[burch]

Hi everyone,

I'm in the process of installing a Tremec TKO-600 transmission into my '69 Firebird. It's a 5-speed manual transmission, factory rated for 600ft/lbs of torque, and is basically an evolution of the Tremec 3550 line, which was itself an evolution of the Ford Toploader.

Externally the transmission is pretty small, and fits into the transmission tunnel without any modifications:









In the picture above you can see the hole for the automatic transmission cable. More on the floor pan modification later.

The new TKOs also have the provision for THREE different shifter locations. In the picture below the shifter is mounted in the '69 Firebird location:



Several different versions are available, and Tremec splits them into "GM" versions and "Ford" versions. All TKO600's have a 26-spline input shaft:



In addition, these transmissions have both mechanical and electronic speedometer outputs. Fortes Parts Connection (the place I bought my transmission) offers a GM speedometer adapter and will set it up with the correct speedo gears for your rear axle/tire combination.

[burch]

Hi everyone,

I'm in the process of installing a Tremec TKO-600 transmission into my '69 Firebird. It's a 5-speed manual transmission, factory rated for 600ft/lbs of torque, and is basically an evolution of the Tremec 3550 line, which was itself an evolution of the Ford Toploader.

Externally the transmission is pretty small, and fits into the transmission tunnel without any modifications:









In the picture above you can see the hole for the automatic transmission cable. More on the floor pan modification later.

The new TKOs also have the provision for THREE different shifter locations. In the picture below the shifter is mounted in the '69 Firebird location:



Several different versions are available, and Tremec splits them into "GM" versions and "Ford" versions. All TKO600's have a 26-spline input shaft:



In addition, these transmissions have both mechanical and electronic speedometer outputs. Fortes Parts Connection (the place I bought my transmission) offers a GM speedometer adapter and will set it up with the correct speedo gears for your rear axle/tire combination.

[burch]

Transmission crossmember!

I modified my TH-400 transmission crossmember to work with the TKO600. The modification was fairly simple if you have any metal fab experience at all. If you don't, www.classic5speedchevy.com sells a bolt-in crossmember.

Marking for modification:





Actual modification. I cut the "ear" off, flipped it over, and recessed it into the crossmember to achieve the correct height:





The large cutout on the bottom is required for clearance to get to the bottom bolts on the transmission mount:



I then boxed everything in and welded it up:







Pictures of it painted and holding up the transmission:

[burch]

The next step was to cut the hole in the floor for the manual shifter. I purchased a manual transmission console from Frank's Pontiac Parts (he's 5 minutes from my house!), and used it as a template to get a rough location for the hole.

I then proceeded to cut the hole out with a pair of tin snips. This was actually pretty easy, and gave a much better result than the factory hole, which was torch cut.



The new hole overlapped slightly with the hole that the automatic shifter cable previously passed through, so I made a small patch panel and welded it into place. I also welded up and ground flat the screw holes left over from removing the automatic shifter cable boot.

In the picture below I've overlaid the cardboard template I made for the patch so you can get an idea of where the overlap was:



This picture shows that the Tremec shifter location is very close to perfectly placed:



It's worth mentioning that I slid the hole slightly forward (maybe 1/2") from the "ideal" location I got by tracing the console. If there are any clearance problems it will be with the upper shifter hitting the front of the hole in the console, so I'm planning ahead in case I need to shift the console forward slightly. (I don't have the upper shifter yet so I can't tell for sure if it will hit the console).

[burch]

I also purchased and installed a set of factory 4-speed pedals from Frank:





Included with the pedals was a complete (and I mean complete) mechanical clutch linkage, but the z-bar interferes with my Summit mini-starter so I'm going to be using a Keisler hydraulic clutch actuator (as soon as it shows up anyway).

The bellhousing is a McLeod SFI approved unit. It weighs 44lbs!



Clutch will be a McLeod single disc 12" dual friction, and the flywheel will be an aluminum McLeod modified for the 12" clutch.

[Hammered]

Jon,

Thanks for the install pics! If all goes as planned, my TKO 600 will be installed before the end of Nov.

Have you gotten the clutch linkage to work with the McLeod bell housing? If so, was any trimming necessary?

John

[burch]

The factory z-bar clutch linkage should work with this bellhousing without modifications.

The hydraulic setup is still "in the mail", but it uses a hydraulic throwout bearing (rather than a slave cylinder) so it shouldn't have any bellhousing issues. There is some sort of modification required to the input bearing retainer however. Keisler sold me a new bearing retainer as part of the package.

[Hammered]

Jon,

I have a McLeod Street Twin and SFI flywheel on their way to me. I also bought a Keisler kit - ETA 6 Nov. I've heard that their are z-bar and exhaust clearance problems with the blowproof bellhousings so am waiting until I've got everything together to decide if one is practical.

I look forward to hearing the conclusion of your TKO swap.

John

[quicksilver97ta]

Very nice, great pics. Keep us informed on your progress.

[Bob25]

Please keep us up to date on the install. Forte's is an excellent place to deal with. I was buying from them 23+ years ago when he was working out oa garage in the back of his house.

I can't wait to see the final results,

Bob

[burch]

Not much to update on.. I've been waiting for parts mainly.

The upper shifter did arrive today, and I test fit it. The shifter comes out a little bit forward and to the right of the factory location, but clears the console just fine:





I'm really pleased with the shifter location. It's a very natural distance from the steering wheel.

My new driveshaft came today too, but it's too long. I haven't decided yet if it's my fault or the driveshaft company's. I'll call them tomorrow and see if we can figure out what's wrong with it.

I'm still waiting on the clutch linkage (although it has supposedly shipped), and McLeod has totally dropped the ball on the flywheel and clutch. Hopefully I'll find out what's going on with the McLeod situation tomorrow.

[burch]

I received the hydraulic clutch setup from Keisler Saturday.

Overall it's a very complete kit with quality components.

Clutch master cylinder & reservoir:



Closeup of the clutch master (it's made by CNC here in San Diego):



The hydraulic throwout bearing and modified input bearing retainer for the transmission:



After I got everything installed, I realized that the clutch pedal couldn't travel far enough to trigger the neutral safety switch. I'm not sure if this is something everyone would encounter or if my neutral safety switch was missing some component, but here's how I fixed it.

First, I ground the riveted end off the stock pin and drove it out of the switch:



I then machined a "roller" out of 1" diameter Delrin, and a bushing out of aluminum. The bolt/nut lock down on the bushing so the roller is free to rotate:



The finished product:



And the view under the dash:



It's worth mentioning that getting the bolt through the heim joint and the clutch pedal was an enormous pain in the ass. I ended up locking the heim down at the correct length, then unbolting the master cylinder so I could get the bolt through everything (it hits the brake light switch bracket in the "full up" position while you're trying to put it in).

[ponjohn]

Jon- I'm surprised your going to a stick after the car ran so well earlier in the year?

Your doing a great job. Wish I could weld.

John

[burch]

I've been wanting to change over to a manual trans for years but have held off because there weren't a lot of choices in the 600+ ft/lb torque-carrying capacity range.

When I found out about the TKO600 I figured it was time to give it a shot. I've been doing some open track (road racing) events and the manual transmission is an obvious advantage there.

The swap has turned out to be quite a bit more involved than I thought it would be. The world of manual transmissions has given me a new appreciation of the simplicity of my automatic.

My (ongoing) plan is to upgrade the rearend to an aftermarket Ford 9" sometime in the beginning of next year and try to make it to the Pontiac Heaven drag event. I'll be doing road race type events for the rest of the year and the 10-bolt should hold up fine.

At the dragstrip (assuming I can shift cleanly/fast enough) this transmission might actually make me a little faster. The weight difference is negligable (unfortunately), but the gearing advantage in 1st should make a difference (the car really wanted more gear with the automatic). I'll probably also step up to a 3.73 or 3.90-ish gear when I swap the rearend which will help even more.

[ponjohn]

Jon- had you ever considered a Jerico?

John

[tom s]

Jon,the problem I find with my TKO is the 2nd to 3rd shift when power shifting.If you push a little too hard you get the "taint",taint 3rd and tain5th!Real pisser when you miss a gear!Make sure you have the rev limiter set.I have been bugging the aftermarket trans guys for a 5th-rev lockout for drag racing.FYI,Tom

[tom s]

If you are serious about racing the man. trans I would look at the Jerico also,especially the clutchless.Tom

[burch]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by ponjohn:
Jon- had you ever considered a Jerico?
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Sure, but based on the limited information I could find on them they cost between $5-6000 (and up!) vs the $1800 for the TKO. Same thing with the g-force units.

Remember guys, this isn't an all-out balls-to-the-wall racecar--it's more of an all purpose limited use street car, that goes to the race track fairly regularly.

tom,

My TKO600 has a 5th-reverse lockout that's really quite slick. Basically you have to return the shifter to the "home" position before it'll let you into reverse.

I've got a rev limiter too and I'm all too familiar with missing that damned 2-3 shift.

[Mr_GTO]

Jon, damn, you bought the tranny from people near me. I also started a GP thread in the STREET section. Sorry.

HOw is the clutch as set up with the hydrualics? Hard to do? Shift OK? What kind of clutch is in it?

Thanks. Great work!

[burch]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Mr_GTO:
HOw is the clutch as set up with the hydrualics? Hard to do? Shift OK? What kind of clutch is in it? <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

The install of the hydraulic clutch setup so far hasn't been horribly difficult. The only major pain was bending the brake light switch bracket out of the way slightly and figuring out how to get the thing bolted to the clutch pedal, all while hanging upside down from the roll bar hoop under the dash.

The rest of the process just involves swapping the front bearing retainer on the transmission (which I'll do as soon as I pick up some anerobic gasket sealer), bolting the throwout bearing to the transmission, and running the braided line from the clutch master cylinder to the throwout bearing, so hopefully there isn't too much left for me to screw up.

The clutch is going to be a 12" McLeod unit, but it hasn't arrived yet so I can't tell you how it works. Choosing the clutch was a major hassle and getting the darned thing has proven to be even more difficult. Other options considered were the McLeod twin-disc setup and a Centerforce dual friction.

I was leary of the twin-disc setup because it is likely that it wouldn't have worked with the hydraulic throwout bearing (the twindisc is obviously much "deeper" than a normal clutch). Ultimately I went with the McLeod because I could get it in 12" (required a custom flywheel however) vs 11" for the Centerforce. It may end up being marginal for my power level, but the only way to find out is by experimentation.

I'm HOPING that I won't end up with any clearance problems between the hydraulic setup and the clutch. I've already run into a bunch of PITA issues, like indexing the bellhousing, finding an appropriate adapter ring for the snout of the transmission, etc.. so I'm not holding my breath.

As an example it took me the better part of Saturday to get the damned stock dowel pins out of the block and the holes drilled/tapped for the setscrews for the Tavia offset pins I'm using, including hours of sanding and test fitting the stupid dowel pins for the proper clearance. I finally broke down and just chucked them up in my drill press and held a piece of emery cloth against them, but I still need to actually index the bellhousing, which is sure to be hours and hours of "fun".