05 LLY tranny build - Experienced Opinions

B.A.Ram

B.A.Ram

A Big Deal
Joined
Jul 3, 2007
Messages
2,598
I'll keep this short and sweet - my daily driver (05 CC 4wd LLY) has 4" straight pipe, intake, and a 160hp PPE tune. It's been flaring shifts pretty consistently lately when I get on it (mostly the shift from 3rd to 4th) and I'm looking at kits to purchase and have it built so that when grandma's mini-van pulls out in front of me it doesn't sound like my truck is redlining at 40mph to get around her...........it's never limped, just slips the shat out of the shift from what I can tell. Question is - do I buy a Suncoast stage 3 kit or a PPE stage IV? It looks like the PPE is a little cheaper but I'm not sure what the difference in the kits is. Sounds like they all use similar clutch and converter manufacturers for their parts. The truck will never get drag raced or sled pull, I just want it to hold the power I'm putting to it. For arguement's sake let's just say 650 is the target. For those who've built their transmissions and have experience with individual products, let me know whose kits have worked the best for you and if you have any tips or tricks. Getting PPE or Mike L from Inglewood Transmission on the phone with my schedule seems fairly arduous these days and I would like to get the parts ordered. Thanks in advance guys.
 
Mile L. had some budget kits worked out some time ago. You might be time ahead to see what he has to offer.
 
I know the big dipper sells the suncoast set up with converter for around $2500....I havent any experience with any Others but he seems to be the most popular Allison guy around these parts..
 
Id call MikeL, George (dipper) or Suncoast. What shop is going to build the trans for you? Have they done many Allison builds?
 
Do it once, buy a PPE stage 4 or a Gmax kit. I personally like the Gmax but have had a lot of experience building PPE's as well. Both are good products, just my $.02
 
I finally talked with Mike L the other day about the kits he was working on - he's still doing some testing from what I'm told and they aren't available to the public yet. He did say the PPE was a decent kit.

04dirtymax; how much HP are you throwing at the stage IV?
 
Buy as much transmission as your wallet can allow.

I have a PPE Stg IV in my truck, made 530hp at Danvilles shop. The PPE IV is just Alto power packs with a transgo shift kit / regulator shim / converter valve. Mike L will tell you that the transgo shift kit was designed for stock clutches, and when used with the power packs it will have a rough 3-4 shift (sometimes mine hits hard, but not all the time). There are extra things in a PPE Stg V or a Gmax kit that help known issues and they have better over-all shift quality (like a c2 wave plate and modified pistons).

FWIW, I did my trans on a budget. I found a Suncoast 1056 conveter used from a guy that needed a looser stall for $500, bought new apply pistons and then bought the PPE Stg IV w/o converter. One thing to note is that the PPE kits DO NOT COME WITH NEW APPLY PISTONS / SEALS, the Gmax kits DO.

Good luck.
 
it is supose to be around 500hp, i don't drive it much but when i do it gets rode hard
 
thanks for the info guys - anyone have guys they prefer to do busines with?
 
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The kit used does not matter near as much as the person doing the build. If I were you I would contact a reputable builder near you and let them spec the build to fit your needs.
 
If you're in the Dallas area go see Josh Harris at Texas Performance Diesel in Emory. He is very knowledgeable about D-max's and the Allison.
 
Did you ever get your trans built? I built mine using the alligator stage 5 kit. Basically the same as the ppe 5 kit from what i could tell, i may be wrong tho. I built it myself and it seems to be great, although i have never ridden in say a mike l or big dipper built trans truck so i cant compare the feelings. Mine holds and shifts great. Obviously building it yourself will save you some cash too.
 
The Alligator Stage V kit is NOT the same as the PPE Stage V, I have installed both. If you are going the kit route, I would spend the extra couple hundred on the PPE kit.
 
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