Installed a Tremec Magnum XL in my S550

[aleccolin]

I don't have an issue, per se, just wondering what others were getting for their driveline angles. I lowered my engine so I knew it would be off and would need adjustment. My best guess for a stock engine height, the trans would require 1/4" spacers to be perfect, but would probably be good without.

FYI the QA1 driveshaft uses u-joints front and rear, so it's as simple as setting pinion angle on a truck except instead of shimming the axle you're shimming the trans mount. The engine/trans centerline and pinion centerline should be parallel within 0.5 deg. and the operating angles should be equal within 0.5 degrees of each other and no greater than 3 degrees at each end.

With what I have now the engine/trans and pinion are exactly parallel and the driveshaft is at 0.2 degrees steeper which is spot on.

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[RubberFeet]

Agreed on the driveline angles U joints front and rear make determining angles much easier than trying to determine pinion angle on this platform.

 

[db252]

Only issue I had was my vibration from the reverse lockout solenoid which I fixed long ago. My engine is at stock height and I have no faith in any driveshaft except the QA1 in regards to lack of vibration. Couldn’t tell you what my driveline angle is anymore but I know it was in the green.

 

[aleccesarenriquez]

How many of y’all set your driveline angle accurately? I lowered my engine 1/4” and it requires over 1/2” in spacers between the body and trans mount to get engine/trans dead nuts matched to the pinion angle.

I added some rectangular pieces of rubber at the cross member; they're about 1 cm thick. Drastically improved vibration from me.

 

[RubberFeet]

I added some rectangular pieces of rubber at the cross member; they're about 1 cm thick. Drastically improved vibration from me.


Good Idea, said the eskimo

 

[Angrey]

Good luck with DSS, the aluminum one I got from them vibrated so badly I couldnt drive the car. I sent it back for them to look at and guess what they told me, I should install the stock rubber bushings in the diff and cradle to absorb the vibration. What bullshit.

Anyway, my QA1 should be here in a couple weeks. I would stay away from DSS they are hit or miss, never know what youre going to get from them.

I ordered the QA-1 through MDL. Have no idea when it will arrive. Probably going with DSS axles so hopefully no issues there, haven't seen many issues out of their axles.

 

[aleccolin]

I added some rectangular pieces of rubber at the cross member; they're about 1 cm thick. Drastically improved vibration from me.

I'm going to try these out, hoping for the same effect.

https://www.summitracing.com/parts/ens-9-9528g

 

[Ruiner46]

My engine is lowered almost a 1/2" from the BMR drop mount brackets. I don't have any vibration from my Gforce aluminum driveshaft that I've noticed. I do have some clutch/flywheel RPM-related vibration which is another story...

 

[aleccolin]

I'm not sure why the 3A fuse is necessary with the Bowler harness, but I don't care for the rinky dink fuse holder they provide, so I picked up a waterproof one from West Marine and also some waterproof 3 pin connectors to clean up the wiring and protect it from the elements. The plug on the VSS was turned up from Tremec, but I took it out and spun 180 to turn down when mounting the Bowler box, so it should be easier to get unplugged in order to establish initial connection with the harness. Weird that is necessary, and kind of a pain in the ass.

A note for those clearancing the tunnel for the reverse solenoid: it sucks. A lot. The solenoid prevents the transmission from being centered in the tunnel to the extent that it is difficult to get the crossmember all bolted up because it's pushing the tail housing toward the passenger side.

I wound up having to take out my trans completely to torque the clutch bolts properly (wrong spec, long story) and before I did I marked around the solenoid with a punch as best I could and once the trans was out I trimmed some sheet metal with a cutoff disc. I made the marks at full installed height before realizing I needed to shim down the crossmember to dial in the driveline angle, so ultimately I trimmed out more than necessary, but it's fine. The part of the sheet metal that interferes is stamped and bulges out, making it very strong and VERY hard to beat or pry down flat because the sheetmetal supporting it just flexes, so cutting I think is the best bet. I primed and sealed it all up, and the solenoid still contacts the heat shielding but now it sits in a "soft spot" instead of against steel.

 

[Angrey]

I'm not sure why the 3A fuse is necessary with the Bowler harness, but I don't care for the rinky dink fuse holder they provide, so I picked up a waterproof one from West Marine and also some waterproof 3 pin connectors to clean up the wiring and protect it from the elements. The plug on the VSS was turned up from Tremec, but I took it out and spun 180 to turn down when mounting the Bowler box, so it should be easier to get unplugged in order to establish initial connection with the harness. Weird that is necessary, and kind of a pain in the ass.

A note for those clearancing the tunnel for the reverse solenoid: it sucks. A lot. The solenoid prevents the transmission from being centered in the tunnel to the extent that it is difficult to get the crossmember all bolted up because it's pushing the tail housing toward the passenger side.

I wound up having to take out my trans completely to torque the clutch bolts properly (wrong spec, long story) and before I did I marked around the solenoid with a punch as best I could and once the trans was out I trimmed some sheet metal with a cutoff disc. I made the marks at full installed height before realizing I needed to shim down the crossmember to dial in the driveline angle, so ultimately I trimmed out more than necessary, but it's fine. The part of the sheet metal that interferes is stamped and bulges out, making it very strong and VERY hard to beat or pry down flat because the sheetmetal supporting it just flexes, so cutting I think is the best bet. I primed and sealed it all up, and the solenoid still contacts the heat shielding but now it sits in a "soft spot" instead of against steel.

Nice, yep, there's a couple other vids out there about clearing the lockout solenoid. I would caution you about ANY contact because it could end up giving false knock down the road. Others have used a hydraulic ram. I'll probably use a sledge or a hammer and a blunt/peen chisel.

I haven't looked that closely at the harness yet, but reading your post makes me want to take it out tonight and think about upgrading the connector.

 

[aleccesarenriquez]

Nice, yep, there's a couple other vids out there about clearing the lockout solenoid. I would caution you about ANY contact because it could end up giving false knock down the road. Others have used a hydraulic ram. I'll probably use a sledge or a hammer and a blunt/peen chisel.

I haven't looked that closely at the harness yet, but reading your post makes me want to take it out tonight and think about upgrading the connector.

I ended up going with that lockout delete that someone on this thread recommended. Regret not doing it sooner.

 

[aleccolin]

I ended up going with that lockout delete that someone on this thread recommended. Regret not doing it sooner.

What did that involve? Did you have to make a plug/jumper for the harness?

I found this, looks pretty decent.

https://www.ebay.com/i/173158632311...rl1wCscxlFCzFNnOLnyARdRGXthJyX3hoCMWgQAvD_BwE

And another one a little less eBay'ish:

https://www.wmsracing.com/wmsweb/wm...profile-tremec-t-56-transmission-details.html

 

[Angrey]

I ended up going with that lockout delete that someone on this thread recommended. Regret not doing it sooner.

I wouldn't recommend it. Granted, it's a nanny feature, and on the magnum, the Reverse is better situation next to 5th rather than 1st, but 1) Although it would be rare, it presents a possibility of grinding against reverse when trying to quickly shift into 5th and 2) I don't let anyone else drive my car, the only time it's happened was at the car wash and they obviously didn't send it through the mechanical conveyor so they had to drive it from wash to dry and I sat watching as the $8/hour numbskull tried to get it into reverse (couldn't and then had to call over another nobel laureate to try to help). This was with the up and left TR3160.

I guess my point is, I can see a scenario where I valet the car and the genius thinks he's in reverse but lurches the car forward in 5th.

I see some guys swap out the solenoid spring so it's less difficult and they just "override" it by pushing through into reverse.

I'll just bang or cut enough away to ensure it clears the tunnel and the heat shielding. Then I won't get any grief from the computer for not having it or I won't have to muscle against it and force/override it every time I want to reverse.

My trans is going in next month so I'll post back with my experience and whether I'm going to punt and eliminate it as well.

 

[Ruiner46]

I wouldn't recommend it. Granted, it's a nanny feature, and on the magnum, the Reverse is better situation next to 5th rather than 1st, but 1) Although it would be rare, it presents a possibility of grinding against reverse when trying to quickly shift into 5th and 2) I don't let anyone else drive my car, the only time it's happened was at the car wash and they obviously didn't send it through the mechanical conveyor so they had to drive it from wash to dry and I sat watching as the $8/hour numbskull tried to get it into reverse (couldn't and then had to call over another nobel laureate to try to help). This was with the up and left TR3160.

I guess my point is, I can see a scenario where I valet the car and the genius thinks he's in reverse but lurches the car forward in 5th.

I see some guys swap out the solenoid spring so it's less difficult and they just "override" it by pushing through into reverse.

I'll just bang or cut enough away to ensure it clears the tunnel and the heat shielding. Then I won't get any grief from the computer for not having it or I won't have to muscle against it and force/override it every time I want to reverse.

My trans is going in next month so I'll post back with my experience and whether I'm going to punt and eliminate it as well.

I have the RDE delete and I'm very happy with it. The lockout delete comes with a strong spring to keep you from shifting into reverse. It is a little lighter than fighting the electronic lockout when it's "locked out". It still takes a decent amount of force, I don't think you could accidentally grind against reverse trying to shift into 5th. Also, 5th is an overdrive, so I'm never power shifting into 5th anyway. I never allow anyone to drive my car, so I have no concerns about people not finding reverse. In fact, my shift knob doesn't even have a shift pattern on it, lol.

Deleting the lockout will not cause any electronic grief. The car's computer doesn't even know it exists. If using the Bowler harness, you could just cap off that connection, but you should make it water tight as it will be driving a wire to 12V. I don't use a conversion box or Bowler harness, I just made all of the required changes directly in the tune.

Regarding tunnel clearance, I tried to hammer in that area, but it is a major pain in the ass. There is no room to swing a hammer effectively, and I didn't have much luck with a punch set. The best solution to keep the electronic lockout looks to be to cut it like aleccolin posted.

 

[aleccesarenriquez]

I have the RDE delete and I'm very happy with it. The lockout delete comes with a strong spring to keep you from shifting into reverse. It is a little lighter than fighting the electronic lockout when it's "locked out". It still takes a decent amount of force, I don't think you could accidentally grind against reverse trying to shift into 5th. Also, 5th is an overdrive, so I'm never power shifting into 5th anyway. I never allow anyone to drive my car, so I have no concerns about people not finding reverse. In fact, my shift knob doesn't even have a shift pattern on it, lol.

Deleting the lockout will not cause any electronic grief. The car's computer doesn't even know it exists. If using the Bowler harness, you could just cap off that connection, but you should make it water tight as it will be driving a wire to 12V. I don't use a conversion box or Bowler harness, I just made all of the required changes directly in the tune.

Regarding tunnel clearance, I tried to hammer in that area, but it is a major pain in the ass. There is no room to swing a hammer effectively, and I didn't have much luck with a punch set. The best solution to keep the electronic lockout looks to be to cut it like aleccolin posted.

Came here to say all these things but you beat me to it. Even down to the shift knob not having a pattern on it lol

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