Do those "Pink" Converters Rattle?
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dr_frankenstein
Mad Scientist
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- Mar 17, 2008
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LMAO.... that was funny.
salvageV6
Daily Driver
- Joined
- May 25, 2001
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- 20,948
Me too. 8 years on mine 0 pump.
Never heard about noises with the single disk ones.
Never heard about noises with the single disk ones.
I don't know the frequency of the rattle of the Vigilante, but knock sensors are tuned to a certain frequency that knock produces. I can only speculate that it shouldn't affect it.
Let me 1st say IMHO, there is no better NL converter for our cars than a PTC. With that said, IMHO, there is no better lockup to be found capable of locking up at WOT for higher hp cars than a multi disk vigilante. They are extremely inefficient when not locked, however they may be the only choice for locking up a 700 RWHP car and being able to survive for any length of time....
You just have to live with the terrible racket they make in park or neutral....
You just have to live with the terrible racket they make in park or neutral....
I went 7.24 @ 96 in the 1/8 at BG unlocked with my 5-disc Vig and my car is no hp monster, so it can't be too inefficient unlocked.
My experience has shown the slip percentages (unlocked) at the end of the 1/4 for the vigilante converters are normally higher than 10%......and this slip percentage goes up a lot when you pour more power to them. I've seen plenty of PTC converters with 3-5% slip being fairly common.
I have personally seen a car that ran 11.14 in the 1/4 pickup several MPH by locking the converter.
I've said all that to say.... I am running a 5-disk vigilante.... IMHO, it is the only choice for a bottom 10 or high 9 car that wants a lockup to lock at WOT. Most of the others will not recommend any WOT lockups.
The cat 's meow would be lockup durability of the vigilante with slip #'s like a 9-1/2" PTC NL converter.
Agreed 100%. I put 10k miles/year on my car and I like the lockup on the street, and especially at the track
. I'm just not sold that I'd like driving my car 10k/year with a NLU unit, but if I ever do, it'll be a PTC. I'm having good luck with my Vig though; it works very well, and I have 40k miles on it now.So the complaint with that "pink" (Vigilante) Converter of mine was that - something was rattling in there and I noticed that the stall speed had changed making it substantially "looser" and to tell you the truth - I was NEVER happy with this converter from the day that 800 dollars left my checking account. It never stalled right - when I first got it, all I could "squeeze" out of the 0-Pump stall configuration was 2800 when I had the laptop connected and my foot on the brake and squeezing the shit out of that thing it would max at 2800. Not happy. Back on my back on my garage floor dropping the trans again, and had it changed to a 6-pump - which proved to be better - yet not very long lived.
The NL Converter I got from Lonnie years ago worked better than this thing - yet I wanted to make a change cause I had a history of pushing front pump bearings forward and cutting the front seal. I found a nice front pump bushing with a "shoulder" on it - yet this was after a couple of incidents - and it was at that time I went back to LU with this pink converter.
Remembering the old saying, "If you do what you always did - you will get what you always got". Hence I decided to not send this thing back to Precision, and per Bulletin Board Members and a good discussion with Dusty, I sent it off to him. He cut it open and examined it, and his assesment is as follows:
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The NL Converter I got from Lonnie years ago worked better than this thing - yet I wanted to make a change cause I had a history of pushing front pump bearings forward and cutting the front seal. I found a nice front pump bushing with a "shoulder" on it - yet this was after a couple of incidents - and it was at that time I went back to LU with this pink converter.
Remembering the old saying, "If you do what you always did - you will get what you always got". Hence I decided to not send this thing back to Precision, and per Bulletin Board Members and a good discussion with Dusty, I sent it off to him. He cut it open and examined it, and his assesment is as follows:
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It's been cut open. The liner was burnt indicating the clutch has been slipping. The major issue was the fins in the pump had broken loose which will make the converter very loose. It started out as a converter I would rate at 3400-3500 at 0-1 psi which is very loose. We need to replace the pump due to the broken fins so I can put a pump in it to make it closer to a 3000 stall. Do you feel it was to loose to begin with? The fins being broken can cause a rattle. They will also cause the stall to be higher than normal.
I'm confused! You said in paragraph one that it never stalled above 2800 (sounds like my 0 pump). But Dusty stated when he pulled it apart that he guessed it to be a 3400 or so when it started out ( does he mean when new?)
I never really cared for mine either, but kept it in there because I could WOT lock it on a daily basis, new it would never suffer because of it. Still locks rock solid, as I would expect 7 discs to do.
the ptc 9.5 nl was within 50 rpm of the protorque 10.5 lockup it replaced, both stalls were 3200.i drive mine everywhere as well,heat is controlled with dex 6 and an external cooler.every multidisk vig car i have been in has the rattle effect.
WE2Regal
Active Member
- Joined
- Feb 22, 2003
- Messages
- 412
I've had the 7 disc Vigilante in my car for about 15 years and haven't noticed any noises (yet). I remember it needed some shims to get it bolted up correctly.
Dave - when I got that thing "new" all I could squeeze out of it - by mashing the petal to the floor all the while trying to hold the car back (with the Laptop connected) was 2800 R's. Yes, you are correct in that it was a 0 pump stall. I was NOT happy and sent it back for a stall change. Got it back and it stalled at 3000 R's.
It slowly became looser - hence Dusty's assesment of it stalling at 3500 and it being too loose.
Lastly, mine is not a "multi-disk" converter it is a single-disk and is NOT locked-up at WOT.
It slowly became looser - hence Dusty's assesment of it stalling at 3500 and it being too loose.
Lastly, mine is not a "multi-disk" converter it is a single-disk and is NOT locked-up at WOT.
WE2Regal
Active Member
- Joined
- Feb 22, 2003
- Messages
- 412
A lot of the LS1 guys use the Vigilante also. Just thought I'd throw this link out there for those not aware of the need for shims.
http://ls1tech.com/forums/automatic-transmission/1377938-vigilante-converter.html
http://ls1tech.com/forums/automatic-transmission/1377938-vigilante-converter.html
Kevin87TurboT
How many can I own??
- Joined
- Jul 29, 2005
- Messages
- 376
Most high performance torque converter manufacturers specify 1/8"-3/16" converter "pullback." That's the gap between the converter and flexplate, with the converter slid all of the way into the transmission and the transmission bolted flush with the engine. If you have more than 3/16" gap, then you should install some shims to fill this gap and get it to the proper specs. One important aspect that most people don't consider is the shim thickness must be the same for all three shims. I always mic them and ensure they are within +/- 0.001".
