i just got my z last week and i got a AT m tranns and i was wanting to know how can i make it shift harder i just got tired of shifting for so many years .are they some kind of programing that can be done ?

 

Get a stall torque converter ... You'll shave lots off your 1/4 time and it'll shift with less lag and and power loss through the drivetrain i believe.

 

All autos already have torque converters...they need them to work. The key is to get a higher rpm stall converter. It will be faster, but much less driveable.

 

A new ECU will help, I believe Technosquare has one. And the Grounding kit also

 

I dont think the ECU changes the auto properties. and I know the grounding kit wont do a bit of difference with it.

Ive seen for older cars some sort of gasket system that reduces the amount of fluid and whatnot thats in them. making them shift faster and harder. (actually saw it on one of those car shows, they put a high stall converter with it)

I donno if they have these things for newer cars, and if so, probably not for the Z yet.

can anyone outline the downsides to a highstall torque converter? Ive heard great things, like they can make an auto get down the strip faster than a manual, but you say there are downsides? what exactly?

 

A higher stall torque converter will feel "looser" than the stock one. It won't necessarily shift differently, but when you are on and off the gas you won't get a response at the seat of your pants as quickly as you would with the stick one.

When BMW released the Alpina Z8, they actually installed a lower stall torque converter in order to make the transmission feel stiffer. All the acceleration times went down, but it made curvy roads much more fun because the engine was more tightly coupled to the wheels. Again, it won't change the actual shift feel, but it will change the slushy feel when you accelerate and decelerate.

So, high stall is good for launching because it allows the engine to spin up to higher RPM's before transferring the torque, but at the same time it will feel more looser in daily driving.

-D'oh!

 

your mileage will go to poop

 

i doubt an ecu or grounding kit will make an AT shift "harder".

 

Doesnt the Techo ECU reduce the lag in the AT shifting? wouldnt that improve on the auto shifting?

 

yes it would improve shifting, but it wouldn't make it shift "harder"

 

Hmm... is there any company (such as Technosquare) making a transmission chip? (I'm assuming the Z's auto is computer controlled.)

In the Audi/VW world, tranny upgrade chips are about as common as engine upgrade chips. In this case, they would dramatically decrease the amount of time it takes for each shift. The effect is much harder and faster gear changes. Much better based on what I've heard from those people with autos. (I have a stick, so I've never tried one.)

Not sure if this is possible with the Z. I would *assume* it is, but I'm certainly no expert on the Z's auto tranny.

 

I don't know about the Z transmission, but on my Camaro the local transmission shop installed a "shift kit" when they did the rebuild. It made it shift much quicker and harder.

The owner said that quicker shifts are actually better for the tranny, but that most customers prefer a soft shift. I told him to give me the aggressive kit and it was AWESOME.

Now the Z tranny is more hi-tech with much more computer control so this may no longer be an option, but it couldn't hurt to call a few tranny shops and ask.

If I recall correctly just installing the kits was not too expensive. The kit contains some springs, *****, and other little parts to change the valving. On the camaro they didn't even have to remove the tranny to do it.

Good luck. If you find out anything let us all know.

 

one thing u need if u get a better TC is some good slicks. and im not talking ne tires with grooves in them, im talking just a big slab of rubber to keep ur tires stuck to the ground.
if not ur going to be burning the rubber off of ur tires before u move 20 feet.

 

You are probably talking about a valvebody recalibration. Something I've mentioned many times to the AT guys.

 

Something I did with my 97 Probe GTS auto. is called an IAT mod. Basically, on that car the auto tranny would shift awesome and pull really hard after each shift when you first start the car up and before it had a chance to really warm up. After it warmed up this would go away. So, I tapped into the IAT sensor (which, if I remember correctly, stands for Intake Air Temp), cut a wire, and ran another two wires from each cut side to a rocker switch. Whenever I would turn this switch on it effectively turned the IAT sensor off and made the car think that the intake air was the lowest possible readable temp. I would only use this when I raced people and only through the first 3 gears. It was nice so if there is anything like this possible for the Z then give it a try.

 

Yeah, that is basically what the kit did. It made a TON of difference.

 

thank you all for your inputs i will let you all know what i do later

 

Haha! No offense to Vic, but the import scene is amazing to me. This happens all the time! Someone uses a term that has been in place for YEARS (shift kit) and the import dude says (in some technologically advanced lingo), Oh no you mean a valvebody recalibration. I guess it all goes back to marketing and the manufacturers of ricer parts trying to differentiate themselves. With vocabulary. Again Vic this is not directed toward you, just a funny observation of the whole thing.

 

Here's some info from maxima.org. Hope it helps.

http://forums.maxima.org/showthread....+line+pressure

The above link talks about a mod that we call the drop resistor mod.

www.maximumtuning.net

The second link is from a great shop that does valvebody modifications for Maximas and Altimas. Not sure if he has done a 350Z yet but he does great work.

 

Yeah, I know Vic just well enough to know he didn't mean anything by it.

In the muscle car / domestic iron circles is where I have always dwelled its a shift kit. I have had a 1968 Camaro convertible, a 78 Z28, and a 1991 Firebird Formula. In those circles it is always called a shift kit, named for the kit that gets installed.

My 350Z will be my first Ricer! (not offense).