700-r4 positives

[JBreu]

OK, I have read many posts of people bashing the 700-r4 transmission's as well as the 200-4r's....I am aware of the TV issues and dangers of them not being installed correctly...That being said, I want to hear the people that have them and swear by them...after all, the o/d is a great thing.....I believe that these are great trannys...if not, why did the GENERAL think they were???
Thanks

 

[84cutspreme]

I got one in my cutlass. Love it, I understand that the 1-2 drop is larger than 200-4r. However from my experience they make more parts for the 700r-4 and are more readily available. Either one needs to be upgraded to handle more power. In my opinion the 700r-4 is built better...bigger sunshell, longer transmission. Biggest thing you need in the 700r-4 is a 30-spline input shaft. Other than those minimal differences they are almost the same, and also share most of the same upgrades(i.e. servo, pump vein, hardened shells, boost valve etc...). Best website ever for both 700r-4 & 200-4r is
http://www.transmissioncenter.net/highperf700r4.htm
http://www.transmissioncenter.net/200-4r.htm

 

[megaladon6]

don't have one personally, but the biggest things? steeper first gear, and more "popular" so more joe schmuckatelli shop know how to work on them. and the later ones have a slightly higher power capability than the 200-4r.

 

[dogsht]

I bought my GN brand new and never had any experience with a 200-4R prior so I never started out trying to make a crap one hold up under power & abuse. Later I had one out of a T-type built up for use behind the 509ci that you can see in my pics in the 442. If you have an engine that makes over 500 foot pounds of torque you need to add the optional billet forward drum/shaft. Lonnie Diers long time Buick GN 200-4R guru built mine as can be seen at http://www.extremeautomatics.com. They sell the stage 1 for 1,395 with a warrantee & is guaranteed to 10.90s. They are not cheap or easy to build up but depending on how you plan to honestly use your car they can be very worth while. I like the th350 & th400 but having experienced the benefits of an OD transmission in a quarter mile geared real street car will never use a 3 speed again at least not for a hot driver.

Living near the intersection of two interstates the biggest benefit to me was to be able to drive it on the highway without spinning the snot out of it. Large bearing big blocks don't like extended high rpm. I don't want to pull it and rebuild it as its too costly as in money time & frustration for me. Mileage was a side benefit. That said at $3 a gallon needing a third less fuel made my two hot rods actually useable. I put about 9,000 miles on the 200-4R behind the 509 & even with it being able to get 17mpg hwy instead of maybe 12mpg I doubt that it saved enough gas to pay for the extra cost of building one over a 3 speed but certainly if I put enough miles on it it would. The 700-R4 is a little stronger than a garden variety 200-4R but is heavier less efficient and does not have as nice of gearing, gear spaceing & or as tall of an overdrive. The very low first gear of the 700-R4 is helpful for getting a heavy car/PU moving from a dead stop with an underpowered engine though. Its also better for use in a heavier vehicle or for something like a PU where you might tow something. Also in the case of a g-body you need to have the drive shaft shortened balanced etc.

 

[patmckinneyracing]

I have yet to drive my new 700r4 yet. But what I can say is that when compared side by side, concerning costs, parts were far cheaper for the 700r4. Mine is a 1985 version and one of the first 30 splines. The only real negative to the 700r4 is the drop in gear from first to second, which can easily be compensated for by a little extra rpm before shifting to 2nd. For 850$, these are all the parts I put in mine:

-Corvette Servo
-"Beast" Sunshell
-Full rebuild kit
-New reverse input drum
-Transgo full shift kit
-13 vein pump (original was a 7 vein pump)
-.500 boost valve with larger return valve
-New sprag assembly
-2000 stall converter

I may be excluding some other parts, but I paid 250$ labor for a shop to put it together and 100$ for the torque converter. The 700r4 is stronger in stock form and the main reason people like the 2004r is because of the gear drop in 1st to 2nd is less and cause it got a lot of fame from being used in the grand nationals.

 

[84cutspreme]

I rebuilt mine all myself. Total build cost was $975. Parts include

700r-4 (85' with 30-spline)
Beast Sunshell
Corvette Style Servo
Deluxe rebuild kit with .500 boost valve
Superior Performance shift kit
New low-reverse drum
New manual shaft
New TV cable
Updated hardened pump rings
Updated input sprag & housing
Used Shifter with cable & cable bracket
2000 stall converter & bolts
Transmission mount & bolts
Transmission cooler
New front pump
New pan
New vent tube
New case connector
Kickdown brackets for Holley
New dipstick
New valve body balls

Only thing I didn't upgrade was 10 to 13 vane pump...I was told in my mild hp build it would not be a good investment. So I stayed with my 10 vane.

 

[anakputa]

I had a 700R4 in my 84 Buick Regal with 3.73's it is a very good trans, the only thing to worry about is properly adjusting the kick-down cable. And getting the Corvette Valve allowing the trans to shift into 4th at WOT (100 MPH or more). I got the Jegster Crossmember, You will need the driveshaft shortened and balanced. 90 Bucks at a drveline shop. The trans worked good til I smoked 2nd gear then I converted it to 5 Speed. I should've rebuilt and installed the all updates.

 

[redneckracer305]

im running a 700r4 for the simple fact the 200r4 my car had grenaded a week after i got my car, and no i wasnt beatin on it. only reason why i did it was cause well i had it kickin around, and it was cheaper to buy the crossmember, shorten the drivshaft and get a fresh converter for it , than do a rebuild on the 200r4. im very happy with it, the tv cable thing i some how got right been goin a year no problem. mind you i have a stock 305 in front of it. i dont notice the 2 gear drop as much as i did in the camaro it came out of for some reason. only problem ive had is getting the factory column linkage to mate up and work properly i got every gear but park, parking brake works for now. if i wanted to keep it i would defintally stick with and upgrade it, but i realy want to do a t5 swap, also part of why i went 700r4, cause the crossmember is the same as is driveshaft length between swaps. first g body ive ever had with over drive and holy crap what difference in milage and comfort over the the th350s im used to. just my $.02

 

[84cutspreme]

I have a floor shifter, using an overdrive shifter from a g body, since mine was 3 speed. Just fabricated a new spot on shifter to accommodate the 700r-4 cable end and extended bracket a small amount to compensate for difference in cable. I threw out the column linkage for gear indicator switch and wired in micro switches inside shifter and wired them in. Now I have park lock, reverse lights and stock appearing shifter.

 

[patmckinneyracing]

84cutspreme, you got all nitty gritty with the parts on me lol. I forgot to mention the edelbrock carb bracket and geometry corrector that mounts on the carb itself. I did not replace the shafts but other than that my trans is identical to yours 84cutspreme. How much power are you making with your setup and any idea on how much our transmissions can hold to?

As for the driveshaft, I had a buddy with a 78 malibu go with a t5 swap as well and he sold me the 700r4, b&m megashifter 4 speed, correct cut driveshaft (practically new), and a modified stock crossmember for 150$. So I spent about a grand for this swap...give or take.