need some transmission advice on a chevy

[hedz]

i have a 79 monte carlo i must sell immediatly. i have to get a vehicle that gets better mpg and i need to sell this one asap to make that happen.

the problem is i can't get the price i need unless i fix the transmission. it has a bad th200 aka metric200 transmission. it lost reverse and 3rd and the 1st and 2nd clutches will toast shortly after. i'm not going to rebuild the original myself. i know that it would be a heck of alot cheaper to just rebuild it myself to save some money and to get the car out the door to a buyer. but i can't. i know myself and i've tackled engine rebuilds and all sorts of other rebuilds but i know i can't handle a automatic transmission. i have to spend the least amount of money possible to get the car driveable.

so which route do i go to get a functioning 3 speed automatic in the car and get it out the door for the cheapest price possible.

I have a turbo 350 shift kit brand new lying around.

so do i pay a transmission shop to -

a. put a basic turbo 350 in there and install the shift kit?

b. rebuild the th200?

c. should i come up with a rebuilt transmission myself through another company and then pay a local shop to install it?

for those of you that don't know much about chevrolets or this particular car, a turbo 350 is a exact swap for a th200 - all the linkage bolts right up

[Donnie]

The CHEAPEST way would be to buy a junk yard trans either a 200 or a 350...& BE SURE TO GET ]THE SELLING JUNK YARD TO INSTALL IT FOR YOU> This way, if they install it they are likely to sell you one that works..........Donnie

[HIO Silver]

Chevy? Push it into a river.

[hedz]

The CHEAPEST way would be to buy a junk yard trans either a 200 or a 350...& BE SURE TO GET ]THE SELLING JUNK YARD TO INSTALL IT FOR YOU> This way, if they install it they are likely to sell you one that works..........Donnie

good suggestion. i started thinking along these lines. i found a turbo 350 that's powder coated orange and supposedly has a b&m shift kit in it for $150. i'm going to pick it up wednsday. hopefully it works. i'm installing it over the weekend. i think i'll need to change the pan seal, the "shaft seal"? and the pump seal since it's been sitting up. i know nothing about transmissions. i installed a shift kit on a 350 a long time ago and have done several pan changes on a 350 but that is the extent of my experience. this will be my first transmission swap. if the seller has any salt the transmission hasn't been used. i'll keep yall posted.

i figure if this transmission ends up being a bad apple atleast i can say i have a orange powder coated turbo 350

and if i had to drive the monte carlo or my ford in a river, i'd have to go with the ford. i have far more money in it and it's still worth half the value of the monte. so sad, but if faced with a decision that would end in the best value left in the coffers, the ford would have to go in a river. i like the ford more, but facts are facts.

should i run to pull a part and get a caddy oil cooler for cheap for this transmission? i used to have some spares before i started moving around and i remember using some on my past classics. i think it's a crime to use the oil coolers built into the radiators. it's been proven time and time again they suck(except for some of these ridiculous radiators with the built-ins i've been seeing that cost as much a cheap car)

and should i put a deep pan on it? i'm selling this car immediatly. just wondering if i should do a few cheap mods to increase the appeal. i appreciate your opinions/suggestions. thanks

[hedz]

i picked up my transmission today. sure enough it's powdercoated chevy orange. i may have a buyer for the car this friday. if not, i'm going to install the transmission this weekend. the tail shaft turns when i press the shift lever thingy so i guess that's good. didn't fiddle with it too much since theres no fluid except for assembly fluid amount in the trans. if i can't get a buyer this friday i'll install the transmission and add a deep pan and a trans cooler from pull a part. i'll probably go to the junkyard saturday morning and get one. a friend is loaning me a transmission jack. i need to order the deep pan though. so i won't be adding fluid this weekend to actually test the booger. and i tried to wedge myself underneath the monte to measure the transmission. i'm fairly sure the turbo 350 i picked up today is a longshaft. not certain though. i couldn't get a good measurement of the th200 with the car on the ground but i think it's about 4 inches shorter than the trans i picked up so a new driveshaft will probably be in order. i'll need to change the rear seal on the transmission, the pump seal, and the pan gasket before i fire her up and test her. i have my work cut out for me.

on another note i was surprised how light these transmissions are. granted it took me and a friend to haul it into my living room, but i just never really suspected they could be moved with two people. i figured i would have gotten a hernea but i one handed lift with my friend and moved it very easily.

hope i got a good deal on this one. keeping my fingers crossed. i'll keep yall posted. someone stole my phone so i don't know if i'll have any pics we will see.

[70shortwide]

I would never put a used cooler in my rig... especially with a new trans. You dont know whats been inside of it. I also would not spend any money on a deep sump pan if your intending to dump the car right away. Use the old pan (clean it up and paint it maybe) and spend the money on a cooler.

[averagef250]

A friend of mine had an 80's GM POS thing with the 200 tranny. Cutest little thing you ever saw. It crapped out with around 80K original miles and I offered to rebuild it. Figured it would be just a scaled down TH350, piece of cake right?

Well, those 200's use the cheeziest chinsiest stamped steel parts inside. I had that tranny in and out 3 times in a month after it left to replace broken hard parts. The stamped **** clutch drums would just crack and split apart.

The car had a Buick 350 in it, so a standard dime a dozen 350 wouldn't fit. I eventually found a $50 BOP TH350 and jambed it in there as is. Worked like a champ and still going.

Crazy, but I've had the best luck with buying the cheapest auto on craigslist and just slambing it in. I think people will avoid buying a $25 or $50 transmission because they know it has to be crap. I put a $25 C6 in a 460 Ranchero I had and came to the conclusion that transmission couldn't be killed! After the first oops shift going from 2nd full throttle right into reverse at 60+ MPH it was decided this was a lot of fun to do so it happened all the time. That C6 never flinched. It looked like a grease and dirt covered mess. I never took the pan off and just topped it with Dex3.

[Donnie]

Average, I'll admit the OEM 200 was a POS.........but now, with the powerglide's fading into the dust.... The 200 has reared it head.
A WHOLE LOT OF HIGH PERFORMANCE CAST & FORGED PART"S ARE NOW AVAILABLE FOR THE 200 & it is fast becoming the racer's choice....Coming in at about 80 pounds, the little 200 in gaining fame......I wish that I now had ALL the cores that I scrapped...........Donnie

[hedz]

Average, I'll admit the OEM 200 was a POS.........but now, with the powerglide's fading into the dust.... The 200 has reared it head.
A WHOLE LOT OF HIGH PERFORMANCE CAST & FORGED PART"S ARE NOW AVAILABLE FOR THE 200 & it is fast becoming the racer's choice....Coming in at about 80 pounds, the little 200 in gaining fame......I wish that I now had ALL the cores that I scrapped...........Donnie

i would have loved to have rebuilt the 200. unfortunately i don't have the funds. right now they are a very expensive transmission to rebuild the right way.

i have every bolt removed on the th200. I'm waiting for some help to help me back it off the engine. my th350 cheap torque converter will be in tomorrow. Also had to redo a bunch of dried rubber seals on the th350. I was only able to change the rear seal myself. I let my friend do the rest of the seals and he is doing it for $50 so not too bad. I'll have to wait maybe a week or two now to get the driveshaft cut. my funds are sucking. I have a interview at a industrial supply company in the morning. If i can start this job in a couple weeks i may not have to sell the blasted mc.

i'll be backing this th200 out and installing the th350 with a jack with a board on top since i don't have a transmission jack .

to remove all the trans bolts on the bellhousing of a gbody you need air wrench swivels on about 3 feet of extensions. there is no wiggle room in that small transmission tunnel!

where should i call to get my transmission cooling lines? inlinetube maybe? i had to cut mine to get the trans out. couldn't access the darn nuts. i would have needed a awesome aircraft wrench.

when i'm done with this install/repair, i'll have about $340 total in it.

[Whateverman]

I would never put a used cooler in my rig... especially with a new trans. You dont know whats been inside of it. I also would not spend any money on a deep sump pan if your intending to dump the car right away. Use the old pan (clean it up and paint it maybe) and spend the money on a cooler.

used oil cooler: rinse it out with acetone or alcohol and blow it dry with an air gun -done
i agree as well : why waste $$ on the fancy crap if you're just gonna flog the thing?

[hedz]

th350 is now fully built and ready to go back in. got my driveshaft back. the driveshaft and the transmission rebuild cost me $100. i have a friend that builds these real cheap . got my torque converter. picked up my oem trans cooler lines for 65$ with shipping from inlinetube. i'm just going to use the radiator built in cooler. now i'm just waiting for some help to help me muscle the new trans into the car. i'm not strong enough to bring it outside and put it on the jack

hopefully my assistant can make time today and we will finish this thing!!!

[Donnie]

I'm not sure what you are using for a cooler, but if you are using the radiator & can't flush it...best to use an inline filter on the return line. That's where a most of your old 200 clutches are.. & change it after 2 hours of driving around..The new fluid will flush it for you...........Donnie
IF YOU BOUGHT AN AFTERMARKET COOLER WHY NOT BYPASS THE RADIATOR?........

[hedz]

I'm not sure what you are using for a cooler, but if you are using the radiator & can't flush it...best to use an inline filter on the return line. That's where a most of your old 200 clutches are.. & change it after 2 hours of driving around..The new fluid will flush it for you...........Donnie
IF YOU BOUGHT AN AFTERMARKET COOLER WHY NOT BYPASS THE RADIATOR?........

you're right i need to flush the cooler in the radiator i forgot about that. crap. i'm low on funds. this is a mega budget build.


i decided not to use aftermarket cooler. me friend and i muscled the th350 in there today. got the lines from inlinetube plumbed up. ended up using the radiator cooler that's built in. got the linkage together. crossmember and support. i'll fit the driveshaft in the morning. decided not to install the kickdown cable. tomorrow is the moment of truth. i'm going to finish everything tomorrow and try to drive it. hopefully the trans won't take a huge dump on me. keeping my fingers crossed. swapping from a th200 to the th350 really is a matter of swapping parts. alot of things are interchangeable. this has been a interesting learning experience for me.

that transmission was a bear. my car is on a slanted concrete driveway on jackstands. we used a transmission jack with a strap and it was still a pita.

almost done thank god

[Donnie]

If you haven't started it yet, you can still install an in line filter....I WOULD IF I WERE YOU....cut the return line with a TUBING CUTTER=====
NO HACKSAW.........install the filter...reason: even if you have a NEW filter in the pan, the material that is trapped in your cooler is going to return to your trans as lube oel, which is going to lube all the geartrain parts, bushing's, washers, & planet's, as it is already in the cooler and will not be filtered, & is not going directly to the pan.......Donnie

[hedz]

I cheaped out on this install. I finished the install. Actually got the driveshaft cut too short. Go figure. My friend gave me a old grand national driveshaft he had lying around. That fixed it. Just adjusted the vacuum modulator this morning. A guy is coming to buy the MC today for 3500. The transmission shifts fine. I had the buyer break it in for me yesterday on the interstate and we wailed on the engine and transmission and hauled but and did a lot of column gear shifting. It sucks that this is the best running car i have now . Really it's running like a champ. It definitely benefited from a torque converter and transmission change. It's night and day. I'm really going to miss this mc. I know i'll never find another like it. They don't exist with these options in this condition this cheap anymore. I could have got more money if i tried but i have a lot of responsibilities that take precedence. Good bye mc.

Time to focus on the truck and the vw.

I just got a nice job and am currently shopping for a house with a garage to rent. If i can pull this off i can get serious with the truck! Friend of mine also asked me to come back to his custom shop since i'm moving back down that way so maybe i can have some paint booth access and work on my air brushing and pinstriping etc.