automatic worth modding?

ive got a 95 gs-t with 78k miles on it the only thing it has on it is a cat back exhaust that was on it when i bought it, i was thinking about dumping about $2k in the engine but it has an automatic transmission so i was just wondering if anyone had an opinion about putting that much money in an automatic if its worth it or should i just try and find a 5-speed? thanks

automatics can be just as fast as manuals. it's just merely a preference to the driver.

In my honest opinion....NO i dont think they are worth modding. I mean think of it like this. Our cars are pretty fast stock, right? Maybe you want to be as fast as a viper in 1/4 mile and you succeeded by heavily modding your car. Now, if you ever had money for a viper or even more expensive exotic sports car, would you choose auto over manual? I dont think so. Why do you think on cars (viper, lambos, evo VIII, NSX, Ferraris, etc.) with lots of power come standard with a manual transimission? Not only is it more fun, but you have big and more advantages over an auto. One day, ill post this article done by an editor at sport compact magazine in which he explains why manuals are better than autos.

But like everyone will tell you, its all about preference. And if you want to build yourself a 400hp automatic, then go ahead. Its your choice.

If you have the chance to sell it, sell it and buy a manual. You will not regret it.

im selling my auto, and going with a manual gst/x

All of the fastest 4g63 cars are autos. Shepperd is the only one in the 8s with a stardard besides Extreme, and they were reportedly breaking tcases and other driveline parts every time they took the car out. Autos handle more torque before breaking (the typical 2 speed powerglide they use can be built to handle over 1000 hp), shift faster, and are more consistent. I still prefer manual, but the thought of converting to an auto has crossed my mind more than a few times. For the cost of one ACT 2600 clutch, which lasts me a couple months at best, you can build a DSM auto to take ~450 whp. Unfortunately a FULL build up is still 2500 bucks, same as a 5 speed. Another thing that turned me off was the need to find a new 4 bolt rear from an auto, since the ratios are different. At any rate, auto isnt as bad as some poeple think, it just has to be setup right. Out of the box, the 5 speed usually performs better, but in the long run either one performs well and has its own advantages and dissadvantages.

well thanks for the input i guess im pretty much just gonna stick with my car for now the only reason i really ask is cuz a friend of mine found a 97 5-speed but i dont think its a turbo so i was just wondering if trading the auto gs-t for the 5-speed gs would put me better off in the long run

trading the auto gs-t for the 5-speed gs would put me better off in the long run
no!!! i used to have a gs. dont go from turbo to nonturbo. i would keep your car and just build up the transmission.

If your car is red/black and you live near VA and want to sell it PM me.

Don't get a 2nd gen n/t whatever you do. If you wanna keep your car rebuild the tranny. I intend to rebuild mine and then turbo it if I don't find something better. I don't even know if there are many better cars for me than this one because it seems very reliable for getting up to 6500 RPM's daily.

In my car when it shifts it seems to surge forward when I'm giving it hell. I'm pretty sure that's normal but why does it do that?

Oh yeah, my tranny only shifts well when the fluid is overfull...why is that? The guy that sold it to me thought it needed a rebuild and so did I till I overfilled it.

What ever you do DO NOT sell your turbo for and NT just because you want a 5-speed. For a 95 GST 78k is pretty low mileage. The 97 looks nicer but you can change that later on.
As far as the tranny why dont you get yourself a Translab shift kit, IPT End Clutch kit and maybe a High stall torque converter. You will see a noticible difference. Go to www.importperformancetransmissions.com those guys are awesome at building up auto trannys on DSM's. And they have a shit load of parts you can buy and install yourself to get that tranny shifting harder and faster.

That (IPT) is the shop I was refering to above. If you dont live near them you can buy the parts and have a local reputable shop do the work. For about the cost of one clutch, you can have a pretty stout auto that shifts hard and fast. Like I said, I still prefer manual at this point, but I would much rather have an auto turbo DSM over a standard NT!

Having a beefed-up auto tranny can also add to the sleeper effect :) . People say, "damn nice dsm, but it's auto so it won't be that fast." Little would they know.... ;)

allright well now im definatley just gonna stick with the auto, but yea my friend who knows more about any car than anyone i know was definatley saying no way should i move down to a n/t i just thought id get a second opinion but thanks for the sites with the tranny upgades after a new timing chain im gonna start putting money into the engine and i like the whole sleeper idea cuz i wanted to make it a sleeper from the begining but im definately getting some flack off my friends for it being an auto but with the exception of one of their rs-x's type-s none of them even come close to hanging with me, and with a couple hundered bucks im sure i can change that too :grinyes: but thanks for th advice if you have anymore stuff to tell me about auto tranny's then keeep putting them in here ill keep checkin back

i don't like them, but yes you can mod them. let's just say if you race you don't have to worry about miss shifes, but don't think that AT trany will last.

People are running them locally with a 400 dollar upgrade and they are lasting year after year. How long does an almost-400 dollar 2600 last in my car? Oh yeah, 2 months. Built autos hold up just fine from my point of view. :)

then go to 3200, auto's can't do that. they would have to get the trany rebuilt and upgraded. all you have to do is up your clutch. If you can't take a 2600lb then step it up, you have to much power for that little thing. I had to do that to. keep burning them up.

Adding pressure isnt always the answer. No thanks. I'd rather run a disk that doesnt turn into burger grease with a little heat. But I hear the 2900 pedal pressure (read: crankwalk) is lower than the 2600, so if I can verify that I may go that route. I would still like to get away from ACT though.

<-------ACT stage 2 works great, with the fadanza flywheel.

DSMers try to avoid "stage" terminology, since its completely useless in the info department. Quoting the PP rating, like 2100, 2600, 2900, and 3200, along with disc type like street, 4 puck, sprung 6 puck, full face sintered iron, etc, will make conversation much easier. :) That being, said, what in the hell is an ACT stage 2? 2600?

Saw an Eclipse RS run a 14.9 last year. 5 psi of boost and an auto tranny. Autos aren't that bad, I would take a 5 spd over an auto any day but whatever its personal prefs, autos are pretty much just as fast.

DSMers try to avoid "stage" terminology, since its completely useless in the info department. Quoting the PP rating, like 2100, 2600, 2900, and 3200, along with disc type like street, 4 puck, sprung 6 puck, full face sintered iron, etc, will make conversation much easier. :) That being, said, what in the hell is an ACT stage 2? 2600?


sorry, yes 2600.

Well it's pretty much all been said already. I'm glad you decided to stick with the A/T. Kevin made some good points (as always). IPT also has forums (including a DSM one), and there's a dedicated subforum for A/Ts at DSMtuners. Check out plymouthlaser.com for some good A/T-related info as well.