upgrade 3550 to 600 specs

[vector1]

i have a 3550 with 10 spline ford input shaft and am thinking about upgrading to tko 600 specs. i believe the shift forks are cast steel and i would like the 26 spline input but keep the 3550 output.

is this doable by a do-it-yourselfer or maybe a pro?

[Cobra 29]

But you need to be comfortable with transmission / clutch work. I did the same conversion four months ago. I purchased the TKO600 transmission from Jimi at Standard Transmission. He is a great resource. I purchased a new clutch disk (needed for the 26 splines), re-used my existing FMS / Centerforce pressure plate. The great news is that the TKO600 will bolt exactly in the same position / mounts as the 3550, and you can get more usable first and fifth gears!

[vector1]

alright, i just talked to a local fella. he said the 3550 case cannot be upgraded to the 600. gear spacing is different, 600 gears are bigger, etc. bellhousing clutch setup can be the same if spline count is consistent. output shaft of course is different.

jfyi

[Cobra 29]

I thought you were asking about swapping transmissions. I would - I did and the result is worth it!

[Dwight]

I think the TKO 500 is a easy swap. Same clutch and yoke. The 600 has a different 1 st gear (2.87 vs the 500 with a 3.27) and uses a different clutch and yoke. The 3550 is strong enough for a 500 or 600 hp Cobra motor because the rear tire breaks loose first. Don't buy a new trannie because it stronger. You will just waste your money. Now if you have 600 - 700 hp and drag race, well thats different.
I had a T-5, sold and bought a TKO, sold and bought a TKO 600 to get the 2.87 1st gear to go with my 25" rear tires. LOOOOOTS of $$$$$$$$$ But I'm Happy now!
Dwight

[vector1]

"I thought you were asking about swapping transmissions. I would - I did and the result is worth it!"

so cobra 29, what difference could you tell besides the gear changes?

well dwight, i had a 3550 and was going to a t5 to save 30#'s, but am now getting cold feet. i'm building a motor that should be close to 500 lbs tq at least and the jbl has lots of rear tire 335/35/17 and lots of weight transfer so i don't think the rear tires breaking loose is going to play into this too much. you're running a 5.0 with the 600? hmmm, i don't think that one will break.

i suppose autocross would be hard on the tranny's using one gear with the loading and unloading. anyway,the debate goes on.

thanks for the input.

[RICK LAKE]

vector1 If you have a chance, look into the new richmond 5 spd super street. The trans is spec for 600ft of torque and HP. It has a 2.89 or 7 first gear with and .77 overdrive. This will give you the best of both worlds. you can mount the orginial shifter of the cobra on this trans. I also think that the richmond is stronger. It comes with the GM input and turbo 400 output shaft. The only thing you need to check is the input shaft length. Depending on the bell housing, you may need to cut .300" off the front of the input. If you don't it will per wearout your thrust bearing and wreck your motor. I have a richmond 6spd in my car but not for racing. It's only good for 450hp and torque. My race trans, G-Force 5 spd, thats another story. IMO I would sell the 600 and get a new Richmond, what's the price differents? The new trans has all the updates over the old 5 spd trans plus bigger gears for load. Good luck Rick L.

[vector1]

thanks rick, what's the story on your g-force?

[RICK LAKE]

vector1 The other story is a use the G-force for autocross and road racing. It's a clutchless 5 spd with custom gear ratio. The price was $6,200.00 with shifter from Long. Trans is bullet proof. Good for 1,000 HP and ft of tork. It's a race trans. I use it only at the track. I am very happy with it and the years of service,6 and have had not problems except for the DUMB driver, man handling the shifter and going for 5th to 2nd gear at 130mph. The problem is fixed with a second set of springs for the shifter assembly to make the chance of going from 5th to 2nd alot less possible. I run 3.31 gears in my car and the autocross events I am only using 2nd gear from start to finish. 335/17 pilot tires on the back. I am going to put the 6spd in my 79 TA and get either the T-56 trans I have redone with an update for alot more power or get the new 5spd superduty trans. I like the 4+1 overdrive setup, It's about the same as my 6spd with one less gear. What ever gearing you are running unless you are in parades, you don't need anything higher than a 3.00 first gear in the trans unless you are running a 3.00 in the rearend. Rick L. Hope this helps for info

[vector1]

oooh, that g-force. i was thinking t5. thanks for the input. you must have a pretty good motor to go from 5th to 2nd. i don't think i'll try that downshift.