well since I lost the back of my trans down the last 300 feet of the crandell track(driveshaft came apart when i locked up the verter), I have been thinking about a 4l80 swap instead of a rebuild of my built 4l60.

But.....I have a H/C/I 5.3 and I think it may be a bit overkill. I want to lockup the converter on the bottle, and am not wanting to buy a billet input shaft for my 4l60 to be able to safely do this.

Questions are....anyone run a 4l80 with a 5.3? if so how are the 60ft times? did you loose a lot of ET with the swap? and what are the crossmember options?

thanks guys

 

I'll let you know here in a couple weeks... I always babied my truck out of the hole for fear of tearing up the drivetrain, so I may not be a very good comparison lol. I think my best 60' was like a 1.95 or something. Usually like 2-2.1 though, launching without boost.
Definitely plan to launch in boost with the new tranny, will let ya know what it does. 80e is a good idea if you're looking to push a heavy vehicle quicker in the 60'.

 

I ran an 80e with my original 5.3 but I don't have any 60' data to contribute. (never ran on anything other than street tires)

With the right converter and gearing I think you will be just as fast out of the hole and trap even higher mph w/the 80e. roll racing will be much nicer with the closer gearing as well.

How often do you drive on the highway? 4.30 or 4.56 gear would make the first gear much more bearable if you can deal with the extra rpm at highway speeds.

Crossmembers are fairly readily available, here is one I just made:


Compare pricing on a 60e rebuild w/billet input shaft

VS.

at minimum
4l80e
shift kit
minimal wiring modifications
new converter
cooler line modification
gears (optional but helpful)
new crossmember

 

that fastest nitrous 5.3 from the valley is running a 4l80e behind his set-up..

 

I have one in my 4th gen Camaro behind a stock 5.3.
I have stock sized tires (~25" tall) with 3.00 gears (comparable to a 3.42 geared Stock tired truck).
I ran 1.9x 60's with 3.73s and stock Ls1 with an 80 (3500 stall) off idle (fastest this way).
I ran ~2.2 with a stock 5.3 and ford 9 inch and 3.0 gears (lack of gears HURTs it).
I ran 2.00 60' with the EXACT same setup coming off the trans brake at WOT (3600). The gears made the car sort of bog after launch.

 

I've got one in my truck behind a pretty stock 4.8. With 3.73's and 33" tires it drives really well, it's soggy getting it rolling but that's partially due to what's in front of it. This is just leftover from my turbo setup. Honestly, I'd beef up your 60E to handle it and keep rolling.

 

I am not as worried about runing a 4l80 now, plus it would make the truck"big motor ready". I and going to see how much a 80e conversion vs a billet input 60e rebuild will cost. plus the custom drive shaft from a well known builder with a high speed balance.

 

what drives me crazy is everyone hating on the 80e first gear but no one second guessing a th350 or th400 except for the loss of overdrive. all 3 i mentioned have the same gearing.

 

I agree. Everyone is too worried about it. I am happy I made the swap. I actually swapped mine before it was bad at all. I figured the 60e will go bad soon enough, then it will be worthless. Might as well do it, and be done with it. The gearing isnt an issue at all to me.

 

I'm puttin one in my truck so I can pull **** around..

Who is selling a decent aftermarket Crossmember?..or will a stock one work on my chassis. It's a 2wd.