i am putting together a 307 with a mild cam after reading fat hack posts (thanks fat hack) anyways i have a friend who wants to sell me a perfect working turbo 400 outta his 69 chevy for 100 bucks is this a good match for my 307?? what are the main differneces between the turbo 350? was it the overdrive switch? all this is going in my 54 chevy project
The turbo 400 is probly overkill for a 307, as it eats a lot of torque, but for a $100 it's a good deal.
i'll probably pick up that t400 for 100 bucks anyways but is it not a good idea to run it on my 307?? with fuel economy in mind looking on craigslist found this for $3500 thinking about it http://mohave.craigslist.org/cto/857896909.html
yes the kickdown dont know much about t400 yet. eats to much torque huh that might work against me in trying to save gas
As mentioned before the T400 is overkill for your 307. You'll lose 5 mpg with it. That's my experience with them. The main difference is the big pump.
T-350 eats ~27 H.P. T-400 eats ~38 H.P. On a low torque motor, like a 307, I'd go with the T-350, because the 400 will eat into MPG and make the car feel slugish off the line. The advantage of the 400 is that it's much stronger than the 350, and will live much longer in big cars and/or behind high power engines. However, the 350 [and 400 for that matter] is soooo simple... Anyone with a screwdriver and a pair of channel locks can rebuild one in a couple hours. Less complicated than rebuilding a carburetor, but there are more parts than a carb. Rebuild kit from O'rileys is ~$100, shift kit is ~$45, new converter is ~$75. So I'd go with the 350, and just plan to rebuild it every 2-3 years.
I run a 400 Turbo in my 32 roadster ... and I do not find the Turbo 400 to be much more fuel consuming than the Turbo 350. 1 to 2 mpg tops ... that's my experience It is a simple matter to come up with a electrical switch to control the kick down/passing gear feature. I also like the fact that the Turbo 400 does NOT have a cable off the side of the case that runs to the carb for than function. A Turbo 400 is almost indestructible ... as long as you keep fluid in it. It also is a great transmission to have if you ever plan on putting a little HORSEPOWER in your car.
It is a simple matter to come up with a electrical switch to control the kick down/passing gear feature. I also like the fact that the Turbo 400 does NOT have a cable off the side of the case that runs to the carb for than function. thats the same thing the guy who has the tranny said well i was wondering if i should or should not run it because i was concernd with fuel consumption ultimately i think i might keep looking for a tranny just seems sooo cheap what he wants for the t400
speaking of parts the guy with the tranny has a 70 something camaro front clip with complete disc brakes wondering if i should buy it?? only 100 bucks too i was thinking i could run the spindles and disc brake setup on my mustang11 setup?? since disc brake kits are over 200 bucks what do you guys think
IF it's a chevy case (sounds like it is), buy it, turn it, buy a 350 turbo and pocket the rest. chevy cased 400 trannys are getting up there in price... BOP's not so much...
I agree with LowrodderDon. The TH400 is heavier and takes more "to turn", but if you break TH350's (HOT 307?) then you'll be making the power to overcome this and it's worth consideration. The price certainly is good.
what spindles should i use with the mustang 11 then?? thought i should ask since i found thaqt setup for so cheap i kinda think it might still be worth it to take the disc brake components off??? and use them for my project?? thank for all the comments and advice so far guys....
It would be cool to put the kickdown switch on the shifter like a nitrous button and when you mash it hit the button to hit passing gear............???
Just for the record, GM put turbo 400's behind a 4.3 V6 in vans. So perhaps the power loss isn't that big of a deal? Also aren't the 400's geared lower in first and second? If so you probably wouldn't notice it so much, except for slightly less economy? I got one with a V6 that I bought.
TH400 has a slightly higher first gear than a th350 and that's to blame for alot of it's "power eating" reputation. Honestly I'd use either one. GM put a th400 behind the wheezing 165hp 350 in mid 70s vettes. And they also put th350s in 350 powered 3/4 ton 4x4s thru the same years. My opinion is the th350 delivers better driveability, mostly due to superior kickdown response & adjustability. But the th400 has a better name and becomes a minor selling point. $100 is decent price, recently the bottom's fallen out of the th400 market because OD conversions are so popular, and there's very few daily vehicles on the road using th400s anymore. good luck
If you have the mustang control arms you will want the mustang spindles, you can use the gm rotors and calipers but will need mounting hardware from the aftermarket or your garage/shop. Wheel seals#19211(I think that is a National #) Fat Mans fab lists the bearings as a #12 and #13. Only other thing I can add about the 400 is that it is a physically bigger unit than the 350. Rear gearing will have a bigger bearing on throttle response and ultimate fuel mileage. I have found out that high gearing does not equate to better mileage, got to work in the power range of the motor/distributor.
400's are great, but 350 turbo's can be made to stand up to quite a bit of abuse with the substitution of a hardened second gear sprag. Got one behind a mild 454 in my late model ElCamino. Another thing, in addition to a pair of pliers, etc., when attempting a rebuild on a TH350; you would also need a way to compress the spring packs, the hardest one to get to is in the back of the case.
you use must 11 spindles with a must 11. you can use stock ones if you can find them 74-78 must 11 of 74-80 pinto. you can buy them new repros. stock or 2" dropped.
I have a 350 bolted to my 283 (RV cam) in my 32. 3.08 rear end and I'm gettin 19 mpg on the interstate at 70 mph.
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