[Shotimes] RE: ATX Hard 1-2 shift

[Anthony Clerkin]

Kevin asked me some interesting questions below and I thought I would
share my answers with the group.

The stock torque converter in the SHO is what most people would call a
"high stall" converter.  When FPS sells you one of there high stall
units they are selling you a "lockup" type high stall converter.

Here is the difference:
	At higher speeds, the transmission catches up to the engine,
eventually moving at almost the same speed. Ideally, though, the
transmission would move at exactly the same speed as the engine, because
this difference in speed wastes power. This is part of the reason why
cars with automatic transmissions get worse gas mileage than cars with
manual transmissions. 

To counter this effect, a lockup clutch. When the two halves of the
torque converter get up to speed, this clutch locks them together,
eliminating the slippage and improving efficiency.

I found this to be a great improvement, allowing my ATX to be nearly as
efficient as an MTX. This higher level of efficiency is noticeable both
in my quarter mile times and at the gas station.

-----Original Message-----
From: Kevin & Cheryl Airth [mailto:clubairth@peoplepc.com] 
Sent: Thursday, April 29, 2004 11:51 AM
To: Anthony Clerkin
Subject: Re: ATX Hard 1-2 shift

Anthony:
 You bring up a question that I can't get a solid answer on. The SHO
already
has a high stall converter in it from the factory. Around 3000 rpm. Now
I
got a new converter from FPS when they redid the transmission but it is
a
stock unit as far as I can tell. Who makes the high stall unit you have?
What is the stall speed and did you find it helpful for a street car?
Thanks!
.
.
Kevin


Did you have the high stall torque converter installed?  I did and it
ruptured, the debris from the rupture clogged my tranny filter and
destroyed my trans!  So FPS shipped out a new tranny and now the torque
converter doesn't convert!  So now they're sending out a new torque
converter in a week and I can't drive my car because if this converter
breaks before the new one gets installed, I'll have to wait another 2
weeks for a whole new trans! :(  Oh well, as long as it is done before
June I guess I won't miss any races.


Yes. My FPS built ATX has the shift kit plus more and has a very hard
1-2
shift!
.
.



> Could the ATX have a shift kit?  My fps ATX shifts so hard into second
> that the tires break loose.

>
> The hard 1-2 shift is pretty normal for this automatic. I am surprised
> that
> it has a rebuilt engine at such a low mileage? The transmission is
much
> more
> trouble prone? Any history on the tranny?What does the fluid look like
> in
> the tranny? >
>
>
> > Greetings all,
> >
> >       Well I decided against the supercoupe and my car to totally
fix
> it
> is
> > gonna cost at the least $5k.  But the good news is I found a 95 red
> atx
> sho
> > for $4k with 77k on the car and about 3k on a newly rebuilt engine.
> The
> car is
> > really nice....its feels like a new sho but I have 2 problems with
it
> I
> dont
> > like.  The 1st one is when the car is cold it will shift really hard
> from
> 1st
> > to 2nd gear but only does it when its cold.  ?
> >
> >
> > Thank you in advance...