Charlie Owens first drove this 1974 Camaro when he was 16. It belonged to a friend of his from high school. Sean Cagle was days away from graduating, enjoying some time at the lake, when he dove in and broke his neck. It was May 22, 1983 and he would've graduated in just four days on May 26th. His brother, Jeff, stored Sean's 1974 Camaro away as a tribute to the brother he lost. Thirty-two years later, Jeff runs into Sean's good friend Charlie Owens. Charlie remembered Sean's 2nd Gen and even got to drive it when he was 16. Jeff sold the car to Charlie and Charlie got to work restoring his buddy's car. The first thing Charlie updated on his car was the engine with a 383 Stroker Kit with an Eagle Rotating Assembly built by James Grey of Greytech Autobuilt. The new engine was great and he loved it, but the original Muncie 4-speed just wasn't cutting it. He turned to Silver Sport Transmissions and soon he had a Tremec TKO 5-Speed PerfectFit Kit installed.  Charlie loves the car now. He says the Tremec TKO 5-speed made it so enjoyable to drive, especially on the interstate and highways. He knows he doesn't have a show car, he doesn't want one.  He just wants to drive his friend's car, a tribute to a friend who was lost too soon.

Frank purchased the Tremec TKO 600 PerfectFit Kit for his 1969 Camaro I just took on the transmission on its madden voyage this week and it all works great wow what a difference!!! Thanks Jack!

Hi Jeff, Took the car about 20 miles to a cruise, and it drove beautiful. With 3:55 gears my 1st gear is effortless, and it cruises great at 70 to 75. Your trans kit is probably the one best modification a person could make to a classic. I also included some pictures of my cross member mods. Like it or hate it, it made putting the trans in a snap, and it's not going any where. All of the staff are wonderful also. Thank's for helping me make the right decision. Lonnie

We often hear an overdrive transmission is the single most dramatic improvement our customers make to their cars. Not too many of them back it up with dynamometer results. Our customer, John P. sent us this email with his dyno results: I bought a TKO600 kit for my 1973 Corvette from you last April. I got it running last weekend, and the difference between my TH400 and this TKO600 is astounding. I can hardly believe I ran that TH400 for all those years. It was nicely built with higher stall, shift kit, 34 tooth sprag & good clutches & steels, but it is still an absolute slush box compared to the performance of the TKO. This was worth every penny of the cost. And the kit was beautiful, everything was there and of excellent quality and perfect fit. The thing that impressed me the most was the increase in power and response to my wheels. I had expected to feel some of course, but the amount I did feel was much greater than my expectations. I put it on a chassis dyno this morning and the numbers prove it: The TH400 used up fully 25% of engine power, this TKO600 uses only 12%. Half! I got an increase of 60 lb/ft of torque and 48 horsepower to the rear wheels! I did not expect that great a difference, but the numbers prove it. And I shall show you: Attached are my dyno sheets. One for the engine on the engine dyno with full exhaust and air cleaner as on the car, one with the TH400 on the chassis dyno, and one with the TKO600 on the same chassis dyno. I'll also send a photo of the engine on the dyno and one of my car. It is a bit of a street rat. The paint is original, with chips, stains and faded front bumper. So is the interior, with ripped driver seat and some loose trim. Radio, A/C, and other useless stuff has been removed. None of that helps it run better. But underneath there are many suspension, brake, drive train and other upgrades. The engine is a mildly built 383 with AFR heads, smallish roller cam and OEM Quadrajet. I run a 3.36 rear end. Thanks for your help & the great kit. I love it. The 500 miles I have on it so far have been the most pleasurable and fun I have ever had driving this car. It is the best thing I have done for the car and really adds a crowning touch to all the other modifications I have made --and will keep making. Sincerely, John P. Loveland, CO As you can see, John is really happy with the Tremec TKO600 5-Speed and his PerfectFit™ Kit. His results made us curious about why his horsepower and torque improved exponentially, so we asked the smartest guy we know, our in-house engineer, Dick McCord. Dick examined the dyno test results and took inventory of the drivetrain components in John’s car. This is what he found: The TKO has a lower rotating mass (inertia) than the larger, bulkier TH400. Energy is lost as the heavy gears rotate. The TH400 torque converter efficiency (even with a higher than stock stall speed) would affect the dyno results. The TKO was designed to be more efficient than older model transmissions; so many considerations were made to reduce parasitic power loss. The A41 automatic, LGT-700, and Magnum 6-Speed would have all had similar results for the same reasons as the TKO.   Dick also pointed out that when the car is in 5th gear with an overdrive ratio of 0.82 verses the TH400’s 3rd gear at 1:1, the reduced engine RPM at highway speeds will increase gas mileage and reduce cabin noise.   These are some impressive results. 

Charlie was 8 years old in 1969 when his Step-Dad let him drive his 1960 Vette for the first time.  He caught the Corvette itch that day and through his life many Corvettes have come and gone, but the one he always remembered still sat in his Step-Dad's garage. Once he started rebuilding the 1960 Vette, he knew he needed a new drivetrain to turn the wheels.  He also knew the TKO PerfectFit™ Kits SST acquired from Keisler and continue to develop are by far the best on the market.  Here's his email to us and some photos of the Vette that stole his heart. Hello Silver Sport Team, I want to personally thank you for helping me make progress on my 1960 Corvette project.  I also enjoyed reading about the SST story and how you revived the Keisler dream.  I always thought that they had a great product to offer the market, and was disappointed when they were gone.  I am glad that I stumbled upon your website last month and asked for help.  Of the four emails I sent out requesting guidance and help on my transmission dilemma; SST was the only company to reply.... Again, thank you. Attached are 11 pictures of my Vette.  One from when my Dad started removing the paint back in 1967 (that is me doing the “Photo-Bomb” hiding behind the car in the background), a few from when I resurrected it from his garage in San Diego, and a few of what she looks like now here at her new home in Houston.  I have the motor ready to drop in, and now the remaining transmission parts thanks to SST.  Interior is almost completed as well.  It has been a slow (and rather expensive) project.  Should have it finished in November or December, so the total project timeline will be a two year adventure.  But well worth it.  This car has been in my family since the mid 60’s, died a slow death 30 years ago, and will be alive again in 6 months. Many Thanks, Charlie M. Houston, Texas USA

Hello Jack,  I just wanted to let you know that my transmission is on the way and I can't wait to get it installed in my car.  Your customer service is top notch, and the 10-10-10 payment plan is a great way to pay for the conversion kit.  I attached some pictures of my car and will update you on the install.  Thanks again,  Derrik

Ben, Thank you so much for the quick response and the manuals. I did all the body work, fabrication, assembly, for the car. The only things I did not do was the final paint (primed and block sanded it), install front and rear glass, and the headliner. I also installed new Recaro style seats and matched the houndstooth pattern to the rears. The transmission install was totally me, and I had never done anything like that before. Great manuals. Again, thanks for the help, look forward to getting into this portion of the build. Loch

Some first generation Corvette customers find they don't have to notch the ashtray while others do. Rick had to modify his and he sent us some great images of the modification. He also reviewed the performance and installation. Hello Jack, Jeff and Ben, So glad I talked to you at Carlisle and I bought my TKO 600 from you guys. Installation went relatively easy on a lift. I think it would have been harder to do with the car on jack stands. If you're young probably no problem. My kit arrived within the week after placing the order with you while at Carlisle. I test fitted the transmission without a clutch installed which made it easy and took my drive shaft measurement at that time so you guys could get that made up. Had the drive shaft in a few days. Took the car out yesterday for a test drive. It was fantastic. It was quiet, no vibrations, and what amazed me was my speedometer was right on. I used a GPS to check it. I figured you guys set the gearing correctly but my old speedometer would be off.  It’s like driving a completely different car now. It accelerates different, it sounds different and the gear combination I’m running is perfect for driving around town in 5th gear. Now I’m ready for some long distance car shows. Can’t wait to see how much my gas mileage has improved. I am more than happy with the kit. I know you’ll have some more orders coming your way. Rick & Peg

Hello Tami and Jack, I received a nice card in the mail.  Thank you. Just a note to tell you the transmission kit I purchased for my '76 Corvette from Silver Sport Transmissions was delivered in good order to my mechanic, Vernon Dickson.  He owns a shop and worked in the install between his regular customer jobs.  He was pleasantly surprised that your kit seemed to be complete instead of other so called complete kits which are short several parts to actually be "complete" and then have to cherry pick other sources for them.  I did have to buy a different starter, the starter from the previous automatic transmission will not work with the manual transmission. Tami, I would also like to brag on you.  You were thorough and answered all my questions or got the answer I needed.  Your attitude, knowledge and ability to handle a quote (and a customer) and make a couple of requested changes on the quote helped me make the decision to make my purchase from you. Jack, I've had a great experience with Silver Sport Transmissions.  I have talked up your company and already have 2 other local prospects who will be contacting SST when they order their Tremec transmission. Thanks again, for the great service, product, and follow up.  If you ever need a reference.... Sincerely,  JD Prather  -  Skiatook, OK