I'd like to hear from those who have a stall converter in their daily driver. How does it behave during your normal commute, low rpm cruising, etc?

I've been paying atterntion to my tach and thinking about what the effects of a converter might be. For instance, my stock converter (truck is a '11 Silverado, 6' bed single cab, 2wd, 4.8) seems to grab at about 1500 rpm. High gear, low rpm cruising, say at 50 mph, rpm is right around 1600 or so. What I'm wondering is, if I had a 2400 or 2800 or something like that, would it be slipping, overheating the trans, etc during every day driving?

Obviously, I'm thinking about some performance upgrades (truck is stone stock right now) and trying to think through what various choices would do to drivability.

 

I have a ~2,600 rpm advertised (2,700 brake stall) converter in the 4L80E in my Express. I pull a 6,000 lbs travel trailer in it and works great. Keep in mind the converter has a lockup clutch that engages at cruising speeds and on some OE setups even at wide open throttle.

My Ram had a 2,800 rpm converter in it and I towed with it as well.

Stock converter in both of my Titans also stalled to 2,500 rpm.

 

Oh, yeah, I thoroughly forgot about the lockup clutch. That seems like it would eliminate any low rpm cruising slip.

So it seems like a sensible cam upgrade and matching converter doesn't really have a down side, assuming appropriate supporting modifications.

 

I have a Circle D 3200 in my 4l80e and drivability is awesome. 3200 is a bit tight for my liking but I plan on towing around 7000 lbs so I kept it on the tighter side.

 

While cruising and during lockup, your rpm's should be the same as they are now. What affects rpm's is gears in the rear end. The higher numerically you go, the more rpm's you turn.

Daily driving? Well, it's going to be more fun for sure. My old Circle D 3200 was loose and like to rev but it was definitely more fun after the converter.

Overheating? Invest in a tranny cooler. I hear TruCool makes an awesome 40k unit.

But, if you're going to start doing something with the truck, think about your goals and what you want to get out of it. This is where people tend to screw up with throwing parts in and it not performing like they thought it would.


Gears would be my first choice and it was when I started on mine. Assuming you have a 6spd behind the 4.8, throw in a set of 4.30's or 4.56's. Have it tuned at the same time and you'll be amazed at the difference.

After it's all said and done, if all you're going to do with the truck is use it for a DD, then don't do something stupid like throw a 228+ cam in it. It'll be a dog out of the hole and you won't like it. These motors respond well to just cam/headers/tune but you have to select the right part for the job.

Good luck and don't be scared to ask a question. We're all here to learn.

 

I love my 3000 stall. It drives normal when im cruising around. When I want it to rock, it stalls up nicely.

 

A good friend of mine has a 2013 RCSB 2WD 4.8 truck. Runs an FTI 3000 stall. He likes it after several months of daily driving. His truck is basic - LTs, exhaust, Airraid MIT, tune.

IMO - the converter really woke it up. But it still could use more gear, 4.10+

 

I had the same in my 80e swapped Yukon. It was great.

 

I put anywhere from 300-500miles a week on my truck, which consists of a cammed/blown lq9, 80e, 4.10s and a Yank 3600 stall and I have no complaints. I don't tow anything, but from time to time have my Harley in the bed. Trans temps on 95+ degree days in town will stay about 180ish, freeway will drop to 140 or less with a trucool 40k, which is a must. I drive friends stock trucks and they suck.. A 3K stall would be enjoyable, and still be daily driver friendly.

 

I fully understand the effects of gear ratios, cam choice, etc. I'm not new to hot rodding. I'm 46, have had some old small block Chevy hot rods and more recently hot rod Harleys, all of which I built myself. I HAVE made the "too much cam" mistake in the past, several times - really, it was more like improperly matched cam and compression. So I've learned that lesson.

My increased rpm question had to do with potential converter slip while cruising under stall speed. I had totally forgotten about the lock up clutch feature.

Thank you, though, for your helpful comments. I have been out of hot rod car/truck and racing scene for years, now, and know next to nothing about the LS motors. Something bit me recently and my interest is back! So, I'm poking around, trying to learn what I can about these motors.

I'm not going to do too much of anything real soon, as I have several major projects going on that take up all my time off. But I want to have some knowledge before I jump in, and this seems like a good place to get some of that.