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umm.... all the stuff that takes away wheel horse power ( automatic trans, torque converter um stuuf like that) keeping the automatic, is there a way to change that so it doesnt take away as much hp?????
u mean make the drivetrain more efficient? yeah, probably, waay too much work though. just switch to a manual tranny. more efficient, and less likely to wear down sinc ethere's less moving parts.
The main difference in loss between an auto and a manual is the fluid coupling from the torque converter (not as efficient as the direct mechanical coupling in a manual), and the fact that an auto is a heavier tranny with more inertial losses (while accelerating, more mass requires more energy to accelerate).
On other transmissions you can do valve body modifications to get quicker shifting, and put in different torque converters with higher stall speeds, but it's probably not worth it unless you're putting down some serious power. This is just general knowledge, though. Others here will be more familiar with this relative to Camry autos though.
Yup, you're best off converting to manual.
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Steve
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unfortunately not. If you insist on keeping your A/T, you might consider getting your torque convertor rebuilt to have it stall at a higher RPM thus putting the power to the pavement at the optimum time. You could also have more aggresive Raybestos friction plates put in complimented with a recalibration of your valvebody to increase fluid pressure.
All the above mentioned mods to the tranny will only make it stronger, not increase the amount of HP that gets to the wheels.
Furthermore, the cost makes a tranny swap more attractive and you'll acheive that goal of getting maximum pwr to the wheels. Or for a few more $$$ do engine work (ie. swap, turbo)
Originally posted by Adam what do you mean by having my torque convetor stall at higher rpms?
With your car at idle and in drive, take your left foot and put it VERY FIRMLY on the brake. Then take your right foot and give it some fairly hard throttle for just a second or two and make note of where the revs jump to on the tachometer.
Probably about 2000 rpm?
That's what's called the stall speed of the torque converter. It's the maximum RPM at which the engine can turn the torque converter without forward motion occuring in the transmission.
You can put different torque converters in that will allow more revs before forward motion. That will let the engine get to a point where it's producing more power before moving so that you can get a quicker takeoff. Sorta like slipping the clutch from 3000 rpm vs 2000rpm in a manual. Obviously you'll get a quicker takeoff with a 3000 rpm launch. You can only go so far before you start to lose streetability though.
Originally posted by SteVTEC With your car at idle and in drive, take your left foot and put it VERY FIRMLY on the brake. Then take your right foot and give it some fairly hard throttle for just a second or two and make note of where the revs jump to on the tachometer.
Probably about 2000 rpm?
That's what's called the stall speed of the torque converter.
That's called brake stall... sometimes this measurement is not the most correct way to check for true stall speed. The best method would be checking for your flash stall -- just observe your tachometer and mash your gas pedal from standstill. The RPM that the engine climbs up to before the car takes off is your flash stall. Most performance transmission shops would likely be more interested in your flash stall beacuse it is the most consistent.
__________________ * Goal for 2012 -- 200+ MPH in the Camry
Originally posted by Adam umm.... all the stuff that takes away wheel horse power ( automatic trans, torque converter um stuuf like that) keeping the automatic, is there a way to change that so it doesnt take away as much hp?????
If you want to put down the most power for a dyno pull, you can purchase an automatic transmission ECU controller that can allow your torque converter to fully lock-up during a dyno run.
__________________ * Goal for 2012 -- 200+ MPH in the Camry
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