That's the scoop on ignition advance. You can experiment with total ignition timing, the rate at which the timing advances, and the amount of initial timing by juggling the major players. By doing so, you will see a huge difference in power while spending almost no money. It's all about spending a little time with your engine.
Dept Of CorrectionsIn the August '05 "Ask Anything," we conferred with Jay Buckley on the subject of brakes, but it looks like we made a couple of mistakes. All of the actual tech info was on the money, but we referred to Jay as a "brake engineer" when in fact he is a brake training manager and considered the Bendix Answerman. We also referred to his employer as the Bendix Friction Materials division, but it turns out that technically, it is Honeywell Friction Materials. The lawyers should now be appeased.
Blow This JointPage_19, via CarCraft.com: How do you get your U-joints out if there are no snap-rings?
Terry McGean: It sounds like you're talking about the '80-era GM style of U-joints that use plastic retainers in place of traditional snap-rings. If you look at the yoke you should see a small hole in the side of each "ear" that has what appears to be a small plastic plug. That plastic is actually just the tip of a retainer that holds the U-joint caps in place. Beating with a hammer will likely prove futile unless you get out the B.F.H. and really go to town, which may wind up tweaking the ears of your shaft or the yoke. Instead, get your hands on a small propane torch and heat up the caps. The plastic should start to ooze out of the holes. When it stops flowing, you should be able to press the caps out with relative ease. Replacement U-joints will include snap-rings that fit into grooves on the inner portion of the caps.
A word of caution: Using the standard motorhead's bigger-is-better operating rule, many guys seem to think that if a propane torch works well, an oxyacetylene torch will be even better. However, when you apply too much heat, the grease under the cap gets super-heated and basically explodes, firing the cap off the joint right around the time the retainer ring has completely melted away. Catching a red-hot projectile in the face is rarely fun, nor is shooting one into your paint job. Mild heat should do the trick. The Electric 400 Slide Kris Shields, Granada Hills, CA: I recently purchased a used 4L80-E four-speed automatic overdrive from a heavy-duty truck for a great price. I want to put it in a '65 Chevelle that I'm building. After purchasing the transmission, I noticed that the rear yoke bolts into the back of the output shaft rather than as a slip yoke that I've seen on all other automatics. Can I put a regular Turbo 400 yoke in place of this bolt-in yoke? It also looks like the trans mount is farther back than a TH350 or 400 trans.
I know that I will need a separate computer to run this transmission, but I'm not sure how expensive these are or what exactly I need beside the computer and a wiring harness. Will the aftermarket harness bolt right into the transmission case? I'm also going to need a different torque converter. Will a Turbo 400 converter bolt up to this 4L80-E? Thanks for your help.
Jeff Smith: We did some research for you, Kris. The 4L80-E, as you probably know, is similar to the old TH400 automatic fitted with an Overdrive. The First through Third gear ratios are the same (2.48, 1.48, 1.00:1) while Overdrive is a typical 0.75:1 or 25 percent overdrive. The truck-style bolt-on yoke is easily removed and a typical TH400 yoke can be substituted (TCI PN 965300, $129.99 summitracing.com).