'97 C1500 4L60E to 4L80E Swap

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RDF1

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Congratulations!!
Some tuning and you can get the 80e to do magic. I always tuned mine so it's smooth around town. With the stock 6.0/80E converter it was barely noticeable shifts under 25% throttle. But the harder you run it the firmer and quicker the shifts.
If all your gonna do is goof off and daily the truck you don't "need" the shiftkit.


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df2x4

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Just went and ran it really hard for about an hour straight. I'd say if it were going to die an early death, it would've done it just now. Got multiple WOT runs in from a dead stop and rolling, also tried to familiarize myself with the new shift points a little under part throttle.

Overall impressions...

THE BAD - So I said earlier that the taller first gear wasn't that noticeable... Well at part throttle moving deliberately slowly with a bed full of parts, it wasn't. But the first time I smashed the throttle from a dead stop it was immediately noticeable. I don't think this thing will be doing any burnouts or donuts in the near future. 0-10mph or so is ssslllooowww. Once you're rolling it's fine, though. Also my 4-Hi mod on my headlights mysteriously quit working...

THE GOOD - It feels super solid. You would never guess that this transmission has almost 250K miles on it. Shifts super smooth at part throttle, but grabs gears quickly especially in WOT. Definitely not going to mess with the shift kit now, it feels great.

I'm super pleased with the results I got here. The only disappointing thing is how slow it is off the line. I knew it was coming considering my V6 and 3.42 rear gears, though. Maybe I'll just use that as an excuse to look around a little harder for a 14 bolt with 4.10s. I bet I could even go with 4.56s. The way the 80E is geared it feels like I could do a million miles per hour right now with my 3.42s on a long enough stretch of road. :lol:
 

df2x4

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Congratulations!!
Some tuning and you can get the 80e to do magic. I always tuned mine so it's smooth around town. With the stock 6.0/80E converter it was barely noticeable shifts under 25% throttle. But the harder you run it the firmer and quicker the shifts.
If all your gonna do is goof off and daily the truck you don't "need" the shiftkit.


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Thank you sir!

I'm very impressed with how nice everything feels, and I don't regret reusing the mystery converter that came out of the 350 donor truck. Definitely not going to mess with the shift kit. If it ever needs a rebuild, I'll have them put it in then.
 

RDF1

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Ha I had 3.42s with a 265/65/17 turbo 6.0 & stock 80E converter. Off idle hit it was funny. Wouldn't spin when raining but when it built boost it was gone.

A quality stall makes all the difference in the world. The stock BU52 converter weighs about 85# I think. The billet triple disk converter I got for mine had a 35# shipping weight I think it was. Makes a huge difference with half of the rotating mass...

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df2x4

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I'll definitely be looking into a different converter, but probably not until I decide to change engines. If and when my 4.3 kicks the bucket then the truck is definitely getting an LQ4 6.0.

On an unrelated note, didn't take long to find out why my 4-Hi headlights quit working...

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Think she got a lil' hot!

Roasted the fuse holder, too. All the more reason I'm glad I carry a fire extinguisher. I had a stereo shop install that harness for me years and years ago, they did a piss poor job on the battery terminals and I'm pretty sure that's what put all that resistance in the circuit. Should be an easy fix, should've done it a long time ago.

Side note, DON'T USE CHEAP ASS CHINESE FUSES.

EDIT - Checked the holder out a little closer and it's not damaged like I thought it was. Maybe a tiny bit crispy, but what I thought was a deformed casing is actually just part of the mold. Just a terrible off-brand fuse. Threw a new Bussman 20A in there and it's fine. Still going to put some new terminals on, though.
 
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df2x4

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I had to go drive it around again for no reason. That makes three times tonight. :lol:

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So happy to have it back in action!
 

df2x4

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Just wanted to update and say that everything is still working great about a month in. The more I drive it the more the PCM seems to learn the new transmission. Shifts are super smooth, it's a blast to drive. I emailed Black Bear Performance to see if they can throw a more power-oriented tune onto my now useless factory PCM, maybe I can pick up some lost power by going to a higher octane fuel.

Super happy with how everything turned out!

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Supercharged111

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When I tuned my dad's 4.3 on 87 octane I noticed there wasn't nearly as much margin in the timing map as there was with my 350. Still an excellent opportunity to make drivability changes like quicker TCC lock, change shift points, correct speedo, etc.
 
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