What’s Inside a 650hp Diesel Truck Transmission

A lot of customers ask us what goes into one of our custom built transmissions. Here Will Terry walks you through the upgrades and components you’ll find inside one of our 650hp rated transmissions.

Valve Body: The core of every Power Driven Diesel transmission is the valve body. All Power Driven transmissions come with an custom built, high pressure valve body. This is the brain of the transmission that allows for better control and higher line pressure, which means more power gets to the pavement!

Upgraded Electronics: We upgrade the electronics in our custom transmissions. We replace the small, stock governor solenoid with a larger BorgWarner unit designed to handle the high line pressure of a performance diesel transmission.

Four-Seal Billet Accumulator: Next, we replace the plastic stock accumulator with a billet aluminum accumulator. Stock accumulators typically have two seals. We utilize accumulators that have four seals. Anytime you can replace a plastic transmission component with an aluminum one, you’re going to improve the life of your transmission.

4.2 Ratio 2nd Gear Lever: We replace the stock 3.8 ratio lever with a billet 4.2 ratio 2nd gear lever. This gives more leverage applied to the band, with the same amount of pressure from the servo.

Upgraded Struts and Anchors: The upgraded gear lever means that the stock struts and anchors are prone to collapse under the increased pressure. We add heavy duty billet struts that won’t bend, and are capped with a big anchor.

One Piece Band for 2nd Gear: The three piece stock band is replaced with a thicker one piece steel band to prevent breaking at the ends and provide a more reliable 2nd gear setup.

Improved 2nd Gear Servo Cover: To provide a cleaner transmission on a 2/3 upshift, we add a servo cover with an o-ring seal. These eliminates binding issues, and comes standard on a 650hp transmission.

More and Upgraded Clutches: A stock transmission has four steel clutches. A Power Driven Diesel transmission comes with upgraded GPZ clutches that have a higher coefficient of friction and a better life. These are combined with new steels to make for a better, more reliable setup.

Billet 300M Input Shaft: We use 300M steel shafts from TCS. We have had great luck with this shaft and have used them in very high power builds.

Triple Disc Torque Converter: Power Driven Diesel transmissions come standard with a Diesel Performance Converters triple disc torque converter. The three clutch lockup can hold up to 1200HP and will last the life of the transmission.

SFI Rated Flexplate: The Guts seem to rip out of stock flexplates at around 500hp. To prevent this, we provide an upgraded heavy duty SFI rated flexplate, so you can legally race with it if you want.

Cast Aluminum Transmission Pan: This transmission pan is just a couple quarts over stock to give you a little extra cooling. It is also nice and stiff and braces the case like a girdle. Plus, because it’s not too deep, you can put a transmission blanket on it if/when you race.

This is what goes into a 650hp rated transmission from Power Driven Diesel. Everything we have shared here will go into your transmission to ensure you have the best built transmission for your truck and your money.

If you’re ready to add one of our custom transmissions to your truck, check out all the options and order online today. If you have questions about what transmission and setup is right for your truck and driving style, give us a call or leave a comment below and we will be happy to help.