350 to 454 engine swap

[jfrits98]

I have a 1983 Chevy c10.  It has a 350 with turbo 350 tranny.  I wanting to swap out the carbureted 350 for a TBI 454.  Problem I'm facing is what tranny to put behind the 454.  I'm not wanting a high powered 454, just a close to stock 454 for now.  Some guys tell me a 700r4 will live behind a stock 454 then I've had other guys tell me it won't. What's your guys opinions and advice?

[winky]

a 700r4 will do fine if you just use it as a daily driver. if your foot gets heavy a lot then you will probably need to get a 700r build to handle it (had one built for my mud truck abused it every weekend for almost two years until i swapped it for my sm465 (for gear reduction)

[jfrits98]

Its not going to be a daily driver, just a weekend cruiser with the occasional roasting of the tires. I might get on it hard once in a while but not a every day thing.  What's it cost to get a 700r built so I wouldn't need to worry about it?

[winky]

depends on local labor rates etc... i had mine built for $1400 thats a lot of money. some of my buddies ragged me about throwing that much at a trans for my mud truck instead of $350 like they did... BUT when i was the one pulling them home or pulling them out of the mud etc because they toasted there trans or broke sprags etc.. it was rewarding to rag them about how much money my $1400 trans was saving them in tow bills. local tow trucks usually wont come out to where we play any more, too much risk to there trucks cause damage they have received in past (not to mention when one of the tow trucks buried up)

my advice would be to find a local shop or someone who really knows transmissions and discuss what you want out of your trans and your budget. they can give you an idea of what can be done for your money. just make sure you do your research just because someone has a business or a fancy patch doesn't mean they always do quality work

[mike357]

my transmission guy charges $1500. for a rebuild and install of a 700 that he says will live behind a 454.
They put 700r4's in the vettes that had 350 ft lbs torque. That's right about where the 80s -90s  454 was.