I have a Turbo 400 in the roadster. I am using a 153T flywheel and a small torque converter. The 32 sits low....... I keep beating up the stock dust cover (3 in 9 years). I know that some Turbo 350 dust covers will fit a Turbo 400.I have heard that some GM (Vega/Monza maybe) type cars with a Turbo 350 came with a smaller diameter dust cover (small converter and low to the ground ...GM made the covers different).....Is this true? <font color="red"> OR I am open to any suggestions on a workable cover. Redrilled 700R4 cover or whatever. I need about 1 inch more clearance. </font> Thanks....Deuce Roadster
How much clearance do you have between the flywheel & the bottom of the cover? Can you cut bottom of cover out & section the cover enough to get the 1" without intereference with the flywheel?
I have about 1 and 1/2 inch clearance between the cover and the flywheel/converter. The dust cover on it now is mashed in almost 1 inch. I was hoping that a Vega or something would work........I am a far better parts hunter than fabricator.......plus it's easier I may have to cut a cover and FAB something if I cannot find one that will work.
You might try one of those heavy cast aluminum ones off a 4x4. They have a couple ugly mounting bosses from the reinforcing braces but you could grind them down and polish it up to look good.
I left mine off on my 34...the crappy oem plastic one cracked,dirty and ugly ant the shitty MR.GASKET/tiawan chrome crap never fit properly.. I never had a problem.
The 4X4 will work as long as its a 400 the next thing you need to do is make some sort of a skid plate because the next thing you bend is the fly wheel...
exactly - the chrome one I bought didn't fit for shit and every time I get under there - it looks clean - so I think I have decided to for go it all together - I like being able to check the flex plate bolts quick
Good! I have never run them on any of my hot rods, but I was just testing the waters to see if you guys had some big reason that I should!
Car Craft addressed the technical issues of running without a dust cover years ago, thoroughly and comprehensively: "Who ever heard of dust on a racecar torque converter?" The thought of snagging the flexplate on the ground is pretty chilling, but if the car bottoms to that level I don't think the dust cover is any actual protection--it's not nearly strong enough to resist downward movement of car or impact with solid anything at road speeds.
The Vega cover has HOLES IN IT to let air and DUST circulate through and out the holes in the bellhousing because the trans is cooled by air circulation past the torque converter.... SO is dust realy an issue, or is that just what the thing is called? People toss the primary covers off of Harleys don't they? I don't have a cover on mine either, I figure it's one more source of trans cooling. I just have to hope no one (or thing) crawls under there with the engine running...
oh - and who knows what size those wormy little bolts are that hold the thing on anyways? I always have to go dig some metric crap socket out
I am paranoid............. I had a large sort of rock get into my clutch/flywheel on my 55 Chevrolet years ago. NO dust cover. Broke up some expensive pieces (not really much $$$ but I was broke at the time ...teenager) Had to walk for 2 or 3 weeks. I have 3 different dust covers that will work and have found 1/2 of a inch difference in them. I just hoped that with ALL the LOW vehicles on the HAMB .............that someone had a solution.............better than what I could come up with.
[ QUOTE ] <font color="red"> OR I am open to any suggestions on a workable cover. Redrilled 700R4 cover or whatever. I need about 1 inch more clearance. </font> Thanks....Deuce Roadster [/ QUOTE ] ============== leave the cover off
I've had mine off for years now... no issues! Most of the really low cars I've seen aren't running 'em either. I agree that I like to be able to look at my flexplate and bolts while underneath without having to pull a flimsy piece of metal off.
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