Is there a "drop-in" shaft out there for these cars (455/TH400) or will I have to have one custom made/modified?
I just used my stock shaft on mine.. no problems. I think the TH200 and TH400 are very close in length.. 200r4 = 27 & 11/16ths... Th400 = 28 & 3/8ths and the mounts are only 1/16th off you can check all the diffs. here: http://www.tciauto.com/tech_info/trans_dims.htm
some smart people around here. thanks for the input. just found (yet) another turbo car with a good posi rear, just need to make sure the shaft is still there. I probably already know the answer but I'll throw this out anyway: I'll be better off using the TH400 as opposed to a 200r4 correct?
IF you want cheap and easy while being reliable.. yes. the TH200R4 can be built to handle the 455... but it'll cost ya. Find a similar year(late 70's to mid 80's) Olds Delta 88 or such... they have the bracket for the Kickdown on the TH400 (the models that had the olds 403 or Diesels). Two bolts and it's identical to the Cutlass/ Regals gas pedal setup (easy install...yippie) for your kickdown switch (get that off the Olds too...lol)
Also, you will need a different yolk put on the driveshaft. The th400 has a 31 spline shaft and I believe the 200-4R has a 27 or 28 spline shaft.
The question is if you could get say 17 mpg and turn a 1/3 less rpms going down the highway vs say 12 mpg would it be worth the extra say $500 to $600 to get the 2004R built to handle a strong 455.
400 vs. 2004r If you just want a normal car to drive around and not be trying to kill it, a good 2004r should be fine. But if you are going to run some sticky tires and run at the strip the life of the 200 may be short. I don't think you can buy a killer 2004r for $500. that will handle a 500 hp 455. If you don't run too much tire and(or) try to kill it the overdrive will give better mileage and save wear and tear on the engine. I have went with the 400 and a 9" Ford rear so I will only have to do this once. Jim N. 81 Regal
This probably will be predominantly a street rod, backing off on my plan to stage 1 the sucker (geez but good set of heads are expensive) but I'd rather over-build the drivetrain in case I do wind up putting some serious hair under the hood.
My 455 tore through my 200 in 9 days.. in the end, you could wiggle the out put shaft (without the yoke) and it'd touch each side of the housing...LOL. Was fun burning it up. About 2 months later, my 373 7.5in rear end blew out the spider gears, and took some teeth of the ring (not sure which caused the other though). Th400 and a 8.2 with 4.10's, and then nothing but fun for a few years (still going strong as far as I know :ball: )
That's About What I thought! I figured that would about be all you would get from a 200 unless you took it easy. By the way, the shaft being loose in a 200 is not a sign it is killed. They depend on the yoke supporting the shaft as they don't have a bushing to support the shaft like a 400 or 350. Jim N.
The only 200R4 I'd mess with would be from a TR. All the rest wouldn't have a chance, I'm goin' the turbo 400 Ford 9" also.
Cool... didn't know that about the 200. That may not have been a sign, but I thought it was been related to me slowly loosing all the gears... :laugh: Learn something new every day :beer
I never said you could build a killer 2004R for $500. I said 5 to 600, and that was as a rough idea over the cost of a well built th400.
More like $700 for a good quality rebuild. That's what Vince Janis quoted me at for my T-type and we all know Vince is a top notch dude specializing in 200's.
