Converter question

[84HAGN]

I know our 84-85 turbo regals have a different valvebody in the trans
just wondering if the convertors are different as well
I am in the process of pulling my engine for rebuild and i am sending the trans out to freshened up and wanted to get a new converter and none that i have seen say the will fit the 84-85 turbos they just say 86-87
are they same for our cars(hot air that is)
Thanks
Mike

 

[Jerryl]

84's had a BRQ valve body. To date, the exact difference between a BRQ and BRF (87) valve body are undocumented.

Main difference between 84 and 87 was the TC. 87 Had a D5 converter, and the D5 may work well with the stock HA turbo. The lower torque output of the HA may stall the D5 "just right".

 

[cool 84]

The TRs used the same D5 torque convertor from 84-87. One of the big differences in the way they shift is the second gear servo located on the side of the trans. Replace this with an 87 or even better, one of the billet aftermarket units and it will shift much crisper. This is accessable from the outside. I've heard the 86-7 turbo second gear servo is just a regular servo from a 200-c trans which can be found at junkyards.

If you're taking the trans to have it rebuilt, make sure they put your stock D5 back in. Very few trans shops know the difference and they will replace it with a D6 or D7 which will stall at 1,200rpm. You won't be able spin the tires in the rain no matter how hard you try. Any aftermarket convertors made for the 87 trans will fit the 84 just fine. Remember, they are exactly the same with the exception of the valvebody and servo and 86.5-87 got the 10 vane pump vs 7 vane.

 

[turbofish38]

The TRs used the same D5 torque convertor from 84-87.

A correction on the wording is needed. All TRs used the D5 but they were different between the HA and IC applications. Cars that used the exact same TC as the HA are:
84-88 MCSS-High Output 305
84-85 Cutlass H/O and 442-High Output 307
84-85 Cadillac-Certain models of the 4.1 V-8

The IC servo was the same as some 200C applications but you would have to be lucky to stumble upon one of those in the boneyard. I.e. 82 Camaro V-8/200C.

+2 on the billet servo

 

[84HAGN]

Stall speeds

so what are the stall speeds for the hot air convertors versus the intercold
convertors
I am pretty sure the trans was overhauled by the previous owner
my car is a pig out of the hole it is almost impossible to build boost against the brake usually at about 1000 rpms and 3-4 psi of boost the tires start to break loose and from a standing start i have to get to about 20 mph before any boost starts to come on

 

[cool 84]

so what are the stall speeds for the hot air convertors versus the intercold
convertors
I am pretty sure the trans was overhauled by the previous owner
my car is a pig out of the hole it is almost impossible to build boost against the brake usually at about 1000 rpms and 3-4 psi of boost the tires start to break loose and from a standing start i have to get to about 20 mph before any boost starts to come on

I have never heard of a stall difference between hotair and intercooled. Maybe the guys in the trans section can help. If you can't build boost off the brake and assuming everything else is working good on your car, you probably have a D6 or D7 convertor. If you floor it against the brakes, what do the rpms go to?

 

[6SENSE]

D5 convertor came on both hotair and IC, same convertor. Stall I thought was about 2200 but not positive (would have to dig back in my old notes). Both 84/85 BQ tranny and 86/87 BRF tranny are "good". I always thought that they were put together differently to handle the extra torque that the turbo motors produced (?). Both are different than and prefered over other 200r4's that came in other non-turbo makes/models. Although I know the CZ that came in the '86~ 442 is also supposed to be "good". Anyway, as stated yes the BRF is preferred over all because it has a different VB and Servo from the factory which simply firmed up the shift a bit. Not that its stronger than the BQ or anything like that, and not that you couldnt easily firm up the shift yourself and surpass the performance of the BRF.
A shift kit in a BQ along with a servo upgrade and as they say, your golden. I have a BRF in my car and I had to put a shift kit in it to be satisfied. My stock '84 with stock BQ shifts decent (at least as good as my BRF originally did) as is completely OE, so Im thinking with a shift kit it would be really nice with or without messing with the servo.