2004R build for 500 HP

[ronbz455]

I'm building my first 2004R that will be mostly on the street with some drag racing. The Buick 350 will put out 350 to 400+ HP but the Regal will get a 455 after that. I've been reading on different sites of what needs to be done so I hope there is a trans man here to help me out. I read on Jakes Performance that the forward drum needs to be a Billet with a different shaft to survive 500 HP. Here is the section.

Above the 400 HP/TQ level we believe that an aftermarket forward drum with 4340 shaft installed is required for reliability, particularly in heavier cars. Please take note here, when you are shopping for a 200-4R, see if the vendor installs a "billet" forward drum or if they install an inferior "hardened drum" or just a stock drum.
We will show the issue with a stock or hardened drum for the stouter street cars later in the article.
We often see competitors rate their 200-4R's for 500 HP or even more and nothing listed about the forward drum. This is a $400+ component that a builder isn't going to dismiss on their build sheet.

This seems like the most expensive part but others are needed. I would just like to here the parts you guys put in them so they hold up. I am using 3.73 rear gear so should only use 1-2-3 gears of the trans at the track. But I want overdrive and lock up on the highway. Thanks Ron Butz.

 

[TexasT]

Well, don't let me be your source but i don't think you "need" a billet shaft forward drum. I'm not saying it isn't a nice piece, I'm not telling you don't put one in, I'm not saying if my budget wasn't bigger I would have gone that way with the billet and dual fed the direct. I think it is a great thing, and by all means go that way if you have the fundage.

I do think you will have trouble extracting 500hp from a small block without a power adder of some kind. Not saying you cant or wont, just pointing out getting that much out of a n/a combo generally requires spinning it pretty fast and that isn't something a Buick engine likes to do for very long. Either way a smooth shifting auto is much easier on parts than a neck snapping, tire punishing shift.

With that I commend you on under taking the project. Do you have an idea of what direction you want to go? Full kit, piece it together, buy parts as you go? What about a torque converter? Any thoughts on what you might want to do there besides staying with lock up? I would give David Husek a call. He can give you his thoughts on a direction and sell you what you need.

I went pretty stock on my build. Hard stator support, hard rings and a stiffer spring for the pump. Larger boost and rev boost valve and a pink spring for the pump. I went raybestos stage 1 red frictions for the direct and Borg Warner tans for the rest. Went with a carbon fiber band and a sonnax servo. Made some mods to the valve body and separator plate. And a rebuilt torque converter from a local place to me. Pretty budget.

Let me know if I can be of any help.

 

[ronbz455]

I found that billet drum on ebay for 300. but I have to get it apart and see how it looks. I was thinking like you but red alto clutches and there was a way to get more clutches for one of the drums and overdrive. I want at least 3000 stall with lock up.
The cam I will try in the 350 is power level 5 from Crower. It might be to much but I got it cheap on clearance. The intake might have to be made because they don't make a good open plenum yet but there are 2 home made ones out there and I might get my hands on one. I need to heavily port the heads and might go bigger valves so a lot of engine work to get it to make more power. I will get back tomorrow have to get some sleep.

 

[olds307 and 403]

Dr Dan on ROP went through 4 toward drums on his hot Olds 403. He knows the 2004R very well, was GM tech for 20+ years and a successful racer. Also get the sheet metal steel or aluminum pan with the remote mount rear filter, he swears by them. I have the Hughes deep pan and 4L60E filter, he claims it is only good till high 12's. The clearances are also very critical on these trans and shift points and feel can also be a pain to get right.

 

[ronbz455]

I seen that pickup from CK performance which would help on hard launches and fast acceleration down the 1/4 mile.

 

[TexasT]

Dr Dan on ROP went through 4 toward drums on his hot Olds 403. He knows the 2004R very well, was GM tech for 20+ years and a successful racer. Also get the sheet metal steel or aluminum pan with the remote mount rear filter, he swears by them. I have the Hughes deep pan and 4L60E filter, he claims it is only good till high 12's. The clearances are also very critical on these trans and shift points and feel can also be a pain to get right.

I would imagine Dr Dan is launching his car pretty hard. That, a 3-2 down shift that hangs and tire punishing 2-3 shifts end a forward drum shaft pretty quickly.

I use a stock pan and a 700r4 filter due to budgetary constraints. I am still doing testing with the gauge to determine what Pressure loss I am experiencing during hard exceleration.

 

[ronbz455]

If Dr Dan needs another 403 and some 455J heads I will sell them to him or trade for some 2004r parts.

 

[olds307 and 403]

Contact Dr Dan or Dan Madcap on ROP. I believe he blocks the accumulators for very hard shifts. My trans sounds very similar to Texas T. I am going to change the pump in the trans I just picked up. The stator is just about toast and no seal retainer. Was upgraded frictions but no hardened shafts, obliviously not even the stator. My current pump has the hardened pump rings, stiffer spring,a 13 vane pump and bigger boost valves. A year old O ring and gaskets too. Also using the billet servo and current governor. Most suggest the 10 vane pump due to the stronger construction vs the 13 vane.

 

[TexasT]

Seven vane will deliver more volume. Just needs hard rings and a stiffer slide spring. Bigger boost and rev boost valve give it more pressure.

 

[olds307 and 403]

I only used the 13 vane cause I had it lying around. Supposedly the 10 vane gives more consistent pressure vs a 7 vane. Why GM went with 13 vane in the 4L60E is a mystery.