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Torque Converters
Pontiac V8 Torque Converters
Stall Is the Whole Decision — Torque Converters for Pontiac V8s
The torque converter is the single part that decides whether an automatic Pontiac feels alive or lazy. Stall speed is how far the engine can spin against the converter before the car starts moving, and it has to be matched to the camshaft, the compression and the rear gear. Too low and the engine bogs. Too high and the car slips everywhere and runs hot.
Butler stocks TCI converters from mild Breakaway units through StreetFighter, Super StreetFighter and Pro-X drag race pieces, plus CPT converters for the TH-200-4R, in 8", 9", 10", 11" and 12" diameters.
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More About Torque Converters
1. Nobody can pick your stall from a number alone
TCI says it plainly on its own listings: stall speeds depend on engine size, torque, car weight, rear end gear and power adders. A 2600 stall converter behind a light car with steep gears behaves nothing like the same converter behind a heavy Bonneville with a highway rear.
| What raises effective stall | a big cam with late intake closing, a light car and steep gears. |
| What lowers it | big displacement and torque down low, a heavy car and tall gears. A 455 is very good at pulling a converter down. |
| The rule of thumb | the converter should flash near where the camshaft starts making power. If you do not know that number, call the shop with the cam card and the rear gear. |
2. The TCI families, from mild to serious
| Breakaway | TCI's first step into serious performance. Described as providing roughly 2400 to 2600 rpm flash stall without hurting part-throttle driving, with over 1,000 rpm of stall increase over stock. The right pick for a moderately modified street car that is also a daily driver. |
| StreetFighter | built for more radically prepared street machines with performance cams, aftermarket carbs and higher compression. Offered in a 10" unit at 3400 to 3800 stall, with 1500 or more rpm of increase over stock. |
| Super StreetFighter | the same features with higher stall for street and strip cars, offered in a 10" at 3800 to 4000. Note that TCI states the flexplate must be drilled for 7/16" bolts for this one. |
| Pro-X drag race | the 9" Pro-X units, including a 4500 to 4800 rpm flash stall converter that TCI lists at 5000 to 5200 rpm flash with nitrous. |
| Nitrous and power adder units | converters with steel stators and heavy-duty front anti-ballooning plates built specifically for nitrous applications. |
3. Diameter and what it does
| 11" and 12" | lower stall, more efficient at cruise, easier on a heavy street car. TCI's 11" unit is listed at 2400 to 2600 stall and the 12" Maximizer is a street performance converter for TH375 and TH400 applications. |
| 10" | the street and strip mainstream. TCI's 10" 2600 to 2800 unit is recommended for 350 cubic inches and up in cars of 2600 lbs and up. |
| 9" and 8" | drag race territory. High stall, high torque multiplication, and not something you want on a car that sees the highway. |
4. Fitment details that stop an install
| Bolt pattern | TCI converters for the TH350 and TH400 are listed for the dual bolt pattern that a 166 tooth flexplate carries. CPT offers its TH-2004R converters in dual pattern and single pattern versions, so check which your flexplate has. |
| Spline count | the CPT TH-200-4R converters are 27 spline. Turbo shaft TCI units are built for GM turbo spline transmissions. The converter has to match the transmission input. |
| Lock-up or not | the CPT 200-4R converters listed here are non lock-up. A lock-up converter needs the wiring and control to go with it. |
| Anti-ballooning plates | most of the TCI units carry them, and they are what keeps a converter from swelling under high stall and nitrous use. |
| Overdrive automatics | a 4L80E-based setup takes its own converter, such as the TCI Street Fighter unit with a billet front at 3000 rpm stall. |
Order the converter and the flexplate together, and be ready to tell us the cam, the compression, the rear gear, the tire and the car's weight. That is the whole conversation, and it takes five minutes on the phone.
Not sure what your Pontiac needs?
Call our tech team at 866-762-7527. Tell us your engine, heads, car, and power goal, and we will put the parts together as one combination that works.