looking for a C6 trans - some help needed please

[GREASE FIRE]

it looks like i can get a 6.9 or 7.3 for a reasonable price - there are several for sale around here and i plan to put one in my step van but now i need to find a c6 transmission. I don't think it will be hard to find a good deal on one, but the problem is i don't know if they are all the same or if some are for diesels while others are for gassers; plus i don't know about the bolt pattern for mounting them - is there a special adapter needed for a 6.9 or 7.3?

Can anyone provide any info about how to find the right one?

thanks,
paul

 

[suv7734]

The C6's for the diesel are different than for the gassers. There are internal differences and the bellhousing pattern is different so you'll need one from a diesel. Where are you located? Do you need 2WD or 4x4?

 

[GREASE FIRE]

suv, i am near cincinnati and need 2wd. Are the 2wd and 4wd transmissions totally different?
thanks,
paul

 

[Diesel JD]

Hey Grease Fire, did you give up on the idea of mating it to the van's cuirrent GM transmission? The 6.9/7.3 will take an SAE#3 bellhousing, but to mate to Ford's trannies they need an adapter plate, which you should already have if the engine comes out of a Ford Van or truck. If it comes out of an IH vehicle or some addball application, it will likely be ready to bolt up to a SAE#3 or need the adpater plate. The plate is all the same for the T19, ZF5, C6 and E4ODOA aas far as I know. Good luck

 

[Darrin Tosh]

I have a 2wd C6 with torque converter. $150.00 plus shipping, I am in Grand Rapids so you are welcome to come and pick it up.

Lemmeknwo!

 

[GREASE FIRE]

JD,
well i didn't give up but am trying to figure out what would be most cost effective. Are you saying that the sae#3 bellhousing would work with a th400 trans?
basically i need to figure out how much it would cost to get the th400 to work with the 7.3. If the adapter plates are something you have to purchase at a dealership, it would probably be cheaper for me to look for a C6 used and go that route, at least that is my guess.
obviously i am a bit new to this and a bit confused - if anyone could set me straight i would really appreciate it!
thanks,
paul

 

[Mr_Roboto]

You would need a custom adapter plate to bolt to the GM transmission.

That $150 C6 is a steal.

 

[Diesel JD]

Yeah the C6 would be easier I guess. I probably sound like I know more than what I really do. I was told that the IH trucks used SAE#3 and I thought that GM commercial trucks used the same, but Roboto has way more experience than I do. The $150 for the C6 is very good. It is a good tranny and will last a long time if only you make sure to keep fluid in it and make sure the VRV and modulator are right. Darrin also takes good care of his stuff. I don't know how that step van is geared or if the TH400 has O/D but it must be considered that low gears and a C6 with an IDI means crappy fuel mileage and very high RPMs on the highway. If its a work truck or RV it might not matter, but if you drive it very much.....look out! An aux. tranny or adapting the GM(if OD) may pay for itself in fuel. For reference, with the C6 and 3.55s I'm probably around 2600 RPM at 70ish mph, with the 4.10s I was at 3000 at 68. Truck got sorry fuel mileage on the highway with 4.10s, decent in town. Now its about the same or a little worse in town but much better with any highway driving. If you do buy Darrin's trans and need it shipped consider these guys freightquote.com A good group for non commercial folks who need to move LTL freight. they have treated me right. Good luck,
JD

 

[GREASE FIRE]

JD - that's a good point about high rpm's on the highway. I do have 4.10 gears and i would like to some day change the gears because the 6.2 i have in it now revs pretty high, in fact i never give it full throttle on the highway because it just sounds too much.
could driving at 3000 rpm's be bad for the motor? will it cause it to fail prematurely?
i am not so concerned about fuel economy though since all i ever burn is veggie, except a little diesel for startups and that's only in the winter - in summer i start up on homebrew B100. Anyone driving these engines should think about greasin' them.

Paul

 

[suv7734]

Also remember that if you do go with the TH400 you will still need the VRV since it has its shifts controlled by a modulator the same as the C6. That C6 that Darrin has offered sounds like a really good deal to get you on the road as simply as possible especially since you are not too worried about fuel mileage.

 

[gamudslinger88]

Im in need of a good C6 4x4 if anyone has one they want to part with. I am going to rebuild mine but if I could find one cheaper I will just buy a used or rebuilt one.

 

[Diesel JD]

Mostly the danger is fuel mileage. Some here have run 6.9s and 7.3 up against the governor all day for many years with no problems. I believe that the high RPM is well on the safe side of engine damage and longevity is determined by other things mostly, such as preventative maintenance and good enough luck to avoid mishaps like dropped valves or glow plug tips. Are you ok with 7-8 mpg? If so the C6 would be simplest...I might be OK with that too if I was burning WVO instead of B100. The only other problem is that 4.10s and C6 gets very very loud...too hard to hear the cell phone or radio on the highway

 

[bubbahzanetti]

Loud!

I'll second the loud part....My truck has the c-6 and 4:10 gears, screams at 65mph. If you want to go the e40D route, Baumann electronics makes a box to control the transmission without a central computer, runs around $500. IMHO that's a much better solution for this day and age. Doesn't take too much diesel at $3.50 to pay for the box.....look for Baumann on the web.

 

[Mr_Roboto]

Yeah the C6 would be easier I guess. I probably sound like I know more than what I really do. I was told that the IH trucks used SAE#3 and I thought that GM commercial trucks used the same, but Roboto has way more experience than I do.

I could be wrong, but I'm thinking the adaptors go from the engine pattern to the SAE pattern that the (big truck) transmissions have..... And assuming that the GM trans has a GM BB pattern.

Maybe I'm not understanding it right, I've looked before and there is very little information that I could find on the SAE adaptors.

 

[Double-S-Diesel]

I also have 2 2wd c-6's sitting around.