General LSX Automobile Discussion - Thinking about going stalled auto??

So i recently sold my 02 6 spd T/A full bolt on (370rwhp 385 rwtq) with the hopes of getting me an ls2 vette...
To tell you the truth, i kinda regret not driving my T/A not as much as it needed but anyway. I have been trying to find a cool daily driver but saw nothing better than fbody both bang for the buck and appearance wise.

But i was doing some thinking rescently and need to know your opinion whether or not it would be a good idea.
So the purpose of the next buy will be DD, unlike my previous T/A that was a garage queen with low mileage

Im thinking of buying a stocker 98 or 99 WS6 or SS A4 for no more than $6000 with no more than 120K miles. My plans are staying smog legal since i live in CA :bang:

I was wondering if these mods would get me into 12's??????? 3.73 gears, Stall, catback, lid and thats it... Good enough??

Im trying to have a relatively quick DD street car that would see a lot of traffic and many posers who race light to light.

I think this plan is much wiser than spending 25-30 grand for a ls2 vette and having similar performance...

What do you guys think? Would those mods be good enough for high 12's??
Also, is 4000 stall a good idea??


Thanx guys

Cutout, converter, lid, tires.. Should be good for mid-high 12s..

I would recommend a 4000, the difference is minimal for DD but the difference great at WOT.

thanx, i just wanted to add a cutout to my list but you beat me to it, thanx lemons

with those mods i was hoping i could keep up with an SRT8 dodge (charger, challenger...)
Thats what my dad is edging me onto, but i just cant pay all that paper for that lol

with those mods i was hoping i could keep up with an SRT8 dodge (charger, challenger...)
Thats what my dad is edging me onto, but i just cant pay all that paper for that lol

You would walk either one of those cars hard..

I was wondering if these mods would get me into 12's??????? 3.73 gears, Stall, catback, lid and thats it... Good enough??

12s for sure, assuming you plan on some decent tires, and there's nothing wrong with the trans or motor.

For referance, my '00 WS6 went a best of 12.69 with a lid, catback, 3500 stall, and BFG DRs. And that was with stock 3.23 gears too.

with those mods i was hoping i could keep up with an SRT8 dodge (charger, challenger...)

I haven't raced an SRT8 car, but my '02 Z28 (which is totally stock other than an air lid) has no problem destroying the 5.7 R/T Chargers. And my Z has 2.73 gears too.

verrryyy nice! im liking the outcomes. I will try to pick up a clean car, maybe even a vert if im lucky...

I think you will be in the 12s....I've run a best of 13.03 @ 107.77 w/o a stall or headers. I'm getting a pulley and a LS6 intake, which will put me in the 12s before the end of this season.

Just realize your gas mileage will suck unless the vertor is locked on the hiway........

By the way... i know this might be an age old question, but is 4000 stall good for daily driving? i mean, will the car really revv up to 4000 RPM to take off from a stop????

i think you need a tighter converter. meaning it takes more throttle to go higher rpm off the line. they say they know the stall is there but it isnt like its bad.

By the way... i know this might be an age old question, but is 4000 stall good for daily driving? i mean, will the car really revv up to 4000 RPM to take off from a stop????

No, I got a 4000 stall with bolt-ons, it's not that bad, but the gas mileage will suck around town.

I'd say 2-2.5k to get it going good. 3krpms if you are going up a steep incline.

Once it locks, there is no worries. My lock up is 50mph.

i wood go with a built 10 bolt, 4.10s, and 700r4 trans with mvb, and 4000 stall, lid, headders, electronic cutout, intake and tb, and some weight reduction....

i wood go with a built 10 bolt, 4.10s, and 700r4 trans with mvb, and 4000 stall, lid, headders, electronic cutout, intake and tb, and some weight reduction....

thanx, but the car would be smog legal and thus slow... dang CA
Pretty much will make it into a fun DD, that could handle a poser srt8's, ricers, and many poser dudes on 5, 3, series bmw's thinking their shit is fast lol (those people are worse than ricers to me)

i wood go with a built 10 bolt, 4.10s, and 700r4 trans with mvb, and 4000 stall, lid, headders, electronic cutout, intake and tb, and some weight reduction....

I would not recommend the 700R4, pointless conversion IMO. Either build the 4L60E when it breaks or convert to a TH350/400 if you want a manual valve body race trans. Anyway, the OP specifically said that he wanted to build a daily driver that would see a lot of traffic, so I'd never recommend a manual valve body for that application.

No point in "building" the 10 bolt. When it breaks, get a 12 bolt. And 4.10s + a 4000 stall are a bit much for lots of daily driving with an A4. 3.73 and a 3500-4000 stall would be a better choice.

Well, so far info gained: cutout, lid, 3.73's (or stock 3.23's), 3500 stall. Not bad.

Just gotta hope the tranny holds up...

might as well stick with the 3.23 and go with a 3200-3600 stall.
i'm also in ca, dealing with that crap...

biggest problem is tires/traction. i went with a 3600 stall and nitrous. the combination really wakes the car up.

your gas mileage will take a hit, especially where you're at with traffic and city driving. whenever guys tell you your gas mileage won't change much, consider they're probably living out in the sticks where 99.99999999999999994% of their driving is highway with the torque converter clutch locked. you'll be giving it a bit more gas than before to get it going, but you get used to it. i lost about 3-5mpg, but i can't keep my foot off the accelerator.

when you go up hills (mostly at slower speeds), people will think your clutch is slipping because they hear your RPMs are up, but you're not going anywhere. of course if you mash the throttle, you disappear quick.

LS1 convertible with a torque converter is a good thing. but if you plan on hanging with 12 second cars, better throw on a nitrous kit for any roll races you might have on the freeway (especially with the wind drag if the top is down).

I think you would be good but recommend a 3600 stall

might as well stick with the 3.23 and go with a 3200-3600 stall.
i'm also in ca, dealing with that crap...

biggest problem is tires/traction. i went with a 3600 stall and nitrous. the combination really wakes the car up.

your gas mileage will take a hit, especially where you're at with traffic and city driving. whenever guys tell you your gas mileage won't change much, consider they're probably living out in the sticks where 99.99999999999999994% of their driving is highway with the torque converter clutch locked. you'll be giving it a bit more gas than before to get it going, but you get used to it. i lost about 3-5mpg, but i can't keep my foot off the accelerator.

when you go up hills (mostly at slower speeds), people will think your clutch is slipping because they hear your RPMs are up, but you're not going anywhere. of course if you mash the throttle, you disappear quick.

LS1 convertible with a torque converter is a good thing. but if you plan on hanging with 12 second cars, better throw on a nitrous kit for any roll races you might have on the freeway (especially with the wind drag if the top is down).

hows the stock 460le in these cars? After how many miles i should be worried about tranny going out, assuming previous owner didnt beat on the car....????? And if it does go out, how much will i be looking into?

hows the stock 460le in these cars? After how many miles i should be worried about tranny going out, assuming previous owner didnt beat on the car....????? And if it does go out, how much will i be looking into?

An auto trans can go out at any time when you don't know the history of the car and how the previous owner treated it. But here's some guidelines:

Heat and high rpms are probably the most harmful things on a 4L60E (or really any) auto trans. Obviously, just plain old useage over 10s of thousands of miles will also wear it out, no matter how well it's been maintained. But if the previous owner had bumped the shift points way up for some reason, or lived in a hot climate and done most of their driving in stop and go city traffic without an aftermarket trans cooler (when trans fluid temps will get the highest), then it's not going to last as long either. Even under the best of conditions, when it comes to a 4L60E auto behind the power of even a stock LS1, pretty much anything past 130k miles is borrowed time.

An aftermarket trans cooler is a great way to extend trans life regardless of mod/power level, but if you get a stall I definitely recommend getting a cooler at the same time.

Replacement costs for a 4L60E can vary. Last time I replaced one was about 6 years ago, I went with the best possibile unit built at the time and it was about $2k.

By the way... i know this might be an age old question, but is 4000 stall good for daily driving? i mean, will the car really revv up to 4000 RPM to take off from a stop????

I have DD 4k converters for over the past 2 years... The last one was a VIG 4k (more like a 4400) and the current is a PTC 4000.. The VIG I had to give around 2300 RPMs for pickup and the PTC I have now I give around 2000 RPMs for pickup.. You could go with a 3500 but the pickup is still going to be around 1900-2000.. Not that much difference, but the difference at WOT will be great.

Well, so far info gained: cutout, lid, 3.73's (or stock 3.23's), 3500 stall. Not bad.

Just gotta hope the tranny holds up...

hows the stock 460le in these cars? After how many miles i should be worried about tranny going out, assuming previous owner didnt beat on the car....????? And if it does go out, how much will i be looking into?

I would do 3.42s and a 4000.. Might not be as ideal as 373s, But you will save some gas on the highway and they are cheaper.

I put my VIG 4k in my last trans am @ 100k miles.. It was a 98, also has MS4 PRCls6 heads ported FAST 9090 410s full bolt ons full exhaust etc etc etc.. Took everything out @ 116k miles after beating the shit out of it that whole time :lol:.. It never missed a beat.

You could put a 3200 in a 2002 w/ 35k miles and it could go the next week.

You just never know.

hows the stock 460le in these cars? After how many miles i should be worried about tranny going out, assuming previous owner didnt beat on the car....????? And if it does go out, how much will i be looking into?

the above posts pretty much sum up what to expect.
mine went out with not too many miles on it, but i had removed all torque management and was doing a few WOT runs to 150~mph allowing the stock transmission to shift from 3-4 at WOT :( the day it started to crap out on me. i fried my 3-4 clutch pack pretty good. i had a shop build it up for around $2k. i should have just purchased a built unit from a sponsor though. re-built tranny has been going through 30k miles of abuse now.

if you're going to drive the car hard and/or get a stall, its best to keep some money saved or at least a credit card open for emergency catastrophic failure.

I dont even think you'd need a stall and gears to get into the 12's ive got the below mods and I run a best of 13.064 @ 107.7 with a 2.0 60ft those runs were done with bald 245 tires with a babied launch and 2.73s. All the passes ive made are also within .2 and 2 mph of each other.

As for the life of the tranny, I bought the car with 54,000 and it has 62,000 now and I have no torque management( I know I know) and I have a big RV tranny cooler. Ive made probly 50+/- passes with no probs ive also done 130+ mph runs with no issues?

My car has a 3800 stall, cutout, mid length headers, and a hotcam (but it only makes 337 hp due to a horrible tune), and even on 235 street tires it ran an 8.2 1/8th mile, which should be an easy 12.xx 1/4. I think a good running stock motor with gears, a cutout, stall, and halfway decent tires should net you a 12 second timeslip easily.

My car has a 3800 stall, cutout, mid length headers, and a hotcam (but it only makes 337 hp due to a horrible tune), and even on 235 street tires it ran an 8.2 1/8th mile, which should be an easy 12.xx 1/4. I think a good running stock motor with gears, a cutout, stall, and halfway decent tires should net you a 12 second timeslip easily.

Wow sounds like you have a horrible set up...

Wow sounds like you have a horrible set up...

haha, yeah basically. I think even though the headers and cam aren't the greatest things in the world that they've got a lot more in them than 337 hp.

I bought the car exactly how it is now because it was so cheap, I didn't have the money to buy a car that's already done so I bought a pretty rough car and am building it up in stages.

First thing I'm doing is building up the drive train and suspension. 12-bolt spool and a full midwest chassis rear suspension kit are coming next week. Then I need adjustable drag shocks and springs, slicks/skinnies on some drag wheels, then I'm gonna tune it and see how it likes a 150 shot. And of course all the free mods/weight savings I can. Hoping for 10s by next racing season. (damn nebraska wintes)