Meet Dan Mann, man. Dan The Man has a 1979 Chevy C30 dually. Unfortunately, he also has a herniated disk in his back, which meant that he had to make some changes to the transmission in his truck. Dan swapped out the standard SM465 manual for the GM 4L80E automatic transmission from his brother’s truck. He also took out the original computer controller and put in some light switches. Yes, light switches.
Hey, Dan, if you can, see a chiropractor, man.
Anyway, the 4L80E has four solenoids: torque converter lockup, line pressure, and two for shifting. Dan would need a computer for controlling line pressure so that just runs at maximum power, resulting in slightly harsher shifts. It isn’t too harsh for Dan to actually shift though because he controls the selected gear with either a floor shifter or the light switches. The remaining switch is his torque converter lockup.
It’s a bit hard to explain, but you have the best visual aid in the world. Check out this video of Dan’s truck in action with him explaining how everything works in more detail.
Comments
That ignition switch will fail from so many keys hanging from it! Other than that, he can ask an engineering student to program a microcontroller (the Arduino is sold at any Radio Shack store) so it will handle the transmission electronically, and he will never need the manual switches. It can be done for less than $100 if the student donates the time.
OK – I love the mods..but the story – umm – “I can’t shift the shifter in my truck, but I can change the rear axle, fab a riser for a automatic shifter, put in a 4l80e, shorten a driveshaft, all with a herniated disc.”
nice windshield! like that would pass inspection.