Tank07

Allright so I got my hands on an autotrans interceptor last night......

I was wondering:

1. Does it really beat the crap out of the tranny?

2. Will it shorten the life of my tranny?

3. Do the pros outweigh the cons or do the cons outweigh the pros?

My father told me that if i want to keep it on i would need to beef up the tranny internals to avoid a problem and that it would cost around $2000 to do that

If i do use it I would only throw it one when im goin out on weekends to cobalt meets, car meets, etc. Since it just plugs in i would take it off for daily driving and commuting to college and work

Any thoughts?

seriously help me out here guys lol

kkanowitz

The Interceptor works the same way as the ShiftPlus. Only difference is that it's a little bit more user-friendly.

It is tricking the TCM into increasing the line pressure in the transmission leading to tighter shifts. This means there is less slipping which means less heat. As we all know heat is the #1 enemy in any mechanical device, so it won't do anything.

I've had my shiftplus on the highest setting for about 15,000 miles with no issues. And it makes the car soo much more fun to drive.

Tank07

yes but dosn't smacking the gears harder cause more wear and tear? I know our trannys are rated at 250 HP or close to that...

kkanowitz

Yea...the 4T45E can take a lot so nobody has ever worried about it. If you get time read through the shiftplus thread.

There have been cavi owners running these for over 100k miles and they're still running strong.

Tank07

im pretty convinced it won't..........however my father claims that is nothing more then a old school shift kit packaged differently and it WILL harm the tranny unless the gears are up graded to racing gears or stonger gears, etc.

you have a link to that thread?

originaladrian

lol dont worry about it, the auto trannys are beefy as hell

where did u find one? could have sworn they went out of business

Tank07

at the LI cobalt meet last night........one of the guys was going back to stock and had one so i jumped on it lol

bump.....

the only problem is my father claims that is nothing more then a old school shift kit packaged differently and it WILL harm the tranny unless the gears are up graded to racing gears or stonger gears, etc.

Sentry

No one has ever had a problem with either the B&M or the interceptor that I know of.

The 4t45 auto transmission is built really strong anyways, there's no way you're going to mess something up unless you really get crazy on the settings. Do not set it any more than 50% or it's going to shift really violently.

How much did you pay for it anyways? You might have gotten off better by just getting a tune.

originaladrian

hehehe, i have my shiftPlus on stg2. been tht way for a year and no problem. but it sure scares people that ride in my car.

"WTF was that?!!"
"nothing, i put my car in D"
"oooookkk"

Tank07

40 bucks.......and i like it set all the way up.....it dont shift that violently........and i like it lol

ya man its sick

i talked to my former scoutmaster.......hes been an auto mechanic for 30+ years.....he said it will increase the life of the tranny granted u dont beat the **** out of it due to less friction.....and i have i turned all the way up.........since its not tripping a CEL its the tranny isnt running to hot and isnt under too much pressure

thanks for all the advice its going to stay on the car permanently i love it way to much lol

the more i drive it the more i love it thanks for the advice guys guys

Viper33884

Hmmmm...I've never heard of this, I've ran my Shift+ for a while now and no problems, haven't run it lately but I had it on for a while and no problems.

Tank07

its the same thing as the shiftplus.......except no splicing wires.......just plus into the tranny cable and back into the tranny.........and it has 8 settings.........the only thing that sux is u cant control it from in the car

Viper33884

Ah ok thanks, I will choose my Shift+ over it then.

Tank07

allright one final question..........to adjust the interceptor (holding it vertically, with the adjustment screw up) which way makes it shift harder......clockwise or counter-clockwise?

anyone?.............bump

anyone at all? lol

***figured it out clockwise is harder shifts.........got it all the way up and it rocks :-)

worldskater1714

Where can i get one for a good price??

Tank07

your not gonna find one unless ur try ebay...........they dont make them anymore......ur only option is a B&M ShiftPlus same thing except u need to hard wire it into ur car.......just do a thread search and ull find more info

FF22

I've run the interceptor on two jbodies for quite a few years and drive very hard...never had any tranny problems, EXCEPT for a loud whistling noise which is the tranny pump making noise because of the higher line pressure...a little bit of extra ATM fluid fixed the problem...at 100% line pressure, at slow speeds when the tranny shifts it will make a noticable "THUNK" you can feel and hear, no way to get rid of it unless you do a tune where you can lessen the linepressure at lower speeds.... you also may get some tranny shutter at certain rpms and speeds under load, I got some around 70kph under load (ie going up a hill)...I'm getting the auto tranny tuned along with my mods I'll be installing and then I won't need the autotrans.

It doesn't hurt the tranny.. in some ways it's better and in other ways it does put a bit more stess... I wouldn't run 100% daily, I run 75% then turn it up when I need it. B&M is same deal but not nearly as easy to install/un-install.

EvilMonkey

I ran the interceptor on my 02 cavalier for 2 years set at 70%. And besides having to get TTR motor mounts due to my engine smacking my downpipe, lol, I never had a problem, besides the shuttering noises from under the hood as mentioned above.

Then I sold it to a friend for his 06 cobalt. And he ran it on 100% for 2 years no problems. It seemed to shift easier on the cobalt, im guessing because of the mounts.
The torque converter lock up feature is nice for gas mileage too, although sometimes the converter takes its time unlocking...

If you really want an interceptor look on some cavalier forums, theres a bunch floating around.

Halfcent

I understand where your father is coming from, but you are on the winning side of the argument this time. While the Interceptor does cause the transmission to shift harder, that is actually BETTER for the life of the transmission in this case. There are two parts to discuss here. The gear sets, and the clutch packs.

The gear sets are the part your dad is worried about. He believes the sudden jolt of torque from a hard shift will damage them. It won't. The 4T45e is rated to handle over 300 ft/lbs of torque in the gear box. The trans is used on some GM V6 applications. The L61 stock produces about 150 ft/lbs tops.

The clutch packs will do even better. The electronic control of this transmission is designed to apply pressure slowly to the packs during shifts to provide a smooth, comfortable ride. The means the packs are slipping during the shift, and hence wearing more and generating more heat. A fast shift eliminates that.

But here is an even easier way to win the argument. The stock transmission program is designed to deliver full pressure shifts while under full throttle acceleration. If you use the Interceptor, you will notice that there is no difference when it's on or off if you are accelerating at full throttle. It can not make the trans shift any harder. The interceptor simply keeps the full pressure shift (or at least higher pressure) over the full range of available acceleration.

So, if the car is designed to shift at full pressure under full acceleration, why can it not handle it under less-then-full?

/argument.

You're welcome. I accept payment via paypal or money order.

Tank07

allrighty guys.........this issue was resolved..........i have had the interceptor on for over a month all the way up.......i shut my dad up when my friends dad who is the head of a nissan service department and has 30+ years as an auto mechanic told him the same thing as everyone on here......

the shift kit is a win win win all the way around..........plus it makes the car that much more fun to drive :-)