Torque Converter Looseness
 

I have a Vigilante 4000, which is the first TC Ive ever driven with. It takes a lot of rpm to get up and go for normal driving (2500-3000). With the stock cam it needed more.

I dont really have anything to compare it to other than Matt's mystery stall, which is definitely tighter than mine, and internet videos.

Im looking for personal experience from people with similar Converters and driving characteristics for comparison.

Seomething doesnt seem right.

When you take you foot off the brake in drive, what does it do?

For a converter that is rated to stall @ 4000 that sounds like normal operation.. It will probably flash to 4200 or so if you trounce on it.. 4000 is a really loose converter for the street unless you have a very wild combo it is probably a little too loose and really hurting your mileage when driving around town out of lock up..

foot off the brake it will idle forward but very slow, and roll backwards on an incline. In most of the videos Ive seen, and what Ive read about Yank 4000's is that most people only need like 2000 rpm to get up and moving normally.

Josh, I dont believe my combo is radical, its a 228/232 111lsa cam and supporting bolt ons, stock 241 heads. I went with a 4000 because I didnt want to regret going with a 3600, and most of the stalled autos I saw only needed ~2k rpm to get going.

Gas mileage around town has been ~10 mi/gal. Highway in lockup has been around 19 mi/gal. I expected the highway mileage to drop to around what it is, but the local mileage is much worse.

With a cam like that you could have gone with something like a 3400.. It would have been more efficient down low than what you have and still keep you in your power band.

Taylor we could try increasing the timing at part throttle see if it will wake the car up any.

Could always yank it out and restall it down to a 3400-3600.

I dont really mind the looseness, its more the town driving mileage that sucks, but thats to be expected with the setup I chose. Honestly, the looseness is nothing compared to all the shaking, surging, bogging, and revving the car does on its own. I just want to know if everyone else has close to the same experiences with a 4000 stall on the street.

The cam you have can get decent mileage.. A properly set up converter would only improove driveability and mileage. No down side.