Transmission

What are some options on a swap from the 4l60e? I have 97 ext cab

4L80E. Give it a search on here, a number of us have done it.

What do you want to do with the truck? Is it a 2 WD. or a 4WD. What engine do you have?. Are you going to keep the ECM? Why not keep the 4L60E, and do a performance reman. As for what will fit, there is a long list, as for what will de a direct swap, and will work with the same ECM and settings, only a 4L60E around the same year.

4L80e

kennythewelder said:

What do you want to do with the truck? Is it a 2 WD. or a 4WD. What engine do you have?. Are you going to keep the ECM? Why not keep the 4L60E, and do a performance reman. As for what will fit, there is a long list, as for what will de a direct swap, and will work with the same ECM and settings, only a 4L60E around the same year.

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Boo!

stutaeng said:

4L80e

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Like!

X3 for 4L80E.

Does the ECM need to be flashed for the 80E?. Like I said, what is the OP doing with the truck?. I got 275,000 out of my first 60E, andI have 250,000+ on the 60E I have now. Yes, the 80E is a bigger unit. Bigger clutches, and bigger bands, ECT. Again, what you doing with the truck?.

kennythewelder said:

Does the ECM need to be flashed for the 80E?. Like I said, what is the OP doing with the truck?. I got 275,000 out of my first 60E, andI have 250,000+ on the 60E I have now. Yes, the 80E is a bigger unit. Bigger clutches, and bigger bands, ECT. Again, what you doing with the truck?.

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You can either flash the PCM or get creative with pinning and relays to allow the 4L60 trans segment to run the 4L80E. Without said trickery the 4L80E does some VERY unnatural things.

Supercharged111 said:

You can either flash the PCM or get creative with pinning and relays to allow the 4L60 trans segment to run the 4L80E. Without said trickery the 4L80E does some VERY unnatural things.

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Thats kind of what I figured. It all depends on what you want, and what your using you truck or van for. I know a 60E can be built to hold 500HP. It would cost less ti have that done than to get a 80E and have everything done to support that trans. What works for me, may or may not be what you need, or what works for you.

kennythewelder said:

Thats kind of what I figured. It all depends on what you want, and what your using you truck or van for. I know a 60E can be built to hold 500HP. It would cost less ti have that done than to get a 80E and have everything done to support that trans. What works for me, may or may not be what you need, or what works for you.

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There are some differences between the 4L60e and the 4L80e. It's not a "direct drop-in." However, given that these trucks could have been shipped with the 4L80e, the swap is pretty easy with off-the-shelf parts, and honestly not that bad. Certainly, not a transmission expert by any means, but here's what I know.

The 4L80e mods for a SBC are:

U joint conversion for driveshaft
Repinning 3 wires of the gray, round tranny connector and adding a sensor (or getting an adapter from Amazon)
Repinning 2 wires at the ECU connector
Getting a ECU re-flash
Modifying the tranny crossmember (they sell pre-made crossmember for a bolt-off, bolt-on)

I will list the disadvantages to the 4L80:

1) Is is heavier than the 4L60e, but this can be argued that it's actually a plus
2) It does take a bit more power to spin, just as mentioned before
3) The first gear is lower than the 60e (2.48 vs 3.059). (read: benefits from a numerically higher rear end)
4) 4th gear is a bit higher than the 60e (0.75 vs 0.70). This one can also be argued in favor of the 80e. Since it revs a bit higher when towing, the same truck will be closer to the powerband, and will accelerate better before downshifting)

I will list the advantages to the 4L80:

1) It can take a vehicle with much higher GVWR, so it is heavier (heavier means more robust, duh!) Basically, everything inside is beefier. It's a different design than a 4L60.
2) It can take more power. Stock vs stock.
3) The 4L80e has an input speed sensor and output speed sensor. This enables the ECU to limit a bit throttle to prevent clutches from being burnt under certain conditions. I'm not sure how the algorithms work, and I think you can disable or reduce them via programming.
4) It shifts dang smooth!

Some 4L60e units do live long. I have a buddy with an 01 Silverado close to 400,000. But those are pretty rare. Some guys have gotten as little as 40k on them. Seems like 120k-150k is pretty good to get out of them. 200k+ is less common. Not that the 4L80e is without it's problems, but considering the range of vehicles it came with, it's obvious that it is a more durable unit (3/4 & 1 tons, Class 3 trucks, Buses, Vans, HMMWVs, even some exotic cars like Jags, Bentleys, etc., and a Ferrari...)

Sure, you can build the 4L60e to hold the same amount of power, but you'll be spending a good $2,500+, if not much more. I've met guys that have spent 3 times rebuilding their 60s, each time spending more and more on getting the "higher performance package." This is good business for transmission shops if you think about it! You can spend the same amount of money building a 4L80e and then there's no comparison.

Basic math is (3) 4L60e rebuilds x $2,500 = $7,500 >> than a $800 junkyard 4L80e!

I hope this helps.