# Finished the TKX upgrade



## CoveKid19 (Nov 18, 2021)

Finally got down to Phoenix this week to get the driveshaft shortened and finished the trans install yesterday. Talked to the driveline shop about angles and set the diff where they recommended. Angles from front to back came out at, trans 3.9° down, driveshaft 1.4° down and set the diff at 0°. Took it out for a short test drive and all was good. Sorry about the poor video quality, I'm not a professional. The wife was busy and didn't want to go with and hold the phone, so I had to resort to using my old Sony camera on a tripod set between the seats.


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## Baaad65 (Aug 29, 2019)

CoveKid19 said:


> Finally got down to Phoenix this week to get the driveshaft shortened and finished the trans install yesterday. Talked to the driveline shop about angles and set the diff where they recommended. Angles from front to back came out at, trans 3.9° down, driveshaft 1.4° down and set the diff at 0°. Took it out for a short test drive and all was good. Sorry about the poor video quality, I'm not a professional. The wife was busy and didn't want to go with and hold the phone, so I had to resort to using my old Sony camera on a tripod set between the seats.


Nice ! Looks like it shifts smooth, what first gear did you go with and what were the rpms at 60mph with what rear cog? How long do you think it will take you to get used to a new shift pattern


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## CoveKid19 (Nov 18, 2021)

Baaad65 said:


> Nice ! Looks like it shifts smooth, what first gear did you go with and what were the rpms at 60mph with what rear cog? How long do you think it will take you to get used to a new shift pattern



I went with the close ratio, 2.87 first with .68 fifth. Shifting is so much smoother than the Muncie, but the throw and shifter positions are nearly identical so getting used to it was not an issue. When upshifting I can't feel even a slight resistance when going into any gear, except maybe fifth since the strong detent springs make you have to push a little harder through the gate. 3.42 gear in the diff but have no idea of the RPM since I never replaced my tach after it quit working. I do plan on getting another and installing it in place of the clock some day. When I had a 428 in the car the tach was nice since it would wind pretty quick and easily exceed 5500, but the 389 with the tripower cam runs out of poop right around 5200 so it's nearly impossible to over rev it. Camera ran out of battery before I got a chance to run it up past 70, but when I did it was like a whole different car in fifth. RPM calculator says it's at 2170 RPM at 75 MPH with the 27" tire.


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## Baaad65 (Aug 29, 2019)

Nice ! I have a custom built Muncie/Autogear 2:98 first gear, all new linkage and shifter and it goes into second hard under wot and still gets hung up once in a while going into 3rd. I'm running for 3:42 also and it spins about 2400 rpms @ 60mph with 28" tires. I go back and forth if it's worth another 3500.00 to swap in the five speed just for a few rpms lower, I don't take it very far so it's not that big a deal, more for the ooos and ahhhs when someone sees a 5 on the shifter ball. Isn't the shift pattern different with reverse where 4th used to be instead of up and to the left?


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## CoveKid19 (Nov 18, 2021)

I left the 4 speed ball on mine. Might make some cringe, but I actually cut the original stick off of the 66 Hurst shifter and welded on a new base to keep the exact same angle up into the car. SST's shifter nub has a rearward lean to it and the only available round sticks increased that lean even more. In first, third or fifth gear those sticks still had a ton of space left between the ball and dash, not to mention they were much shorter than the stock stick which looked too odd for my liking. The 66 stick has about half the bend as the others but still needed a bit more forward lean to put it in the right spot. Looking at it now you can't tell anything's changed from stock.


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## Baaad65 (Aug 29, 2019)

Ah, I was looking for the fifth marking on the ball, I used a '67 stick in mine because the '65 was to straight up and down.


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## CoveKid19 (Nov 18, 2021)

I restored my old Hurst handle but not sure I want to use it or find a 5-speed ball I like.


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## Baaad65 (Aug 29, 2019)

Very nice, or you can find a number 5 cue ball in the color of your car 😉 My white shifter ball I use is the only thing I have from my '67 I sold in 1987. So why did you decide to go with the five speed, just to keep the rpms down, do you drive long distances? Just wondering if it's worth all the money and work when I have a custom 4 spd rated for 500hp and I don't do real long drives. Like I said I'm spinning at 2400 @60 mph with a stroker that's not to bad I don't think.


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## solar68 (Nov 11, 2021)

Love following this, mine will be going in next month- cant wait to be rowing gears


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## An0maly_76 (Dec 25, 2021)

God, I miss that signature Pontiac sound... even if it's not that prevalent in this video...


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## CoveKid19 (Nov 18, 2021)

Baaad65 said:


> So why did you decide to go with the five speed, just to keep the rpms down, do you drive long distances? Just wondering if it's worth all the money and work when I have a custom 4 spd rated for 500hp and I don't do real long drives. Like I said I'm spinning at 2400 @60 mph with a stroker that's not to bad I don't think.




For years, living and working in SoCal, I never really had the desire to drive the car too far to go to shows and such. I typically drove it around town, and short distances under 30 minutes or so if there was a show I wanted to attend. Freeway driveability was the main reason since keeping up with traffic meant 70+ MPH most of the time in hot weather. Been back in Arizona for quite a while now and would like to start taking the car to more places. Lots of car gatherings in my area (Prescott), but many I'd like to start going to that are 100+ miles away and in much hotter weather. Unfortunately the freeways now require 75+ or you'll just be in the way, and that means 3000+ RPM sustained which really tests the cooling system. So for myself, going the 5-speed route made more sense than keeping the Muncie in.

As for the cost being worth the upgrade, I look at it like you can't take it with you so why not just do it as long as you have the resources.


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