I did some searching on here and found no threads of this sort, so here we go! Im going to preface this and say that I am by no means an expert or a professional, but I figure if I can bumble through this (again) the vast majority of you should be able to as well. I built one of these back in college, so this isnt my first go round, but its also been a while. Quick info byte: the 200-4r was an early attempt by GM to build an overdrive automatic transmission. They are unique in that they employ a single piece case from bellhousing to tail shaft, and share little in terms of similarity to the 700r4 transmission that replaced them. Honestly, it surprises me that the 200-4r is not a more widely utilized swap unit, as it is identical in length to a TH400 and will swap directly in to most vehicles that came factory with a TH350/TH400 with little to no modifications needed. looking for a 200-4r, it is important to note that they were offered with both a BOP and Universal bellhousing. The universal housing will work with a standard small block Chevy, while the BOP housing will not. Now for the fun: I picked up this unit about a year ago with the expectation of using it in some future project or other. I went to try and pull the converter to do some inspection and found it was frozen in the pump. After several failed attempts at yanking it free, I threw the unit up on my stand and really went to town. Finally it was determined that I would have to cut the converter out. Note the converter snout damage where someone forced it in and then tried to run it. with the converter out of the way, I pulled the pan, which was shockingly clean, and pulled the pump for further inspection. It is recommended to use a special tool for pulling the pump, but a couple of flat blade screw drivers can be used to gently pry the pump ***embly up and free. I did discover that someone has previously been inside this unit, as the lockup feature for the converter has been deleted. Note the pipe plug in the valve body where the lockup solenoid should go. Also the lockup switch valve in the pump has been removed/deleted. That will be a tricky part to track back down, as I would like to have the lockup feature enabled for highway cruising. I will continue to do***ent/photograph as I tear down and inspect. Hopefully this will be useful to a few guys on here, as I've noticed the 200-4r is somewhat popular with a lot of HAMB builds.
That's the only ****** I use. Better ratios than a 7004R. Very simple to boost shift rpm points to more comfortable performance level. Simply remove one spring and trim the centrifugal weights on the governor. New governors are (were?) available for about $15 to experiment with. Here is what I did to program mine for a 307 Chevy in a '59 El Camino. Right one shows what to removed, left one has been cut. Another view of the mods. Remove this spring. Braze a nail in to hold the remaining spring which can jump out on a hard shift.
This will probably start off somewhat slow as I'm mostly working in what moments of spare time I can steal. Got the intermediate servo removed. More than likely the lock ring is gunked up, so some gentle prying through the gap in the case and a few love taps may be needed to break it loose. Then the cover should come free. You'll need to likely grab it with some pliers as there is an O-ring that keeps it somewhat snug. After that, the outer piston, inner piston, and band apply pin should all slide right out.
The main reason we don't see more 200's used is they weren't made for very long. Only a 9 year period from 1981-1990, and after the 700R4 came out the last few years of the 2004R were even less made. I'd have loved to have found one when I bought my 700R4, but couldn't find any at all rebuilt, or good used cores.
I suppose same reason any T5 discussions never get removed, it’s a common ish use to make rods more ‘useable’ Il always appreciate a tech post over chat about lawn chairs!!!
And much like a t5, you can slot it in in place of the original trans with minimal change, and still retain the outward appearance of a an "original" or "traditional" setup.
Great trans to use in our rides however I fear the days of easily finding the better valve bodies, int. Servos (692s specifically), int. bands, and cheap governors to butcher may be over. The rest of the perf parts to take these up to 600 ponies seem to still be available, but yoikes the prices are getting high. I had lots of fun playing with governors. Really neat to see what a couple grams here or there does, but changing them out isn’t fun as you have to drop the pan. On that note, make sure you get a pan with a plug or put one into the pan you have….trust me. and yes, I did use my golf club building scale to weigh the parts as I carved. .
The original 3 speed TH200 was made for V6 use. It can be beefed up to work with a V8. The R4 version is a good OD trans with a smaller case than the 700R4.
It's a tad bit different. I run a '54 Willys Dual Range Hydro in my Willys. Fluid coupling instead of torque converter, cast iron case, two bands, two clutch packs, three planetaries, VERY goosey 2-3 shift, no kick down on acceleration, and most impressive, no need for a ****** cooler!
Yesterday we took my 200R core to the rebuilder and when sitting side by side I realized the trans mount was the same distance from the front as a Turbo 400. I have heard for years that the 200R was an easy replacement for the Turbo 350. Doesn't look that way to me?
Had a little more time to mess with things. Removed the governor ***embly pulled the 1-2 ac***ulator housing and separator plate then pulled the TV linkage ***embly and shifter detent then the valve body came off. One of the check balls dropped, but i think rhe others are still in correct positions. I do have a manual in case theyre not. pulled the 3-4 ac***ulator and discovered more evidence of whoever has been here last. Luckily it looks like the springs for these are pretty readily available. jumping to the top, pulled the pump to housing thrust washer and oil deflector plate. Then popped the retaining ring loose and was able to pull the full overdrive ***embly and input shaft. you can then grab the overdrive internal gear and pull it out. Make sure the thrust washer is also under it. there is another retainer ring holding the clutch spring ring in. It is under some spring pressure, so it takes a little coaxing to remove. Once out, the 4th clutch spring ***embly will lift free. now you need to pull the 2 10mm center support bolts and the center support snap ring. This is the point that I was thoroughly mf-ing the last guy, because he set the ring in the case so that one of the tabs was nearly inaccessible. once out, make sure the center support to direct washer is present, then you can tweeze the direct drum with your fingers and pull it up and out. The intermediate band is now easily removed, as well as the anchor pin for the band.
Never seen a converter cut apart like that to remove it from the pump. We have pulled the converter out via hyd press and chains. 2 forklifts were used on a 4L80 stuck converter years ago. The drive hub ring gear on the over drive planet is a common failure in higher HP situations. It splits at the spines on the small mid shaft.
Overall length is the same as the standard car TH-350, and driveshaft slip-yoke is the same so no changes needed there. The trans mount location is the only real difference. Easier to move the crossmember or fab a mount at home than it is to shorten a driveshaft
If you have room to move the mount back a few inches it is a good swap for a 350. Getting ready to help a friend do just that in his 32. Gary did the ****** guy give you a price?
I have a friend who's had several 200R's rebuilt by this guy and the price has been more than fair. Much less than many of the companies I see selling rebuilt 200R trans.
What's he charge if you dont mind my asking? Finding knowledgeable people to build/troubleshoot these is getting harder every p***ing year. Plus Nebraska isnt too far away in the instance I hit a snag or have some questions....
5 speeds if you count the lockup converter. Love these trans. Can't believe it finally made it to traditional status. Cool....
Finally had more time to keep working on this again. With the direct drum out, you can simply lift the forward clutch housing ***embly free. Then remove the small output shaft to forward clutch shaft selective washer that is stuck into the end of the output shaft. Remove the output shaft snap ring (I found that support under the output shaft made this easier) and remove the front internal gear set. there will be a needle thrust bearing either stuck to the gear housing, or on top of the carrier ***embly. Note the orientation and set aside. Now you can remove the carrier ***embly, thrust washer, and front sun gear. The input drum and rear sun gear ***embly should also now lift free. There will be another thrust washer on the back of this sun gear shell.
With the sun shell out, you will have access to the low/reverse housing retainer ring. Its a bear to remove, but with some ingenuity you can weasel it out with a couple screwdrivers. There is a special tool to make removing the low/reverse housing easier. However if youre like me, and infrequently build transmissions, as well as have a bit of a budget, there is an alternative! By gently lifting up on the output shaft, there is enough play to work the housing loose from the case. I was then able to use a pair of bent wire hangers to snag and lift the ***embly out of the case. once the low/reverse housing is out, there will be one final retaining/spacer ring. Once removed, you can grasp the output shaft and lift the remaining components free of the case. now the primary component teardown is complete. There are still a few parts in the case that you can address if need be, such as the speedo gear ***embly, shift mechanisms, and the output shaft seal. I plan on taking the case to work and hitting it with the pressure washer as well. Component dis***embly and rebuild will commence as soon as I track down and order a suitable rebuild/upgrade kit. If youve made it this far, you can at least strip a 200-4r to the bare case now! The hard part of putting it together, and the even harder part of making it work comes later.
The Jalopy Journal
