A body with an A833 and a Gear Vendor installed

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fueliedart

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OK I really didn't want to go here but after asking about the Passon OD trans and his Hemi OD gear set I decided to ask about a GV install in an A body with an A833. There seems to be a lot of negativity around the Passon products and questionable customer service. The 5 speed is out. The OD hemi gear set is kind of a maybe. So now the GV. I have a 71 Dart with bucket seats that I want to run 71 up B body bucket seat pistol grip on ( I already have the shifter). I know if the Big Block Dart mod to run an E body trans with said home made bracket. Is anyone out there doing that ( hopefully with a GV unit)? How's it working out? Pictures? Any advise on avoiding complications? Do you like it? Would like to only stick to the 4speed aspect not get into automatic stuff. Will most likely run 3.55 's but haven't really thought about what diameter tire yet. Probably 16" tires with a decent height sidewall but not there yet.
 
Just to get this straight, - you're building a whole drive train around a B- body shifter including long tailshaft trans ?
 
I can't speak about the performance of the passion 5-speed but I do constantly see people complaining about having to wait months or years for their 5 speed to arrive from them. I have seen the gear vendors option for the a833 but at that price point, I am not sure if I would be more inclined to going with the gear vendors unit, or just getting the TKX as a 5-speed instead. There are many pros and cons to both I guess
I just do know that for my small block low power numbers, I definitely don't need a T56 and I would also like to avoid all the additional body work involved with that one as well.
 
I’m running a Gear Vendors unit behind an E body 4 speed in my 68 barracuda. My kit came with a shifter mechanism relocation plate to move the shifter mount from the E body to the original A body location. I ran the B body bench seat pistol grip on this set up initially but am now running the stock round hurst stick.

You can kinda see the shifter relocation plate in this pic.

IMG_3285.jpeg
 
Hey Fast, thanks for the info. Is there a reason you went back to the stock shifter? Did you have to cut the tunnel? Do you like the setup?
 
Some 4 speed install info.

Gear Vendor and 833

Here is the start of an install. It's an auto trans, but the install might give you some input.

68' Valiant 4 door
Thanks for the info. I know the earlier A bodies are a bit tighter on clearances and I don’t really want to cut or modify the tunnel extensively. So if I have to do a huge amount of modifying that will probably be a deal breaker. 71 Dart.
 
Hey Fast, thanks for the info. Is there a reason you went back to the stock shifter? Did you have to cut the tunnel? Do you like the setup?
I prefer the look of the round shift handle and ball in an a body.

No cuts at all in the tunnel. Just took a few good sized clearance dents in the driveshaft tunnel.

Best mod I have done so far. I run 3.91’s in the rear and with the OD on it cuts them down to about a 3.0. Makes cruising on the freeway much nicer!
 
Thanks, looks promising for what I want out of my car. So far that looks like the best way to go as far as an OD option.
 
FYI in early A body GV install required lots more then a few dents by a big hammer...LOTS
 
I'm in process with my build, so far customer service with GV has been excellent.
 
Ask me anything about installing or running the GVod.
I installed mine in 2004.
I would NOT say that is the greatest thing since sliced bread, but with a cammed-up SBM, it's close.
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Since I am a streeter, if I had to do it again;
I would just put a smaller cam in my 360, for a broader torque curve, and run the Mopar 3+1, with 3.23s. Then I would install a clutch with a decent slip from idle to ~2800, and flyweight/roller lock-up after that.
I'd have just as much fun without the preponderance of wheelspin.
Of course you know what that means? .......... wait for it .............. Thermoquad!
After all these years of running my 360, on the street, I have learned that anything over 350 hp, is, for the most part, overkill and/or for bragging rights.
Knowing what I now know,
I could be very happy with;
a detuned for torque340, and the A833od. or
A hi-compression 318 with a 5-speed like the AX15.
My dream would be a close ratio 4-speed automatic with a clutch pedal, and a deep overdrive, or a 5-speed auto with loc-up, and with a fake clutch pedal, lol..But really, I could br happy with two gears, then a deep oveedrive and a loc-up. Those other gears, for me, are just a way of going from 65@7000 in second, to 2200 in overdrive.
This is why, I could be happy with the 3+1 Mopar. It goes from Second to overdrive with a ratio of .44, yeah, imagine that.
3.09-1.67-1.00-.73. splits of .54-.60-.73; nice progressive ratios right? except you gotta granny shift into overdrive, else it blows up. Which wouldn't be the end of the world, if you could miraculously keep the flying bits out of the other gears. Which is why I glued magnets inside the case, all around that gear, in the Second box I built. It worked too, I drove it all the way home as a 3-speed.
But to continue; .73/1.67 skipping third is .437... and with 3.55s, Second Gear at 5000=68mph, and 5000 x .437= 2185rpm; let the clutch out gently.......... don't let the factory flywheel destroy that teeny tinny gear.

But I can talk A833/GVod all day.
 
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I'm not familiar with the GVod box but I've put long tailshaft 833 OD transmissions in a 1964 A body and a 1969 A body. I made a plate 3/8" thick that bolts to the rear shifter attachment bosses and welded threaded bosses where the A body transmission bosses would normally be. In the early A body I had to grind off the old shifter attachment bosses up near the main case and I modified the mount so it's about 3/8" lower to get it to fit in the crossmember. Don't remember having to make any mods on the later A body except the aforementioned homemade plate.
 
This seems like a real hodge-podge of an arrangement.
I have also been of the habit of trying to make something work that wasn't done before all in the interest of saving money.
Sometimes it works out, other times it is a complete mess that I've tried to make work.
Why not just default to a Tremec? The OD ratio of the Gear Vendors isn't great. The Tremec is a .68, an older TKO can be had with a .64.
Either way, you're looking at some floor pan modifications.
Is this a money issue? Maybe you're just one that likes to do it different?
It is great when one can find a lower cost way of doing something but a GV on a 4 speed manual seems convoluted and more complicated than an overdrive transmission swap. Imagine with the B trans and GV how short your drive line will be too.
 
Some people, not pointing the finger at Kern Dog above;
say that the .78od ratio of the GVod is "not that Great" or something to that effect..
Well, by the numbers, and compared to some other options, that is true.
But
For a street-driven car,
there is a clever way around that, which I have found, works exceptionally well, namely;
If you shift First>Third, then into Overdrive, and lastly into Fourth, you get a short fourth, and a deep Fifth.
Here are the standard A833 ratios, with the GV, and splits
2.66-1.92-1.40-1.00-.78od ---- .72-.73-.71-.78
and the way I used to shift mine
2.66-1.92-1.40-1.09-.78od ---- .72-.73-.78-.71
Notice the short-Fourth, and subsequent deeper Fifth.
My car
is geared with 3.55s to make 65=2240rpm.
This is about the lowest rpm that I can give her the cruise-timing that she wants/needs. and so,
this is the rpm at which , with the current cam, makes the best fuel-economy. If I run her faster or slower, the fuel-economy will be worse. So there I am, "stuck" at 2240. and That means,
if I had a deeper overdrive, it would just cost me fuel economy.
In other words, with 3.55s, the GVod has the perfect split/perfect final drive ratio.
However, the starter gear of 2.66 x 3.09= 8.22, is a little shy of a good-time at take-off, so then, I installed the Commando trans, with ratios of
3.09-1.92-1.40-1.00 and added the GV to that
3.09-1.92-1.40-1.00-78. and in reverse shift pattern this is
3.09-1.92-1.40-1.09-.78 with splits of .62-.73-.78-.71
You see that progression? That's about the perfect Street march.
Shifting at 6000, the rpm drops in each gear are; 2280/1620/1320/1740
The starter gear is now;
3.55 x 3.09= 10.97; which takes off like 10.97/2.66=4.12s
For the money spent, this is a very hard combo to beat, and she is a pleasure to drive.

But it doesn't stop there.

I sometimes use the GVod as a splitter, for Seven useable ratios. Two are very close so I use only one of them. At the track The first four, get me to a trapspeed of 93 in the Eighth@6170 rpm. The ratios and splits are:
3.09-2.41-1.92-1.50 --- .78-.80-.78
You see that progression? This is THE perfect Ratio-march, for the track, with a small engine like mine. The rpm drops are ~1320/1200/1320.
When I stick it into 4od at 93 mph, the rpm drops to 3210, which is to 52%
Back to street;
The above configuration allows me to better run on the fattest part of the camshaft's powerband, and not suffer the usual drivability issues of a having a pipey cam, AND, I still get a nice take-off, AND great fuel-economy for the combo, AND, with 3.55s in the back, versus hi-4s or even 5-series gears, the oil stays cool and the gears last forever, and the driveshaft rpm at cruising speed, doesn't excite the usual A-body pulsation..
Finally,
using the GVod as a splitter, you can engage it in any gear, and at full throttle, which makes it shift like an auto trans except faster and harder, on account of the modest rpm drop. Shifting at about peak power of ~5200, in my combo, after the shift, puts her at about 4000, near peak torque. Sometimes for max fun, I wind her up to 7000 bouncing off the rev-limiter in those first four ratios, and just keep her there to 105mph; then, off the throttle, and into the last gear she goes, pulling the tach down to 3650.
Without the GVod, and with 4.10s@105mph, the rpm would have been ~5360.
Since 2004
when I installed mine, I've never been sorry. IMO, you will not get this kind of versatility in any other 5-speed configuration.
Would I have been happier with a regular 5-speed? IDK, I never tried it. But I doubt it .........

The real point I'm trying to make here, is that the GVod is so much more than just a .78overdrive.
------------------------------------------------------------

and BTW
It works pretty good with an automatic too, maybe better. I would have been able to give you a definitive answer, but the GV folks would not sell me just a stand-alone adapter.
Nor would they rent me one, just to try it out.
Nor would they sell me the tools to take one apart to rebuild it. which I was really miffed about when I broke mine.
So there's that...............

Oh and one more thing.
I have a pretty torquey 360 that sounds real sweet as it runs thru 2800>3200. So lots of times, I just run it up normally into that zone in First gear, the split into First-over, then back into Second-direct, then third, then Third-over. This gets me to 65=3140, and finally, into Fourth-over she goes.
Now imagine if you will, that you are in a car behind me, keeping pace, and hearing those five short ~600rpm shifts, then 900 into cruise gear. I do this a lot, So much fun I am having.

BTW-2
The truth is;
had I not been been confident that I would be able to use the GVod as a splitter, I would never have bought it. I would have continued to use the A833od, and kept the 223 size of cam, for it's outstandingly broad powerband, which worked reasonably well with that trans.
 
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Some people, not pointing the finger at Kern Dog above;
say that the .78od ratio of the GVod is "not that Great" or something to that effect..
Well, by the numbers, and compared to some other options, that is true.
But
For a street-driven car,
there is a clever way around that, which I have found, works exceptionally well, namely;
If you shift First>Third, then into Overdrive, and lastly into Fourth, you get a short fourth, and a deep Fifth.
Here are the standard A833 ratios, with the GV, and splits
2.66-1.92-1.40-1.00-.78od ---- .72-.73-.71-.78
and the way I used to shift mine
2.66-1.92-1.40-1.09-.78od ---- .72-.73-.78-.71
Notice the short-Fourth, and subsequent deeper Fifth.
My car
is geared with 3.55s to make 65=2240rpm.
This is about the lowest rpm that I can give her the cruise-timing that she wants/needs. and so,
this is the rpm at which , with the current cam, makes the best fuel-economy. If I run her faster or slower, the fuel-economy will be worse. So there I am, "stuck" at 2240. and That means,
if I had a deeper overdrive, it would just cost me fuel economy.
In other words, with 3.55s, the GVod has the perfect split/perfect final drive ratio.
However, the starter gear of 2.66 x 3.09= 8.22, is a little shy of a good-time at take-off, so then, I installed the Commando trans, with ratios of
3.09-1.92-1.40-1.00 and added the GV to that
3.09-1.92-1.40-1.00-78. and in reverse shift pattern this is
3.09-1.92-1.40-1.09-.78 with splits of .62-.73-.78-.71
You see that progression? That's about the perfect Street march.
Shifting at 6000, the rpm drops in each gear are; 2280/1620/1320/1740
The starter gear is now;
3.55 x 3.09= 10.97; which takes off like 10.97/2.66=4.12s
For the money spent, this is a very hard combo to beat, and she is a pleasure to drive.

But it doesn't stop there.

I sometimes use the GVod as a splitter, for Seven useable ratios. Two are very close so I use only one of them. At the track The first four, get me to a trapspeed of 93 in the Eighth@6170 rpm. The ratios and splits are:
3.09-2.41-1.92-1.50 --- .78-.80-.78
You see that progression? This is THE perfect Ratio-march, for the track, with a small engine like mine. The rpm drops are ~1320/1200/1320.
When I stick it into 4od at 93 mph, the rpm drops to 3210, which is to 52%
Back to street;
The above configuration allows me to better run on the fattest part of the camshaft's powerband, and not suffer the usual drivability issues of a having a pipey cam, AND, I still get a nice take-off, AND great fuel-economy for the combo, AND, with 3.55s in the back, versus hi-4s or even 5-series gears, the oil stays cool and the gears last forever, and the driveshaft rpm at cruising speed, doesn't excite the usual A-body pulsation..
Finally,
using the GVod as a splitter, you can engage it in any gear, and at full throttle, which makes it shift like an auto trans except faster and harder, on account of the modest rpm drop. Shifting at about peak power of ~5200, in my combo, after the shift, puts her at about 4000, near peak torque. Sometimes for max fun, I wind her up to 7000 bouncing off the rev-limiter in those first four ratios, and just keep her there to 105mph; then, off the throttle, and into the last gear she goes, pulling the tach down to 3650.
Without the GVod, and with 4.10s@105mph, the rpm would have been ~5360.
Since 2004
when I installed mine, I've never been sorry. IMO, you will not get this kind of versatility in any other 5-speed configuration.
Would I have been happier with a regular 5-speed? IDK, I never tried it. But I doubt it .........

The real point I'm trying to make here, is that the GVod is so much more than just a .78overdrive.
------------------------------------------------------------

and BTW
It works pretty good with an automatic too, maybe better. I would have been able to give you a definitive answer, but the GV folks would not sell me just a stand-alone adapter.
Nor would they rent me one, just to try it out.
Nor would they sell me the tools to take one apart to rebuild it. which I was really miffed about when I broke mine.
So there's that...............

Oh and one more thing.
I have a pretty torquey 360 that sounds real sweet as it runs thru 2800>3200. So lots of times, I just run it up normally into that zone in First gear, the split into First-over, then back into Second-direct, then third, then Third-over. This gets me to 65=3140, and finally, into Fourth-over she goes.
Now imagine if you will, that you are in a car behind me, keeping pace, and hearing those five short ~600rpm shifts, then 900 into cruise gear. I do this a lot, So much fun I am having.

BTW-2
The truth is;
had I not been been confident that I would be able to use the GVod as a splitter, I would never have bought it. I would have continued to use the A833od, and kept the 223 size of cam, for it's outstandingly broad powerband, which worked reasonably well with that trans.
So how does that work with the GV. Do you have a button on the shifter or is there some sort of programmable computer that comes with it? Seems like if you use a button that it would take a fair amount of practice to get used to getting the GV to do what you want. How much tunnel mods do you have to do to get the GV in and at the same time getting the correct driveshaft angle?
 
So how does that work with the GV. Do you have a button on the shifter or is there some sort of programmable computer that comes with it? Seems like if you use a button that it would take a fair amount of practice to get used to getting the GV to do what you want. How much tunnel mods do you have to do to get the GV in and at the same time getting the correct driveshaft angle?
Yes the GV comes with a stand-alone module that has two functions, and an on/off switch.
1) when you select od by the switch, the ecu modulates the apply-signal, to gently engage the overdrive clutch. and
2) it prevents od from being engaged in reverse, which just about instantly breaks the unit.

To use the GV as a splitter, I had to bypass the ECU.
As soon as I did that, I discovered that the thing shifts like lightning. However, there is an annoying time-delay, between when exactly I punch the button and when the shift occurs.
I assume this is caused by the pump coming up to pressure.
The pump is driven by the driveshaft.
The pump is powered by the spinning driveshaft.
The unit does not seem to be able to store pressure, or at least not enough to stay engaged during a stoplight. The unit seems to have an internal leak, probably by design, I don't know.
It is IMO, that it is these things together, conspire to create the time delay.
Once overdrive is selected, it never disengages unless you come to a stop, and stay stopped for some period of time, and I'm guessing about 30 seconds.
The faster the driveshaft spins, up to a point, the quicker it is ready to shift.
With 3.55s the delay is noticeable.
With 4.88s it was hardly noticeable.
Once the unit decides to shift, it is pretty much instant, and at WOT will bark the tires at 80mph. At 50/55 it will initiate tirespin at WOT.
The delay, changes with roadspeed.
The delay I'm guessing is never more than a half a second at low driveshaft rpm, and diminishes to almost nothing at say 80 mph. But it's never instant. So then, if you were trying to have a consistent shift at the racetrack, a data-logger could measure the delay.

Speaking of backshifting
When you outshift the GV, the power needs to be interrupted, so as not to break it. I have a clutch, so when I am outshifting, at the track, I have to co-ordinate the time delay to the clutch. That is to say; I hit disengage, wait a tiny bit of time, stab the clutch, and Pow! she outshifts. This, to me is natural. I used to treat it as a normal shift. But as time went on, I figured out that I could cheat quite a bit. So I sped it up into fast-motion, and also figured out over time, that the clutch did not have to be completely disengaged.

To help me with the Reverse issue, (cuz I forgot one time which cost me $1500 plus shipping to get fixed), I installed a red LED on my tach, to indicate when the unit is on; and then trained myself to diligently look at the tach before every shift.

Now, when selecting od at cruising speed, because the unit now shifts so hard, I treat it as another shift, and just stab the clutch.

and so, yes, it takes a bit of practice, but, in the description above, I think I may have exaggerated the pitfalls somewhat because, as a streeter, running street gears, and the standard Not-Commando-A833 , there is no point in splitting any gears, because there is only at best, a 7% difference, which at 5500 is like 385rpm.
If you do have a Commando or an A833od, wekk then, you are only gonna split the 1>2 shift, cuz second with 3.55s tops out around 65mph which is why I'm running those 3.55s in the first place, lol.
And so, I suggest to the Newbe, to run a Second switch to return the ECU into circuit, for most driving, cuz it will automatically soften the engagement into od at cruising speed.

As to driveshaft angle, With factory springs, you'll never get it exactly right.
The driveshaft is so short, that the Angle Change from WOT at 430hp, to cruising at 50hp, is like more than 7 degrees. and hitting the middle is the best that you can hope for.
I almost got it right the first time, but with my car lowered, she needed another 2-degrees, by shims, to make it as good as it gets. I can still occasionally feel it, but I gotta concentrate.
For me, I knew all this going in, so working out the bugs was just wrenching.

As to installation;
Honestly, fitting the unit into my car was almost a breeze.
I did this job on a 4-post hoist with traveling jacks.
So the first thing to do was to fit the B/E adapter they sent. Which required one of the Front shifter bosses to be ground/cut right off and another to be trimmed(IIRC).
After that, I bolted the unit on, and
with the traveler-jack, I lifted under it, hard enough to imprint the tunnel where the interference occurred. Then I dropped the unit, and massaged the tunnel in those places. Then remounted the unit, and repeated , and so on until no more massaging was required. I think this took three installs. So next was fitting the Cross-member. With the unit jammed into the tunnel,I could see that the early style one was gonna be a PITA, so I went to my shed and got a spool mount.
This allowed dropping the spool, be elongating the mounting slots. And so the unit was almost ready to mount. The unit was jammed into the tunnel, so to get some clearance, I slotted out the X-member mounting bolts roughly a quarter inch. Then I installed the bolts, and dropped the unit down, then installed the nuts. It was in.

Next was the Speed-O. The factory drive in the A833 is not used, You now take driveshaft rpm off the GV. The unit comes with all the parts to hook it to your cable. But, if you change the rear gears, you will need Chevy gears. And when the Chevy gears run out cuz you just installed 4.88s, well you'll need a cable doubler to get back into a normal operating range, and then, another Chevy gear..... I now have, a box full of Chevy gears lol.

Ok so, there you go


Btw,

I never liked the forward-mounted stock shifter location. I understand that with a bench seat, you are sorta married to it. But I have buckets.
So taking a lesson from the Dodge Viper, I moved my Short Stick shifter way back between the buckets, and right next to my hip, and raised it high enough so that the top shifter mounting bolt goes in from inside the cabin.
Then fabricated some large-tube shift rods, and loc-tited the shift levers to the studs. Since 2005, I can't remember ever miss-shifting again.
I mounted the Radio-shack mini-switch OD button in the shift-ball at the top, where my thumb never hits it. The Line-loc is on the handle, just below it.
I installed the late-style shift-cover, cuz the scissor-style detents require a commitment to shift, and they never accidently jump out of gear, with my hand resting on the ball.
 
Installed a GV in 2009 when this Hemi Duster was built. I would do it again, a simple toggle on the right front of the bucket seat brackets engages the overdrive for highway (over 55mph) driving.

29.75" tall rear tires / 4:30 gear / 2450 rpm @ 65mph....the sweat spot. The split shifting isn't for me, but the OD goes good with power steering and A/C.

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Installed a GV in 2009 when this Hemi Duster was built. I would do it again, a simple toggle on the right front of the bucket seat brackets engages the overdrive for highway (over 55mph) driving.

29.75" tall rear tires / 4:30 gear / 2450 rpm @ 65mph....the sweat spot. The split shifting isn't for me, but the OD goes good with power steering and A/C.

View attachment 1716243048

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I tend to agree with you H D that I would be happy with just using the GV as an OD only. I just don't know that I would really need to use it as a splitter, that was actually the premise of me actually only wanting a 5 speed or the replacement 18 spline gearset in my original thoughts on which direction to go. As I said earlier I would have been more than willing to do the A855 if I hadn't heard all the "bad press" about it. The 18 spline gearset would probably suit my needs for a nice cruiser. I just want a reliable car that I can drive anywhere with minimal mods. I must say that I have gotten alot of great info from about all the possibilities from 5 speeds and OD 4 speeds to the GV units and how they can be used. Right now I am favoring the 18 spline OD gearset just from a simplicity point of view. BTW. Super nice Duster. Always loved how they looked with the shark tooth grill.
 
Yes the GV comes with a stand-alone module that has two functions, and an on/off switch.
1) when you select od by the switch, the ecu modulates the apply-signal, to gently engage the overdrive clutch. and
2) it prevents od from being engaged in reverse, which just about instantly breaks the unit.

To use the GV as a splitter, I had to bypass the ECU.
As soon as I did that, I discovered that the thing shifts like lightning. However, there is an annoying time-delay, between when exactly I punch the button and when the shift occurs.
I assume this is caused by the pump coming up to pressure.
The pump is driven by the driveshaft.
The pump is powered by the spinning driveshaft.
The unit does not seem to be able to store pressure, or at least not enough to stay engaged during a stoplight. The unit seems to have an internal leak, probably by design, I don't know.
It is IMO, that it is these things together, conspire to create the time delay.
Once overdrive is selected, it never disengages unless you come to a stop, and stay stopped for some period of time, and I'm guessing about 30 seconds.
The faster the driveshaft spins, up to a point, the quicker it is ready to shift.
With 3.55s the delay is noticeable.
With 4.88s it was hardly noticeable.
Once the unit decides to shift, it is pretty much instant, and at WOT will bark the tires at 80mph. At 50/55 it will initiate tirespin at WOT.
The delay, changes with roadspeed.
The delay I'm guessing is never more than a half a second at low driveshaft rpm, and diminishes to almost nothing at say 80 mph. But it's never instant. So then, if you were trying to have a consistent shift at the racetrack, a data-logger could measure the delay.

Speaking of backshifting
When you outshift the GV, the power needs to be interrupted, so as not to break it. I have a clutch, so when I am outshifting, at the track, I have to co-ordinate the time delay to the clutch. That is to say; I hit disengage, wait a tiny bit of time, stab the clutch, and Pow! she outshifts. This, to me is natural. I used to treat it as a normal shift. But as time went on, I figured out that I could cheat quite a bit. So I sped it up into fast-motion, and also figured out over time, that the clutch did not have to be completely disengaged.

To help me with the Reverse issue, (cuz I forgot one time which cost me $1500 plus shipping to get fixed), I installed a red LED on my tach, to indicate when the unit is on; and then trained myself to diligently look at the tach before every shift.

Now, when selecting od at cruising speed, because the unit now shifts so hard, I treat it as another shift, and just stab the clutch.

and so, yes, it takes a bit of practice, but, in the description above, I think I may have exaggerated the pitfalls somewhat because, as a streeter, running street gears, and the standard Not-Commando-A833 , there is no point in splitting any gears, because there is only at best, a 7% difference, which at 5500 is like 385rpm.
If you do have a Commando or an A833od, wekk then, you are only gonna split the 1>2 shift, cuz second with 3.55s tops out around 65mph which is why I'm running those 3.55s in the first place, lol.
And so, I suggest to the Newbe, to run a Second switch to return the ECU into circuit, for most driving, cuz it will automatically soften the engagement into od at cruising speed.

As to driveshaft angle, With factory springs, you'll never get it exactly right.
The driveshaft is so short, that the Angle Change from WOT at 430hp, to cruising at 50hp, is like more than 7 degrees. and hitting the middle is the best that you can hope for.
I almost got it right the first time, but with my car lowered, she needed another 2-degrees, by shims, to make it as good as it gets. I can still occasionally feel it, but I gotta concentrate.
For me, I knew all this going in, so working out the bugs was just wrenching.

As to installation;
Honestly, fitting the unit into my car was almost a breeze.
I did this job on a 4-post hoist with traveling jacks.
So the first thing to do was to fit the B/E adapter they sent. Which required one of the Front shifter bosses to be ground/cut right off and another to be trimmed(IIRC).
After that, I bolted the unit on, and
with the traveler-jack, I lifted under it, hard enough to imprint the tunnel where the interference occurred. Then I dropped the unit, and massaged the tunnel in those places. Then remounted the unit, and repeated , and so on until no more massaging was required. I think this took three installs. So next was fitting the Cross-member. With the unit jammed into the tunnel,I could see that the early style one was gonna be a PITA, so I went to my shed and got a spool mount.
This allowed dropping the spool, be elongating the mounting slots. And so the unit was almost ready to mount. The unit was jammed into the tunnel, so to get some clearance, I slotted out the X-member mounting bolts roughly a quarter inch. Then I installed the bolts, and dropped the unit down, then installed the nuts. It was in.

Next was the Speed-O. The factory drive in the A833 is not used, You now take driveshaft rpm off the GV. The unit comes with all the parts to hook it to your cable. But, if you change the rear gears, you will need Chevy gears. And when the Chevy gears run out cuz you just installed 4.88s, well you'll need a cable doubler to get back into a normal operating range, and then, another Chevy gear..... I now have, a box full of Chevy gears lol.

Ok so, there you go


Btw,

I never liked the forward-mounted stock shifter location. I understand that with a bench seat, you are sorta married to it. But I have buckets.
So taking a lesson from the Dodge Viper, I moved my Short Stick shifter way back between the buckets, and right next to my hip, and raised it high enough so that the top shifter mounting bolt goes in from inside the cabin.
Then fabricated some large-tube shift rods, and loc-tited the shift levers to the studs. Since 2005, I can't remember ever miss-shifting again.
I mounted the Radio-shack mini-switch OD button in the shift-ball at the top, where my thumb never hits it. The Line-loc is on the handle, just below it.
I installed the late-style shift-cover, cuz the scissor-style detents require a commitment to shift, and they never accidently jump out of gear, with my hand resting on the ball.
That was some super great info. Right now I am think I will look at the GV as plan B. I will probably do a factory OD unit first. If I can't live with it I will probably go with the 18 spine OD gearset next. If I can't live with that I will probably go the GV route.
 
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