and transfer the increased power like OEM would do for stock but with the increased power the OEM clutch struggles to transfer power as effectively giving less productive shifts and smooth shift’s especially at WOT. Now I have read about some clutches for our car that are out by a different company. I believe you can find them in a couple threads or YouTube videos but from my understanding they were supposed to be slightly better than original but I have yet to talk to anyone about their experience with them.

Bought PTU from Brandon ford and installed. Within a month or so the seals on passenger side begin to leak and fail. So I say it failed but because of the short time it had before it began to leak. I personally think the seals were just ******. The ones that came out were soft and had some play while the ones I replaced them with were much harder and firm and almost like a steel ring with rubber around it while the ones that failed was just rubber.
I’m not a small guy so I just removed the PTU completely when doing the seals and noticed when I spun it, there was a weird noise I didn’t feel was right. So I opened it and found the little bearing balls loose in it from one of the gears (I guess that’s what you would call it.) I took the one from my old one popped it on closed it up and put new seals in it and it’s been fine since.

This has been the only part on my car to go bad other than a clock spring. So this is why my opinion is more on the PTU rather than trans but when it fails I’m sure my opinion may change.

Okay, so step one: you said "But with the PTU and trans being our weakest point on platform"

So I replied with: "There are upgrades available for the transmission now, it's always been the clutches in the trans that was the weak point, now there are upgraded ones available. PTU is not the weak point power wise, it's lack of maintenance that kills the PTU"

So I am NOT misunderstanding that the torque converter is upgraded, I know that, I know it's available, I know that GH sells it, I know how it works, and I know what the issue is with OEM... I sourced a manufacturer for the Transmission Clutches and Andrew was able to take over to get them to prototype and now a part number with the company. Before this, there were zero clutch upgrades for the transmission, and, as I said, the transmission clutches were/are the weak point in the Transmission.

In all case of me talking about transmission clutches, that is exactly what I am talking about, not the TC.

 

[Austin2013SHO]

Okay, so step one: you said "But with the PTU and trans being our weakest point on platform"

So I replied with: "There are upgrades available for the transmission now, it's always been the clutches in the trans that was the weak point, now there are upgraded ones available. PTU is not the weak point power wise, it's lack of maintenance that kills the PTU"

So I am NOT misunderstanding that the torque converter is upgraded, I know that, I know it's available, I know that GH sells it, I know how it works, and I know what the issue is with OEM... I sourced a manufacturer for the Transmission Clutches and Andrew was able to take over to get them to prototype and now a part number with the company. Before this, there were zero clutch upgrades for the transmission, and, as I said, the transmission clutches were/are the weak point in the Transmission.

In all case of me talking about transmission clutches, that is exactly what I am talking about, not the TC.

Gotcha I misunderstood I thought you were asking me if they had upgraded clutches by GH. I didn’t realize you were saying there are upgraded clutches available now. Do you have them installed? How have they held up? I constantly make cross country trips in my car (live in Vegas, born and raised in FL where my mom still lives) so I know everything is only a matter of time before it has to be fixed. I’m not one to typically fix something with OEM I tend to look for an upgrade when possible.

Following up further have you ever seen a ford GT trans? I know they are rear wheel drive but they are built to handle more torque and power out the gate and they use our 3.5 L V6 with some upgrades. I wouldn’t mind the rear wheel drive if it was feasible to use one of these. Do you have any thoughts or knowledge on this?

 

[kryptto]

I am referring to a transmission and torque converter as two separate items, hence no mention of a TC in my comment. The first drivetrain weakness is the TC, the first transmission weakness is the clutches.

GH converters have been around for years, however upgrade transmission clutches have only been available for a year, hence the "now".

Depends what you replaced it with, I've never heard of somebody breaking a PTU that was in perfect condition, it's always paired with lack of maintenance, or low oil, or leaking seal, etc.

To elaborate on Mahu comments there are threads here that talk to the clutch pads weaknesses and two vendors that finally upgraded their to sell. One is Raysbestos:

FORD 6F55, , 6T80 2013-ON Stage-1 Friction Clutch Pack Module | Raybestos Powertrain

RCPS-56 2013-ON FORD 6F55 Stage-1 Friction Clutch Pack is recommended for 6F55 street-strip, "tuner" and off-road performance applications.

www.raybestospowertrain.com

Then the ones 802SHo has which I believe are the still proto types: Helix Autosport prototype clutches

802SHO 2010 Build

New tires, ended up going with Nitto NT555R2’s all the way around and picked 285/30/20 from their 20” selection. A lot less beefy! Maybe a little too less beefy if I’m being honest but it will work. I’m not concerned about the sidewall for launching, Nitto knows what they’re doing, I’ll rest...

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